The 'REJECTIONLESS' Rejection!

For those of you in the "book world," myself included, chances are you have received, seen, read, or at least heard about rejection letters from agents. You know what I mean...when you send your ms (which stands for "manuscript" of course) to an agent for what you hope will be an acceptance of your masterpiece, which will hopefully lead to your ms being published, which will hopefully lead to a blissful life as an author. WINK ;-)

Well how many of you have actually received the infamous rejection letter or letters??  The ones that say thanks but no thanks to that beautiful piece of work you spent months, possibly years, working on that you thought would lead you to be the next J. K. Rowling! WINK WINK ;-)

How about those literary agencies where you hear NOTHING AT ALL!?!?!? What I call, the REJECTIONLESS REJECTION aka "No Response Means NO"!

Has that ever happened to you? The "No response means no" policy has definitely happened to me. However, I didn't have a problem with it until I encountered ONE particular agency, you can read about it from my Blog at this link http://tdeniseclarybooks.blogspot.com/2011/07/year-2011.html

In lieu of the "No response means no" policy, I ran across an agent's Blog that addressed that very issue from the AGENT's point of view. I found it interesting and thought I would pass it along, the agent's post is highlighted below...

"WHY I DON'T SEND REJECTION LETTERS"
I have been asked by quite a number of people why I don't send rejections, so I thought I'd post my answer here as well...

The answer is 2 prong...time and karma

First, I have not found an easy way to send a form rejection. I have to cut and paste every rejection into a response email and that takes hours. Right now I read many of the queries on my phone, getting to them as quickly as I can thus making that 1 month deadline....I reject most within a few days (sometimes minutes or seconds) of receiving them but hold on to the ones I am thinking about so that is why it is a month and not a 2 week turnaround time.

With rejections comes authors fighting back sometimes, sending followup questions, etc. I wish I had the time for that but with 3 kids I feel that the time spent on authors I am not taking on as clients is time away from my family.

I spent the first year sending out declines and it definitely took away from work time, family time, etc. Also, the negativity of sending so many no's really weighed heavy on me. Now I work only in the positive, sending yeses and encouraging emails when I feel moved to send them.

And this is where karma comes in. I announced my change to no answer means no policy on this blog and other places on March 4th, 2010, one year after becoming an agent. One year with NO sales. Yes, it was the worst time to be selling ms in this industry and yes, I was new and had very few clients to sell but still, zero sales.

On April 30th, 2010 I had my first offer for a book--the wonderful PURPLE DAZE by Sherry Shahan pubbed by Running Press. After that first sale (and no more negative rejections coming from my mind/hand/computer) the sales kept coming in....and coming, and coming. Fast forward to today, 1.5 years after the no answer means no policy, and I have sold 28 books with more offers on the way. Plus, I have a book deal of my own in which I am giving voice to 30...count 'em...30 poets in DARE TO DREAM...CHANGE THE WORLD. Karma!

So that is why I don't send rejections. It is a huge time suck as well as time spent in a negative vibe which I do not feel helps my clients, my future clients, most writers, my family, nor me.

I know that feeling of not hearing....I lived it for years. It sucks but if you keep a database and check the no box after a month, you know the answer.

Although I'm not sure I entirely agree with all the opinions expressed above, I definitely understand where the agent is coming from, I too have a family equipped with 3 active kids!! I know all too well about having that work/life balance!! And like I stated above, I am O.K. with the "no response means no" method many agencies have adopted, as long as it is clearly expressed in their submissions policy.

However you weigh in on the subject matter, try to keep a positive mindset when receiving those rejection letters (or lack thereof). Trust in the Lord and allow Him to direct your steps...that rejection(s) just might be a Blessing in disguise! The Lord may be leading you down a different pathway!!!

 I will leave you with this scripture;
"They will have no fear of bad news; their hearts are steadfast, trusting in the Lord." Psalm 112:7 (NIV)


God Bless!
T Denise Clary

"Let The Illustrations Begin!"

I know that I've been saying that the INSIDE illustrations are coming soon, but now I can REALLY say that they are underway!!

Jeff, my illustrator, sent me an email yesterday letting me know that he will start working on the inside illustrations for the book Vinny Vain this week. Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am super excited and can't wait to see what Jeff comes up with for each illustration. It's one thing to read the words of a children's book, but to actually see the images that go along with the words, is something else altogether.

Vinny Vain will require about 13 images. I will try to post what I can as they are being developed.

God Bless,
T Denise Clary

New Bible Verse ~ Sunday, Sept 4th

New Bible verse posted as of September 4th...Have a great week!

Romans 15:13 (NIV)

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.


God Bless!
T Densie Clary

"BEING JOYFUL" !!!

In light of my latest "Bible Verse" posting about being joyful always (1 Thessalonians 5:16)...I began to ponder about what exactly IS being joyful and what makes ME "joyful"?

Do you ever have one of those days or moments when you just don't feel like putting on a "happy" face for those you encounter? You don't want to be cheerful, let alone being anyone's cheerleader.You know what I mean, you're just having a moment!  We all have our little "moments" and some people I can say, more so than others! LOL

I know in ANY profession it is difficult to look and appear as if you are always happy-go-lucky. Me included...being an attorney, real estate agent, wife, mother, and now author...trying  to appear as though nothing phases me is a daunting task.  Lets look at some situations I have personally encountered in my life in the different roles I play...

ATTORNEY...
As an attorney, trying to keep your cool while at the same time arguing on your client's behalf. Then  prevailing on your client's case to only face your client arguing with you over the small amount of attorney fees that doesn't even cover the cost of the entire litigation process.

REALTOR...
Or how about in my role as a real estate agent spending countless hours day-in and day-out (even working until the wee hours of the night and even on your much needed vacation) trying to get a property sold on a client's behalf, only to lose the property to foreclosure.

WIFE & MOTHER...
Or even as a wife and mom, spending several hours in the kitchen preparing a fabulous meal (or at least you think it's fabulous, LOL) and having your spouse NOT get second helpings (you see, I know when my spouse doesn't like what I've cooked--he doesn't go for seconds) and having your absolutely honest kids tell you "Mom, I don't like this...can I get a bowl of cereal?" Ugh!!! Really??!! When I have just spent hours in the kitchen and now will have to spend more time in the kitchen cleaning up ALL the evidence (from food left on their plates) of how much they didn't like the meal!! LOL

AUTHOR...
And what about my new role as an author? There are many ups and downs in the book world, especially if you're a new author. From not getting the support you thought you would receive from some of your family and friends...to selling a decent amount of books, however having one person "Return/refund" one of your books. Of course you don't know the reason why someone has returned a book, but your curiosity runs rapid and even though you've sold many books with great reviews...that ONE returned book will stay on your mind for the longest!!

So the point to all the above examples...it's difficult to always put on a happy face, but what about having joy. Yes J-O-Y as the Bible speaks of!!!  Being joyful always...Is this even possible??? Obviously the Bible thinks so. So what is being joyful?

Well, the dictionary defines joyful as
1. full of joy, as a person or one's heart; glad, delighted.
2. showing or expressing joy, as looks, actions, or speech
3. causing or bringing joy, as an event, a sight, or news; delightful

Of course there are countless books on the subject of JOY and ALL the ways to obtain it. There are songs in almost every genre, perfume fragrances, even a society for "joyful beings" on the internet. But can you obtain joy by joining a Joyful Being society, hearing it sung in a song, spraying it on, or reading how to obtain it in a book?? Well maybe LOL, guess it depends on the book!

Personally, I believe my joy comes from the Holy Spirit within. Several verses in the Bible allude to this, but one in particular points out that one of the fruits of the spirit is JOY (Galatians 5:22).

Therefore, how do I define joy or being joyful?  I would define being joyful as something that you have within that brings about a peace, a calmness, a solitude that helps you react a certain way to your surroundings.  No matter what the day or circumstance may bring, you have an underlying joy that does not waiver. You may not be having the best day or moment, but that underlying peace, calmness, solitude, joy, makes you sit back and take a deep breath before reacting to a difficult situation.

Your underlying "joy" within could also make you think of things that bring you joy...such as a certain person or people (i.e. your spouse or children) when you're having a rough day at work. Or like a favorite quote from a good book when things aren't going your way. The song "Favorite Things" from the movie Sound of Music comes to mind. Your underlying joy makes you think of your favorite things in life!! SMILE.


Being "happy" in every circumstance and situation in life is probably not realistic. However, having that underlying joy...being joyful always...most certainly is!!! At least I think so...and so does your Heavenly Father! SMILE :-)

How would you define joy or being joyful and what brings you the MOST joy?


         God Bless!
       T Denise Clary