Preparing a manuscript for submission

8 July 2013 by Admin in Book publishing

‘If a publisher declines your manuscript, remember it is merely the decision of one fallible human being, and try another.’

Sir Stanley Unwin, co-founder of publishing house George Allen and Unwin

You’ve got to the point where a publisher has agreed to take a look at your manuscript. Congratulations! You have joined the elite group of writers who actually get read by someone. But it’s very easy to mess this stage up. What follows is a publisher’s view of the dos and don’ts.

DO please re-read your manuscript. The publisher will be reading it completely cold and will notice all sorts of off-putting blemishes. She’ll be looking for reasons to put your manuscript away (i.e. reject it) and get on with the other twenty she has to read that morning. Don’t give her the ammunition. You need to read it in the same way that she will. Practically all writers read their own work, but only a few actually see their own work. The least you can do is make sure your work is spelt correctly.

DON’T fall into the trap of being too easily satisfied with your work. Of course you’re proud of it but don’t let euphoria lead you to a false sense of security. Find a reader you can really trust, somebody not too close to you, but close enough to understand what you are trying to do.

DO make sure the presentation is slick. Infinite Ideas gets anywhere between twenty and fifty submissions a week from all sorts of wannabe authors. Many of these are beautifully submitted, but they’ve had entire manuscripts submitted unbound and falling all over the place (without the page numbers needed to stack them back in order); cookbooks sent on scrap paper and, once, even on toilet roll (not used). They receive submissions that are (badly) handwritten, complete with ink stains and margin notes, or so badly laid out on the page that nobody could have any idea what’s going on. These submissions may be masterpieces but no publisher or editor will devote time to deciphering a poorly presented manuscript. They all get rejected instantly.

DON’T be tempted to experiment with clever presentation tricks in order to woo an editor. The idea of submitting your cookbook on greaseproof paper might seem brilliant at first, but it isn’t. The type will still be rubbing off the paper when it hits the bin.

DO avoid annoying a publisher before she has even started reading by following some simple style tips. Use good quality A4 paper if you are submitting as hard copy: it should be clean, white and fairly heavy if it’s to survive being thumbed. Leave a large margin on the left hand side (for editorial notes) and space on the other margins: it makes a page much easier and more pleasant to read. Only ever print on one side of the paper (you’ll have to forget the trees for once). Keep your text clean and well spaced: stick to a size 12 font (black) and always set in double-spacing. Indent the first line of every new paragraph, don’t leave extra lines between paragraphs, and always make sure your pages are numbered.

DON’T be anonymous. Make sure the publisher can see it’s your work. Include your name, address, telephone number, email address and date in the top right-hand corner of the title page. Write the title of the piece in the middle of the page, and, at the bottom, write the number of pages submitted and the number of words.

DON’T fold your manuscript over when sending, or stuff it into a tiny envelope. If even you don’t seem as though you’re proud of it or care about it why should the publisher care?

DO always include a brief covering letter with your manuscript (and at all costs avoid trying to explain or justify your work – credit publishers with the imagination to work that out by themselves) and a stamped addressed envelope. If a publisher sends the manuscript back and it’s a little dog-eared or coffee stained, don’t send it out to the next one: print off a new copy. And for God’s sake remember to remove any rejection slips a previous publisher has attached before sending it on (it happens more than you’d think).

DON’T just send your work to the first publisher you come across or the only publisher you know. Do some research, find out which imprint is most likely to publish your style or genre – a romance publisher won’t accept your horror novel even if it’s the best thing they’ve ever read. Get hold of a publisher’s catalogue to see what kind of books they publish. Alternatively buy a yearbook that provides information on what each publisher accepts and the guidelines for approaching them.

DON’T send in your entire manuscript. Nothing’s more likely to get your work sent back unread than an unsolicited novel plopping onto the welcome mat. Instead, write a brief letter to a publisher telling him who you are, and including any information about your past successes and your future plans (publishers like to invest in writers who plan a career in writing). With this letter, include a three-hundred-word synopsis of your work and two sample chapters (usually the first two). And never send a proposal to more than one publisher at a time: it’s considered very bad form (the publishing world is a very small one).

DO accept rejection. Unless you are extremely lucky you’ll have to. It isn’t easy: during the abyss of time between submitting a piece of work and hearing an editor’s response you can’t help but build up your expectations. And if the response is negative it can crush your confidence. Don’t give up.

DO take notes. Rejection can take many forms. More often than not you’ll get a printed compliment slip with nothing written on it. This is the easiest response for an editor but the most frustrating response for a writer. What did they think? Wasn’t it even worth an acknowledgement? Don’t get too wound up. Editors are busy and sometimes they simply don’t have the time (or are too badly organised!) to respond. Sometimes the printed slip comes back with some scribbled comments. These might be complimentary: ‘good but not quite right for this imprint’; promising: ‘please send something else’; critical: ‘good overall but you haven’t quite pinned down the characters’; or just plain derogatory. We won’t give an example of the last, but they do occasionally happen. If you do get a grumpy response, just try to ignore it (the editor’s probably got haemorrhoids from sitting down all day) and move on.

DON’T automatically reject your rejection. If an editor sees real promise in your work he may take the time to write a more detailed analysis of his decision. Don’t take this as an insult and bin the comments, or get on your high horse and write a scathing letter back justifying your work. It’s an editor’s way of encouraging you to look at certain elements of your writing in order to improve your chances of publication. Take a few days to cool down, then look at what he’s saying: it may not be relevant, but he might just be pointing out a weakness you’ve completely overlooked. Editors don’t often make good writers, but they do know what sells and what doesn’t. Paying attention to their comments will give you a great advantage next time you submit.

DON’T ever, please, address your work to Dear Sir/Madam. If you can’t be bothered to find out the relevant publisher’s name why should he be bothered to read it?

A short word about failure

What do Catch-22, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, The Time Machine, Sons and Lovers, Moby Dick, The Lord of the Flies, Northanger Abbey, Tess of the D’Urbervilles and Animal Farm have in common? They were all rejected by publishers, often many times. Some famous writers have literally been able to paper their walls with rejection slips. The moral? Never give up, keep trying: every good book will find a home eventually.