When Does "NO" NOT Mean No?

This weekend was the New Jersey Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators annual conference. It's a great place to meet top editors, agents, authors, illustrators and people. It's a fabulous venue to network, get inspired, re-energize, rethink, revise.

And reconsider...

My middle grade novel had made the rounds to all the major houses and their smaller imprints and never found a publishing home.

(The main character of my novel.)

My agent said it had to go in the drawer, and I had move on.

Much as I didn't want to, I reluctantly agreed because there was no one left to send it to.

I began work on other projects and tried to forget that novel that owned my heart.

This weekend, I listened to so many people, including myself, encouraging writers to persevere. Keep writing. Keep submitting. Keep revising.

And then... I noticed one of the editors from a smaller house.Her house was ranked so high on the list of houses because of the number of young adult and middle grade novels they'd published. They were practically bullying some of the older, more well-known publishers.

Hmmm.

You all must know the story of Stephen King; unable to find an editor for his novel, he threw it in the trash, giving up. His wife, Tabitha, picked it out and sent it to one last publisher...

That was his breakout novel, Carrie.

"Be consistent, and persistent."  I tell that to all inspiring authors when they ask what's the best piece of advice I can give them. It's time to follow the second part of that command.

One more try...

Char