tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post726311304131849735..comments2023-11-02T06:57:11.400-04:00Comments on BookEnds Literary Agency: The Perfect BookBookEnds, A Literary Agencyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06287278822065839469noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-82341420585444209652008-09-12T13:26:00.000-04:002008-09-12T13:26:00.000-04:00Thanks for the info Jessica. I learn so much from ...Thanks for the info Jessica. I learn so much from this blog.<BR/><BR/>I had no idea that many of the houses would pass your story around to other editors to gain concensus. It sure helps put things in perspective and explain why it takes a while to get a reply.<BR/><BR/>Do most of the big NY publishing houses use that approach?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-13908046227804100192008-09-12T11:16:00.000-04:002008-09-12T11:16:00.000-04:00"I’m beginning to wonder if there is any point in ..."I’m beginning to wonder if there is any point in submitting at all if it has to be perfect. I don’t keep a high enough regard of myself or my work to ever reach that point."<BR/><BR/>At some point you have to quit fiddling also. If you have a good critique group or partner, take the comments and apply as desired. Make your final edit and release it. Your agent and, hopefully, editor will most likely see some things they would like changed anyway.Julie Weathershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13725236516593676381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-63891484500694119802008-09-12T10:57:00.000-04:002008-09-12T10:57:00.000-04:00Revising... hmmm, sounds like,note from Editor... ...Revising... hmmm, sounds like,<BR/><BR/>note from Editor... Dear Agent, <BR/><BR/>"I don't know what I want the author to do with this book, but I'll know it when I see it!"<BR/><BR/>Books, like film, are never really finished, or perfected, they're just kind of... abandoned!<BR/><BR/>Haste yee back ;-)Haste yee back ;-)https://www.blogger.com/profile/00345715370509449971noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-89282610250460467192008-09-12T09:51:00.000-04:002008-09-12T09:51:00.000-04:00Jessica, I consider myself a decent writer, but if...Jessica, I consider myself a decent writer, but if I shouldn't submit my MS until it is perfect to me than I might as well spend my spare time doing something more rewarding. I just finished editing one of my manuscripts for the fourth time. I am much happier with it then when I finished it the third time. Is it perfect? I highly doubt it. Is it ready to submit? Prior to this fourth editing, I didn’t think so. Now I do, except for all the “it has to be perfect” comments I see from various blogs. <BR/><BR/>I’m beginning to wonder if there is any point in submitting at all if it has to be perfect. I don’t keep a high enough regard of myself or my work to ever reach that point.Novelisthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08306841941838758061noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-49717943166646376642008-09-11T18:29:00.000-04:002008-09-11T18:29:00.000-04:00ok...pass the bucket....I'm anon 9:57 and a few ho...ok...pass the bucket....I'm anon 9:57 and a few hours ago my agent called and the lovely editor I chatted with yesterday has offered for the book! So incredibly excited, but am in total sync with the previous post...nervous about the editorial letter!<BR/>well, honestly....and everything else still to come my way!<BR/>but, I wouldn't change anything!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-9738247719028818312008-09-11T18:11:00.000-04:002008-09-11T18:11:00.000-04:00Jessica, thank you for this post. I'm currently w...Jessica, thank you for this post. I'm currently waiting for my first editorial letter for my first novel, and while my agent has passed along word that the revisions shouldn't be extensive, I'm still nervous and terribly curious.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-72072414454396426332008-09-11T14:16:00.000-04:002008-09-11T14:16:00.000-04:00What constitutes major editing is going to depend ...What constitutes major editing is going to depend on the editor of course. Some don't want to do any editing. They simply want to take the manuscript they have and send it through to the copy editor. Others will be willing to do revisions on the book, but if things jump out at them while reading which makes the book less enjoyable to them they will likely pass rather than offer.<BR/><BR/>I wish I could answer the question, but I can't. It's all subjective.<BR/><BR/>--jessicaBookEnds, A Literary Agencyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06287278822065839469noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-55290049973328433482008-09-11T14:04:00.000-04:002008-09-11T14:04:00.000-04:00I'm with anon 10:40. I immediately focused on your...I'm with anon 10:40. I immediately focused on your comment regarding 'major editing' What would constitute that? What, in essence would be areas that a 'major edit' might encompass? Particularly in regards to fiction. Might it even involve changes in plot? Do they look closely at plot structure, as an example, to make certain all the threads work and most or all are tied up at the end? Are those some of the possible elements of a 'major edit'? Or would that particular 'problem' typically be the 'unforgiveable' flaw that no editor would ever take on?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-71120320298120824892008-09-11T13:21:00.000-04:002008-09-11T13:21:00.000-04:00Great post.So, how do we make that jump from think...Great post.<BR/><BR/>So, how do we make that jump from thinking it's "perfect" to knowing it's "perfect"?Robena Granthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18389730409379890816noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-74694220872450653262008-09-11T12:57:00.000-04:002008-09-11T12:57:00.000-04:00Yvonne:Read my post on The Stages of Editing as re...Yvonne:<BR/><BR/>Read my post on The Stages of Editing as referred to in this post http://bookendslitagency.blogspot.com/2008/08/stages-of-editing.html<BR/><BR/>jessicaBookEnds, A Literary Agencyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06287278822065839469noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-89711298624467806382008-09-11T12:32:00.000-04:002008-09-11T12:32:00.000-04:00Jessica,Could you say more about what is involved ...Jessica,<BR/><BR/>Could you say more about what is involved with line editing? How much do editors scrutinize your ms for errors? What kinds of errors do they look for - just English errors, or do they also look for plot errors, areas with lack of description, lack of setting, etc.?<BR/><BR/>Thanks!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15413266993411568037noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-33941987395067351712008-09-11T11:34:00.000-04:002008-09-11T11:34:00.000-04:00"Perfect to you is not necessarily perfect to an e..."Perfect to you is not necessarily perfect to an editor, and perfect enough to buy isn’t necessarily perfect enough to publish."<BR/><BR/>Jackpot.<BR/><BR/>I have never been more aware of this than when I started taking Barbara Rogan's Next Level workshop.<BR/><BR/>I lucked out and got in a class with some excellent writers. What one misses another catches or comments on. With Barbara being an editor, author and retired agent, she gives a unique perspective on how to take the story apart and examine the components. Add in students with various strengths and a person really gets a chance to look at their work in a new light.<BR/><BR/>Even so, I know there will still be more revisions ahead because reading is very subjective. I'm sure an agent and editor will notice even more things. Hopefully, the story will appeal to them enough to make it worth the effort to take it that last mile.Julie Weathershttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13725236516593676381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-17128340731326771542008-09-11T10:40:00.000-04:002008-09-11T10:40:00.000-04:00Excellent post. There was one point in it that I ...Excellent post. There was one point in it that I find confusing. You say: "These days editors receive so many great submissions that they aren’t about to take someone or something on if they know right out of the gate that it’s going to need a lot of work."<BR/><BR/>That makes perfect sense. But then you seem to suggest that most books do need a lot of work. If you care to elaborate on that some time, I for one would appreciate it, and suspect it may be of general interest as well.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-91050865314556308972008-09-11T10:02:00.000-04:002008-09-11T10:02:00.000-04:00"One thing I’ve been saying to my clients for year...<I>"One thing I’ve been saying to my clients for years is that editors have no imagination." </I><BR/><BR/>Thank you for saying this. And I don't think this is limited to editors. We focus so hard on a book's marketability sometimes we forget about the writing itself. If you think about it, the reading public are the ones with all the imagination. Lucky them!Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05663703767093923242noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-62193949872779278992008-09-11T09:57:00.000-04:002008-09-11T09:57:00.000-04:00Jessica...your post is so where I'm at right now.....Jessica...your post is so where I'm at right now...my first ms was pitched a few months ago, and this week I had the pleasure of speaking to an editor at one of the houses that has it. She asked me a lot of questions about where the series is going, about some of the characters etc. It was a great talk, and I'm hoping that after calling me directly, she'll be calling my agent today with some good news.....I know for a fact that my ms was read by several other editors at this particular house, so....just one more step in the long chain of events still to come!<BR/>It's great to get an insiders look at how these things go.....thanks for the insightful blogAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-23051453.post-76444589914821496462008-09-11T09:44:00.000-04:002008-09-11T09:44:00.000-04:00Jessica, your post hits me, as usual, when this to...Jessica, your post hits me, as usual, when this topic is on my mind. I'm currently reading A STOPOVER IN VENICE, published by Knopf, literary women's fiction. I've noticed how often - and I mean really often - the word "lovely" is used. Sometimes 3 or 4 times on a page. All the characters say this word, including the narrator. Last night while reading, I noticed that a main character said it about 3 times in a row. How did this get by the agent and top editor at Knopf? It's really frustrating to see this, when we have to hand in everything so perfect(ly?).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com