A manuscript: something submitted in haste and returned at leisure.
This morning I commiserated with a writer friend over a rejection – but agreed with her that “at least it only took three months” for the publisher to respond. So, when I was looking for a writing quote for today, the ‘returned at leisure’ part of this quote spoke to me (I am not for a second suggesting that my friend submitted too quickly – in haste – because I’m sure she didn’t).
Response times can be agonising for writers. We have written what we are sure is going to be a best seller, but we then wait three months, six months, or more for a response – and when it’s a rejection, especially, it’s very easy to think of that wait time as wasted time.
What can you do about it? Generally, you can’t hurry the response time. Reading piles at most publishing houses are huge. And, if a manuscript gets beyond the first read, then there are a range of steps and stages it goes through before a final decision. So, a wait is pretty much inevitable.
But you can use that time to work on new manuscripts, build your writing skills, network, research other markets…the list is almost endless. And, if the publisher you have submitted to is happy with simultaneous submissions, then you can serve that wait time for more than one publisher concurrently.
As for submitting in haste – that’s a whole nother blog post.
That's great advice about using the waiting time constructively. It produces more work, lets you hone your craft and keeps you from going crazy with that waiting, waiting, waiting. Sometimes a longer wait can actually be a good thing, if it means your manuscript is making its way through the selection process (passing from editor to design team and marketing). On the other hand, sometimes it