My publishing Journey (graphic courtesy of Addie.Zierman.com)
All right, I’ve finished the novel. Now what?
First step, seek representation. I know in this day and age you can self-publish but I don’t want to do that. I’ve spent so much time getting the writing portion of it right that I would prefer to do the rest right as well. And I’m in no hurry. I will take my time querying agents and publishers and if I’m lucky, perhaps I’ll find one. I will do so with no real trepidation. I’ve long since come to terms with the reality of the publishing world. There may not be a place for my novel out there. But if there is, I will find it. Slowly, painstakingly.
I was talking to my nephew last night. Not the same one as in the novel (I just made that one up…the one I was talking to last night I’m pretty sure I didn’t make up). Anyway, my nephew loves writing as much as I do, if not more. (He stayed up ’til eight this morning writing.) I was trying to express an idea to him. The idea of savouring every part of the writing process. If you write, and don’t sell what you write, you might feel like you’ve wasted your time. I will not feel that way. Every minute I spend writing, even now, writing this blog post, I enjoy. I know not everyone feels that way, but I do. I’m not saying it’s not hard work. Sometimes it’s excruciating. But it’s always my favourite part of the day. (Well, right up there with spending time with my girls, and eating lunch. I like those times a lot too.)
My nephew was afraid that I was telling him to “settle.” He says people are always trying to get him to settle. I understood right away what he was talking about. He thought I was trying to tell him that he probably won’t be successful, so he should be happy with the process itself, and settle for the satisfaction that brings. But that wasn’t what I was suggesting at all. You should absolutely go for the brass ring, which I intend to do, and which I would expect him to do. I will do my utmost to get my novel out there. Whatever it takes. But I will also completely enjoy every part of the process, from the conception to the writing to the selling process.
Years ago the inevitable rejections I’m about to receive would have bothered me. No longer. Now it’s just a part of the process. Just business. The trick is to keep the book on the market, while writing the next one.
Am I going about this properly? Don’t know.
I expect I’ll learn a lot as I go along.
Heya, I came across this page while looking for info on Leon Husock.
Saw you were a fellow Canuck author who likes the CBC, so I felt I should help out.
Generally, it is frowned upon to submit to publishers if you also intend to submit to agents. Manuscripts generally get one swing per publisher so it makes things more difficult for an agent if you’ve already crossed some possibilities off the list before they get a chance to put your best foot forward.
There’s a ton of useful info on the Absolute Write forums absolutewrite.com/forums and you can get your query letter and/or first chapters critiqued there too once you’ve been around a while (50 posts, which comes pretty quickly).
Also, a great site for finding info about agents is: Query Tracker querytracker.net
Hmm… that’s all good advice. I think I’ll take it. Thanks for stopping by! And good luck with your own writing.