Results of query five? More rejection slips. One agent said I could write, and meant it. That same agent can’t remember reading my last four queries, and didn’t even remember my name. That’s what I’m up against. How frustrating is that?

Do you want to know why I do this, month after month, year after year? Have you ever been moved to tears by the ending of a story? Have you ever been propelled to joy? Have you ever finished a novel, and the core idea that drove the plot left you thinking for days afterward? Have you ever been sucked into a world so real you felt it move and throb underneath your feet? Deep in your heart? As if it was a part of your mind? That’s why I felt it was right to follow my heart, writing the novels I felt most passionate about. Pap, Keeping his first soul. Judas, naked, in pain, outracing Hell with Tamera in his arms, a baby in her arms. Raphael, leading two lost souls into Heaven. I do everything I can to cram my own soul into each story. I let the characters drive themselves into life, as they lead me from place to place, point to point. I believe.

　

Mark Twain was credited with the first truly American novel, and the question is why? Look at his past. Growing up Sam used to spend hours on the porches of former slaves, listening to their stories. How they said what they said influenced his entire life in words. Huck was the subject of that truly American novel, and he crawled into Huck’s head and lived in it, thinking Huck’s thoughts, speaking as Huck spoke. He told the story as Huck would have lived the story, and so made literary history. I like this way of thinking, because it fits me as a storyteller. Each sentence I write means was it says, and says what it means. Language is a tool, and each word has its function. Plain language novels concentrate on the plot and characters, while descriptive language novels concentrate on the characters, their perceptions, while plot is secondary. Some of the best use descriptive language plus a strong plot, and are character centric.

　

My biggest mistake was submitting books or queries before I had the mechanics down. There are rules, more rules, and exceptions to the rules, which are rules unto themselves, and I have to know them all. Most of what I’m talking about deals with grammar and punctuation. The rest of those rules are unspoken rules, dealing with book construction, editing myself into print, crafting a killer opening, making sure the middle of a novel doesn’t sag, and providing an explosive finish. I just discovered another mistake I’ve been making. I’ve written Fantasy, Horror, Crime, and one damn good sexual satire. And that’s the mistake. I should have been concentrating on one genre, like Fantasy. I love Fantasy, though Horror is my first love. I jumped from genre to genre as the muse struck, knowing that what I was doing, following my passion, infusing those words with strength, was a good thing. I wrote some great books, but I’m too jumpy for agents. I should have stuck with one genre, and built myself up from there. They’re more inclined to build on me as a fantasist, rather than a renaissance man.

　

What that means for me is I get to finish my crime thriller, and then concentrate on Fantasy, and nothing but Fantasy. The thing is, Fantasy can be broken up into several sub-genres. Modern, traditional, or otherworldly. Magical beings or just plain magic is the common thread. Modern Fantasy is here and now, with magical beings and magic, such as Harry Potter. Lord of the Rings and the Hobbit is traditional Fantasy, and otherworldly fantasy is nonhuman beings and the magic they live and use. Some folks consider that Sci-Fi, but unless you have a spaceship in the mix, it isn’t Sci-Fi.

　

I also made another mistake with query number five. My credits paragraph read as: As for my credits paragraph, you probably know it by heart. Now, take a moment to ponder something that is very much true. Every short story I ever wrote was published, most more than once. Every short story I ever wrote was published. Keep in mind I haven’t written a short story in years, because I want to write novels. I feel I earned this right. I’m a storyteller, balls to bone.

　

That statement, meant to be informal but still have impact, called into question my credibility. That doesn’t mean it wasn’t true, because it was. I can try to defend myself now, which is a lost cause, or send this list out with my next query letter. Here is the list. All the short stories I ever wrote and finished and submitted. All were published, and chances are it still won’t mean a damn thing. But, I didn’t lie. If they want to believe otherwise, I’ll just have to deal with it. Those years afterward were spent teaching myself how to be the best, with proper grammar and punctuation. Saying what I want to say, how I want to say it. Editing and polishing all my finished books to the highest possible shine, before I submitted them for consideration. And, making mistakes.

　

ABRACADABRA IS JUST A WORD, ISN’T IT?

2001 - Gateway SF Magazine

2002 - The House of Pain

　

CONJURED FROM STONE & STEEL

2001 - Weird Visions

2002 - Shadow Keep

　

FIT FOR SURVIVAL

2001 - The Ultimate Unknown

2002 - Shadow Keep

　

PERCIBLE TRAYNOR’S QUEST FOR IMMORTALITY

2001 - Fear of the Dark

2002 - The House of Pain

　

SERVE REVENGE HOT

2001 - The Ultimate Unknown

2001 - Shadow Keep

SHOOSH, IT’S A SECRET

2000 - The Ultimate Unknown

2001 - Shadow Keep

2002 - The House of Pain

　

WISDOM DIVINE

2001 - The Ultimate Unknown

2001 - Fables

　

ORIGINS: LITTLE DEMON DOLLY

2002 - Shadow Keep

　

ONLY _ DAY(S) LEFT UNTIL XMAS

2001 - Shadow Keep

　

FOR THE GREATER GOOD

2002 - Fantasy & Legends

　

FIRE WITH FIRE

2001 - The Murder Hole

　

HOW THE PEOPLE KEPT THEIR POWER

2002 - Twilight Times

　

HAVE YOU EVER FELT REAL . . .

2002 - The Murder Hole

　

LOVE’S GIFT

2002 - Twilight Times Books - featured download.

　

MONKEY’S MEAT

2002 - The House of Pain

　

WELCOME TO MACHINE

LEA BETH

TWO SOULS AT SUNDOWN

THE LAST FIRST HOUR

1600 PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE

2003 - Bent Offerings