The Place For My Writers Notes

Original posting 26 August 2009

Writers' Digest, October 2004, pages 26 to 33, has a collection of short "nuggets of wisdom" related to getting published. Maria Schneider is the author of the compilation. Take a deep breath, and here we go:

"Don't send multiple submissions to five of the top agents in the business. If they're considering looking at your manuscript, but they know four other agents have it, the tendency is not to look at it. Say in your submission letter that you're submitting it exclusively." Robert Gottlieb

I think it's fascinating to consider the buildup of the industry. Once upon a time, people submitted manuscripts direct to publishers. The "over-the-transom" submissions went into a slush pile. But, over time, publishers got buried in slush. So they started to rely on the agent process -- agent brought the submissions to the publishers, and did the slush reading. But now the agent system seems to have gotten buried, and developed its own set of weird protocols and rituals and rites of passage.

Add in economic havoc, changing technology, and all that... and you have a publication system that doesn't seem to work very well.

How do we get from the authors through the publication system to the readers? Right now, very, very slowly. One step forward, two back, and try again. And again. And again.

Anyway, Gottlieb suggests that you not play games with your submissions to the agents.

And keep trying.