Guaranteed Way to Hear Back on a Full Submission

[Benjamin Sobieck]

If you're waiting anxiously like a stray dog at a county fair trash can for a response on a full submission, try going on a honeymoon. As in, your honeymoon. My holiday from e-mail and the rest of reality yielded the one message I'd been anticipating for four months, from an agent who had requested a full.

(If on the off-chance someone thought the government finally hauled me off, my nuptial is why I haven't been very active in CrimeSpace of late.)

Alas, the high times of a honeymoon vacation were met with a rejection note. But as far as rejections go, this one was superb. The agent offered soaring praise for my work, as well as suggestions to make the novel better. In the end, however, the agent didn't feel the passion necessary to represent me.

While I'm bummed about this development, I'm also encouraged by this agent. I'm geared up to take the suggestions to heart. It gives me another target to hit. I'll revisit the work and submit again. I write this to remind myself and others that rejection isn't the end of the world, but giving up is. This is no time to quit!

[Jon Loomis]

Congratulations, Benjamin. If you're going to get rejections, those are the kind you want.

[I. J. Parker]

Good for you, and major Best Wishes on the nuptials.