Let's Talk about Book Submission Heartbreak

Previously, I’ve written about how to cope while being on submission to publishing editors. It’s a strange period to be in, because on one hand, you’ve made it really far in your writing career to get to this point. You’ve got an agent, they like your work, you’ve polished up your manuscript, and it’s out there. Your words are in front of editors at publishing houses who make decisions on which books to acquire and publish. So: if you’re there, CONGRATS! It’s a big deal, and you should be proud and excited.

When No News Disappoints

The first thing you might notice is that, while having your book on submission, time becomes a long, taffy-like ball of mush, twisting and pulling. If you are extraordinarily lucky, you’ll hear back very quickly from editors. There might even be a bidding war! These are the dreams of us all! But guess what: they make the news because they ARE so rare! If everyone got the major 6 or 7 figure book deal, it wouldn’t make the news. And we’d all be paid good wages! Wouldn’t that be great? But for most of us, that won’t ever happen.

That part is ok. Getting published is the goal. Making the news is not. Because each book you get published builds your career. And that’s what your agent is trying to build for you: a sustainable, long-term career. Not a flash in the pan.

So with time like taffy, you can become anxious and frustrated. You’ll wonder why no one is getting back to your agent. There can be a million different reasons. The worst ones: they ghost. I won’t get into that mysterious circumstance, except to say it’s not awesome.

One week drags into two, two weeks drags into a month, and then months go by and NOTHING. Nudges are sent by the agent and…nothing. Well, that’s not fun, is it? But there’s something less fun than that…

When News Disappoints

You finally start getting responses! Yay! Except they aren’t what you wanted. Yikes! Let’s talk scenarios.

You hear back good news in the form of editors saying they enjoyed the book. That’s great news, keep in mind, because you know you’ve got a great book.

BUT! They can’t take it. There may be myriad reasons why. Maybe they have a very similar book they’ve just made a book deal for and their imprint can’t take something as close to it as yours. This is all behind-the-scenes info that authors don’t have access to. Agents might not either. But it’s out of our hands, alas!

It could also be that your book has something that won’t exactly fit with the imprint. Maybe its genre blends too much away for them to take the risk. Maybe the age tilts too young, and they don’t take young adult. So many reasons why! You’ll either find out in the response or you won’t. And that’s the end of the road for THAT book with THAT editor. However, you could probably submit something closer in line to the same editor in the future, if they like your work, and if by then you don’t have a non-compete clause for another book. So take the encouraging, good feedback, and move forward.

When News Crushes

I’m not going to name any names here, but I’m going to give you scenarios that happened to me that just…well, I’m writing this post, right? I wouldn’t do that if it made me happy.

With one editor for my book on submission, the book got all the way to the acquisitions meeting. That meant the editor loved the book! Yay! But at the meeting, they didn’t let the editor move forward with it. Super, crushing YIKES. Disappointing the editor and, as a result, me. I will say that I just feel only good things for that editor, who tried really hard to get my book published.

Now I’m going to address something that happened that was much harder to cope with. An editor loved my book, and loved the other, unrelated book I had ready in the wings as well. Wanted both. A two-book deal! Awesome, right? We were all so excited. We had a “handshake deal”. Then we were in contract negotiations. The publisher was also excited.

And then the publisher yanked the deal.

I won't get into why, I won’t say who, but I can tell you that a lot of exclamation marks went back and forth over this astounding last-minute news.

Channeling Richard Marx

For a few days, I was riding high on the possibility of a two-book deal. Then it all collapsed, a hillside carved away into the sea.

So I remembered the song by Richard Marx, “Don’t Mean Nothing.” These lyrics in particular resonate:

And you want to scream, but you gotta keep it all inside
When you're trying to make a living,
There ain't no such thing as pride, no

Lots of promises in the dark
But don't you open your heart

Cause it don't mean nothin'
The words that they say
Don't mean nothin'
These games that people play
No, it don't mean nothin'
No victim, no crime
It don't mean nothin'
Till you sign it on the dotted line

That’s really it, at the end of the day. Don’t exhale until your contracts are signed.

I’ll never go into a negotiation again with anything but eyes wide open.

Chanelling Ted Lasso

After all this went down, I happened to watch the final episode of season one of Ted Lasso. In this episode, people are tremulous over the hopes of the Premier League game. Ted keeps hearing the phrase, “It’s the hope that kills you.” He rebukes it utterly. He rejects the idea that hope should have any downside. He spreads this enthusiasm to his team. They get close. They get SO CLOSE to what they wanted to achieve.

And then at the last minute, it’s yanked away.

And yet!

And yet. Ted rallies, the team rallies, everyone rallies. This one they tried so hard to reach, and it didn’t happen. But they are going to keep trying until it does.

And that’s what I’m going to do.

I am not a flash in the pan, and neither is my work.

One day you’ll read the books I’ve written, that we’re sending out into the world on wings of hope.

Write. On.

I sign off my newsletters with this because I believe in our capacity to CONTINUE to make art, to persevere. It’s also how Ursula K. LeGuin signed the letter to me after I sent her my poem “Appalachia.” I took her words to heart. I hope you do as well.

Write on!

Jendia