Notes from Marie's Diary
6 am
I was happily typing away early in the morning as I was wont to do, my writing ritual as unchanged as five years ago; the kids off to school,the radio tuned in to 899, my coffee filled to the brim, and my dog in slumberland at my feet, his nose buried somewhere between my toes. While writing, I would occasionally look at the pictures flashing at my screen, downloaded finally by my son Bodi, who had inadvertently lost the camera charger two weeks ago, only to be found through a gifted psychic dude guest at Good Times named Jobert. Can I get luckier than this? Oh, what a beautiful morning!
The doorbell rang and the sound jarred me,disturbing my thought processes enough to make me suddenly stand. Who could possibly be at the door at this unholy hour? I opened the door and in front of me were a fresh stack of letters delivered and haphazardly thrown in my front door.
I look at the letters with wariness.
All the letters bore the mark of my self-addressed stamped envelope which I sent to the United States,and which have returned to me. With trepidation, I scoop the stash of letters and opened one.
The Bantam Dell Publishing Group
A Division of Random House Inc.
Dear Author:
Many thanks for writing to us about your work. Unfortunately, we are not interested in pursuing this project at this time. The marketplace is currently so competitive that we are forced to be extremely selective, and regrettably, time does not permit us to provide a more detailed critique.
Thank you again for your interest in Bantam Dell Publishing Group. Best of luck to you and your endeavors.
Sincerely,
The Bantam Dell Publishing Group
How impersonal could these rejection letters get? Do they have to even write a 'Dear Author' greeting? Can't they even write my name?
I open another letter, and this looks more personal, but the content made me wince some more.
Harvey Klinger Inc
Literary Representation
Dear Marie:
Thank you for your recent query or submission. We have read your material, but after careful consideration, we feel your project is not right for us. We apologize for the use of this form letter, but due to the volume of material we receive, we are unable to respond individually to each submission. Be rest assured we have read your material.
We wish you luck with your work and success in placing it elsewhere.
Sincerely,
The Harvey Klinger Agency
I sat down holding the two letters and pondered on my next move.
I've finished writing a romantic, contemporary novel early this year, and I thought my literary ordeal was over, and my 100,000 word work would be swept to publishing land in a jiffy. Aside from the US inquiries, I tried selling it to our local publishers, but the response was not so positive, their interest geared towards producing school textbooks. It seems to me that the foreign publisher giants have perfected producing mass-produced books at low, low prices and our Philippine counterpart could not compete with this media behemoths at all.
There were a lot of warnings from fellow writing compatriots that my arduous journey to publication had only began.
I didn't believe it until the rejection letters from publishers and literary agents started to return to me with generic form letters.As usual,the war-weary literary veterans were correct, and their dire warnings about the current publishing world hit a bullseye.
My friend recently sent this New York Times article, which said that even Knopf, a publishing giant which has successfully shepherded 17 Nobel Prize-winning authors as well as 47 Pulitzer Prize-winning volumes of fiction, nonfiction, biography and history made mistakes when choosing the authors for their roster of books.
" ..Scholars trolling through the Knopf archive have been struck by the number of reader’s reports that badly missed the mark, especially where new talent was concerned. The rejection files, which run from the 1940s through the 1970s, include dismissive verdicts on the likes of Jorge Luis Borges (“utterly untranslatable”), Isaac Bashevis Singer (“It’s Poland and the rich Jews again”), Anaïs Nin (“There is no commercial advantage in acquiring her, and, in my opinion, no artistic”), Sylvia Plath (“There certainly isn’t enough genuine talent for us to take notice”) and Jack Kerouac (“His frenetic and scrambling prose perfectly express the feverish travels of the Beat Generation.)
But is that enough? I don’t think so”). In a two-year stretch beginning in 1955, Knopf turned down manuscripts by Jean-Paul Sartre, Mordecai Richler, and the historians A. J. P. Taylor and Barbara Tuchman, not to mention Vladimir Nabokov’s “Lolita” (too racy) and James Baldwin’s “Giovanni’s Room” (“hopelessly bad”)."
Unbelievable, huh?
In the realm of bestseller books today, J.K. Rowling's first Harry Potter books was submitted to twelve publishing houses, all of which rejected the manuscript. A year later she was given a £1500 advance by editor Barry Cunningham from Bloomsbury, a small British publishing house in London, England. Although Bloomsbury agreed to publish the book, it has been reported that Cunningham advised Rowling to get a day job, since she had little chance of making money in children’s books.
Mr. Cunningham, you should be shot between the eyes. According to the latest figures,the seven Harry Potter books have so far been translated into 67 languages, amassing the 400 million figure since the publication of the first book in the series, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, in 1997.
That news is significant considering that one point in her life,it has been reported that J.K. Rowling contemplated committing suicide when she was a single mother struggling to survive and succeed as a writer.The Harry Potter writer has admitted she thought of taking her own life when she was in her mid-20s after separating from her first husband Jorge Arantes, a Portuguese journalist.
I would not go to that extent although the constant stream of rejection letters have made me quite blue recently.
To help me navigate the labyrinth world of publishers and literary agents,I recently bought Jeff Herman's '2008 Guide to Book Publishers, Editors, & Literary Agents",and although hundreds of publishers and agents were included in the book, Herman was counseling all writers to persevere because "the typical agent is rejecting 98% of everything he sees. That means he's hungry for the hard-to-find 2 percent that keeps him in business."
So how do I join the 2% club?
I was so preoccupied with my publishing problems the past hour that I was half-aware that my favorite radio show was about to end.
I listened closely and I knew I heard Mojo and Grace Lee.I knew Mo Twister is in the States for his brother's wedding. So who was the third guy?
I heard the name Jobert,and I stood up again. Oh my. My son never even called this guy to thank him.
I started to dial the Magic trunkline and it was busy.
The stack of letters begged for attention again, and I thought, what if I kill two birds with one stone?
"Hello?" Oh my God. It's my first time to call and it's Mojo on the line.
"Who's this?" Mojo sounded bored.
"Marie." I shakily answered. "I called because I'd like to thank Jobert. My son Bodi called a week ago. ."
"Two weeks ago." Grace Lee corrected me on air.
"And he lost a charger."
"I know, you texted me, that finally you got the charger. Isn't that amazing?" Even through the phone lines, I couldn't help but be disarmed by the Grace's truly graceful ways, her true-blue sincerity heard through the phone lines.
By this time though, I was babbling away like a complete idiot.
" He had photos of our trip abroad, and he was so frantic about the other pictures.."
"How old is he ba?" Mojo asks.
"He's 19 and a Senior at the Arreneo." Oh my, I do sound drunk.
"Oh wow." I could see Mojo's flirty eyes twinkling. "So he's really the 'lost and found' guy."
"That's tagged forever with his name." Grace Lee added.
As prescient as ever, Mojo senses that I had something to ask."So Ma'm. Do you have something lost that you want Jobert to find?"
I stuttered, and was unsure. But then again, why not? Since Jobert had spot-on ESP, perhaps he could find a way for me to publish my darned book.
"Could I ask for a quick reading?"
"Oh sure!" Mojo and Jobert enthusiastically said. My worries suddenly felt lame.
"I've been having a hard time trying to publish a novel I've just finished ."
"Oh wow! You're a writer!" I could hear some excitement from Grace Lee's voice, grateful that she appreciates drones like me who labor away creating a reality from the wisp of the imagination.
"I don't know but I've been having a hard time finding an agent abroad."
"New York's a good place to find publishers," Jobert adds helpfully.
"I've been writing to around fifty agents, and the batting average for a first time author abroad is maybe 1%." It's 2% actually.
"I know, I know," Mojo and Jobert commiserate and I could see their heads bobbing up and down, and I felt their empathy with my struggles.
"What's your novel all about?" Grace Lee asks.
"It's a romantic, contemporary novel.."
"Would you mind sending me a copy because. ."
"Her friend. . is a book publisher." Mojo finishes the sentence.
"I'll take a look at it. ."
By that time, I was ready to faint. I think I asked what I could bring the crew if I brought the novel to Grace Lee in person. I knew that Mojo liked coffee, Grace Lee and Mo loved their juices and teas. If I could give a whole darn Starbucks to them, I would.
Grace Lee gave specific directions on how to give the book but by the time I was finished, all the cells in my body felt like it wanted to dance!
Can you believe it? Grace Lee didn't even have to extend her kindness to a total stranger. She could have kept mum, and could just have stayed non-committal and distant to her scrappy listeners.
As a writer, it's the first time I couldn't even describe what I feel. I'm literally speechless.
The only way I could thank her is perhaps dedicating the book to her if she becomes the key instigator paving my way to becoming a published writer.I also hope that she loves my novel. If she enjoys the book, then that's another way of thanking her.
I start to belt out the one song I've always loved as a student in the States for many years. My dog starts to whimper.
"Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound,
That saved a wretch like me....
I once was lost but now am found,
Was blind, but now, I see. Amazing Grace.
T'was Grace that taught...
my heart to fear.
And Grace, my fears relieved.
How precious did that Grace appear...
the hour I first believed.
Through many dangers, toils and snares...
we have already come.
T'was Grace that brought us safe thus far...
and Grace will lead us home."
It is Grace who will save me and lead my book to where it really belongs. Amazing Grace.
(Postscript: Marie is a real caller at the Good Times show last Thursday, November 13. She's the real Mom of Bodi, the 'Lost and Found' kid featured in this blog.
I've always written even in the earliest entries of my blog, that Grace Lee is such a gem, and this was truly shown in her conversation with Marie, the novelist who has been finding it hard to find a publisher for her work.
I'm truly amazed that Grace Lee showed her earnestness and sincerity in helping out a listener, when she could have remained indifferent, owing to her celebrity status.
Such a rare creature should be enshrined as a saint. What do you think about that? Goodtimes!)
