: Re: As a new author, is it possible to sell a book to a publisher within one or two weeks after you've finished writing it? I know it normally takes several months to get an agent and then

Most (big) publishers don't take unsolicited manuscripts, so, depending on the publisher, you may find you have to get an agent first, and (good) agents often want to edit before submitting to publishers. That takes time. My agents spent a year on mine!

The answer really depends on how 'finished' your book is.

Doors to agents and publishers can slam shut if you rush a submission and it's not there yet. It's much better to be 100% sure that your book is as perfect as it can be before you submit.

I would recommend finding a team of beta readers because they will feedback on issues that you might not be aware of yourself. We often can't see the wood for the trees in our own work.

The other option is a paid editorial if 'evaluation' is what you are looking for. Agents and publishers don't have time to provide feedback and usually respond with stock responses. If you look at my answer on this question:

Are agents too busy for new clients? What should I do next?

you'll see the rejections I got for my first novel and the kind of 'evaluations' you can expect.

For proper professional evaluations of my work, I've used The Literary Consultancy in the past and they were EXCELLENT, but they are expensive. If you don't have the funds, beta readers are an alternative.

But, on the whole, it's impossible to say without reading your novel. It is hard to dispassionately evaluate our own work because we are too close to it. It may be ready to submit, but I would be nervous about assuming that of my own work without a good number of qualified people reading it first. Not family, not friends.

I have a team of writers, creative writing professors, and radio drama experts who evaluate my work before submission. They are cut throat when it comes to feedback and would never hold back negative criticism to spare my feelings. I 'pay' for this help by doing the same in return for their work. It gives me a clearer assessment of the readiness of my work. It isn't something I would attempt to judge myself.

Good luck!

Load Full (0)

: Should I signal completion of a decision point in an interactive novel? In my visual novel (an interactive, narrative-based video-game), I have a detective character who decides whether he believes

@Kaufman555

Load Full 3 Comments

: Nanowrimo and typewriting I am a happy user of an Underwood 5, an old typewriter from the beginning of the XX century. I use it to type letters, short stories, greeting cards, and labels.

@Kaufman555

Load Full 2 Comments

: Does it really serve a main character to give them one driving want? I often feel that we fall into a trap of believing that we must provide a driving goal for a main character at the outset.

@Kaufman555

Load Full 7 Comments

: What is the structure of a paranormal horror story? Building on the definition of a Paranormal Story (as opposed to Dark Fantasy) described in the answers here: What are most common tropes of

: Re: As a new author, is it possible to sell a book to a publisher within one or two weeks after you've finished writing it? I know it normally takes several months to get an agent and then

More posts by @Kaufman555

: Should I signal completion of a decision point in an interactive novel? In my visual novel (an interactive, narrative-based video-game), I have a detective character who decides whether he believes

: Nanowrimo and typewriting I am a happy user of an Underwood 5, an old typewriter from the beginning of the XX century. I use it to type letters, short stories, greeting cards, and labels.

: Does it really serve a main character to give them one driving want? I often feel that we fall into a trap of believing that we must provide a driving goal for a main character at the outset.

: What is the structure of a paranormal horror story? Building on the definition of a Paranormal Story (as opposed to Dark Fantasy) described in the answers here: What are most common tropes of

Login to post a comment!

0 Comments

Back to top