I Didn’t Know I Was a Bad Writer…

…just because I write paranormal romance.

According to Mary W. Walters‘s open letter to editors:

…your desk is piling up with flimsy bits of vampire literature, fantasy, romance, detective stories and the kind of first-draft bubble gum that used to be called chick-lit but is now shuffled in with other women's writing in order to give it heft — although as far as you can see, neither the quality nor the subject matter has improved — which you are required to somehow turn into publishable books.

…fine fiction writers who are crappy copy-writers attempt to write fast-paced pitches about their own serious novels that will make those novels sound as much as possible like commercial drivel.

And literary agents are like rabid dogs — or was it vampires? — trying to destroy fine literature and screw editors:

They are the literary agents — that league of intellectual-property purveyors who bring you every new manuscript you ever see, those men and women who are so anxious to gain access to the caverns of treasure they believe you sit upon like some great golden goose that they would likely hack one another's heads off were they not united by one self-serving mission: to ensure that quality fiction never hits your desk.

Then Mary goes on to say that her novel was rejected by over sixty agents, “mainly sight unseen”. I assume this means her query letter was rejected by lots of agents. If your query letter can't get you some decent partial / full requests, you need to rewrite your query.

Oh…it also helps if you don't say all those nasty things about agents on your blog.


2 comments to “I Didn’t Know I Was a Bad Writer…”

  1. Merrilee Faber
    April 16th, 2009 at 1:34 pm · Link

    Well, after reading the first page of her novel, I’m not surprised she got rejected. Half a page of “Where is she.” “She’s not here.” “Why not?”

    Seriously. Bored in 10 seconds – must be a record.



  2. Nadia Lee
    April 16th, 2009 at 11:33 pm · Link

    Merrilee,

    I didn’t read her novel because I didn’t feel like reading her writing sample after glancing at her blurb. A story featuring an overweight woman trying to lose weight, etc. isn’t my cuppa. I hope she learns how to write better queries and limit her CLMs.



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