The problem with hope is that it is a balancing act between despair and joy. As I send partials out to agents I find myself maintaining only a cautious optimism as a partial is only a tiny step up the ladder. If that manages to pass muster then there is the full–agents often like a partial and reject a full as it may not fill the expectation the partial creates. And if you manage the joy of joys and get an agent then you are struggling with rejection of publishers. There are people who live charmed lives, that get agents easily and then published without too much drama and then there are the rest of us.

One of the hardest parts of submitting is the wait. You wait for a response (which often may never come) to your query. Then you wait for the response to your partial, and after that if you are lucky to your full. This can take months and months and so hope, while not immediately dashed, can eventually be crushed. I send my work off and try not to remain too attached to the moment as an unpublished writer the only power I have right now is the creation of more work and the dogged pursuit for representation. Many people fail–not because they are poor or unpublishable–but because this is a market driven business and if you are not seen as sexy enough or dollars in the bank then you will be cast aside. So I take hope and put it back on the mantle, only to polish it off each time I move forward in the game. Hopefully one day I can take it out and let it shine.