pick myself off, dust myself off, and start all over again

Not quite all over again--I have reviewed Angels in the Flames, and tweeked it, as I always do, but not started all over again as I have done on one or two other occasions.  No.  Just a bit of tweeking and yesterday I sent it off to three more Canadian publishers: Annick Press, Groundwood, and Kids Can Press, all in Toronto. I started off with western Canadian publishers, seeing as how the story is set in Vancouver.  Then moved eastward.  I don't like simultaneous submissions, but I thought I'd try it once more and hope for the best.  So, once more typing with crossed fingers.  I also have an article at BC Parent News, and am waiting to hear from them. And my play is with the artistic director at Christ Church Cathedral; I hope something comes of that, too.  So: three irons in the fire.  Someone once said that to be a successful writer, you need to have twelve irons in the fire.  I guess it will be a long time before I'm a "successful" writer.  For now, I'm just a struggling writer, like gazillions of others.

another disappointment

I got another rejection letter today.  Dundurn didn't find my historical novel right for them.  Okay.  I'm glad they were quick to respond.  I really hate waiting!  (Doesn't everyone?)  But also just don't like to send out simultaneous submissions.  I may have to change my tune on that.  Anyway, I have two more publishers on my list: Kids Can Press and Annick Press.  KCP says they accept sim subs if identified, and Annick doesn't mention sim subs in their guidelines.  Hmm.  What to do!  I'll have to print out sample chapters of Angels in the Flames and write up fresh cover letters and see what happens.  Can't have that ms sitting around here doing nothing.  I wonder if I should do another rewrite. 
Meanwhile, I'm working on a young adult murder mystery.  I read that Dahl (can't spell his first name without looking it up) used to give himself a year to write a book.  I've been working on the YA novel since last May, and hope to have it all "down" by the end of December and then spend the next few months, to May 2012, to get it ready to send out.  I have the outlines done for two sequels, so I'll start the next one as soon as the first is sent out. 
Seriously thinking about getting an agent.

Franciscan Chapter

Just a little envious of my husband right now.  He's attending a meeting of the TSSF chapter, at Little Portion Friary, in New York.

New Look

What do you think of the new look of this blog?  I thought I'd try it out.  Please do leave comments!

October update

It's a busy life that I lead--or so it seems to me.  First and foremost, I need to update the news about my novel, Angels in the Flames:  I did send it to Dundurn, and notified Coteau that I had done so.  I guess my gmail isn't as quick as it should be, because I should have received the notification that the manuscript was in the mail, rejected.  However, Nik Burton kindly emailed me back and said that the decision had been made before they had been told about the simultaneous submission.  So, as it stands, the novel is only with Dundurn although they've been told it's a sim-sub.  I'm planning to send it to another publisher as soon as I can.
Meanwhile, I've been in touch with the artistic director at Christ Church Cathedral, and she has agreed to look at my play, The Wolf and the Saint: The Life of Saint Francis of Assisi as Told by the Wolf of Gubbio.  All I have to do is put it together in an email and send it off to her.  Odd how such a "simple" task can grow into a big job.

what to do?

Angels in the Flames has been with Coteau Books for a year now, and still no word except responses to my enquiries concerning status.  Not yet read, I think.  Oh dear!  The slush pile?  Well, I have a list of half a dozen more Canadian publishers, and I could send it off to them.  Coteau said it's okay to sim.sub as long as I let them know.  I'll do that, of course.  However, I'm thinking of trying an agent again.  No luck last time (a few years ago, but I think that was for a different project, and I know it wasn't with the agent I have in mind). 
So, I have to prepare the manuscript once again for another journey.  Meanwhile, I keep hoping and writing, and so on.  Writing the book is only a fraction of the work that getting getting it published is.  Still, it's worth pursuing, I suppose.  If only for the experience.  Can't quit now.  I'm in too deep.

1st half of August 2011

I can't believe that it's been almost two months since I posted in this blog!  I was reading some old emails, clearing out my inbox, and came across one from someone who said he was an "avid reader" of my blog.  Poor soul!  How bored he must be to see the same thing every time he looks in.  He probably isn't so "avid" a reader now.
If, however, you are one who just pops in once in a while to see if I've added anything, then you won't be too disappointed--I hope.
The fact is that I've been busy working on a novel that I started a long time ago.  I first started it when I entered the "24 hour novel" challenge several years ago.  I booked into a motel and wrote for hours and hours and came up with something that vaguely resembled a novel.  I entered it, but of course never heard anything because people who enter that challenge regularly know how to write a novel in 24 hours.  I guess. 
So, in 2009 when I embarked on the NANOWRIMO challenge, I used the same characters and setting for that.  And in 30 days I had written 50,000 words that also resembled a novel--considerably better than the first, but still needing a lot of work before it could really be anything worth reading. 
Now, I've changed the main character and fiddled around with the other characters, and am slowly but surely developing what I hope will be a decent young adult murder mystery. 
So that's why you haven't seen anything new in this blog.  I'll try to keep you updated on how the mystery comes along.