Writing is like High School

A year after finishing the one-billionth draft of Aqua Veneficus, I am finally pitching it to agents. More than any novel I have written, I worked ceaselessly to make this book as perfect as I could. In many ways, I view it as containing my best writing, most complex characters, and most exciting plot. It is intense, fun, and difficult to put down. I have received positive feedback from about a dozen friends, family, and beta readers who took on the task of reading, editing, and reviewing it. Even my sister, the most honest person I know and one who despises reading fiction, finished it in just a few sittings and loved it. Add this to the positive results I have had in the past with querying agents on my previous two novels, I expected to receive a fair amount of interest in Aqua Veneficus. Yet fifteen agents into the process, and I have nothing to show for it except the standard form rejection and one request to read the full manuscript (which resulted in a rejection). Needless to say, these are by far the worst results I have had in querying agents.

To put it simply, I'm stumped, and I can't help feeling like I'm back in high school.

Standard form rejection from an agent: "Thank you for contacting me. Though I appreciate you taking the time to share your work with me, I don't feel your novel is right for my list at this time. I wish you the best of luck in finding an agent elsewhere."

Standard rejection from a girl:
"Thank you for contacting me. Though I appreciate you taking the time to ask me on a date, I don't feel you're right for me at this time. I wish you the best of luck in finding a girlfriend elsewhere."

The similarities are terrifying, and the regularity of both is depressing. Then again, I did trick someone into marrying me, so perhaps there's still hope.