Never thought I would retract my long held position about agents saying pass on projects by not replying, but on Friday I received this email:

Dear Sam,

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to review The Last Track. As much as I enjoyed reading this, I am sorry to say I did not fall in love with the novel like I had hoped. As agents do, I need to truly love a project to take it on. Considering that you will also want and need an agent who will get behind your work with her full commitment, I wish you the best of luck placing your project with an agent who adores it. Thanks again and apologies for my belated response.

Best regards,

* Name redacted By Sam *

* Agency redacted by Sam *

Normally I do not post rejections but I thought this one was interesting for several reasons.

1) They actually sent it on their own volition. Usually I query, get a request for material, send it off and the project disappears into a void. Usually any request about the project status is unanswered.

2) Response time. Five weeks to evaluate a manuscript is very acceptable, given the circumstances, as BEA sat squarely within the consideration period. And for perspective, I can cite one agent that took more than eighteen months to reply to a query.

3) Professional tone. This was not written by a snarky junior assistant. If it was, they are ready to be an agent.

As soon as I prep another query blast pack, I’ll send this agent a thank you note. They did me a favor.

After a few years of trying to sell agents on a manuscript, I finally have some closure. With one agent, at least. And apparently there are some with manners, even in NYC.

The week passed in an eye blink, except when implementing The Last Track edits. I had hoped to bask in the home stretch by today, but alas, nearly a hundred pages remain. So that’s it, I’m dropping the hammer for real now. Nothing fun, irritating or distracting is coming before finishing a large chunk of these revisions tomorrow.

Except one bit of frivolity…

Four consecutive days away from work did wonders for my interest and focus level in writing. The 2006-2007 school year is now a memory. During the regrouping period, I watched a bunch of DVD’s, read a few books and tackled those edits. Roughly one hundred and forty pages remain to be implemented.

It’s been a long road and the end of this journey is near. The Last Track took almost three years to move from a very rough draft to something I can pitch to any agent or interested party with confidence. There is really nothing more I can do with this manuscript that would improve it more than changing the toner cartridge in the printer; I left nothing on the table. Back then, if someone told me what a pain in the ass writing a novel is, really the effort it takes to get it right, to make it the best I’m capable of, I would have pushed them down the stairs for heresy. And I wouldn’t have listened, either. Writing is mystical, magical, worth any sacrifice. Right?

More often than not the process has been fun, and it is its own reward. Ultimately, I did it because I have to, and no matter what happens now, to me the ride was worth the fuel cost for the trip. Even at full retail. Sometimes I wonder if it was worth a divorce, but that’s another discussion.

Though all the above rational are valid, I’ll state this with absolute conviction: I’m aching to start another project. Whether it’s resuming The Confession, or a new screenplay idea, I’m ready for new ground. Oh, the places I will go. 😉