Feeling completely electric shocked right now

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BlossomQueen

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Hey everyone,

So for me personally, it's already been a trying week, as yesterday I went through a somewhat terrifying workshop/panel on my new novel in school. I was left unscathed for the most part, as no one really had anything to say in class (bad?).

So today I wake up, and refresh my email as I usually do. Lo and behold, a response from this agent I've been communicating with on my older novel. I was curious on what she had to say, and if she gave a rejection, would say anything about why she did. And boy, did she say it!

She said that she liked my main characters, but that she was more or less completely repulsed by one of my secondary characters, of whom I really like. She said that the character's actions "left a bad taste in her mouth" (!!!) and the novel was pretty much definitely not for her. Now, don't get me wrong. I LOVE this type of rejection (brutal honesty) because it's a taste of the real world and what I need to expect. But, wow, to have such a reaction to one of my favorite characters, in the first chapters of the story, to the point that I believe it ruins the rest of it, made me feel completely dejected!

So now I have a bit of dilemma. When faced with the fact that one of my characters is totally not working (or just a turn off) I do my best to completely eradicate them from the story. But it's pretty much impossible here, as the character is pretty crucial for the storyline. Is a major revision in order? I have this novel out with one more agent and I'm afraid that if I don't revise it now, I'm just to keep getting the same reaction. And I love the characters, and the storyline. Should I revise ASAP or should I wait?

Anyway, thanks for reading.
 

Drachen Jager

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It is just one agent.

I'd go visit SYW, critique 5 other people's work, then, when you're at 50 posts, post a segment with this odious character so you can gather some more opinions. Preface your work with some of the above, so people know what they're looking for.

If you can, Chapter 1 would be best, but if the character in question doesn't really come into it until later, then just give a brief summary of the events leading up to that point.
 

CrystalCierlak

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I would think that in order to make necessary changes (should you choose to go that route) you would first have to understand what about the character repulsed her. Can you see what in that character brought out that reaction? Otherwise, how would you know what to change?
 

BlossomQueen

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I would think that in order to make necessary changes (should you choose to go that route) you would first have to understand what about the character repulsed her. Can you see what in that character brought out that reaction? Otherwise, how would you know what to change?

Hi,

The character is the mother. She makes a horrible mistake that I thought was justifiable, or at least would become justifiable by the end of the novel. But I didn't realize it paints a horrible picture of the character itself.

I will definitely post it on SYW, if I can, later on. But I guess I should wait for the other agent to respond.
 

Antonin

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I'd wait for the next agent at least.

Also, certain people REALLY do not like seeing parents doing their jobs poorly. It unnerves them.
 

Treehouseman

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Ditto the others. It is just one person's opinion. If three or four people kept coming up with the same conclusion, it might require some narrative rehauling to make he likeable, or to foreshadow her redemption/right decision.
 

freelancemomma

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She said that the character's actions "left a bad taste in her mouth" (!!!) and the novel was pretty much definitely not for her.[/QUOTE]

This strikes me as odd. The agent didn't say that the character was poorly drawn, just repulsive. What on earth is wrong with a well-drawn repulsive character? To my mind it's a GOOD thing. You created someone believable enough to evoke emotion.

I would definitely not change up this character quite yet, in your shoes. Run the character by a few betas and see what reaction you get. For all you know, this same character could be the reason another agent falls in love with your book.

F.
 

Putputt

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Eh, I got a similar rejection on my first book about my MC. The agent said she really disliked the fact that my MC decided to cheat through her final test and found it hard to empathize with her as soon as the MC made that decision.

Fwiw, she was the only agent to say that, and I ended up receiving multiple offers on the MS. (Selling it is another issue entirely...:D But if it helps, none of the editors who read it had a problem with the MC's actions.) So it really was just one agent.

Do you have any beta readers? Might be worth getting their input.

Also, something else to think of is...with my last book, my MC does something really shitty at one point. It's so shitty it actually turned a beta reader off. I sought a different beta for advice, and she said, "I actually like that your MC did that shitty thing, but I see how that is problematic. What you could do is have the narration acknowledge what a crappy thing it is she's doing, either through her internal thoughts or through other people pointing it out, so it's clear that you, the author, realize what a bad thing it is."

So there are definitely options which don't require anything as drastic as cutting the character completely.
 

Jamesaritchie

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One agent means nothing. If you get the same reaction from three agents, then you have a problem.
 

raburrell

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In my experience, whether it's agents, editors, or readers, imperfect woman (and especially imperfect mothers) are judged VERY harshly. It's sorta crappy that it happens, but it is what it is. It leaves you with a couple of options, IMO:
1) Have faith in what you wrote and hold out for someone who 'gets' it. (In this case, it may not be just one or just a few agents who say no, but several or many, in which case you might:
2) Consider whether what you wrote is conceptually workable, but needs strengthening to make it fly
3) Rewrite to make the character's actions more mainstream acceptable.
 

Fruitbat

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I agree with those who say one agent's opinion is only one person's opinion. I'd leave it as it is for now.
 

BlossomQueen

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Hey everyone,

So I definitely appreciate the advice. I'm holding on to the book as it is as I wait for this other agent but I have some ideas in mind that might ease the heat away from the character a bit. I prefer that this character not be repulsive or unsatisfactory as she will be a recurring character if my book ever becomes a series and she has to be likeable enough and exhibit good enough judgement that some events that happen later on won't ring alarm bells in a reader's head. I might consider a beta read.

However, my theoretical rewrites will take a pretty large amount of revising and change the plot of the story. Maybe not "this is a new book" substantial, but majorly tweak the characters' actions in response. I'm sort of leaning towards this, even though I understand that it was just one agent, because it makes sense. I'm a bit hesitant because it may fall on the wrong side of believability if I attempt to create this new storyline and make the characters continue as they will in a way that follows the rest of the story. I was wondering if it makes sense to show a reader (whether beta or agent) both versions and ask them which is more believable/better. What do you guys think?
 
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