The Purposeful Prose Advice Column: How to Debut

Dear Purposeful Prose,

Most of the people who I’ve seen get book deals are influencers or people whose families are already in the publishing industry. In other words, these are people who already have an “in.” While I’ve done a lot of querying, I haven’t had any responses from publishers. Am I doing something wrong? Is it even possible to get published if you don’t have a connection?

It makes sense to say that the people you are seeing get book deals mostly have an “in” with publishers. That said, there are the people you see, the people who come up on your algorithms, and then there are true debut lists. Shen Tao, author of The Poet Empress, had been writing for ten years before getting acquired by Tor Publishing Group (a subsidiary of Macmillan). The Poet Empress has become incredibly popular since its release, and Shen Tao’s story isn’t an isolated one. 

While having a solid following on social media and having a connection can help [because publishers look for things that are easily marketable], having those connections won’t guarantee a good book or good press surrounding your book.

As of now, I’m unclear as to what kind of querying you’ve done, and making assumptions won’t be helpful. Self-publishing can be an avenue to start releasing a body of work. Having a portfolio of writing can give publishers a frame of reference, even if your books don’t reach a wide audience. For those who don’t want to start with self-publishing and want to publish traditionally, I recommend one of two pathways:

1. Query Agents Instead Literary agents who work in your genre reach out to publishers on the authors’ behalf, specifically publishers who do not accept unsolicited manuscripts. Write a solid query letter. I like Lauren Kay’s four-part structure as a jumping-off point. This is a lot like writing a cover letter for a job. While I have not used QueryTracker, this site comes highly recommended when searching for possible literary agents to query. Regardless of what you use, before writing your query letters, make a list of possible agents you’d be interested in working with. Figure out what manuscripts they’ve worked with before, who they’ve published with, and how your manuscript might be able to fit. Then, draft a query letter. First, personalize the introduction of your query letter to each agent that shows you’ve done your research. In this introduction, show your agent why they would want to represent your work. I say “your work” instead of “you” in this case because you’ll want to save details about yourself for the end. The summary of your book can be kept mostly the same throughout your query letters, but you might alter some of your language to appeal more directly to the agent you’re writing to. Your summary should engage the agent as a reader and show why they should be excited about the book. Tell what the journey consists of, what the conflicts are, and, generally, who the book should be focused on and why we should care. After your summary, include some comparable, well-performing titles. You can integrate other forms of media in those comparables, but at least one of them should be a book. The query letter, then, should wrap with a 2-3 sentence bio of yourself. A query letter can serve multiple purposes, regardless of whether you’re querying an agent or are pitching your manuscript in other places. My piece of advice is to keep at least three to four drafts of your query letter with different framings for your summary, different openings, different bios, even different comparables. The wording in these letters can help you in any correspondence where you’re promoting your book to others. After you’ve drafted your query letter, you can bring on an editor to consult with you. They might have more tailored advice to give you on querying agents. This step is optional. After you’ve reached out to the agents on your list, don’t be discouraged if you don’t receive an immediate response or any response at all. Unfortunately, agents do get overloaded with queries, and they can’t accept every offer they receive. Agents might specify how long they usually take to get back to prospective clients, but not all of them will.
   

2. Submit to Small/Independent Presses Who Accept Unsolicited Manuscripts
   

Many authors reach out to publishers directly with their manuscripts, hoping that theirs will be the standout piece to capture their acquisition editors. Unfortunately, this is highly unlikely to be effective. If a press does not accept unsolicited manuscripts, do not solicit them. The press will likely view your solicitation as a cue that you are unwilling to follow their guidelines in other respects.

Instead, research small presses that will accept unsolicited manuscripts and review their submission guidelines carefully. Make sure that you can meet those guidelines to the letter and that your manuscript fits your press. Here are some publishers who frequently accept unagented submissions. It is essential to be diligent when submitting your work because every submission will show that publisher what it will be like to work with you.

As you query and submit to different agents or presses, make sure to keep track of who you submitted your work to. A lot of authors face rejection. It can take years to get a positive response, but it’s possible. If this means a lot to you, it’ll be worth the effort and time.

If you have a writing or editing-focused question, I would be more than happy to dedicate a post to you. Contact us with any questions you might have or to schedule a free consultation with yours truly!

All submissions will remain anonymous unless you explicitly request for me to include your name.