Every cushion, mattress, and pillow has been overturned without any sign of the thumb drive with my most crucial MS. Perhaps it decided to sacrifice itself to the writing gods/muses/higher powers. I've started to rewrite the piece, which is coming a lot easier than expected, but now I have another dilemma.
What should I do about the request? If I let it sit for too long there's no doubt in my mind Deb will lose interest in the idea. I would like to send her a note stating my situation, but everything tells me to be professional. Excuses are not professional in my book, so I'm sitting on the fence.
I've read the submission guidelines at the Sourcebooks site, and they state when mailing sending the first four chapters is appropriate, but could I do the same electronically (when I've completed the first four) after a specific request for the full?
I'm about to write this off as a loss, no joke. My first request, and I have little more than nothing. I hope this doesn't brand me a tease in the world of writing. I don't need that kind of rep following me around. :P
~Hetal
Hey Hetal,
ReplyDeleteI'm so, so sorry for what you're going through. I bet that thumb drive will pop up when you least expect it. In the mean time, don't give up. IMHO, you don't need to say anything just yet. Most editors are so busy that, just because you get requested material out to them tomorrow, it could take weeks or months for them to acutally read it. Even if it's ideal to send it off quickly, it's not the end of the world. I'm sure they've all had their share of computer woes. Breath! Keep writing (and looking) and see how far you get. I'm not sure how fast you write, but maybe it'll go smoothly since you've written it once before. Did you send any copies or partials to contests in the past? Could they have email copies they could send you (any bit helps)? I do have to add that the pic of your little girl is adorable.
I've decided to move on, but thanks for the warm thoughts Rula. I'm furiously rewriting the MS and will submit whenever I hit "The End" and that's that. :) At least I can put in the subject line "Requested Material", that's an amazing advantage - I think.
ReplyDeletePatel,
ReplyDeleteYou have a crit group listed on this page (figured it might be yours_. What about your crit partners? would they still have some chapters? I keep my partners chapters until they're done with the book and then purge(because there are sometimes plot threads that have been dropped or stuff).
At any rate, best of luck with the re-write.
Kate
Welcome Kate! Unfortunately, no, they don't have this piece as it's one I kept close to me. Now it seems I should've taken advantage of them. Oh well, hindsight and all that. ;)
ReplyDeleteSorry for the difficulties you've encountered. At the end of each writing session, I email myself a copy of the story I'm working on. It acts as a back-up, just in case.
ReplyDeleteYou know, I used to do that. Not sure why I stopped. Probably b/c of all the iterations I mailed myself, then all the no subject emails that sat in my inbox (cause you know, I didn't have time to title every email :P ). However, I might have to rethink my reasoning. Thanks Lorraine!
ReplyDeleteHey Hetal, sorry to hear what happened. Worst nightmare material, huh? Sounds like you've already figured out a direction. I agree with Rula. Keep writing and try to get it done as soon as you can. Regardless of what we think or hope, the editor is not sitting with bated breath waiting for the submission LOL. Don't give up on the request. You'll get there. Who knows? It could turn up mid-rewrite.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the sympathy Kaily. It was a pretty low blow after a pretty nifty high, but I've moved on and am going full steam ahead. Hmm, maybe I'll use it in a story later. As for the request, no way am I letting it die a silent death. I've printed it out and pasted it to the wall as a reminder of what I'm working towards. Here's hoping I'll be as lucky as you - and soon :D
ReplyDelete