Who do you love?
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
I'm prepping my first manuscript for New York submission.Now, the question is...who do I send it to? I thought I knew, but digging deeper, I'm not so sure now.
The problem is that most publishers don't allow for simultaneous submissions (submitting to more than one publisher at a time), so once you pick you're locked in a shame spiral of waiting for six months or more. Once they reject you (and you're hoping they don't) you can move on to your second pick.
The whole process could take for-freaking-ever. So you have the brass ring of print publication, but the ringer you go through to get it--and some people write for decades and never do, horror of horrors--might make you throw up your hands and give up. It's rather daunting for someone like me who is just dipping their toes in the New York ocean.
Part of the problem can be the conflicting advice you get from people. Who to sub to, who's looking for what, who hates what, what to put in your synopsis and cover letter, who's the best to work with, who pays the most, what genres are dead, what genres are hot. Gah!
Posted at 9:14 AM by Crystal Jordan
3 Comments:
Unless the publisher specifically states otherwise, you are free to query multiple publishers at once.
That being said, if you're sending the equivalent of a partial, they may require an "exclusive." The problem with this vs. an agent's exclusive is you don't really have contact with the publisher. If an agent asks for one, you know that you at least have a better than average chance. If it's a publisher...ha. ha. ha.
I know people who have waited three years or more on a submission to a very prestigious New York SF/F publisher. My ex-fiance had an "in" with that pub; one of their better-known authors is an old friend of his. He submitted the book in (I believe) 1999 or 2000, rewrote and resubmitted as per my critique in 2003, and he has received several promises that they will "get to it as soon as possible" since... still no word.
I've heard people with similar horror stories. Agents, at least, you can give them a limited exclusive (Miss Snark and other agents seem to agree that three months is more than reasonable) and after that point, query elsewhere. You don't really have the same option with a publisher.
My suggestion would be, if there is a publisher who has an open call or otherwise seems perfect for your manuscript, go ahead and send it in. Some of them respond quicker than others.
Once queried one or two publishers, I'd go the agent route... because s/he might have suggestions on how to make the book better or more marketable. Also, if an agent finds out you've exhausted most of the publisher resources before querying... well, they're not liable to be very happy. (This may be less of an issue if you have other books which could be marketed, but don't take me word on that.)
Good luck!!
I think this is why I'm going with an agent first. Then picking the publisher becomes a team decision with better results. At least I hope so. That's my goal this year. To query an agent.
*sigh* We'll see.
But I know you're dilemma. Hang in there. You'll get there, I know you will Aunt Polly.
Honestly, the waiting is a PITA. Some won't even reply with the SASE. It gets buried or dumped from the get-go and that's it. It's forgotten.
I'd say, like Nonny, unless they have an exclusion clause, blitz the snot out of 'em. Law of averages from my experience:
95% Rejections from the word go (you might even hear from all of them)
1% Will write a personal note, explaining why you suck/they don't want it/it's not what they do... Whatever.
3% Won't even reply, or it gets lost in the mail.
1% The one that loves you...
All I can is good luck. It's a hard road. And come this summer, I'll be on it too.
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