A few weeks ago I posted a blog about my endeavour to receive one hundred rejection in 2024, and in order to a have a constant visual display of my progress I was putting beads in a jar. A blue bead for every submission, and a pink bead for every full manuscript request, long-listing or short-listing etc. By the point of posting, I’d already added my first pink bead.
There is great news the pink bead has changed into a special bead made of actual mammoth bone. Why? I am delighted to say I’ve signed on Lauren Gardner and her assistant Callen Martin of Bell Lomax Moreton, with my mammoth book!
However, looking at my jar, it looks wrong, as it only has a bead for every submission I’ve made with this manuscript in 2024, which is misleading as I’ve been subbing this book in previous years. So I went back to my spread sheet to tally up the real submission statics and therefore added them to the jar.
Ashley Grimes Mammoth Whisperer in all its forms, has been subbed 42 times and received 6 full manuscript requests and I offer.
In addition, it was subbed to 15 competitions, and not so much as a long-listing or honorary mention.
But this is still only part of the story, as I started writing when my youngest was coming up to his first birthday – he is now driving and sitting his a-levels! So, to get to this point I’ve written 8 (completed) novels, I novella, I chapter book and countless picture books, all of which have been subbed and therefore I have a massed a huge pile of rejections. I haven’t tallied all these up, as counting isn’t my strong suit (dyscalculia), but I am delighted to have reached this milestone.
I am very much looking forward to working with Lauren and Callen.
Many many congratulations! I can relate.
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