Does the Journey Bring Joy?

By the time I was in the middle of writing my sixth book, I had debated long and hard about querying a traditional publisher. Was it the money that motivated me? In the end, many authors don’t sell enough to cover their advance. Was it the opportunity to reach new readers? More readers? That was undoubtedly a contributing factor. My long-suffering editor, who has worked with me for years, was as open to the idea as me. It was worth a try. There was nothing to lose, I told myself. This journey should be a learning experience.
Having long followed sites such that compare the differences between self and traditional publishing, one comes to realize there is no right or wrong. Just like most life decisions, its a choice. Door 1 or Door 2.
Supercharging my research on how to be traditionally published, I read dozens and dozens of articles, blog posts and listened happily to YouTube authors and influencers in the field. Long pleasant hours of researching, reading, listening and learning.
Success for the querying author initially means having an agent ask for a submission. But first, you have to get their attention. That’s where the query letter comes in and trust me, it takes a great deal of work to polish it to an acceptable level. Hours and hours of work, at least for me. Eventually, somewhat satisfied with the result, I sent it to a literary agent who assists newbies for a reasonable fee. It was a worthwhile and productive investment. My editor also had a hand in tweaking it. All told, it took me well over a hundred hours to prepare for that first query. (Don’t let that discourage you, not everyone overthinks it like me).
The synopsis (separate from the query letter) was my nemesis. I wasn’t getting it. Thankfully, my long-suffering editor stepped in and fixed my mess.
Because I am a techno-dud, she also prepared potential requests or ones that might be asked for with the query letter. Requests such as ‘first ten pages,’ first fifteen pages’ ‘first 1000 words’ ‘first fifty pages.’ You get the drift. I didn’t, it was easy for me to mess that up. I can’t thank my editor enough for her help.
It kept me busy for a number of months, and when I was ready, I queried my dream agent and a couple of other agencies. (I forgot to mention – QueryTracker is not an option. It’s a must. It is worth the $25 US you pay for the advanced version. Once you play with and explore it, it is easy to use and offers a wealth of tools for tracking your query against other authors querying the same agent, picking the right agent, etc.)
First lesson. Don’t query your dream agent. If you must, then don’t pin your hopes on that query. Dream agents are not any different than their counterparts. Any reputable agency has a stable of agents who are experts. Like all newbies, I did have a dream agent. I just didn’t tell anyone. She rejected me within three months, about a week before she left the agency. Alex Donne, a traditionally published unicorn authors, has volumes of YouTube videos about querying. Watch her ‘Dream Agents are a Bad Idea’ video. She has plenty of other videos related to writing, understanding publishing, her journey. There are other authors who blog/vlog regularly who are worth reading/watching as well.
Second lesson. You are not competing with dozens of authors, you are competing with hundreds of them. One agent recently posted her inbox figures – just 20 shy of 5,000 queries to be addressed. Plenty of traditionally published authors faced those numbers and were successful. Watch and learn. If you are noticed and have followed their advice, there might be potential for a submission request. Check out YouTube videos that outline the odds. If you are spooked by the stats, then don’t watch. Just focus on your querying.
By the time I reached ten submissions, I was settling into a routine of tailoring the query, make sure I’d adhered to the agencies guidelines, was respectful and had a fitting/witty/engaging/intelligent opening sentence, I made sure I had spelled the agent’s name correctly, researched the agency thoroughly, double and triple checked to ensure the letter and submission was typo free, that the agent really did ask for women’s fiction genres in his/her bio/request guidelines. (Truth – sometimes I overdid my checking, reading and rereading the query. Dozens of times might be more accurate.)
My final task, once I hit send, was to log it in QueryTracker and sit back and wait. And wait. And wait. Sometimes it took weeks. The majority took months. That, by the way, can be a good sign. By checking the agent’s timeline, I could tell where I was in the cue of authors who used QueryTracker. If there was a lot of red underneath my name and I hadn’t heard from the agent, it was a good sign I might be in the running, the query may have piqued the agents interest. That, or the agent didn’t respond and had moved past my query. Not all agents respond. That’s normal too.
Third lesson. Take the rejection for what it is and be grateful the agent took the time to let you know it wasn’t a good fit. Not hearing from an agent you liked is worse. Many rejections are form letters.
Fourth lesson. Watch for a pattern. What is the agent telling you? By the time I was reaching thirty queries, there was a theme, a theme of two responding agents. They liked the premise, but not the writing.
Fifth lesson. Know when to fold. I took the advice of authors I watched or read who were successful in their queries. Thirty or so queries was enough. It was time to pull out and think about what to do. Revamp the book? Self-publish? Push on? Admit defeat?
Sixth lesson. Writer Beware. Not doing your due diligence and homework about agents and agencies can cost you. Victoria Strauss is the brains behind Writer Beware, an important read for any author. There are other sites, of course, but hers has been a guiding light for this author.
With six queries outstanding, I now choose to self-publish once the last rejection is confirmed. The financial return is higher, it’s what I know and the instant the second I hit the upload button, it’s published. (Actually, my editor hits it for me. It takes her 1/1000 of the time it takes me to do the uploads.)
The title of my book is Fading Expectations. That title choice is just a coincidence. The ‘year of querying’ wasn’t a waste, it was a journey. The research is fun. Learning is fun. Rejection, not so much. But you get used to it. If you are of a certain age, like me, you roll with it. Life journeys aren’t linear or smooth or endlessly happy or sad.
Agencies and agents want authors for the long haul. At my age, the long haul is coming to a halt. Young, bright writers are the future. They understand the quickly changing landscape of publishing and are easily adaptable. YA (young adult fiction) might be fading, as trends go, but MG (middle-grade fiction) isn’t. Adult fiction is strong. Sci-fi is making a comeback. OA (older adult) may not be trendy, but it’s a busy sector. The technology changes quickly and it is hard to keep up. One thing doesn’t change, you choose your path, which, in publishing, has a future either way.
It was quite a ride and I’d do it again in a heartbeat.