Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Being on Submission - The Process

I’ve been very lucky to have an extremely short submission period, and I know a lot of you are interested in what actually happens when you go on submission. Here goes:

The Pitch – It all starts with the pitch. This is very much like a query letter, but your agent will prepare it and send it out to publishers. Some agents will pitch in person, but it’s not uncommon to pitch over the phone or by email. Your agent should have editors in mind for your book when she/he signs you and will pitch to 10 to 15 editors at a time.

The Manuscript Request – Based on the initial pitch a publisher will either pass or request to read your manuscript. The response time can take less than a day to a couple of weeks, depending on your project and how swamped the editor is. If it’s a pass, it’s not necessarily because of your manuscript. The publisher may have just bought something similar or might not have the budget to make an offer. If it’s a yes, your agent will send along the manuscript, your bio, a series synopsis when relevant, and any other information they think the editor will want to know about you. Again, response times vary; a publisher can get back to you the next day or after six months. Just like with an agent, a publisher may not want to sign your work as is, and may request a rewrite.

The Offer – Hopefully, after all your hard work, you won’t stay in submission limbo for too long. If all the answers are no, it’s back to the drawing board, either with a rewrite or a new project, but there are several ways that a publisher can say yes.

1)      The Pre-empt – If an editor absolutely has to have your book, they’ll make you a pre-empt offer. Usually you’ll speak with your agent before hand about how much money you’ll consider taking for a pre-empt, but of course other factors will come into the equation, like if you connect with the editor or if you want a big or small publisher. You are never under any obligation to take a pre-empt, but they’ll want to know your answer within a couple of days. Your agent may still even negotiate a bit with them to see if they can go up. The whole point is that a publisher will throw a bunch of money at you and snag you before anyone else can.
2)      The Offer – If you don’t get a pre-empt, don’t freak out. You can still get an offer, usually a reasonable amount. At this point your agent will email everyone who has requested the manuscript and let them know you’ve received an offer. It’s kind of like when your agent offered you representation. As soon as other publishers know you have an editor interested, it will light a fire under their butts to read your manuscript and make their own offers. This can happen with a pre-empt too. Just be aware that other publishers will then make offers not knowing what the original publisher offered. It’s just how it’s done.
3)      The Auction – If a bunch of publishers make offers (but none large enough for you to take as a pre-empt), then your book could go to auction. This is when your agent will start the bidding at a low amount (lower than any of the offers most likely) and do a round robin bid, calling each publisher in turn. Certain publishing houses will drop out when the bidding gets to high and you’ll eventually get a final figure. Here’s the thing, you are under no obligation to take this figure. If the second highest publisher has a kick-ass editor that you’re dying to work with, take a little less money and work with them!

You’ll always be able to speak with any editor that makes an offer, it’s important to know what their vision is for your work and what edits they think your manuscript needs.

Maria over at Harper was so enthusiastic about my book, I knew she would invest a lot of effort and resources into making it successful. I feel very lucky to be working with her!

Whew! I think that’s the longest post I’ve ever written! Any questions?

26 comments:

  1. I think having an editor's enthusiasm is the most important thing. Congrats on that!

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  2. This is great information- I had no idea this happened at all. Thanks for posting!

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  3. No questions really. I think you covered anything I can think of to ask. Thank you for this post. I starred it in my Google Reader. :)

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  4. Thanks for posting this information. It's good to learn about the process.

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  5. L.G. - Enthusiasm really is important, you want someone who is 100% behind your project and wants it to be successful.

    Summer & Cherie - I always wondered what the submission process was actually like, so I thought I'd share with everyone too. I want to know everything about publishing and ask my agent and editor a thousand questions...don't think they're annoyed with me yet :)

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  6. I've been away from the blog world for a few days but I want to say CONGRATS again lady! So amazing! Thanks for this submission information. *fingers crossed I will be there soon*

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  7. So awesome. My book is going out on submission next month hopefully. I'm scared to death, but this post helped me know what to expect. Congrats again on your book! Such great news! :)

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  8. Wow. Thanks for sharing. I can't imagine how stressful the whole thing must be. I think that I'd be a basketcase.

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  9. It's very generous putting this up. Really very good of you.

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  10. Thanks for including this information Demetria. It seems that so many authors when they reach your level of success clam up and keep hidden everything from other people. Example: T.H. Mafi. Once she got her contract bam...she doesn't tell anyone anything of what's going on or how the process works. I appreciate the peek you give people like me behind the curtain and diffuse some of the lingo that we hear bantered amongst authors. You are like the female version of Nathan Bransford, decoding everything for the readers out there.

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  11. Thanks guys...it's funny how a lot of "secrets" of getting published are only secret because people are too "busy" to share. :) I always wanted to know this stuff so I'm happy to pass on any knowledge I have...no matter how limited it may be.

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  12. Can you pitch yourself or it is done only through an agent? Great post!

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  13. Anachronist - In the U.S. you have to go through an agent for any of the big publishers, I know in Canada you don't need an agent, you submit to publishers as you would an agent with a query...not sure how it's done in Europe. I have a book scout who works with my agent who is pitching IN THE AFTER to European publishers now, but I don't know what an EU citizen would do. Hope that answers your question. :)

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  14. This was so cool! I always wondered what went on after the agent pitched to editors. Great post!

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  15. Thanks for sharing all of that!

    One thing I've wondered (and it may be too soon for you to know the answer) - once you have an agent and an editor, do you still show new work to other outside critiquers to polish and whatnot before submitting to them? Does the role of a critique group change once you've got "people?" I wonder if the agent/editor would be afraid that other critiquers would muck things up for them...

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  16. Great post and so good for newbies! Thanks!

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  17. First of all congratulations. Second, thanks for the info. I love learning this stuff!

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  18. Congratulations! Thanks for sharing that information with us.

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  19. Thanks for sharing a bit more about the process Demitria. It's nice to hear that things worked out so well for you with this project. Congrats!

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  20. Bethany - You'd still use your critique group for new stuff...I sort of think of it as a pyramid. Your critique group is at the bottom, helping you get the base of your manuscript. Then your agent is in the middle and gives your work a good going over, letting you know what you need to do to polish. The editor is at the top and will give you suggestions to make your work publishable.

    I also think that you don't have to follow your critique partners advice (but give it careful consideration), and you don't have to follow all of your agent's advice (but they know what they're doing, so give it extra careful consideration) but you pretty much have to follow what your editor says. That's why you need to speak with them and make sure you're on the same page before you agree to anything.

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  21. Interesting, so it sounds like the role of critiquers doesn't change. The process is the same, just the way you pitch a project is different.

    And I assume you pitch that "next" project BEFORE you write it, at least to some extent? "Hey Agent and Editor, I was thinking of writing xxxxx, what do you think, do you have a place for it?" Or do you just do it, and they either accept it or reject it again?

    Interesting stuff, thanks for giving us a peek behind the curtain ;).

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  22. Great information! Thanks.

    Marie at the Cheetah

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  23. I read this post and the previous one. Congratulations!!!

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  24. Hey, I just saw the description of your book on Publishers Lunch - it sounds really good! I know it will be good because my first reaction was jealousy. Here's wishing you a lot of success

    April

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  25. Great post - something all of us new writers think about but don't really know the ins and outs. And congrats on a successful outcome for all of your hard work.

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