Welcome to the blog of Mary Brock Jones, SF author.

I also have a website, here


I write science fiction. Some dark, some not so dark. Some short, some longer, some very long. Some have a happy ending, others definitely not.

I also write NZ historical romance novels.They always end happily, even if the journey can get quite bumpy.

It's a nice mix.

Friday, April 2, 2010

Query letter

Another rejection today. I had sent a query letter to an American agent, and they came back with a form rejection letter within 24 hrs. That's fast! And very dispiriting, even though I had not really expected this agency to be interested.
    Truth to tell, I'm coming to think my writing doesn't work in the US market, full stop. The example query letters on agent websites are just so chatty. It's supposed to be a business query letter, not a gushing outpouring of self praise. At least, that's how it feels to little ol kiwi me. NZers just don't do that kind of self promotion. At least, not one's of my generation.
    That's the problem with rejection letters. They make you start questioning everything about yourself, your entire system of self worth. You have to go into mantra territory - keep repeating inside, over and over again. 'I can write'  But maybe it's not true? I hate the business side of this writing passion. Who gets published - the best writers or the best self marketers? Is there an alternative way of doing it? If anyone has a better system of getting good writers out there, it would be great to hear from you.

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