Unique Is Not Weird

 Editors and agents always talk about finding stories that are unique. We simply are not looking for carbon copies of stories already out there on the market. We want different. Sure, we may ask for you to stick to common tropes and ideas that do sell, but we really want you to find your own unique spin on these projects. However, there is a line we have to draw here. How DIFFERENT do we want you to be?

In the last couple of days I have seen some interesting proposals. It was clear the author was trying to find that unique voice. That part was good. But when I drilled a bit deeper into the concept, it became clear the author was going a bit too far. Authors were adding twists that made the stories sound anywhere between comical to an "um, I don't think so" approach.

Early on here at the agency, I ran a contest about Alien Vampire Bunnies. The idea stemmed from a conversation I had with the late Kate Duffy during a panel discussion. At that time, she said she would pretty much look at any project, however, there was no way she would ever look at a story about Alien Vampire Bunnies. While this was a fun contest, I think you get the idea here. This was during a time when the vampire stories were coming out strong. But there was only so much people could do. It was then that things started to fall apart.

• Vampires went to werewolves
• Werewolves turned into were(anythings)
• We had vamp weres
• We had vampires who only liked drinking cranberry juice.
• Werewolves who were running kennels
• ????
  

At what point were people going to see that the stories were getting ridiculous now? 

And it is still going strong, and unfortunately, these authors will also receive rejections.

As you sit down and determine your next project, stop and think. Is this REALLY something someone would buy? Is what you are putting your characters through something that REALLY would happen? If not, don't write it!