Awhile back I pitched a London-based publisher the idea for my novel, The Hating Game. They liked it. I wrote the first three chapters and a synopsis. They liked that, too.So I wrote the whole thing. And now I've sent it off -- again. And I'm waiting, biting my nails to the quick and jiggling my leg until its about to fall off, to see what they might say back to me.
I'm terrible at waiting. Who isn't? I don't know anyone who's ever said, Actually I like waiting! The uncertainty, the limbo state where your mind frantically scrolls through every possibility... it's great!
I've already cleaned the kitchen (and the loo, I'm desperate!). I've Hoovered the flat to within an inch of its life... I'm even doing laundry (sh, don't tell my husband or he might think I'll do it again).
Please help: what are your coping strategies for waiting?
WINE!
ReplyDeleteWait.
Um...
WINE!
:-)
But that's my answer to everything. I actually don't know, as I've never been in your situation. Probably going to get a lot of folks telling you to start on something new!
PS: You sound so fancy when you say, "I pitched a London-based publisher..." Ahh, London. Instantly writer-fanciness. :-)
Whatever you do, good luck!
I usually start with housework then move on to reading or spacing out in front of the television. If I don't want to do any of those things then I bake. Chocolate cupcakes, strawberry cake, cookies... the possibilities are endless! Why not make waiting something delicious?
ReplyDeleteExactly what Summer said wine or a great martini-- not just one but many.
ReplyDeleteGood luck!
Waiting IS hard. I also like the wine suggestion - it certainly sounds more fun than housework.
ReplyDeleteGood luck - fingers crossed for you.
I'm a terribly impatient person, so I'm not sure my advice is any good! I start thinking about my next book, I blog, and I constantly check my email!
ReplyDeleteGood luck! Sounds like you've really got their attention. :)
I check my email often, bite my nails, cry, have panic attacks, convince myself it'll never happen...
ReplyDeleteThe usual.
I play a rousing match of squash or take a walk and get some fresh air. The mind is freed!
ReplyDeleteHmmm...I haven't figured out a good strategy yet. I just try to keep from pulling my hair out! Let me know if you come up with a good one ;-)
ReplyDelete~JD
Waiting stinks! I have a couple things out there I'm waiting to hear back on. I'm trying to put them out of my mind and write. Easier said than done.
ReplyDeleteMy fingers are crossed for you!
I'm not that the waiting hard, it's the anticipation of the answer. Our minds take us a roller coaster ride. "Will they? Won't they? What if they like it? What they don't?" etc. etc. etc. That's why it's important to try to forget about it and go on and do something else.
ReplyDeleteHow the hell did you get given permission to pitch an incomplete novel? HOWWWWW?
ReplyDeleteYou've got me giggling this morning - Oh yes, I just love waiting. So rejeuvenating! HA!
ReplyDeleteBreathe!
ReplyDeleteMy fingers, toes, eyes - wait no my coworkers will wonder about that one, arms and legs are crossed for you.
Well you could... read. ;o)
Visit My Kingdom Anytime
Thanks so much guys! I'm gonna go with WINE (at the moment, anyway)! The thing is, I have tons of stuff to distract me at the moment, but you know, when you care so much about something it's hard to stop obsessing about it regardless!
ReplyDeleteAlliterative Allomorph - in this case I have a connection with a publisher through non-fiction writing I do under another name. So, it's not exactly a typical scenario... that's how I could pitch an idea and outline and go from there!
The only thing that helps me when I'm waiting is starting a new writing project... either that or going on a really long, really cool vacation. Like a trip around the world in a hot air balloon. :)
ReplyDeleteOh WOW!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations!!!!!!!!! That is excellent, excellent, excellent news!!!
I am so pleased for you and wish you all the best with your novel.
Yay!!! *dancing around my desk - discreetly or else the boss will notice* LOL!!!
Yes, wine and bonoffee pie!! You deserve to celebrate!
take care
x
I'm biting my nails here! Waiting with you-- SO EXCITING!!!
ReplyDeleteHow exciting!
ReplyDeleteI'd go with wine - or G&T, those tend to make the world blurrier faster for me :P
Not the same thing, but when I was waiting for the Home Office to return my passport I went a bit crazy and the best thing to do was find another project to get lost in! Didn't completely obliterate my thoughts, but it helped!
Fingers crossed you get some great news soon! xx
Good luck to you!!!!! That's so exciting :):)
ReplyDeleteI suck at waiting, I'm the most impatient person on the planet!!
Maybe read your favorite books? That's usually what I turn to when I'm in a mental state. Not saying you are or anything :)
Here it is, just as Summer predicted: Start writing a shiny new project.
ReplyDeleteAND, drink the hard hooch. In this sitch, I'd go with scotch.
If they come back with a yes, I'd move on to champagne!
If a no, more scotch.
Well, as you've already cleaned the flat, I'd say, have a nice lunch and then start writing another book.
ReplyDeleteAt least one good thing came out of the waiting game- a clean house (I mean flat)! Whenever I submit a story, I just start on my next one. And eat chocolate. Lots and lots of chocolate. And lots more. Yum, chocolate!
ReplyDeleteGood luck! I hope you hear the news you've been so (im)patiently waiting for!
I love that you have hoovered the flat. It makes me smile. If I could get away with saying that, I would.
ReplyDeleteI hate waiting too. It seems like we're always waiting for something, doesn't it? Waiting for an email. Waiting for a critique. Waiting. If I'd known how much waiting there was, I would have chosen something different. Something like tax law.
first off, congrats.
ReplyDeleteI just try and find something else to do. Because the time will pass anyway
Really exciting to be considered ! If you would like to take your mind off things, I've lots of housework needing doing !
ReplyDeleteBreak a leg (or whatever the good luck thing is for writers, Break a hand, maybe )
Your secret is safe with me. If asked I will say the Laundry fairy did it!
ReplyDeleteCongrats on getting this far. Fingers crossed you will hear something positive soon. Otherwise you might think of painting the outside of the house. That might keep you going for awhile! :)
First of all, congratulations on the interest in your manuscript! That in itself is something to be proud of! I've stopped getting anxious when I send out requested fulls or partials. After two rejections on the full ms, I learned not to get too excited or impatience. I actually got a request Tuesday and decided to finish some revisions based on feedback from my critics group before submitting. Maybe the waiting and the patience will actually pay off this time.....:) Good Luck! I'll have my fingers crossed for you!
ReplyDeleteI'm jumping on the wine bandwangon. Drink and be merry while you wait.
ReplyDeleteOh well done - I am really impressed you did it like that - so you pitched before you had written the story? Fab... I think the author Lisa Jewell did something like that (and she didn't do too badly!)
ReplyDeleteAs for waiting - oh gosh. Can you try and distract yourself with another project? Maybe something more interesting than cleaning? How about exploring a new part of London, or going to see a weird and wonderful museum, or... *whispers* wait by the letterbox, which is what I'd be doing?!
It's sort of cheesy but I like going to the movies. See two in a row and just chill out.
ReplyDeleteWhen I send something off, I try to forget about it and find another piece to focus my energy on. You will drive yourself crazy if you can't stop thinking about it. But I do keep detailed records of my submissions and when it's time to query again, I do it.
ReplyDeleteGood luck Talli!! WOOO!! I'm rooting for you - hope you get it!
Thank you so much everyone, for all your best wishes and waiting tactics. I like the scotch suggestion!
ReplyDeleteI'm trying not to think too much about it and focusing instead on the oh-so-interesting UK election! Funnily enough it's not really distracting me too much. I may need to try something a bit more hard-core... where's my drink? Refill!
Congratulations for getting this far! What an achievement! well done, Drink, definately drink, I'm just about to re-open that bottle of Chablis I bought on special offer from Tesco at the weekend! Let us know how it goes, Karen x
ReplyDeleteI'm with Summer on this one!! A glass of wine does the trick but that normally even solves the tough subjects like health care and world hunger so why wouldn't it work for writing!!!
ReplyDeleteGood luck! Benefiting with a clean house isn't such a bad thing either!
I don't wait well either. Trying to keep busy is the best thing, doing whatever works best for you. You can always come to Texas and clean here ... I have just the place.
ReplyDeleteIf you are not too distracted I left a little award for you over at Inkpots N' Quills. Thought it might help to pass a minute or two!
ReplyDeleteOooh... your laundering secret is safe with me. ;)
ReplyDeleteI'll just say good luck and leave it at that for the moment. You can go back to pacing the flat. :D
Wow...that's super exciting. I definitely hate the waiting game. I'm generally a very patient person...but when I'm waiting for something I really want, especially when I have little or no idea of how, or when, it will turn out, it gets annoying fast.
ReplyDeleteSO EXCITING!!!! Best of luck with your project! I love your blog!!
ReplyDeleteTalli!!!!!! So exciting!!!!
ReplyDeleteThe only advice I can give is what others give: write through it. Start another book. Keep moving forward.
I'm waiting on several agents to get back to me on fulls and that's all that I have left to me as well.
Good luck, friend!
How can one resist a blog title like that? Over-caffeinated fiction writer making the journey towards publication... one espresso at a time.
ReplyDeleteLove it! (for me, switch it to one piece of chocolate at a time)
The best way to deal with waiting is find a bunch of good books to read! You can (sort of) call it market research, right?
Good luck with the waiting. Coffee and wine make the wait go faster. :)
ReplyDeleteAGREED! I've been waiting on a agent to get back to my on a full request for a month and I know I've probably barely begun. Waiting is killer.
ReplyDeleteOh, I am no good at the waiting game, but I do try to start new projects or at least read a book while I wait. Best of luck to you!
ReplyDeleteThat's fantastic news!
ReplyDeleteSimple - start writing something new.
I'm SO jealous that you successfully pitched a novel that didn't exist yet. You must have knocked their socks off already, so I'm assuming you will when they see the book.
ReplyDeleteCongratulations! I hope they look the book as much as the idea.
I don't have an strategy for waiting. I'm probably the most impatient person there is. I guess I pace and just worry myself silly.
ReplyDeleteGood luck on this though! I hope it all goes well! :)
I agree - start a new book. That will make the waiting go much faster. But come over here and clean my house before you start! :)
ReplyDeleteOh what a great title and their response is pretty promising so far. Get the flat clean because you wont have time to do it once you start writing your next book!
ReplyDeleteI hate the waiting game! But, it's part of being a writer, so embrace it. This is a good time to read new books, or garden, or whatever it is your heart aches for. Good luck and best wishes!
ReplyDeleteAH! Thank you all so much for your wonderful responses. Each time I got one I'd check it straight away - and that was a great distraction in itself! :) And I really appreciate all the best wishes. THANKS!
ReplyDeleteOh my, waiting has got to be the hardest part of this process for me! I'm still not good at it, but the thing that helps the most is to get busy with something else. I've been writing another book while by first is on submission. Some days the waiting still makes me crazy.
ReplyDeleteFirstly - congrats on them liking the chapters etc!
ReplyDeleteSecondly - do something to take your mind off it - maybe go on holiday somewhere?
Oh, I so feel this. Waiting is the worst thing ever.
ReplyDeleteWhat do I do?
Chat with friends. Go to lunch. Write something new. And read a lot of blogs.
Good luck!
The waiting comment was too funny. You are the best, Talli. I'm thinking positive things on your behalf. I'm waiting on an agent myself, and I'm going to start a new mantra, "I like waiting. Waiting is great!"
ReplyDeleteoh wow! congrats on the submission! no wonder you're on pins and needles! will be sending all positive thoughts your way!
ReplyDeletejeannie
The Character Therapist
Oh dear, I'm afraid your coping mechanism is much safer and healthier than mine, which involves a lot of chocolate. :) Thanks for the comments from Laurel's contest this morning!
ReplyDeleteGood luck!
ReplyDeleteHow do I cope? Obsessively checking of e-mail, while dreading checking the regular mail during the days and red wine at night.
The waiting is actually the exciting part because anything is possible. It's out there, someone is reading it, there is maybe. There is.....hope.
ReplyDeleteWhat you might consider doing in the interim is starting a new story or a poem or any old thing.
Good Luck!!!