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Stumpy
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I received a rejection letter from an agent last week that was - SHOCK HORROR! - handwritten, and despite being a bit hard to read, it explained some of my work's flaws and the small parts the agent liked about it.
Should I be encouraged by this or is it just the same as the countless generic, printed rejection slips I've been getting?
Anyone care to share any wisdom?
Stumpy
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annswinfen
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If an agent took the trouble both to write a reply by hand AND to point out good and bad points, you should be very encouraged!
Good luck with the next agent! (After a bit of editing, of course.)
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walker
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I had a similar letter years ago. The agent said how much she enjoyed the chapters and pointed out ways I could improve them. I spent a couple of months working on it and sent it back. I received a type written letter - sorry, said agent has retired. Even so, anything's better than a bland rejection letter, isn't it? Walker
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sulcus
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Quote: Stumpy, Monday, 7 Jun 2010 18:17I received a rejection letter from an agent last week that was - SHOCK HORROR! - handwritten, and despite being a bit hard to read, it explained some of my work's flaws and the small parts the agent liked about it. Should I be encouraged by this or is it just the same as the countless generic, printed rejection slips I've been getting? Anyone care to share any wisdom? Stumpy It's nice that it was handwritten, but unless it asked you to redraft and resubmit, it's still the same 'no thank you'. I had a hand written rejection scrawled around the print of one of their 'with compliments' slips. I also had one handwritten on my synopsis which ticked me off.
"A,B&E", "Not In My Name" and "52FF" (flash fiction anthology) all available on Amazon Kindle"How a psychopath makes sweet love. I can get you ringside. Royal box even."
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Athene
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Quote: sulcus, Monday, 7 Jun 2010 20:08Quote: Stumpy, Monday, 7 Jun 2010 18:17I received a rejection letter from an agent last week that was - SHOCK HORROR! - handwritten, and despite being a bit hard to read, it explained some of my work's flaws and the small parts the agent liked about it. Should I be encouraged by this or is it just the same as the countless generic, printed rejection slips I've been getting? Anyone care to share any wisdom? Stumpy It's nice that it was handwritten, but unless it asked you to redraft and resubmit, it's still the same 'no thank you'. I had a hand written rejection scrawled around the print of one of their 'with compliments' slips. I also had one handwritten on my synopsis which ticked me off. I had one like that, Marc - I interpreted it as the agent being too lazy to bother to compose a proper letter and have it typed up - quicker and easier (and ruder) just to scrawl a few words across the top of my letter of submisson, and send it back. Saved on filing, too. But a handwritten letter that actually makes some helpful comments is rather different - in fact, it sounds quite encouraging.
This post was last edited by Athene, 07 Jun 2010, 20:26
Scias te fortasse Romanum esse si animal convivialissimum arbitreris esse caprum (Henricus Barbatus) my website
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sulcus
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Quote: Athene, Monday, 7 Jun 2010 20:25Quote: sulcus, Monday, 7 Jun 2010 20:08Quote: Stumpy, Monday, 7 Jun 2010 18:17I received a rejection letter from an agent last week that was - SHOCK HORROR! - handwritten, and despite being a bit hard to read, it explained some of my work's flaws and the small parts the agent liked about it. Should I be encouraged by this or is it just the same as the countless generic, printed rejection slips I've been getting? Anyone care to share any wisdom? Stumpy It's nice that it was handwritten, but unless it asked you to redraft and resubmit, it's still the same 'no thank you'. I had a hand written rejection scrawled around the print of one of their 'with compliments' slips. I also had one handwritten on my synopsis which ticked me off. I had one like that, Marc - I interpreted it as the agent being too lazy to bother to compose a proper letter and have it typed up - quicker and easier (and ruder) just to scrawl a few words across the top of my letter of submisson, and send it back. Saved on filing, too. But a handwritten letter that actually makes some helpful comments is rather different - in fact, it sounds quite encouraging. I am slightly more cynical. I think a 'nice sounding' agent makes sure to say 2 nice things to balance out the criticisms however helpful those suggestions are. Unless they ask to see it again, they're not really giving anything away by just being nice.
"A,B&E", "Not In My Name" and "52FF" (flash fiction anthology) all available on Amazon Kindle"How a psychopath makes sweet love. I can get you ringside. Royal box even."
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Keel
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Be encouraged, Stumpy. Either the agent has a very small slush pile and writes personal hand written rejections, or the agent thought your work required something more than a standard print off. Whatever, they bothered to read your work beyond the first paragraph. I'm guesing this, but you'll know by the content. Well done, mate. I reckon you are well on the way. Keep honing that craft, keep submitting and you'll get there. Best of luck, John.
This post was last edited by Keel, 07 Jun 2010, 22:22
There’s a juniper tree in my garden, but I have an uncle in Kiev.
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Athene
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Hear hear. I think Marc is being too cynical. It's not a lot, but it's definitely something more than the standard, completely impersonal rejection. I think you should feel encouraged.
This post was last edited by Athene, 07 Jun 2010, 22:45
Scias te fortasse Romanum esse si animal convivialissimum arbitreris esse caprum (Henricus Barbatus) my website
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sulcus
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Quote: Athene, Monday, 7 Jun 2010 22:45Hear hear. I think Marc is being too cynical. It's not a lot, but it's definitely something more than the standard, completely impersonal rejection. I think you should feel encouraged. Fair enough. But personally I gave up snatching for crumbs of comfort from agents when there really aren't any to be had. Either they ask to meet you and discuss further, or they at least say they'll read it again after a redraft having suggested areas to consider rewriting. Anything else is whistling in the wind.
This post was last edited by sulcus, 08 Jun 2010, 00:18
"A,B&E", "Not In My Name" and "52FF" (flash fiction anthology) all available on Amazon Kindle"How a psychopath makes sweet love. I can get you ringside. Royal box even."
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awrigley
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Handwritten probably just means BPC (Before PCs). Hence the retired agent story. Not sure if that is any better, or worse, than a rejection sent from a Blackberry. If nothing else, you got a Free Will review.
Memory... What was that?
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