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sarahbrom
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Does any know how many submissions an author makes on average before finding an agent? Should I give up after 10, 20, 100? I've only written to three agents so far and had a fairly complimentary/constructive reply from one, so I'm not ready to give up yet but I've realised I could end up spending a lot of money if I keep on writing to more. I don't want to be like one of those deluded X Factor hopefuls who just can't see that they're no good and it's time to give up!
This post was last edited by sarahbrom, 27 Sep 2008, 19:04
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madridhibs
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JK Rowling was rejected by loads. So was Scott Fitzgerald (I seem to remember but happy to be corrected).
Find out what life's really like in Spain. Please visit my blog: Tales from La Terraza
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Cope-Walker
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I don't have confirmation to hand, but I do believe that Georges Simenon, author of the the world-famous Maigret detective novels was rejected over a hundred times.
Give up when you're dead and buried and not before.
Copey
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NickP
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Never give up writing. That's what writers do. Publication is one thing, writing is another.
"...the likes of NickP can rant on if they like" I occasionally rant on at http://amonsterinthemirror.blogspot.com/
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slavandria
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Quote: Cope-Walker, Saturday, 27 Sep 2008 19:44I don't have confirmation to hand, but I do believe that Georges Simenon, author of the the world-famous Maigret detective novels was rejected over a hundred times. Give up when you're dead and buried and not before. Copey Amen!!! I don't know of any author who was accepted the first time (s)he submitted to an agent/editor/publisher. Perhaps there are some. You just have to keep trying and don't let "them" win. You must believe in your work. If you don't, no one else will.
Jen "There are books of which the backs and covers are by far the best parts." Charles Dickens
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sarahbrom
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Thanks guys, you've given me some much-needed motivation!
And madridhibs, hello, I was told there were quite a few people who live in Madrid who use this site. My novel is set in Madrid, I hope it gets allocated to you for a review at some point!
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ljgordon
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I have been rejected over 100  times but I refused to give up and now my work is sitting on the desk of a Harlequin Editor. Of course she too could politely reject it. If she does I will Re-vise it yet again or finish my latest novel and try it. In the mean time I keep submitting and I'm convinced that eventually one of them will read my entire novel.  Think of it as a learning experience. I am in contact with several published Authors who told me that it took YEARS for them to get where they are. One such author gave a seminar where she said it was 10 years and 17 novels before she sold a book. Her message was 'If I can do it anyone can. Do not give-up on what you believe in.' I say as long as there is someone left, who hasn't rejected you, than you should keep trying. I will.
This post was last edited by ljgordon, 28 Sep 2008, 01:55
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HPRW
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I'd say to keep on submitting--but to make sure you're submitting to the right places. When I was an editor, most of the submissions that I received were just not publishable: the writing was dreadful, incoherent, and sometimes plain scary. A lot of it was not appropriate for our lists, and so was rejected. Perhaps the top five or ten per cent was good enough to be considered seriously, and most of that was rejected because it was too similar to other books we'd already published; or because it just didn't have that spark that we were looking for. I'd encourage anyone to make sure their work is absolutely as best as it can be before they even consider submitting it. This is the one, single step that I really wish more writers would remember. Then target your work carefully; and start at the top and work down. Only stop submitting when you've exhausted all options that you find acceptable. For example, some writers will only consider the big presses; others are happy to try independents, but won't self-publish; others still are happy to consider self-publishing, along with all the limitations that it entails.
Apologies for any typos I might let slip by: I've developed a problem with my vision and I've not got used to it yet. How Publishing Really Works
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JDSmith
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NEVER GIVE UP. I think the worst mistakes writers can make is to either give up, or be so delusional that they think their work doesn't need any improvement. I think it's great that you've had some constructive feedback. I say use it, re-write, and keep submitting. Besides, it's not like we're making fools of ourselves on TV! 
JD
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mathewferguson
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Quote: sarahbrom, Saturday, 27 Sep 2008 19:03Does any know how many submissions an author makes on average before finding an agent? Should I give up after 10, 20, 100? I've only written to three agents so far and had a fairly complimentary/constructive reply from one, so I'm not ready to give up yet but I've realised I could end up spending a lot of money if I keep on writing to more. I don't want to be like one of those deluded X Factor hopefuls who just can't see that they're no good and it's time to give up! When is it time to give up? Now. If not sooner. Give up connecting any single part of your sense of happiness with the actions of agents, publishers, readers, "the book market" or whatever else it is called. You can't predict it, control it and honestly the only way to have the slightest influence is to just keep writing. Give up caring about how many publishers you've sent it to. Establish a number if you like (Ten rejections and it gets retired for rewriting, for example) but it's just a marker. Sooner or later you'll get enough rejections for the one piece that you've exhausted the pool of agents/publishers or you've come to understand the work isn't very good. In either case you start rewriting or abandon it. Or if you want the short answer - give up after six rejections. Take it away, let it rest for a year and then brutally rewrite it if you still like the core idea. If you don't, abandon it. People hardly ever talk about abandoning work and the good it can do you. You can let go of a piece and move on. Then you can abandon that and move on again. Perhaps you might start thirty projects, some at the same time and abandon all of them. Gradually all the words will build up and you will become a better writer and will be able to see all the things that were wrong with those first pieces.
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slavandria
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welcome back, Mat. I promise to keep my tongue in my mouth this time around...
Jen "There are books of which the backs and covers are by far the best parts." Charles Dickens
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NickP
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Quote: mathewferguson, Sunday, 28 Sep 2008 13:31Quote: sarahbrom, Saturday, 27 Sep 2008 19:03Does any know how many submissions an author makes on average before finding an agent? Should I give up after 10, 20, 100? I've only written to three agents so far and had a fairly complimentary/constructive reply from one, so I'm not ready to give up yet but I've realised I could end up spending a lot of money if I keep on writing to more. I don't want to be like one of those deluded X Factor hopefuls who just can't see that they're no good and it's time to give up! When is it time to give up? Now. If not sooner. Give up connecting any single part of your sense of happiness with the actions of agents, publishers, readers, "the book market" or whatever else it is called. You can't predict it, control it and honestly the only way to have the slightest influence is to just keep writing. Give up caring about how many publishers you've sent it to. Establish a number if you like (Ten rejections and it gets retired for rewriting, for example) but it's just a marker. Sooner or later you'll get enough rejections for the one piece that you've exhausted the pool of agents/publishers or you've come to understand the work isn't very good. In either case you start rewriting or abandon it. Or if you want the short answer - give up after six rejections. Take it away, let it rest for a year and then brutally rewrite it if you still like the core idea. If you don't, abandon it. People hardly ever talk about abandoning work and the good it can do you. You can let go of a piece and move on. Then you can abandon that and move on again. Perhaps you might start thirty projects, some at the same time and abandon all of them. Gradually all the words will build up and you will become a better writer and will be able to see all the things that were wrong with those first pieces. Mat! Where ya been? I think people should finish work they start, but that doesn't mean work on it forever. Publishing will not make many of us rich, I think. Nice to be read, though.
"...the likes of NickP can rant on if they like" I occasionally rant on at http://amonsterinthemirror.blogspot.com/
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ljgordon
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Quote: HPRW, Sunday, 28 Sep 2008 09:30I'd say to keep on submitting--but to make sure you're submitting to the right places. When I was an editor, most of the submissions that I received were just not publishable: the writing was dreadful, incoherent, and sometimes plain scary. A lot of it was not appropriate for our lists, and so was rejected. Perhaps the top five or ten per cent was good enough to be considered seriously, and most of that was rejected because it was too similar to other books we'd already published; or because it just didn't have that spark that we were looking for. I'd encourage anyone to make sure their work is absolutely as best as it can be before they even consider submitting it. This is the one, single step that I really wish more writers would remember. Then target your work carefully; and start at the top and work down. Only stop submitting when you've exhausted all options that you find acceptable. For example, some writers will only consider the big presses; others are happy to try independents, but won't self-publish; others still are happy to consider self-publishing, along with all the limitations that it entails. Question? When you were an Editor, did you ever read an entire manuscript before rejecting it or did you go by the query alone? (I do understand you can't possibly read every manuscript you receive) I've been told that Agents and Editors are not interested in reading or hearing about a proffessional critique a manuscript may have. Was this true for you and if so why? I did learn after much trial and error that it is important to research before you submit. I just wonder how many rejections are actually due to 'dreadful' writing or the fact that the query letter just didn't capture someones attention. I think that half of all submissions fall prey to the automatic reply button which is why I will not give up! Like the slot machine, one day my query will be on the right line!
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HPRW
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I didn't ever start by reading the outline or the covering letter: I'd go straight to the writing, and read that. If it held my attention, I'd read the outline to see if the writer had a coherent plot or theme. I very rarely got as far as reading the outline. Most of the writing was terrible--and you have no idea how terrible terrible can be if you've not spent time reading slush--and that's why most of the submissions were rejected. I really think that writers should place the emphasis on writing, and on learning as much about the craft as they possibly can, rather than on trying to analyse why they are rejected, or how they could get "in" to publishing. Just write. As well as you can. And keep going.
This post was last edited by HPRW, 29 Sep 2008, 12:57
Apologies for any typos I might let slip by: I've developed a problem with my vision and I've not got used to it yet. How Publishing Really Works
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HPRW
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Matthew Fersuson wrote: "Give up connecting any single part of your sense of happiness with the actions of agents, publishers, readers, "the book market" or whatever else it is called. You can't predict it, control it and honestly the only way to have the slightest influence is to just keep writing." Absolutely. Writers need agents, because then writers can concentrate on the writing while their agents get on with the selling. If you spend all your time worrying about whether or not you're going to get published, you're not going to write well, if at all. Write. If you don't have an agent then submit widely and submit often to agents and publishers which are appropriate for your work (very important, that bit), but spend most of your time writing the next thing and the next. I had an email from someone recently who had spent the past 8 or 9 years editing and reworking their first novel, in an attempt to get it published. She'd have been far better off spending that time writing a few more novels: think of how her writing could have improved in that time. As it is, she had an over-worked and still probably unpublishable manuscript in her hands, and had lost the joy she once found in writing.
Apologies for any typos I might let slip by: I've developed a problem with my vision and I've not got used to it yet. How Publishing Really Works
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When is it time to give up?
27 Sep 2008, 19:03
