Guess who's back in LA? In a whirlwind of events that occurred in the past three to four months, I've found myself back on the West Coast, and I couldn't be happier about it. If you had asked me in July if I'd be back here and trying to make things happen, I would've laughed. But life is funny and so here I am! I don't know why, I don't know what's in store, but I know that I'm ready for this fun adventure.
The most important thing about this move is that it's helping me immensely with my Winter Lakes writing. That's something else I never could've predicted. I've been steadily writing and really seeing it move in the direction I wanted. I haven't been this inspired in awhile so I'm running with it. Winter Lakes!
Speaking of the Winter Lakes journey, I received great feedback from an agent on it! She liked the first 15 pages I sent, but ultimately passed on it. However, she did give me amazing and detailed feedback, which is a first. Usually an agent just sends a form rejection back, so the fact that she took the time to really tell me what worked for her and what didn't is a huge deal. I seriously can't thank her enough. What she ultimately had a problem with is something that's a unique issue for this story. As you guys who have been with the story since the beginning know, the story is told from multiple POVs. This is something that is generally frowned upon or makes agents and editors roll their eyes. Which makes me ask: Do multiple POVs really turn you off to a story? And if so, how many POVs is too many? I know what people "think" the right answer is because we've all been told to not do it, but in the practical sense, have you ever stopped reading a story because it was told from 3-4 people's points of view?
Also, is this a YA thing? Because I feel that YA has so many more "rules" than general literary fiction, and I personally don't care for any of them. I'm a fan of telling your story the way it needs to be told. That certainly doesn't mean you just write something and throw it out there, but I think if you know, after revisiting and rewriting and reevaluating the story you're telling, that the way you've written it is the way the story works, then you should stand by it. At least to a certain extent.
On that note, I'll leave you guys with a Vine of one of our first adventures in LA. This is why you can't take me and my friends anywhere.
The most important thing about this move is that it's helping me immensely with my Winter Lakes writing. That's something else I never could've predicted. I've been steadily writing and really seeing it move in the direction I wanted. I haven't been this inspired in awhile so I'm running with it. Winter Lakes!
Speaking of the Winter Lakes journey, I received great feedback from an agent on it! She liked the first 15 pages I sent, but ultimately passed on it. However, she did give me amazing and detailed feedback, which is a first. Usually an agent just sends a form rejection back, so the fact that she took the time to really tell me what worked for her and what didn't is a huge deal. I seriously can't thank her enough. What she ultimately had a problem with is something that's a unique issue for this story. As you guys who have been with the story since the beginning know, the story is told from multiple POVs. This is something that is generally frowned upon or makes agents and editors roll their eyes. Which makes me ask: Do multiple POVs really turn you off to a story? And if so, how many POVs is too many? I know what people "think" the right answer is because we've all been told to not do it, but in the practical sense, have you ever stopped reading a story because it was told from 3-4 people's points of view?
Also, is this a YA thing? Because I feel that YA has so many more "rules" than general literary fiction, and I personally don't care for any of them. I'm a fan of telling your story the way it needs to be told. That certainly doesn't mean you just write something and throw it out there, but I think if you know, after revisiting and rewriting and reevaluating the story you're telling, that the way you've written it is the way the story works, then you should stand by it. At least to a certain extent.
On that note, I'll leave you guys with a Vine of one of our first adventures in LA. This is why you can't take me and my friends anywhere.