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Wednesday, April 27, 2011

WOW Wednesday: Caitlin Kittredge - Even Pro Authors Get the Blues

This week's WOW post is by Caitlin Kittredge, the author of The Iron Thorn, Book I of the Iron Codex trilogy, and the bestselling Nocturne urban fantasy series for adults. She lives in Massachusetts and is represented by Rachel Vater of FinePrint Literary. Visit her website at www.caitlinkittredge,.com to read her blog or find her on Twitter, where she goes by @caitkitt.

Even Pro Authors Get the Blues

by Caitlin Kittredge

The rejection blues, that is. When I was working on my first YA novel, my book The Iron Thorn was far from the first thing I attempted. It went a little something like this:

ME: I will write a YA book about fairies set in Victorian England! It will be the Best Thing Ever!

MY LOVELY AGENT: Um, you do realize there are no actual Young Adults in this novel?

ME: DRAT. Okay, I will rework it so that a teenage girl TIME TRAVELS to Victorian England.

MLA: This partial book you have delivered me doesn't make a whole lot of sense. Also, your time travel science is totally inconsistent. I have gone cross-eyed.

ME: [Assorted swearing.] Okay, forget Victorian England. It is a silly place. I'm going to write about a teenage Grim Reaper, and she will be sarcastic and dark and bad-ass, and have an awesome Goth sidekick who reanimates dead Pomeranians!

MLA: This is not making me cross-eyed, but I feel you could do better. I get the distinct sense you pounded a case of Diet Coke and wrote this in a weekend.

ME: HOW DOES SHE ALWAYS KNOW. Okay, fine, I'm just going to give up, cry, eat a box of Hostess cupcakes, and then work on this silly half-formed idea about a steampunk world inhabited by evil faeries and Lovecraftian monsters.

MLA: I LOVE IT. Can you write me 50 pages and an outline?

ME: BWAH? But also, OKAY! [Writes frantically, pulling a plot and supporting cast out of thin air because thinking that far ahead is for writers who don't like going insane.]

BOOK: [Sells to Random House.]

ME: CRAZY TIMES.

All of this is to illustrate one simple point—don't give up. I still deal with rejection, and I've published nine books. It doesn't stop when you get published, it just reaches a different level—you can talk to your agent, hash things out, etc. But if you're struggling with being on submission, or just finishing a first novel, press forward. You can do it. It takes a lot of resilience and persistence to make it in this business, but if you know that going in, you're ahead of the game.

We have a copy of The Iron Thorn for a lucky winner. Enter by 5/4/2011 to win.



Want to read more from Caitlin Kittredge? Jump on her blog tour:

Cleverly Inked—Tuesday, April 26th
http://www.cleverlyinked.com/

Kiss the Book—Thursday, April 28th
http://www.kissthebook.blogspot.com/

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32 comments:

  1. Natalie AguirreApril 27, 2011 at 6:50 AM

    Great post Caitlin. Thanks for encouraging us to stick with it. I've heard such good things about THE IRON THORN. Can't wait to read it. Thanks for offering a book for the contest.

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  2. Artemis GreyApril 27, 2011 at 7:44 AM

    I too have heard a lot of great things about The Iron Thorn, and since I'm in the middle of working on a steampunkish WIP, I am all about reading everyone else's steampunk worlds!

    Great post, I love hearing that you can get the blues even after you've 'made it'. I'm currently querying agents, and those around me who are not into writing try to be helpful by reassuring me that once I finally get an agent, it'll all get easier. And I'm always like 'No, then it gets HARDER because you've got someone who pushes you to write even better, cooler things than you thought possible!' *laughs like a mad scientist*

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  3. Liz ReinhardtApril 27, 2011 at 8:10 AM

    Very nice to know the rejection never, ever stops! Haha! Great post...now I'm going to slam a case of Dr. Pepper and attempt to finish my own crazy manuscript. Looking forward to reading *The Iron Thorn*!

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  4. MarcyKateApril 27, 2011 at 8:27 AM

    Awesome post - i've been dying to read this book. It's looks amazing!

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  5. MarcieApril 27, 2011 at 8:40 AM

    This is a great post. It's great to see the draft to publishing process in the works. I've heard a lot of good things about The Iron Thorn and I look forward to reading it.

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  6. Ammy BelleApril 27, 2011 at 8:49 AM

    Thanks for the kind and inspirational words of wisdom! I think I will keep them as a mantra ... this rejection thing sucks.

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  7. AnonymousApril 27, 2011 at 9:14 AM

    Thanks Caitlin for letting us know that the craziness never really ends. ;) The book sounds fascinating and would love to read it.

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  8. Paige KellermanApril 27, 2011 at 9:29 AM

    Great post and just in time to stop me from pulling my hair out. Must. finish. writing. book...:)

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  9. Lindsay SmithApril 27, 2011 at 9:36 AM

    Haha. Love the dialogue. ;D And I can't wait to read it!

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  10. Carol RiggsApril 27, 2011 at 10:09 AM

    What a GORGEOUS cover, and a totally FUN way to present this! Humorous, easy to read, and with good info. Thanks so much. :o)

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  11. SarahSparrowApril 27, 2011 at 10:10 AM

    Well, I for one, can't wait to read this!

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  12. Barbara WatsonApril 27, 2011 at 10:46 AM

    Thank you for this post! As a writer just embarking on my first WIP, this kind of stuff keeps my fingers to the keyboard.

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  13. EisenApril 27, 2011 at 12:25 PM

    Very inspiring post! The dialogue was really funny. Iron Thorn sounds interesting and the cover looks great! :-) I always look forward to reading this blog. It has such cool stuff!

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  14. TerilApril 27, 2011 at 12:34 PM

    I have heard great things about this book, and I would love to read it. Thank you for the interview.

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  15. Kaya HApril 27, 2011 at 12:35 PM

    This author's adult series has been fantastic! I cannot wait to read Iron Thorn. This interview reminded me about it. Thank you!

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  16. Tere KirklandApril 27, 2011 at 12:38 PM

    Love this interview! Thanks for the chance to win The Iron Thorn. The cover is beautiful, and who doesn't love Lovecraftian monsters?

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  17. TheGirlOnFireApril 27, 2011 at 12:48 PM

    Thanks for the interview, can't wait to read this!

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  18. Rachel HarrisApril 27, 2011 at 3:16 PM

    Great post and I had never heard of The Iron Thorn. Sounds awesome-and I agree, beautiful cover :-)

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  19. JessyApril 27, 2011 at 3:20 PM

    I actually like the Grim Reaper idea. You should try and roll with that!

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  20. Elizabeth BriggsApril 27, 2011 at 3:55 PM

    Interesting to see how an author works with an agent like that. I can't wait to read this book.

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  21. VivienApril 27, 2011 at 4:42 PM

    I've been very intrigued by this novel for some time. It sounds like a clever twist.

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  22. Sheri FredricksApril 27, 2011 at 6:33 PM

    You are SO FUNNY! I'm reading your post, laughing along, and my dog is barking. What a real joy it is to learn more about you through this interview.

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  23. throuthehazeApril 27, 2011 at 6:47 PM

    Great post :)

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  24. Jemi FraserApril 27, 2011 at 8:42 PM

    Awesome post - thank you! It's so nice to hear these kinds of stories from successful writers!! :)

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  25. AnonymousApril 27, 2011 at 10:25 PM

    am I the only one who was laughing the entire time through this? I hope not because oh my god, LOLOLOL.

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  26. Julie MusilApril 27, 2011 at 10:26 PM

    This is a great dose of reality. Even published authors receive rejections. We're in good company!

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  27. TerryLynnJohnsonApril 28, 2011 at 9:14 AM

    Great great story. Can't wait to read this!

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  28. AnonymousApril 28, 2011 at 7:03 PM

    The book sounds amazing and the cover the same. Despite the occasional "overnight success," the reality seems to be that most of us keep slogging on.

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  29. bfavApril 28, 2011 at 11:28 PM

    Your story is crazy and inspiring. Thanks.

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  30. ReginaApril 29, 2011 at 9:47 AM

    What an amazing book and beautiful cover.

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  31. Jagged EdgesMay 1, 2011 at 8:36 PM

    I LOVE the cover. And the story behind the story. :) Thanks for sharing.

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  32. ChristineMay 2, 2011 at 5:47 PM

    This book looks so good! A friend of mine read it and really liked it, so now I want to read it, too.

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