Articles

Can We Critique You?
Assistance from Rejection to Acceptance

Rachel Carrington

You've finished your manuscript, edited it with a fine-tooth comb, prepared and sent query after query, synopsis after synopsis and while the editors will look at your manuscript, in the end, it keeps getting rejected. So where do you go from here? (Now would be a really good time to go to www.authormania.com  and read the article entitled "Life After Rejections." Trust me. It helps.)

While a lot of authors will shy away from critique groups, I find them to be a saving grace. I've been blessed with a wonderful critique partner who, while telling it like it is, doesn't feel the need to rip my writing to shreds. If you find yourself receiving countless rejections, I have a few suggestions that go hand in hand with critique groups.

First, a critique group will commiserate with you when you do receive a rejection. Most of the writers in the group have been there and have been wearing the t-shirt for quite some time.

You can submit your writing at all hours of the night and odds are good, you'll have a response by the very next day. Previously, I had a critique partner who lived in a different time zone with a three hour difference, so my bedtime was when she was just getting started on her computer.

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Critique partners will help keep you up-to-date on the current market and any changes in the industry of which you might not be aware. I have a critique partner who is always e-mailing me contest information as well as current publishing houses which are accepting the genre of manuscripts which I write. This is especially helpful if you haven't found out this information any other way or possibly couldn't have found it out on your own, I.e., your critique partner is a member of a group which you are not.

In case you're still wondering if I'm a big fan of critique groups, let me say a reserved yes. I prefer one-on-one partnership rather than a group as I've been involved in the large groups. Unless you have very thick skin and can take harsh criticism, then stay away. Unfortunately, in every large critique group, there is a self-appointed expert who feels the need to trash the work of others. For an experienced writer, this is merely annoying. For an inexperienced writer, this can be devastating. I don't want that to happen to you.

Now, I've said all that to say this. If you've been getting rejection after rejection and it's difficult for you to look at your book with a critical, unbiased eye (which, let's face it, is always), you should consider signing on with a critique group. However, like researching for an agent, you should go slowly.

Take the steps necessary to make your book a success, but much like marriage don’t rush into a partnership you’ll soon regret.

Rachel Carrington is a multi-published author of fantasy and paranormal romances and currently writes for Ellora’s Cave, Samhain Publishing, Five Star/Gale, and Red Sage Publishing. Rachel has also written extensively for magazines, e-zines, and newspapers. Readers can visit her on the web at www.dawnrachel.com  or www.moongladeeliteauthors.com.