All I want for Christmas is ....

An agent or publisher, ideally both. I’ve been down this road well trodden, and it seems to have no end. I’ve been subbing Delve since the Summer with little success. I get the standard rejections that many receive, but in amongst them I find a personal note or comment that motivates me to keep going, and keeps me true to the vision.

I have a submissions tracker that records my journey. To date, this is how it reads:

First tranche, sent in Jul 11 - 9 rejections (including 1 positive), 2 non-responses.

Second tranche, sent out at the end of Oct11 – 3 rejections (including 1 positive), 6 outstanding

Note. After the first tranche, I took the opportunity to review my initial submission, took some constructive advice and reworked my submission. I’ve had a low response rate to date on the second tranche, but I’m still hanging onto the possibility that someone will see the potential in Delve as I do.

But whilst I may exude calmness and confidence, beneath my exterior something simmers. A kind of aggravation and impatience, tempered with humility. I knew the road was long but I’d hoped to, at least, catch a glimpse of the final destination, but it twists and turns before me, the prize frustratingly out of reach. And now I feel as if I’m at a crossroads, seeing new paths materialising in front of me that I hadn’t fully considered before. One of those paths could lead me to a publisher, another to self publication, the last leading me down a competitive route.

But even they have their pitfalls. Let’s take the agent out of the equation for a minute. How do you approach a publisher directly? The first step, putting together a professional query letter is probably the easiest part. But then how do you choose who you are going to target? And once you’ve found your target, how do you find the right contact to approach?

There is so much information out there – in books, on forums, or generally on the Net - but sifting through it all to find those gems of practical guidance is something of a nightmare. How do you distinguish between the leading market publishers, the indies, the e-book publishers and the so called vanity publishers. And what do you think your novel deserves? What platform do you want to launch it on? How do you want not only your novel, but you as a writer, to be perceived.

My first instinct was to go to the publishers that would be on the top of anyone’s most wanted listed, but I found that most would only accept submissions via an agent. Then to the indies who seemed more approachable. But in amongst it all, I had in my mind - Who is the right publisher for me? And am I the right kind of author for them? It’s very much a two way street, much as I imagine it would be to develop a relationship with an agent. And a quick glance at a publisher’s website, at the types of authors and work they represent can tell you a lot. Even the design of the site itself, and of the book covers speaks volumes to me.

I thought I’d have a top ten list of publishers by the time I’d finished my research, but in the end I had about six. Three that I couldn’t approach without an agent, two indies, and one that looks like an e-publisher and seems like a bad choice. So I’ve bitten the bullet and sent a query to one of the independents, the one I feel is a best fit for me and hopefully for them.

And now it’s a case of wait and see, will this new path lead anywhere? I don’t know, but what I’ve fathomed is that we as aspiring authors seek agent representation for good reason. To steer us down the right path, to avoid getting stuck in a ditch, but most of all to find our way to freedom, to that final destination. I hope I find mine.