Always a good way to start a week: receiving a rejection for a novel I'd forgotten I'd submitted.
I keep an Excel file of my submissions. It makes very depressing reading. It turns out I'd submitted my 'serious' novel to this publisher last July, but going back through the submission list I see I first submitted it to them in 2013!
In April 2013 I sent it - it being the standard two chapters and synopsis - old school, by snail mail; in May they asked to see the rest of the manuscript.
In October I emailed to ask if it were still under consideration; yes, it was.
Then silence.
So in July last year, eleven years later, I tried submitting the same novel again. The answer arrived today.
Other novels that I've emailed to various publishers over the years have all been given a resounding no or a deathly silence.
I used to get quite depressed but these days while it's not exactly water off a duck's back it's maybe off a chicken's. What really upsets me is when I go to the library and take out books that are worse than mine. Most of them are better of course but, on the other hand, there are an awful lot of average books out there. And they get published!
Okay, moan over.
5 comments:
I do agree with you. There are some dreadful books 'out there' - badly written and poorly proofread - it doesn't seem fair, does it?
My SiL has an agent who gives her lots of critiques and has even insisted that she rewrite books before she wil send them off. She’s published twice so far.
Frustrating, to be sure!
Do you have an agent? I think those are the submissions that actually get read. And yes, it's maddening to see lousy work in print!
I would find that very discouraging. At least you haven't let it keep you from writing again. Have you thought about self publishing?
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