What It’s REALLY Like to Go on Submission to Publishers

In this post, I'm sharing my publishing stats and what it was REALLY like to go on submission to publishers with my books.

A couple of months ago, I found myself in a conundrum. After trying to get a book deal for years, I was eager to get my books into readers’ hands, so planned to indie-publish my first novel. I even hired a copyeditor and started researching cover designers. I was ready.

*Deep breaths.*

Over five years ago, I published a post called “What It’s Like to Go On Submission to Publishers With Your Novel” (now archived). I was about to go on submission for the first time, and wanted to educate myself and compile as many resources as I could find on the subject. It’s one of the most highly-trafficked posts on my blog, probably since authors regularly scour Google for any morsel of information about this hush-hush topic.

I still stand by my main takeaways in that post: (1) there is no “normal” experience, (2) you have to wait a lot, and (3) you may become neurotic. Yes. All true. But I had no first-hand experience. I had no clue what to really expect. Case in point: I linked to one blog post where an author discussed being on submission for 15 months and called this a “worst case scenario.”

Hahahahahaha. Oh, past Diana, you sweet summer child.

I ended up going on submission four times with three different agents over 4.5 years before landing my first book deal. And that’s not even the worst case scenario.

The worse case scenario is that it never happens. At all.

And that’s common.

While I was on sub, I became friends with many authors who were also on sub, and we regularly vented compared notes. So I’ve seen what this process looks like for many different people. And one thing I always promised my friends was that if I ever finally got a book deal, I would be 100% transparent about my experience and how long it took.

Despite my promise to be transparent, I hesitated writing this post. Publishing is a small world, and it’s generally wise to avoid negativity. But a lot of the time, those quick sales are shouted from the rooftops with such gusto they seem like the norm. This is extremely discouraging for authors who go into sub expecting a similar experience, only for the months to drag on and on with no end in sight. So I want to write this post for those authors asking, “Why not me?” If you are one of those authors, you are not alone.

Alright. Now that I have actual wisdom to share, gather ‘round. So what’s it REALLY like to go on submission to publishers?

It depends.

Cop-out of the century, I know.

One of the most frustrating things about researching the submission process is that there is no norm. You can dig for answers all you want, but there is no consistency across the case studies. There is no article, no blog post, no forum thread that says, “You will be on submission for 52 days, and at 3:17pm on Thursday your agent will give you THE CALL.” Nope. Not a thing.

The best I can do is be completely transparent about my experience, and share some of the factors that I’ve learned play into authors’ submission experiences. So let’s go at this Q&A-style. Here’s what this post will include:

• What did your publication journey look like?

• Okay so… will my book sell?

• What will my agent’s submission strategy be?

• How long will I have to wait to hear back from editors?

• An editor is getting second reads for my book! What does this mean?

• I got an R&R from an editor? Does this mean I’ll get an offer?

• My book is going to acquisitions! Does this mean I’ll get an offer?

• Why the f*ck are you such a downer?

• So how should I get through this whole experience?

• Where else can I find info on being on sub?

What did your publication journey look like?

Since I’m a complete dork, I created an INFOGRAPHIC. 🤓🤓🤓

(The book that sold is All Your Twisted Secrets, coming from HarperTeen 3/17/20!)

*Note that All Your Twisted Secrets is Book #3. I wrote thee books in total. Book #1 went on sub twice. Only the third book sold.

Okay, so… will my book sell?

It depends. This whole process is so damn subjective. Just think about the published books you’ve read. Some you love. Some you don’t, but you can see why others do. Some you stare at in disbelief after turning the last page, befuddled that such a book ever got through acquisitions. Editors’ tastes are just as unique as yours.

And many factors are entirely out of your control, including: Is the book right a good fit for the market right now? How well are its comp titles selling? How is your agent pitching the project? The reasons a book might not sell could have nothing to do with your writing, skill, or talent.

And remember: There is never a guarantee that a book will sell. When I got offers from agents wanting to represent my first book, one of the agents told me they expected publishers to offer at least $200k for it. Another told me it would be “the next Hunger Games.”

That book was on submission twice with two different agents. It never sold.

What will my agent’s submission strategy be?

It depends. But it’s much better to ask this question to your agent, not Google. I see you over there, hesitating to email your agent, afraid to bother them. I SEE YOU. But trust me, your agent will not be annoyed by this question. Here are some questions you might consider asking your agent about the process: