The Page a Day Writers Group

By Trish Wilkinson

So my post “At Long Last” talked about my writer’s journey before setting out to get an agent. So far, I’ve gotten ten rejections and was feeling a bit sorry for myself. I’d done the research and made sure the agents represented contemporary YA with some magical realism. My story just wasn’t for them. 

Then I read a blog post by Michelle Krys, YA author of Hexed coming out in June 2014, where she mentioned she got 90+ rejections before she found an agent to represent her. The Help got 60 rejections before Kathryn Stockett found representation. That’s gotta give any author hope – and a clear picture of reality. 

In the meantime, I renamed my manuscript, Two Feet, No Shoes. My character’s name has gone from Maria to Maya, because Maria was my favorite name growing up, but it didn’t fit my character. Maya means “last child,” which is appropriate since she finds out she’s not an only child, but the youngest of nine. I’ve also been messing with the prose. It turns out, the slightest changes can deepen characters and touch readers’ hearts, so I’ve had fun with that.

Last weekend, I attended the Writers Digest West Conference in Los Angeles where I met two agents and two editors who requested a synopsis and pages. I sent them the files today, and either nothing or everything will come of the effort. Either way, I’ll keep on keepin’ on because if Kry and Stockett can do it, so can I. 

And whatever your goals, so can you!