Okay, so now what?

So August 10^th has come and gone. The deadline for completion was met. I have a draft circulating through various hands, eagerly awaiting and anticipating opinions. I look forward to the feedback, but the interim is mine.

I must begin the task of queries. Oi. And I have to figure out whom I wish to query. I can’t even really decide what my genre is. I suppose… fantasy. I mean, it is about vampires and such, but it is also a romance. But I guess it doesn’t really qualify as a romance. I loathe to think of it as chick lit. And yet… why not? I am a woman. I wrote it with women and their emotions in mind. Sort of.

A lot of queries invoke a comparison to bestselling novels or authors. I see the merit in that. An agent is looking for a bestseller. They aren’t going to pick up a manuscript that likens itself to some obscure unknown. Duh. But… I don’t want to compare myself to anybody. I accept the fact that I am one person of billions on this planet. And one writer of millions trying to get published. The trick is making myself stand out. But am I standing out by saying I am like someone else?

ARGH.

The funny thing is, as much as I love words, I hate using them to prove myself. I believe in the value of showing over telling. Not just in storytelling, but also in life. I prefer to be kind rather than just say nice things. Or do something out of love than say it sickly sweet. I would rather do a good job than say that I am the best. Because… saying really doesn’t always make it so. Except, in this case, there isn’t an opportunity to show without first telling. And, well, I am writing the query to show that I can write. Hm.

But these thoughts aren’t worth getting hung up on. I should just do the thing, which is what I finally resolved when I began my manuscript nine months ago. It’s not like I’m the first person who has ever attempted this. And certainly not the last. It’s a necessary next step. It’s a challenge. An opportunity to show myself that I mean to do this.