pandora/ipod: "kiss them for me" by siouxsie and the banshees
Bryn Greenwood is, without doubt, one of the most talented writers I've ever had the pleasure to read for. She is also one of the best beta readers a girl could ever have and I credit her with making me a better writer by pointing out all the lame shit I do in manuscripts. :D1. What is your novel about? If you pitch it to me in iambic pentameter you get bonus points.
BRYN: Ugly and the Beast is about Axyl Witt, a death row inmate who is falsely convicted of murder. One murder, anyway. He's totally guilty of the other four murders. When a washed-up goddess offers him a chance at revenge against the friends who testified against him, he takes it. The goddess' ugly sister, however, wants to offer him his one and only shot at redemption.
(FYI, Bryn had promised me a limerick pitch. She has failed me.)
2. What do you love most about your main character?
BRYN: I love that Axyl Witt is unrepentantly bad. Even toward the end of the book, when he finally comes to regret some of the things he's done, it doesn't really change who he is at heart. He may fall in love with the Ugliest Girl in the World, and he may manage to do a few good things for her and for humanity, but he's always going to be a douchebag with a foul mouth and a bad temper.
3. What's the one think you wish you'd known at the beginning of the writing/querying/publishing process?
BRYN: I wish I'd known not to give up. The first book I queried is trunked because I gave up. I sent 10 queries, got 7 full requests, and 6 detailed, encouraging, and complimentary rejections. Looking back, I understand that at least 3 of those could have been turned into revise and resubmits, but at the time all I could see was the NO. I thought, "This book must be no good." I didn't understand that agents don't send that kind of rejections of the book is no good. So I trunked it and moved on. Ten years later, I know that my stats and the kind of rejections I was getting were all good signs. I should have tried harder.
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PAY IT FORWARD PARTICIPANTS:
Elana Johnson
Lisa and Laura Roecker
Beth Davis
Leah Clifford
Victoria Schwab
Kirsten Hubbard
Carrie Harris
Kim Harrington
Suzette Saxon & Bethany Wiggins
Amy Holder
Kathy McCullough
Tiffany Schmidt
Susan Adrian
Dawn Metcalf
I'm sorry! I tried, I really did, but it turned out to be a lot harder to get from "There once was a man from Hooker" to something about revenge...
ReplyDeleteOoh, intriguing book. And I think you did try harder = you wrote another book! Congrats on that. :)
ReplyDeleteOh, poo. Would have loved to see Bryn go to town on the dirty limerick.
ReplyDeleteGreat advice and great interview. thanks!
ReplyDeleteThose were some pretty amazing rejections... I'd love to know what THAT book was about too.
ReplyDeleteGreat interview! And great advice, too -- I made a similar mistake with my first.
ReplyDeleteWe must demand a limerick at a later date, because I want to see one from Bryn too. :)
It's so funny how things look before you get to know other writers. When I was all alone, trying to figure out the querying and stuff, those rejections were just brutal. Ha! I had no idea what a brutal rejection was until I got my first form R on a full. *sigh*
ReplyDeleteThat's why the internet is so great. It lets you find out how the publishing world works instead of fumbling around in ignorance.
Oh and since you're disappointed, I'll drop one of my limericks, wherein you'll just have to forgive the near-rhyme:
ReplyDeleteThere once was a man from Hooker
Stuck in the pokey for murder
Given the choice
Twixt revenge and remorse
He said, "Let me at them fuckers."
BRYN THAT IS FREAKING GENIUS!
ReplyDeleteBryn, your book sounds incredible. And your limerick made me laugh out loud. HILARIOUS.
ReplyDeleteLMAO..love the limmerick in the comments, Bryn! And I totally agree with Blond--Bryn is uber-talented! Ditto your sentiments in last bit about not giving up!
ReplyDelete