Publisher Seeking Part 1

Warning! Unless you like listening/reading rants, click the BACK button, 'cause do I have one!

Okay, maybe I'm being over-dramatic, but the reasons I'm getting back from publishers for not accepting my book are ... well, weird. I mean sure, maybe the language is a little formal in some places, but one of the two main characters is a mystical creature that learned how to speak from old books. Of course she's going to sound not so modern. And yeah, the main character is a dude, which apparently is rare in YA fiction and small on the market. But isn't 'rare' what people look for in books? Something different?

And speaking of different, perhaps the weirdest (and stupidest) reason why publishers are turning down TSA is because they already are working with plenty of books about 'angels' and 'the angel genre is too popular at the moment, so why work with another book on the things'.
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DID THEY NOT READ THE BOOK DESCRIPTION?!?

Sorry, but while I can accept other reasons for being turned down, this one DOES NOT make me a happy camper. THE SWAMP ANGEL is not a book involving angels. There are none! The closest thing to any divine being in the whole novel is a monster whose species just happens to be named 'angel'. Trust me when I say a swamp angel doesn't look/act like a real angel (and here comes a spoiler); if anything, they look more like demons, with claws and horns and green hair/skin and wings that look like bat wings with no skin. Not to mention they aren't perfect like angels are thought to be. Seriously!

The good news, at least, is that one small publisher, Spencer Hill Press, like TSA and is willing to wait until November for me to decide if I want to work with them. I'm grateful for their offer, I am, but I can't help but hope a bigger publisher likes my work. And all the turn-downs haven't been bad: many say I got talent and my work is good, just not for them.

Keeping fingers crossed,
Colleen

The Birth of A Book

Believe me when I say that inspiration can be found ANYWHERE, as long as you're looking. I'm telling you this because the idea for The Swamp Angel came from, of all things, a song title.

I remember it. It was October 16th, 2008, a week before my 17th birthday. I was in my room, listening to a CD I'd bought at the mall the same day: The Black Swan by the band Story of the Year (which I recommend to everyone; they're very good). I fell in love with their song "Angel in the Swamp". And I got to thinking, "What if there was an actual creature like a swamp angel?". And after thinking it over, I pulled out my school laptop and started typing.

Nine months later, my first 'book baby' was born. And I've been trying to get it published ever since. :)

Later,
Colleen

Cover News and Basic Plotline

Hello readers!

First I've decided that I'm going to try and update at least once a week with news and stuff. That's about as much as I can spare right now, but when summer comes there'll be more!

Second, I've finished my design for TSA's cover. Turned out great, but since I drew it by hand, and I don't have a scanner or a digital camera on me right now, it might take a while to get it upload. I promise it's totally worth it, though.

Finally, I figure since some people are wondering what this book is about, I'd give you a tidbit of a summary:

            Rylan Forester likes to think himself as a normal boy. He has good friends, a doting grandmother, makes good grades in school, and has a crush on a great girl. Sure, he could do without the land-snatching mayor trying to buy the swampland on his family’s property. Yeah, he wishes his distant father wouldn’t avoid him. And certainly the odd dreams haunting him for the past month could go away. But all in all, life is good.

            At least until that one day Rylan almost died.

            Saved by the most unlikely of saviors, Rylan steps headfirst into a world of mystery and magic, all circling around the very same heroine, a swamp angel; a sentient creature with a heart as big as the bayou. What starts as a nervous friendship blooms into something more as Rylan’s life takes a turn for the complicated. But can the lessons he learns from her – true courage, devotion, kindness, and sacrifice – be enough when both the past and present rear their ugly heads?

            And how long can he keep this all a secret?

Hope you like how it sounds! More news later!

Colleen

1st Post Info

Okay. Since I made this blog, I might as well put it to use.

The name is Colleen Boyd, and if you didn't read my profile, I'm a second year college student and first time author. The book in question?

THE SWAMP ANGEL.

It's a young adult fantasy book about a boy who befriends a monster known as a swamp angel who lives in the bayou in his backyard. It's currently being looked over by multiple publishers thanks to my awesome agent Leticia Gomez. This blog is to record my progress and share it with everyone else!

That's all I really got now. I don't know if I'll be able to update quickly (being a busy college student), but I'll try as soon as I can.

(And if anyone reading this knows how to work Blogger.com, mind giving a noob some hints?)