But I've Come So Far ...

There's no Publishing at the Alamo!

Have you ever had the thought, "Hey, I think I'll write something and just get that published and, you know, just have a published book out there.  That would be cool."

I had that thought once.  I was young.  Eisenhower was in office, I believe.

Well, after having that thought, and writing a book, and another, and another, and after finally getting an agent to take me on, I'm now ... out on submission!

This is next level, people.  I've had my manuscript in the hands of many agents in the business.  It's really gotten around.  Don't judge!  But it finally found it's way into the hands of the right agent, and now she is working to get it into the hands of the right editors at the right publishing houses.  And after a month, I've learned it's currently in the hands of 11 editors.  I've never been on submission before, but that sounds pretty great to me.  Especially since I didn't have to personally beg and whine to get any of them to take it.  I'd gotten quite proficient at that during the querying process, but it's still a chore.

I don't actually know how many editors were contacted during the past month to know if 11 is a good response rate or not.  I suppose if 1,000 editors were approached, I should probably be pretty abashed about the result.  If it went out to 10 and 11 requested then I could probably get a little cocky at this point.  It's probably better I don't know.

In theory, my book is currently in line to be read by 11 individuals holding actual positions within publishing companies with the authority to make me an offer on my book and ultimately get it into print (on paper, digital, skywritten, whatever that means these days).  It's very exciting and also terrifying.  The longer I don't hear anything, the more self-doubt creeps in.  Is it possible for me to actually hear them laughing at me from so many miles away?  Agents were always very considerate and kind in their rejection of my work.  Are editors of a similar ilk?  If many of them are in New York, I've heard talk of these "New York Values" somewhere.  Do these values include a healthy respect for ego coddling of amateur authors?

Hopefully these editors who showed an initial interest in my work won't laugh me right out of the business before I even get a chance to get into it.

I've come this far.  Surely there's a basement in this Alamo with the shiny red bike of a book deal waiting for me!