I finally thought, specifically, of getting my query letter, synopsis, and first ten pages reviewed by an editor who has actually worked as a literary agent, and... wow. I paid a premium for this feedback, but it's telling me what I've needed to know for so long. It also helps that I finally thought to ask relevant questions that have led to new, enlightening revelations of how I can succeed.

Most useful feedback
Editor who as agent
Questions I thought of

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #AmQuerying #Books #Publishing #AuthorLife #LiteraryAgent

Whenever I see people spouting a bunch of made-up, manipulative nonsense they heard on Fox News or some right-wing Facebook group, I think about the countless people these lies harm, including those whose minds they corrupt, who can only see reality through a filter of lies.

Lying liars lie
Convince weak winded of truth
Power corrupts brains

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #lies #liars #FoxNews #Republicans #RepublicansAreTheProblem

A friend treated me to seeing the Dungeons & Dragons movie, and I found it excellent. Replicating the feel of being in a party of adventurers with lighthearted comedy definitely serves the franchise better than past attempts at being completely serious and dramatic. Still, I'm conflicted because I don't support Hasbro's recent attempts to police their fanbase to squeeze out extra profits.

DnD movie
Excellent fantasy film
But Hasbro still sucks.

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #DungeonsAndDragons #Hasbro #DnD #Movies #TabletopGames #Tabletop

You thought you'd find one of Monica's haikus here, BUT IT WAS I, DIO!

Monica's not here
You came for a haiku, but
IT WAS I, DIO!

#HaikusByDIO #HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #ITWASIDIO #ITWASMEDIO #JoJosBizarreAdventure #Anime #DIO

I haven't posted in a while because my mind has been in a dark place. However, I'm back on this #TransgenderDayOfVisibility. I'm not dead yet. My stories--both the one I'm living and the one I've written--haven't ended. We all must persist because if we disappear, then tyrannical monsters like Ron DeSantis, Tucker Carlson, and Matt Walsh win. To make a brighter future, we need to be visible, stay visible, fight back against their lies, and work to establish our place in public life.

Yet I must persist
If I die, DeSantis wins
Reclaim our future

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #TransDayOfVisibility #Transgender #Trans #MentalHealth #Resist #Persist

If Monica can't get an agent for Amy Has Fangs or find some way to build an audience for it, she'll have no reason to keep telling my story. Is this the end for Amy--not with a bang but with a form rejection?

If no one wants me
Monica may abandon
End of my story?

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #Publishing #AuthorLife #AmQuerying #Query

I'm so burnt out. If I can't get a publisher, I can't find an audience. If I can't find an audience, I have no reason to write. If I have no reason to write, I have no reason to exist. I have no path forward, unless, by some miracle, SOMEONE wants my writing.

And don't even think about suggesting self-publishing without reading my previous posts.

There's no path forward
Dying in obscurity
Ever have a voice?

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #AuthorLife #Publishing #Motivation #Burnout #AmQuerying #SelfPublishing #Depression

In the middle school class I covered this morning, these two girls started shouting in Spanish. I'm not sure what it was about, but I recognized "pendeja." Then they started fighting, and I mean really going at it. Since subs aren't supposed to break up fights, I called the office, and they were pissed, especially when one kid's recording (for TikTok) showed others egging the girls on.

Start of the morning
These two girls began fighting
Manic Monday class

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #Monday #Teacher #Teaching #SubstituteTeacher #MiddleSchool

Every time I explain the struggle I've been facing in finding a publisher, inevitably someone always chimes in with "DiD yOu KnOw AbOuT sElF-pUbLiShInG????" Of course I know about it! Jesus, I tried it twice and failed horrifically. I don't know how to market anything profitably, and no free resource knows how to market a young adult paranormal non-romance that reads more like a text-based anime than like Twilight. If I self-publish, I need thousands of dollars for professional marketing. My income sucks, so that's why I've been dead-set on traditional publishing despite the constant, never-ending form rejections I get regardless of the huge amount of work I put into my query.

For God's sake, I know
That self-publishing exists
Not ideal FOR ME

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #publishing #selfpublishing #AmQuerying #book #AuthorLife #Books #YAbooks

Republicans are wasting tax money on legislation to eliminate transgender people from existence. We're all they talk about. They're obsessed with spreading lies about us that have been debunked time and time again. Of course, it's all a distraction so they can keep passing corporate tax breaks.

Transphobic clichés
Republicans legislate
Write lies into law

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #Republicans #RepublicansAreTheProblem #FuckRepublicans #GQP #GOP #GOPfascists #Transgender #TransRights #Transphobia #TransRightsAreHumanRights

Though morning prep took a while due to lethargy, I went back to work today after being out for three days. After first period, I was already exhausted, but I can rest when I get home.

I went back to work
But still have no energy
Rest when I get home

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #sick

Out of commission due to my sickness, I finally started playing Skyward Sword HD, which I've been wanting to do in preparation for Tears of the Kingdom. Since being sick doesn't allow for accomplishing much work, Zelda was a good use of time.

Skyward Sword while sick
Prepare for next Zelda game
Good use of day home

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #Zelda #Nintendo #SkywardSword #TearsOfTheKingdom #sick

My cat has been strangely meow-y and restless lately, and no matter what I've done, he's never seemed to calm down, which has been hell while I've been sick. I managed to get him to the vet, who said he was fine but prescribed anti-anxiety medication. It seems to be helping. It's just odd that he only became this anxious a few weeks after moving into a new apartment.

Cat is too anxious
But vet says all is normal
I'm too sick, buddy

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #Cat #Cats #Sick

Haikus have been late this time not due to laziness, business, or depression but rather sickness. After it came on mid-day Monday, I had an intense fever on Tuesday and general lethargy and sinus-related symptoms since then. I tested negative for COVID, so it might be flu.

103 fever
Too sick to do very much
COVID-negative

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #sick

In case I end up self-publishing, I asked five freelance book marketers for pricing, making it very clear that I wasn't ready to hire anyone quite yet. Two denied my request because my genre didn't fit them, which is fine; that makes sense. However, one declined because my book wasn't already published, and another declined because of a full schedule. I just wanted prices. I thought I made that clear. Just please tell me how much marketing costs so I can prepare for it. (The fifth one hasn't yet responded.)

Hold on, marketers
I'm just looking for prices
Not hiring you yet

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #Marketing #BookMarketing #SelfPublishing

For some reason, affordable picture frames without pricey embellishments are difficult to find. Therefore, I went to Wal-Mart. Yet, it turns out that they barely ever stock 22x28 frames, and the one they had was already broken. I also had two smaller frames instantly break from obvious manufacturer defects on the glass. Wal-Mart, you suck.

Already broken
Cheap, but never correct size
Wal-Mart, your frames suck

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #WalMart

If I self-publish, I'm definitely paying an artist for a custom-made cover, not cheaping out on a generic, ready-made one. I searched, but literally no pre-made covers match the irreverent action tone of Amy Has Fangs or depict a person who looks anything like Amy--a short vampire girl with messy, thigh-length hair and glasses. However, this still won't stop some from insisting that pre-made covers are the absolute best option.

No pre-made covers
Generic won't match my book
Please stop insisting

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #SelfPublishing #AuthorLife #Book

Now that the possibility of a publishing deal is officially dead, I find myself at a crossroads: do I continue this miserable process of sending out queries only to be rejected, or do I take the massive personal and financial risk of self-publishing, despite my past failures with it?

What should I do now?
Keep querying, self-publish?
I need direction.

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #AuthorLife #Publishing #SelfPublishing #Book #Books

Forget any chance with that small publisher. They wanted to know how long it would take me to finish a new book, and I was a bit too honest about my process since I have no frame of reference for how long it should take. Two years was too long for them. They want me to finish three more books before they'll consider publishing them, which will take so many years of unpaid labor, abysmal mental health, difficulty managing time with an underpaid day job, and non-existent motivation.

Forget publisher
Writing process takes too long
More years of silence.

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #Publishing #Publisher #AuthorLife

I've written barely anything in weeks, and I still have some dregs to unpack after moving, yet my brain is doing whatever it can to waste time on distractions.

Must stop wasting time
I still have so much to do
Sort, hang, write, write, WRITE!

#HaikusByMonica #Haiku #Daily #Poetry #Poet #AmWriting #Writer #Author #WritersBlock #TimeManagement #Time #ADHD