Publishing Process

How Long Will It Take?

One of the most frequent questions I get is, How long? How long should I wait before following up with an editor on a submission? If I get an offer from a publisher, how long before they send a contract? How long until I see my first check? When will my manuscript be due? When…
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ASK THE AGENT: Exclusivity

A writer asked: “If you are working on revision suggestions for one agent with whom you have NOT signed, should you still query other agents?” Simple answer: No. If the agent has given you revision suggestions but not agreed to represent it, you should honor them (the fact that they took the time to give…
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Moore-LoneRanger

The Myth of the Lone Ranger Author

As more and more people venture into self publishing, I’ve noticed that for many, it’s a rude awakening how much help they actually need even though they’re thinking of it as a DIY project. I think that’s because, with traditional publishing, most writers are somewhat shielded from the number of people whose work touches their…
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Fears about the Publishing Process

“Jsfrog” left me this note: If you get an agent, how do you decide what form of publishing to pursue? Do agents typically have a list of preferred houses to pitch to or do they take input from the author? And if you are lucky enough to get a few offers, how do you decide…
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The Dilemma of the Prolific Writer

I have a few clients who are very prolific. As soon as they’ve finished a manuscript (including getting outside feedback and going through a few rounds of revisions) they’re always excited to move on to another. They immediately brainstorm a new story and get going on it. They can write two or more terrific manuscripts…
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Behind the Scenes

at a Pub Committee Meeting Let’s pretend this is a small-ish imprint where everyone gets along and respects each other. In other words, it’s a bit of a fantasy but you know, we like to pretend here on my blog. This is vastly simplified – it’s just supposed to give you the flavor. And we’re…
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It’s Just One Opinion

(I loved all your responses on the Friday Free-For-All, and will answer questions next week. I’m taking a blog hiatus and will re-post some oldies but goodies this week. Hopefully they’re just as good the second time around!) Last week our book group had our monthly meeting. We were discussing The Forgotten Garden by Kate…
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How Do Agents & Publishers Make Decisions?

I was talking with our intern Sarah the other day (hi Sarah!) and she had some questions about a couple of my recent posts. In It’s About What’s Selling I explained that publishers tend to make future decisions based on what has sold well for them in the past. Yet in Don’t Ask Me About…
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How Long?

One of the most frequent questions I get is, How long will it take? How long should I wait before following up with an agent on a submission? If I get an offer from a publisher, how long before they send a contract? How long until I see my first check? When will my manuscript…
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It’s All About Collaboration

I was completely impressed with how many of you chimed in on Friday’s post on You: The Marketing Machine. You eloquently expressed your enthusiasm, your dread, and/or your ambivalence about the need to market your own book. One of the themes that cropped up frequently was the romantic fantasy of the writer as a loner,…
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Lessons from "Proposal to Publication"

I really enjoyed my blogging break last week, and I’m glad I got a chance to re-run the “Proposal to Publication” series. I hope it helped de-mystify the process for you. As I was reading through it, I noticed there are some lessons you could take away in terms of what you can be preparing…
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How Agents & Editors Decide

When you submit your proposal to an agent or publishing house, you may wonder how they make their decisions as to which books to reject and which to accept. Obviously there are numerous considerations that vary from person to person, from publisher to publisher. But there is a simple three-tiered approach we all use to…
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The Long and Winding Road

One of the things we often discuss on this blog is the long and often circuitous route to publication. From when you first decide, “I think I’ll write a book!” to the time you have a publishing contract, years can elapse. I had a startling reminder of this a few months ago when I was…
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But Can They Sell It?

Yesterday, Pam sent a question about Tuesday’s post on The Process of Acceptance: Rachelle said: “At Pub Board, the sales and marketing people usually have the final say about whether to accept the book for publication or not. They have to strongly believe they can sell it.” This is the part that confuses me. If…
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