That’s my story and I’m sticking to it. I totally missed a new blog post last week because I was recooping from the WPA. A week later, I’m still recooping. It is one more intense conference/workshop/seminar – whatever the heck you want to call it. But I learned a lot. A lot lot. Like Gypsy may need some work.
While at the WPA, I pitched Gypsy and Wink of an Eye to Sullivan Maxx Literary Agency. They really liked it and requested the whole manuscript. They loved Gypsy’s voice. Said it was some ‘good stuff’. Right after she pointed out a few passive verbs — on the first page! In the first paragraph! I don’t use passive verbs. I know better! But sure as I’m sitting here, I used them. I apologized all over the place like a mother begging forgiveness for their over active kid who just spilled grape juice on your white carpet. She smiled (she’s really nice) and said not to worry, sometimes it takes someone else’s eyes to see these things. I still wanted to die.
So now I’m in a pickle. Do I send it as is, knowing it may need a blood-letting edit/revision? Or do I spend some quality time re-writing, again. Let him go? Or hold him back? They really liked the story. Do I go ahead and send it as is while it’s still fresh in their minds — with of course, an apology for the passive verbs on the first page. Or not mention those pesky verbs at all. After all, they were the ones who pointed them out so they kind of already know about ’em. Ahhh!
I heard a story years ago that is fitting to this situation. Many years ago, guards at a famous art museum arrived at work one day to find an elderly man, naked, defacing an original Picasso. They took the old man downstairs to the office and wrapped him in a blanket. Turns out the old man was Picasso. They asked him why he was defacing his painting. He said, “It wasn’t finished.”
How many times do we pull them back before finally letting go?
Congrats on getting their attention! That’s such a hard decision… Let us know what you end up doing!