#PitMad What?!?!

So, it appears I've started looking for agents again . . . 

This time, I had luck!

Friends, did you just hear that?! Seven years of queries and finally . . . FINALLY.

Okay--so here's the story: It's no surprise I've been sitting on a completed manuscript for a little over a year now. After the first round of queries and rejections, one could say I lost my confidence. I mean, this is my THIRD book, numerous rejections, and all I can think is, "I need a break."

After months of my boyfriend persuading me to get back out there, I began querying again--small publishing houses and agencies this time. I conveniently hop back on Twitter five days before #PitMad, and . . .

This is where the freaking out begins.

It's been years since I've participated in #PitMad. Thankfully, a lot of the writers I follow on twitter, kept mentioning #DVpit and #PreDv (go to this link here to learn more about it), and #PreDv gave me the chance to practice my one-liner before #PitMad. I acquired some pretty great help from @JenniferZeynab, @KatCho and @JL_Dugan. Then, the next day, just a couple of hours before my West Coast Swing class, I get a like from an Agent.

*Insert internal screams here*

After a few more moments of freaking out, I put on my focus goggles and start researching this guy like crazy.

I like what I find, so I send over my query, and I'm so nervous that I forget to mention word count and genre.

The next day at work, I accidentally open my email and find this:









More freaking out:

At some point I decide to get my crap together and send over the requested MS.
And now, here I am, waiting.

I'm so, so nervous. I'm nervous and excited. I've got all my fingers and toes crossed and God is probably tired of hearing my prayers.

Even if he decides to eventually pass, I'm just happy I've gotten this far.

So here I am, writing friends, I've entered another realm of waiting.

Wish me luck.

Here's An Idea: Write The Synopsis First!

Say What?

So it's spring break for me, and I've already written three chapters of a new book--that's a lot considering the week isn't even over yet . . .

How? You might ask.

I wrote the synopsis first.

Obviously, this isn't a new thing. Writers have been doing this for centuries (possibly). And though I've known of this advice, I never considered it because, seriously, who wants to write a synopsis at all?

But in this case, it's done me good. My schedule this semester is quite hectic (Er, you've might've notice from the lack of posts) and I haven't been able to write as much as I hoped. But creating a synopsis helped a lot.

Here's why: 


-It's Fast:

Once I got the hang of it, it was easy for me to plan out what I wanted every chapter to look like. So I started with one sentence per chapter and eventually expanded to a paragraph. When I finished, it looked kind of like a Sparknotes layout.

-It helps with the essential theme of the story:

It's always solid to have a good theme that circles throughout the process of the story. It's easy to do that when you can see the main concepts of each chapter on one to two pages.

-Character progression comes easier:

In this book, my main character grows quite a bit. It's nice to plan out his breaking points and the areas that are most essential to him. That way, its easier for me to have the MC reflect on those events later in the story.



Those are the pros I've acquired thus far. The con would be actually writing the synopsis . . . that's the hardest part.

Has anyone else had any luck with writing their synopsis first? I'd love to hear about it. Post your comments below!


Till Next Time,

Synopsis

I am avoiding the writing of my synopsis.

How do you even start something so terrible that gives away every plot and twist of your novel?

It's so......heartbreaking

I hate it.

I am avoiding a piece of my novel that is very valuble to some agents.

I just, I can't handle it.

And I'm pretty sure that this is ten times harder than writing a query.

WHY????

Sincerely, exhausted at looking at my stupid synopsis.