Of course, who said it would be? I’m not delusional by any means.
So I got a nice email this morning from the prospective literary agent, politely informing me that she did not feel the necessary spark of connection. C’est la vie.
The search continues with Larson Pomada Literary Agents so, I’ve updated my timer to reflect the 4 week turn-around.
So the second submission to Arena was really just a fluke… in case you all didn’t know that by now. It’s been a while since I updated, but in my defense there hasn’t been much happening in terms of my book. K?
I purchased a copy of Writer’s Digest and really began looking at everything that I could be doing to get my book on the market. It was a bit disappointing to find out that I probably need representation. Not because I don’t like the concept… believe me, having someone go to publishers and bat for me on my behalf is amazing. Not to mention the benefits of being able to submit to publishers at all (many only accept pitches from agents)… but because it’s another hoop to have to get through on my road to publication.
I’ve submitted a query to the Andrea Brown Literary Agency. I have 6 weeks before I hear anything so you know what that means: Another countdown timer. I’m excited about this one though. I’ve read the bio of the agent I’m trying to get, and I think we match perfectly… She, on the other hand, will have to think likewise.
I sent off another submission to the Australian-based Arena imprint (under Allen & Unwin) as part of The Friday Pitch. As part of their plan to find new authors, the Arena imprint of A&U have opened every Friday to unsolicited submissions via email. Being on the other side of the international date line, that means I had to submit mine today (Thursday).
They promise a fast turn around in that if I haven’t heard a word back by 5:30 PM, Thursday (9:30 PM Wednesday for me), then they don’t want it. Believe it or not, I find that good news. It’s nice to have some sort of confirmation back (good or bad) so quickly.
I realize that it is considered taboo to submit manuscripts to multiple publishers at the same time without a Literary Agent, but I didn’t read anything in either Allen and Unwin’s or Tor’s submission guidelines against such. Conversely, I have found the rule in the submission guidelines of many of the other publishers I’ve looked into. Regardless, I suspect it won’t matter much.
Also: I received confirmation that Tor recieved my manuscript in the mail! So I’ve begun the countdown timer to my notificaitons on the right. I’ll keep you updated.