How To Be a Savvy—and Successful—Submitter

Raelene Gorlinsky, Publisher, Ellora’s Cave Publishing Inc.

Before Submitting

1.       Become a pro at your profession.

• Learn your trade: join writer organizations, attend conferences, go to book signings.
• Learn the industry: magazines like Publishers Weekly and RWR; publisher websites.
• Know your “customers”: readers. Reviews, discussion lists, bulletin boards, RT BOOKReview.
• Read. Read a lot. You can absorb writing techniques by seeing how other authors do it. This will also help you be aware of what sort of books are being published—and who’s publishing them.

2.       Be sure your “product” is ready for sale.

• Use critique partners and proofers. (Family members, close friends, or rabid fans do not count!)
• Writer’s groups can be a great way to get feedback and find critique partners; they often sponsor conferences where you will have the opportunity to talk to editors, agents, and published writers.
• Contests: A way to get feedback on your work. Especially consider those that use editors as judges. Nice for authors to mention wins in cover letter.
• Story needs a great “grabbing” start to get and keep the editor’s attention. You only have a couple of pages to convince the editor to keep reading your submission.

Where to Submit:  Know the publishers and agents, what they are looking for. Be familiar with the books they publish or represent. Check out their websites. Ask questions. Send only to appropriate places!

Submission Guidelines:  Read them, follow them. Use common sense.

Cover Letter/Email

Customize each submission letter. Make it fast to read; a quick summary of you and your story. Always be polite, don’t be too aggressive, sound confident but not overconfident.

Be Patient:  Response times are often longer than stated. At least you know it wasn’t rejected at first glance.

When You Get a Response

Your story could be accepted or rejected, or the editor may ask you to revise it and resubmit it.

Reject: Don’t argue, it is pointless. A thank you note (brief, professional) is not necessary but is a nice touch; you may want to submit something else there in future. Face reality. Publishers are companies, they have to turn a profit. They determine what is selling in their market and offer readers what, in that publisher’s judgment, they want to buy. The book of your heart may be something that does not tug at sufficient other hearts.

Revise and Resubmit: Yes, it’s a rejection, but the door is still open. The editor took a lot of time to analyze your story and explain what needs to be changed—so s/he must see a good bit of potential in it. Really think about the advice. If you don’t agree, or it doesn’t match what you feel for your story, you don’t need to take it; try submitting elsewhere. But if you keep getting similar advice…

Accept: Joy and celebration! Ask lots of questions early. Find out the process, the timeline; develop realistic expectations. This is your chance to be a “newbie”, your editor will be more tolerant now than later. Be professional and realistic in contract negotiations. Be responsible for understanding all the ramifications of your contract.

Get Published

Meet your deadlines. Be reasonable and cooperative about revisions. Remember that your editor has a lot of other books and authors to handle. Be friendly with your editor, but keep it professional. Find out how to handle future story submissions. You want to be multi-published!