If you’ve ever wondered what an editor thinks when they’re reviewing manuscript submissions, check out the following thoughts I’ve had these last six days of reviewing over forty manuscripts. My thoughts are a bit jaded because my publishing company still receives unsolicited submissions for our copublishing imprint, and even though I work with royalties-only imprints and authors, they have me take a look at the unsoliciteds because I may discover a diamond in the rough that can be published through our traditional models, which I have not after almost seven years of reviewing them. I have found a few golden writers, but the one thing they lack is an audience. That disappointments me greatly. I really want to see the skilled and passionate writers published, but I have to succumb to the overriding question in all of business—will it make money? So I share my thoughts with the whole paradigm in mind.
I want writers to be successful. I want to see them take ownership of their gift—research more, practice more, train more, hone and fine-tune more, go back to the drawing board more, be critiqued more, and think more about the industry as a whole. This is not so much directed to the writer who attends writers’ conferences or who connects online with agents, editors, and other writers through Twitter chats, writing communities, and Facebook groups. This is to the ones who may be talented but consistently reject the advice to do all of the above. This is to the ones who probably are not online reading blogs and perusing publishers’ Web sites. This is to the ones who may do all of that yet need just a little encouragement that they are on the right track and the good feeling that they are part of the upward moving minority that may actually see their dreams come true.
My thoughts…
Writers should work on building an audience before submitting to publishers. Saying that you could market your book through social media once we decide to publish doesn't tell us much. Basically you want the publishing company to invest in something that has no proven record of return—no perceived or anticipated value. That’s not fair. You wouldn’t invest in some random idea for a new company that may show up on the NYSE and it may perform enough to provided an ROI. You’d want to be able to see that the marketplace will patronize that company and that they will meet a consumer’s felt need. You’d want to see some paperwork, maybe a market analysis and a business plan. Yes? The same goes for a publisher. In determining if there is an audience waiting for something from you, we use our market knowledge based on past results. And our knowledge tells us that if we publish a book from someone with no audience, it will tank and cause us to lose money. You have to provide an argument to back up your claims that this book is something people will want to read else we will not take the risk.
Starting a blog or becoming an in-demand speaker are examples of things that create an interest in what you have to say. Another way to build interest is to draw support or connect with a person of influence who has a large platform. They may take you under their wing perhaps and be willing to use their stage to introduce you to the world by way of an endorsement or foreword in your book, interviewing you on a radio or television program, or having you speak or just mentioning you at one of their speaking engagements. Building a platform is part of proving that your product will perform in the marketplace, creating a demand and knowing that your product will meet it, and reaching your audience at that deep and special place that leaves them asking for more. If, when you send in your proposal, you’ve already begun to build a following and a waiting audience, that really says something about your writing, it says something about your drive to be a successful author, and it says something about your knowledge about how business works and that you understand that, essentially, you are both the salesperson and the product. And if you so happen to be writing something that publishers feel is unmarketable yet you have built an audience, they may be inclined to believe that you are a trendsetter and something new and fresh is on the rise.
There’s a line I read in this one book a long time ago. It was a book about how to influence people. I don’t even remember the name of the book, but the line has stuck with me ever since. It went something like this: “If you want people to join your bandwagon, you have to first join theirs.” Get to understand the book market and what publishers need to make successful authors. Find ways through the writing and submission process to show that you understand their position as well. It is about you, yes, but it’s not all about you.
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Writers should submit finished manuscripts that have been reviewed, critiqued, and edited. If we’re ready to move forward with publishing your piece and it’s not ready, now we have to wait—and our attention spans aren’t that long.
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Do not submit your first draft. Did you even reread this before hitting send?
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I know we give you the online proposal application, but you really should type out and review all your responses in Word first. Then copy and paste them into our online application. There is no reason you should have this many typos and formatting issues. Is this how you present your resume and job application when searching for a job?
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Family members should not be your main critique partners.
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Cool! You have a personal author Web site with your name as the domain name. That shows some thought and initiative. Way to start building a platform!
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I like it when an author comes up with a compelling bio and summary—both in third person. It makes me feel like they’ve thought through who would be reading their proposal. It also shows that they’ve thought—and maybe even researched—about how to present and market themselves.
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A good book summary (or synopsis) is something that hooks the reader, agent, or reviewing editor and makes them want to open the manuscript. Don’t just casually say what the book is about, but tell a story even in that space. Draw us in. Tantalize us. Tease us. It’s almost like good back cover copy. If your book solves a problem or gives advice, present the questions your book answers. If it’s fiction, build tension in the summary that shows off your skills a bit. But keep it short and concise. There is no reason to tell us that your book is unique or a guaranteed best seller. Make us know that from the summary.
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It is completely wrong when I go to your Facebook or Twitter page and it says nothing about you writing a book or being an author. Yes, you have every right to talk yourself up. You have to believe in you.
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Authors should definitely google themselves and see what comes up. It’s weird when I google a potential author and I can’t find anything on them at all. It’s like, “What have you been doing with yourself? Who is going to know you even wrote a book?” “No blog? No interaction with online writers’ groups? Do you even like to write?”
To be continued…