credit: superopinion8ted via superopinion8ted.wordprerss.com and his funny blog
Three months into this journey. By this time I get to look back on my shiny new starting to query self, point, and laugh. I wasn’t so blindly optimistic that I thought my first round of queries would result in a book deal. The research and all the articles I found made it pretty clear that only in a world that includes unicorns does that happen.
The answers I’ve gotten have been about what I expected for an unknown, unpublished author. Which is to say complete and total rejection with a sprinkling of encouragement. Like a glitter-dusted field of spikes.
As advertised, the constant rejection is tough but since I went into this with realistic expectations it’s also possible to keep the hope alive after the occasional bad Gollum-ish day. I keep discovering more resources for query letters too, and I will share the wealth. (Try the successful query database, helpfully provided by Carissa Taylor here.)
So it’s time to add to the scoreboard:
- Established Medium Size (hereafter called EMS): #pass, with a very polite form letter. Much appreciated.
- EMS: No reply, which means #pass
- New Small Agency (now NSA): Zero reply, #pass
- EMS: No reply. #pass.
- Small Independent Agency-Romance Only: #pass with the kindest personal letter full of pointers.
- EMS: #pass, with a slightly more personalized form letter. I’m actually very excited about that.
- New Romance Only Agency: #pass with an encouraging form letter.
- Big 5 Imprint: No reply, #pass.
- EMS: #pass with a nice form letter.
- Small Boutique Agency: #pass with an encouraging, although non-specific letter.
- EMS. No reply #pass
- EMS: Waiting for a reply but we’re at the end of their 4-12 week reply time so my instinct says #pass.
- EMS: Also waiting, also thinking #pass.
- EMS: Another no reply #pass.
- Small Boutique Agency: #pass with a nice email.
- EMS: Quick turnaround on a kind #pass email. I have learned that if they email you the next day that is not a good thing. And this one hurt because I follow the agency blog and the agent I queried on mswishlist.com and I really liked her. Oh well.
- Old Venerable Agency: #pass with a form email. At least it was kind.
- Romance Only Imprint: Submittable says it’s “In Progress” so I’m betting on an answer pretty soon. I love the Submittable website, it makes the process a lot easier.
I sent out another round last week, so next month I should have answers from four more medium size agencies. Onward fellow authors to death or glory!*
*In this case I’ll take a request for the partial or full manuscript that ends up another rejection as the nearest equivalent of glory.
Featured image: stocksnap.io & Rachel Walker