Jocosa of the Earrings takes stalking to a whole new level

Dear Bloggowers: While I state that the three keys to getting published are rewriting, persistence, and stalking (and highlighted those three elements in my 'how I got published story') - the blog "Three Dead Moths..." does not endorse the literary stalking that Jocosa of the Earrings engaged in. Whew, got that out of the way, the blogawyers insisted.

Alright, we pick up Jocosa’s story from the last blog post Fear is no Excuse. She is deep in rewriting hell - a hell so hellacious that it can only be compared to submitting-and-waiting-to-hear-back-from-a publisher/agent hades.

I'll let her pick up her story as she struggles with how to rewrite the start of her manuscript: Alas the opening. What to do? I schlepped on down to the city--NYC in the middle of a torrential downpour--saw a revival of The Boys in the Band by Mart Crowley by the Transport Group. A perfect example of in-your-face dialogue. Following a satisfying catharsis, I maneuvered through gusts of rain and soaked my jeans from ankle to knee until I reached 121 West 27th Street. You guessed it the home of The God of Agents. You can see from the outside that there is no pretension, no flash, and no flurry. He's just a simple God. Destiny. I shook off as much water as I could, folded up my umbrella and ventured inside.

The Guardian of the Gate, Steve, was kind and suppressed a smile when I told him I'd come to take a picture of The God of Agents name.

"He's going to be my literary agent."

A nod.

I did my best to soften Steve up so he'd let me upstairs, but alas, he is a formidable Guardian of the Gate. No admittance without an appointment. Then I went all Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca on him:

"No problem, Steve. I'll be back. Maybe not this week, but soon."

And now? Still in a quandary over what happens after the first chapter, but I've been fortified by standing at the threshold of The God of Agents dwelling place. It's only a matter of time before the seeds of my last draft mutate into agent hooking excellence, and I'll pass by the Threshold Guardian and into writer heaven.

Onward and Upward, Jocosa of the Earrings

Sweet Agents of New York: If you've put Jocosa of the Earrings' name on a list of crazy literary stalkers fear not, she is as harmless as the tofu she is so fond of. And she exhibits the three characteristics of a good writer, the ability to endlessly rewrite as needed, persistence, and er, ah, that stalking thing ...