Honest Expectations...

Any person can submit to a publisher without having previous writing credits, Mahnikuh, so don't worry about that. You don't need to worry about having an agent either, although a lot of publishers will only accept manuscripts via agents.

First of all check out that the stories you want to submit are suitable and laid out correctly for the market you want to submit to.
You might want to nip down to the Post your work section and put part of a story in there.

Then get a writers digest and see who you want to submit to, whether they will accept unsolicited work, whether they want a query letter or whatever and take it from there.

Hope this helps a bit. It's still early here!

I can only speak for the UK market here, but generally speaking, the simple answer is, "no". Statistically, something like 99.998 percent get rejected and for various reasons. This doesn't mean you should give up on the dream though. What you need to do is understand why scripts get rejected and try to avoid the obvious pitfalls. It won't gaurantee success, but a little bit of preparation can put you in the front line.

Firstly, quite a few publishers in the UK no longer accept scripts from unknown authors - only agencies. But some agents, believe it or not, are starting to get sick of 99% of scripts wasting their time and are starting to only consider scripts from Editorial Agencies or from writers with some grounding - say, an MA or a career in editing. These are in the minority though.

The majority of scripts get rejected by agents simply because the author simply can't write well enough. So the first task is to spend some money on decent books to get up to scratch, understanding POV, dialogue vs speech, plot, timing, conflict, tempo and grammar. If you've already got these then you're ahead of the game already.

The next is knowing what the market wants - almost impossible, so its easier to see what it doesn't want. The only way to keep up is to read everything in your chosen genre, know the big players and find ways to compete.

If you have a script that you think is good, but you need a second opinion or some kind of critique then this is where Editorial Agencies come in. You pay them money to go over your script with a fine tooth comb and get a report on where it falls down and how to get it up to a publishable standard - some agencies act as scouts for Literary Agents.

The next part is finding an agent. Make multiple submissions to agents. Some can take three months to get back to you - if you do one at a time it could take years to find the right one, by which time your idea could be out of date.

In the UK, our main rule is never to pay any agent or publisher to read a script (Editorial services are different because they don't offer publication, just a service to get your script up to scratch).

If your script catches the right eye, an agent will ask for the full manuscript. If they like that, then the hard work starts as the agent tries to sell it to a publisher.

It's not easy, but it can be done. It's not always who you know or being in the right place. If your script is good enough, an agent will see it.

JK Rowling got published this way.

Best of luck.

GreyMalkin

Agree with Greymalkin

Published

If you can write well enough, it doesn't matter who you are, what your credentials are, or anyone else. You'll find a publisher. If you can't write well enough, you'll find an excuse.

Agreed, but I don't think JKR used an Editorial Agency. She had faith in her own writing ability.

And if one does use an Editorial Agency, it's best not to mention it. It doesn't give any advantage and it raises the obvious question of - Why did the manuscript need to go to an Editorial Agency?

Grey Malkin said:

It's not easy, but it can be done. It's not always who you know or being in the right place. If your script is good enough, an agent will see it.

JK Rowling got published this way.

Best of luck.

GreyMalkin

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I just meant that JKR did it by sending stuff to an agent, not because of personal contacts.

However, your point about using editorial agencies is one I tend to agree with - ie "Why did the manuscript need to go to an Editorial Agency". Personally, I don't use them because I want to know that I've got the skills to edit my own work as well as seeing where a story falls short of the mark. It is very, very hard to be impartial about your own work, but as soon as someone else points something glaringly wrong then nine out of ten times, the author will admit something like, 'Yeah, I thought that too' - so why ask??? The best way to gain these skills is to critique other peoples' work.

But, for those who do use editorial services, I don't think you need to keep it quiet, simply because of the amount of published writers who are forced to employ freelance editors. It used to be normal for the publishers to foot the bill, but as more and more in-house editors get the chop, its either up to the agent or author to foot the bill.

Everyone needs some degree of editing. Which is a good reason to target agents who have worked previously as editors.

And if one does use an Editorial Agency, it's best not to mention it. It doesn't give any advantage and it raises the obvious question of - Why did the manuscript need to go to an Editorial Agency?

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I disagree. I think many editors would be encouraged that the ms has apready been appraised by a consultancy. I work for a literary consultancy doing freelnace editorial stuff, and they appraised my novel for me and subsequently placed it with an agent (who I adore). There is no doubt that the novel was stronger having been edited by one of them.

If an editorial agency recommends submission, I would have thought that an editor at a publishing house would be more likely to read it carefully, compared with much of the dross they get in their slush piles.

Recommendation direct from the Agency is one thing. Saying in a Query letter to an Agent or publisher that the manuscript has been 'professionally edited' is another.

The former, fair enough. The latter - I would hesitate to mention.

moondance said:

I disagree. I think many editors would be encouraged that the ms has apready been appraised by a consultancy. I work for a literary consultancy doing freelnace editorial stuff, and they appraised my novel for me and subsequently placed it with an agent (who I adore). There is no doubt that the novel was stronger having been edited by one of them.

If an editorial agency recommends submission, I would have thought that an editor at a publishing house would be more likely to read it carefully, compared with much of the dross they get in their slush piles.

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In the UK this seems to be the case, but it's not the same thing in the U.S. Here, an editorial service means you can't write well enough to sell without help, and no editor wants to see this.

Interesting - it hadn't occurred to me that there would be differences between the UK and the US. And I do see what you mean - the editor might wonder 'what kind of shape was it in before it was edited and if I accept this author, how much work might I have to put in in the future?'

Difficult. I can see both sides - though I still think for many first-time authors, the literary consultancy can be a godsend.

I am slightly more optimistic about your prospects, so long as you follow any and all submission instructions and have a modicum of commen sense.

I have always written, but as a hobby. My main focus has been, and still is, acting. Then last year due to my lack of acting work I started to write a children's novel. With only 2 plays under my belt, and no other experience, I finished. I sent out queries to agents. I got an agent. She sent out queries to publishers, I got a publisher. From seeking an agent to contract - 7 months. This is not typical. I know I have been incredibly lucky. But my point is, it happens (this all took place in the UK).

But do your research first. I put a lot of effort into looking into the business (something I knew nothing about). I also had no literary consultation and had considered doing so because some genuine ones have great contacts. So I made this vow. I'll get one of them to consult for me if after a few rounds of queries I get no bites. Fortunately I did, and I saved a lot of money in doing so.

Keep the faith, have hope. It CAN happen. Remember, if the place you are submitting to takes unsolicited MS (either agency or publisher) they WANT to find the next big thing. They read the slush pile. They really do. You just have to be professional about it.

moondance said:

Interesting - it hadn't occurred to me that there would be differences between the UK and the US. And I do see what you mean - the editor might wonder 'what kind of shape was it in before it was edited and if I accept this author, how much work might I have to put in in the future?'

Difficult. I can see both sides - though I still think for many first-time authors, the literary consultancy can be a godsend.

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It the U.S., we really do not have anything like a "literary consultancy." This is the job agents assume. Hired editors here are likely to be unqualified, and in all honesty, no hired editor can tell any writer what an editor who works for a publisher wants. A good agent can.

A writer must be able to do his own rewrites and his own revisions, or he's as useless to me as **** on a boar. About one novel in two thousand comes in without needing rewriting and revision, and if the writer can't handle these things on his own, I can't work with him.

What a lot of writers overlook is that, as an editor, I'm not looking for a single novel. I'm looking for a writer who can write novel after novel and build a career. Writers who need to have their work rewritten by someone else stand almost zero chance of making this happen.

In all honesty, the track record of hired editors and literary consultancies is Godawful. Really no better than the track record of writers who don't use them. You see their successes, but you don't see their thousands and thousands of failures.

But publishing is also a different type of business in the U.S., and agents take on more of the gatekeeper role all on their own than in the U.K.

It's clear you have a dislike of those kind of services and I expect you've come across some dreadful editors who are no use to anyone. However, the role of a literary consultancy is rather different to what you are suggesting. The one I work for suggests revisions, in exactly the same way that an editor would - we don't rewrite anything. We merely point out places where the plot is not as strong as it could be or the characterisation not clear enough.

I agree totally that 'Writers who need to have their work rewritten by someone else stand almost zero chance of making this happen' however I think you are expecting a lot from the first-time author. Many people need initial guidance in order to develop their own skills further. You might just as well say that a writing diploma or English degree is no use. A literary consultancy merely provides the professional criticism that an author cannot get from his or her friends and family.

Perhaps I am biased because the agency I work for has an excellent track record, and I pride myself on my critiques of other people's work. I am always tacful but also honest - and I also provide a realistic description of the current market and its high level of rejection. Occasionally (and it has only happened twice in the three years I have been working for them) I come across something that I think is worth submitting to agents and publishers. However, if (as is most often the case) the ms is fairly poor quality, then I do NOT suggest submission. Sometimes I do not even suggest submitting after revisions.

Although you say that, as an editor, you're not looking for a single novel, on what do you base your decision? Presumably on the one novel that the writer has submitted. So how do you know that they are able to produce book after book? Surely that is the risk with any new author?

I'm rambling now, but it's clear that we have had polemical experiences with literary consultancy-type organisations! Perhaps, like publishers, there are dire ones and outstanding ones? The difficulty, as ever, is discovering which is which...