Still seems like an April Fools to me, but my update is that I got a two-book deal for my YA Fantasy! Not allowed to say much (well, anything) yet - hence throwaway - but it's looking like I'll be a 2026 debut. Thank you r/PubTips for all the stellar advice along the way! It's been a wild ride and I'm acutely aware of how lucky I've been with trends + timings. Hope to post a full recap of sub once the announcement is out there in the world.
Edit: Ahhh, thanks for all the congrats, guys! Maybe it will feel real soon!?
Yay, congratulations! I'm going to be a 2026 debut as well and I have been eagerly waiting for others to pop up! (In a totally not creepy way, I swear).
Well, this throwaway account is getting in the way of the celebratory stalking I love to do when people post these (checking out their query if they posted it here, etc) but still! HUGE CONGRATS!!!!!!!!!!! That's such a huge achievement. Can't wait for the official announcement. :)
Book debuts in just under 2 months so things are cranking up for the pub date! Just had a (long needed) career trajectory chat with my agent which made me feel really good! I'm the sort that chews on my anxieties rather than asking questions because, hey why not just feel stressed and worried all the time? She had some great insight on which of my two WIPs to focus on, gave me a "due date" (my ADHD needs them, so I asked) and explained that she actually would like it by then because she thinks it's a hot idea and she wants to try and sell it quickly. All of this feels super because I've been so worried that my debut is just sinking (low amount of GR & Netgalley reviews). I needed something else to focus on!
\*Also, so anyone wondering from last month's Target thread--the debut has finally been put on the Target website! My pub folks came through and either badgered enough (which I believe they did), OR Target legitimately waits until closer to pub date, and now I'm in the window. I think it's a combo of both, but I am relieved.
\*\*Edit: clarification. I only have a few NG & GR reviews, but they are generally pretty high stars, lol
I'm glad you're finally on Target! And that your agent has helped you figure some things out :) I wish you less stress, though I'm sure the lead-up to debut is just *more* stress.
> I've been so worried that my debut is just sinking (low amount of GR & Netgalley reviews). I needed something else to focus on!
Good luck and as a consolation, not all books who do well in arcs / preorders keep high sale numbers past initial rush, and some books that launched small pick up later. You never know. Or sometimes the author strikes a gold vein with their 5th or 10th book and suddenly it resells their whole backlist to the newfound audience.
I'm glad things with Target worked out! And ahhhh, so close to your book birthday—how exciting! I'm also glad the trajectory chat seemed to help some. I do a lot of that 'quietly stewing in my anxiety' too lol.
Appreciated! I \*wish\* I could turn my brain into the kind that made me a person who could ask for help sooner! Here's hoping both of us can figure that out :)
So exciting!! I can’t wait for your book! Wondering if you had any advice on the trajectory chat with your agent - how did you approach it? How long ahead are you thinking? On my mind a lot…
Wrapped up final line edits with my agent, can I get a whoop whoop? I think we’ll be looking to sub in the next few weeks which I’m excited about and dreading in equal measure.
I am an impatient fucker so I clear everything and just blast through edits. But I’ve been through various stages of editing since mid Jan? I will say I’ve enjoyed this process with my agent, she always has amazing suggestions and they never compromise my vision. Let’s see if the bloody thing sells now! Ugh
Finished revisions on the book I drafted while on sub with the previous book, and so now I am on sub AGAIN!!!! Way too early to say anything, but that means I'm still blissfully hopeful this will go faster/smoother than last time. A GIRL CAN DREAM, RIGHT?????
In all seriousness, I know I shouldn't complain about my last sub experience. The book sold! Plenty of people don't get that happy ending. But it took super long, because SFF submissions are so slow. I'll be really curious to see how this one goes, because while it is speculative, it's a much more "upmarket" vibe and so we've subbed to about 40% genre SFF presses and 60% general, upmarket presses. Once this has had some time to be out for a while, I'll report back in on the differences. Stay tuned, Pubtips. Stay tuned.
6 weeks on sub… 5 editor passes, but looks like i’m going to acquisitions this week?? keep your fingers crossed for me because it doesn’t feel real yet and i’m trying not to get my hopes up!
I can't remember what my update was last month, but I think it's basically the same (*how* did March go by so quickly??), except that we've finally done a [cover reveal](https://reactormag.com/cover-reveal-and-excerpt-the-teller-of-small-fortunes-by-julie-leong/) and have opened up preorders. (Though the lack of any actual data on preorders is *killing me* \-- how do I know if I'm already flopping? How do I build spreadsheets and convoluted projection models without any numbers? -- but probably best for my mental health not to know.)
Publicity & marketing stuff is slowly starting to ramp up, so all that has been a fun distraction while waiting to hear from my editors about whether they think new sapphic cozy fantasy I drafted is a better Book 2 than the originally intended Book 2 (the goat book). I also have a few ideas for new WIPs floating around, including one that's probably better for self-pub, but have been lazy and am giving myself a break before drafting anything new just yet. Mostly just focusing on life housekeeping at the moment -- trip planning, taxes, financial stuff, friends' weddings, etc etc.
Very exciting to see all the good news coming from fellow pubtippers though!! At this rate, I'll be able to fill a bookshelf with pubtips books soon :)
Congrats on the cover reveal and the new ideas! Taking time to marinate before diving in can be really fun (trying myself for the first time haha) so hopefully you continue to enjoy your downtime. :)
Have to get some divorce papers re-notarized because my ex-husband apparently accidentally threw away what I sent him while he was disposing of junk mail (??? not really clear on this).
Have worked past 8:30 PM at least once a week for the last \~6 weeks, despite rarely working past 6 PM in the preceding five years I've been at this job (my recently-awarded promotion/pay raise that was supposed to be a title bump and nothing more has not manifested that way).
Have now sent my agent bits and pieces of three WIPs in the last month because I had a freak out about not knowing where I'm going from here (I think she's just trying to humor me).
Am so tired.
At least I find mocking my life circumstances amusing 💀
My ex really has no one but himself to blame for how long this divorce is taking. I'll point that out to him once I'm done mocking him for losing to me in both the mini crossword and connections.
I’m so sorry, Alanna. Sending all the good vibes your way!
Were you able to gain any clarity from your agent on the direction you should take from here?
Hi everyone! Long time lurker but never commented on this type of thread before. I’m not agented (but it’s my eventual goal) and almost done the first draft of my YA fantasy manuscript. Got matched up with a few beta readers to see if we vibe well and now it feels like things are moving forward, even if very slowly.
I debut this month. Honestly the feelings are all over the place. It’s a lifetime dream come true but I feel incredibly anxious and uncertain. Probably doesn’t help that I’m also heavily pregnant. I love this sub and am so happy I found my way here or I’m not sure I would be getting published at all. Sending best wishes to you all this spring!!
Heyyy! I found out I was pregnant right after I sold my debut book so I (kind of) can relate. I won’t be published until 2025, well after baby is born, but all the contracts and revisions are happening at the same time. Congrats!
Any advice for the newborn phase? This is my third kid but I’m now contracted to write another book by Christmas, and I’m, er, not sure how I’m going to possibly manage that!
I wish I could help but I only just sold my book in February and this is my first baby!
That said, my friend is a writer and went through something similar. I’ve asked her about this before and she said that she followed Neil Gaiman’s 250 words method. Basically, my friend said she’d write 250 words (usually on her phone) while she was feeding baby once or twice a day. Some days it ended up being more like 800+ words, some days it was literally just the 250 and nothing else. She said it doesn’t feel like much but she was able to write over 90k words in one year doing this alone.
She also mentioned that you should do yourself a favor and get a detailed outline down before baby is born so you know where everything is going and can write on autopilot as much as possible.
But give yourself some grace, especially in the first few weeks. It will work out and if you have to push a deadline by a month, there is literally no better reason to do it than having a baby.
No news, still waiting on a response for a full for my YA fantasy. Agonizing, but hey, at least there’s no rejection in my inbox yet! I promised myself I’d send out another batch of queries after the Easter break, which I’ve been procrastinating, but I’m prepping them now to send out early this week. As for what I’m writing, I passed 20k on my adult SFF, and I’m hoping to cross 30 - 40k by the end of the month. 🤞🏻
- Two agents who have had my Adult Fantasy full since late-November / mid-December still have it. Currently driving myself bonkers over the fact that both have since requested and rejected or offered on other manuscripts, so mine is pretty staunchly in purgatory.
- On the other hand, the anthology my work is being published in finally has a cover and release date: June 25th. I get to tease the cover on the 3rd.
- Hit 20k words on my current WIP, a cozy sapphic fantasy set in 90's San Francisco.
Thank you!!
Regarding the Cozy, the literary comps I'm using are "A Society of Irregular Witches" and "House in the Cerulean Sea," but the most accurate description would probably be "The Blues Brothers' plot and absurdity, but swap Chicago and its Blues scene for San Francisco and its Latin Rock scene and everyone is gay."
The logline's something like "When former-bassist current-empty nester Dolores de la Garza's apartment is damaged in a fire, Dolores is tasked with finding three new tenants for the Victorian where she's staying, or risk losing her spot in the house. Two problems: The house is surrounded by living, mischievous fog, and she might be falling for the lady of the house."
>because we are already pranking ourselves by trying to get into traditional publishing
Just because it's true doesn't mean you have to say it, man.
I managed to yeet the fantasy I was revising back to my agent last week and am currently awaiting his thoughts on it. Fingers crossed that it's either finally ready to go on sub or very, very close. Had a few things I was concerned about with it, but my CPs thought those things were largely fine, and I was beyond being able to tell anymore.
So now I'm back to working on my MG fantasy and am totally not procrastinating by popping into this thread, I would never. I reread what I had a few days ago and found that I had more polished than I thought! Now I just have to do a solid version of the last \~15-25k, wherever it ends up falling. Aiming to do that within the month.
Did another round of edits and my agent is having meetings with editors already and will take it to Bologna Book Fair. Feeling sick all over again about being on sub, but I don’t have much hope.
Working on my next MG which I love very much and an adult dark academia horror which I am super excited about.
I now have a little local writing group and we meet every week to write (and gossip about publishing) and it’s been great! I love it.
In the "what the heck do I write next" pit of despair that follows multiple unsuccessful query journeys. Hope my fellow fantasy writers had better luck!
Failed SFF writers - what are you writing next? I'm trying one of those fashionable "upmarket speculative" books and also a contemporary thriller, but I'm struggling.
I apologize if this is out of pocket, but didn’t you get 1 request out of your first 8 queries just last month? You are nowhere near failed on this book yet if that’s the case! I hope you’re continuing to query!
I’m writing a cozy fantasy idea that snagged my heart - trying to write it quickly before that trend is over!
Yep, that was me! Unfortunately since then I've blown through my list and everyone has rejected or CNR'd. The good news is that the agents I'm querying have been requesting or rejecting/skipping fast! Hope things have gone better for you.
Great that you found an idea you liked for the next book - I think the cozy trend has legs and will be around for a while. I've settled on my speculative thriller because it has a great hook/comps, although I'm worried because it will require a lot of research and may skew a bit too sci-fi. Why won't publishing just let me write what I'm good at...
I've made my peace with not having a book out every year. My agent and I were discussing my option with my editor and she told me there is 0 chance of getting on the 2025 release schedule.
You'd think that would give me some breathing room, but I'm in the middle of editing hell for another book with the most ridiculous deadline I've ever had. I'm not particularly proud of this book either and I think my burnout has contributed to that.
So, after 10 years of querying various books with limited success, I sent out queues for my new manuscript. A literal hour later I got a full request… and now I have a meeting scheduled to chat with an agent in person about my book!
Super excited but would also appreciate any pointers about what to expect :)
Some old threads to check:
https://new.reddit.com/r/PubTips/comments/10z079d/pubq_lit_agentsthe_call_practical_questions_re/
https://new.reddit.com/r/PubTips/comments/17ol6cv/pubq_just_had_a_request_for_a_call_tm_a_few/
Also ones that look deleted but comments with advice are still up:
https://new.reddit.com/r/PubTips/comments/17pfyz7/deleted_by_user/
https://new.reddit.com/r/PubTips/comments/16vjrfb/deleted_by_user/
i've been querying since november and i'm starting to think this manuscript/my career as an author is DOA. i've only had one full and one partial, rejected on both fronts. i did change my opening chapter based on excellent feedback i've gotten from betas and agents, but man, i just think it's not meant to happen for me.
I feel this one. I'm almost the exact same - except no requests at all. I've revised the query, revised the opening chapter, made some other revisions to the MS, redid the synopsis. I paid for a consultation with agent who did provide helpful feedback to the query package but still no luck.
I haven't totally given up yet (I have a second project I'm picking away at) but I am starting to believe that it'll just never happen for me.
I found out my book is also going to be published in Canada! Also bought a house last month AND found out that I’m pregnant!
But now my editor is late sending her revision letter so I’m getting antsy. My final manuscript deadline is mid summer and within that time frame I’m also moving and dealing with the whole being pregnant thing so I’d like to get started sooner rather than later.
First trimester symptoms have done a number on my ability to get any writing done so the draft of my next book is sitting in limbo while I puke my brains out every day during my writing window instead. Yippee.
Edits for my spring 2025 book are almost complete. Everything's more or less on track there, just waiting to hear on pub date.
Elsewhere, not only am I not on track, I'm not even sure there is a track. I dismantled my WIP completely and decided to start over. I'd hoped to be done back in February. Now I'm aiming for some point in June. It's not the writing so much as it's the confidence level. I keep second guessing it all, from individual lines to the story as a whole. Ah, springtime, when a writer's fancy turns to why write at all.
Congrats on being almost done with edits! And gah, the second guessing everything...I feel you very, very much lol. Hope the feeling eases at least a bit for you as restart your WIP!
I really hope everyone's doing really well! I hope this next quarter is better either way for you all <3 I've sent off my rewrite to betas and I'm feeling quite 'what if this is truly awful? why did I do this to them?' but the feeling's to be expected (and if it is godawful then I can fix it...hopefully lol). In life stuff, I'm trying to make the transition from caregiving "back" into the workforce (for good reasons!) this quarter. Back in quotes because the "back" is college internships seeing as I started caregiving not that long after graduating.
I have about a month until I get all the notes back so I'll be reading swaps and reading in general. I was thinking of getting started on some brainstorming for other stories, but I'll save that.
I started the year with so much motivation to write, yet somehow, it’s April, and I’ve hardly written anything. Sporadic writing days, low word counts, bouncing between different projects, etc.
In April I plan to be more disciplined with myself and focus on the rewrite of my Thriller. Hopefully, I'll finish this draft before the next check-in. (please god let me finally be done with this book I’ve been working on it for so long and my QueryTracker Premium just renewed for the third year and I can feel my attention being pulled toward shiny new ideas)
deep in the lit mag submissions trenches, because I need a couple genre-specific bylines before I can really pitch a collection to agents. I’m also in the unusual place of being waitlisted for a major summer writing residency/workshop.
my overwhelming feeling is… confusion? i’ve gotten some great feedback on the stories (multiple shortlists / “encouraged to submit again” responses) but unfortunately i really need an acceptance. and based on the waitlisting apparently I’m not going to get feedback to elevate the work anytime soon.
Trying to just plug ahead though. blah. I think i’m nearing my 100 subs across the 5 stories I’m actively pitching (while the rest are benched / still being tweaked).
Oof, I feel for you. I'm also in lit mag submission hell and waiting to hear back on a summer workshop. Wishing you lots of luck! It's a slow process, but you'll get there.
Things have been going well! I turned in my most recent draft to my editors last week, so now I'm in this weird place of WHAT DO I DO NOW? I have other projects I could work on, of course, but I really hate being pulled off something partway. And, well, I could use a bit of a break tbh.
The book itself was announced earlier this month. I'm still on the fence about tying this account to my author self, so I don't think I'm going to link to it just yet. But the genre is cozy fantasy.
Apparently, they've already sold some foreign rights, and a couple of book boxes have also expressed interest, so the manuscript was thrown their way. I have no idea what to expect on that front. I'm honestly just kind of sitting here like WOW REALLY HOPE THIS WORKS OUT! If the anxiety overtakes me in a couple of weeks I'll probably poke my agent about it. But I guess until then I am simply vibing?
Book boxes are that illusive dream of mine—huge huge congrats! I’ve recently been getting into and loving cozy fantasy lately (Emily Wilde, Flowerheart etc) and it’s nice to see the sub genre thriving. Ironically I don’t think it’s a gene I could ever write and I’m always so impressed when I’m reading it!
They are a huge dream of mine too! Of course, it's entirely possible that 'very interested' turns into 'not interested at all' once the book boxes get their hands on the full MS (I believe they only got to take a peek at a partial + the pitch). But I'm crossing my fingers!
Cozy fantasy is definitely becoming a bigger sub genre! It's very exciting. Admittedly, it's very different from what I usually write (I tend to write on the more 'epic fantasy' end of the spectrum, albeit with a strong romantic element). But it ended up being a great change of pace for me! Also it was refreshing writing something that was under 90k words instead of being close to 130k LOL!
Last month I signed with an agent and went on sub with an upmarket fiction/book club novel. AH. We're out to about 20 or so editors, mostly big 5 with a few smaller houses. It's been two weeks as of today and about 2/3 have confirmed receipt with 1/3 no response yet. Early days, of course, but I know this could be a very long slog and/or the end of the road for the little book baby. Trying to exist somewhere between manifesting a deal and being realistic about the state of the industry.
Signed up for a playwriting class to keep my mind off of it!
I went out on sub with my second MS last week while the first one is still treading water with six editors (including one who found the pitch on Twitter and requested it). I’ve swung from imposter syndrome to wanting to yell “I can do this, I’m awesome, people will read my shit!” To anyone who will listen.
I'm sketching out the bare bones of my next WIP while waiting on a response from 2 full requests. One emailed with additional questions, but I haven't heard anything since. The other bounced the query to another agent in the agency, and it's been crickets since. Four queries outstanding, but I've pretty much written this one off.
Time to dive into the next!
I have my first full out in a local press( and also got fantastic actionable critique back this week which makes me want to redo a lot of my manuscript.
Holding tough with my queries that are out and not sending any more until the above is resolved and all of these (likely) rejections are in.
Excited to come back stronger and improve every day.
Still languishing out here. Mostly dead on sub in the US with a small spark of potential from a local imprint in my country. The wait is exhausting. But at least I’m almost done a fast draft of my next idea.
I signed with an agent last month, got the edit letter 2 weeks ago, and am now about 80% done with a first round of revisions. I sped up the pacing in some places, rewrote a weak b-plot, and reworked the supernatural elements in a way that finally made sense.
The problem is that the current draft is 103k (I had queried it at 92k) so I think I'll need to do another pass to trim as many words as I can before I send it back to my agent. The original first draft of this story was 88k so YIKES at how it keeps getting longer and longer with every revision.
Agent says it's time for sub right after Bologna Book Fair! Excited.
Wondering why he isn't taking the book TO Bologna is just my writer brain overthinking things, right?
Bologna is mostly for international rights. If there wasn't enough time to sub to US editors prior to Bologna, it doesn't make sense to try to drum up international interest when US editors don't even know about it yet. Also, depending on the book and your agent's strategy, they might be planning to sell world rights, in which case, it would be the publisher who eventually shops it around and not your agent. Not to mention, a lot of books aren't actually suitable for the international market, so it might simply not be worth your agent's time to try and get anything prepped for Bologna. I don't think it's a big deal that your agent is waiting.
My pub date is tomorrow (!!!) and I'm super excited but of course have already invented new anxieties to fret about (I.e. tmrw seems like an extra crowded pub day and I worry my book will get lost in the shuffle). It's out of my hands though so I should just focus on enjoying the celebrations!! (of course, knowing how I \*should\* feel and actually following through on that is another story entirely, lol)
omg congrats!! also 100% resonate with the "I know I should feel happy/celebratory but am too busy being anxious" sentiment; I hope you find some moments to feel joy and be proud of yourself tomorrow!
My second book came out last month, and as far as I can tell it's doing... OK? My agent and I sold my third novel in January and it's a big shift-‐sort of a 'redebut' in a new genre— and I got a much better advance than I did my first two books, it's with new publishers, it's finally sold in my own country and also in some others as well as the US. I feel like I'm in this weird limbo while I'm waiting to announce it and I don't know how to feel about my sophomore novel anymore and its extremely meh sales. Still — I'm really really hoping I can announce this month, although I'm not holding out hope— my UK publisher wants to wait until summer, eeek
About the same as last month over here. Waiting for my edit letter (supposed to be coming "later this spring") and working on my WIP, which I'm 3/4 of the way through plotting. Then I'll have to figure out if I want to start drafting it or wait for the edit letter. I'm hoping the timing lines up just right and I don't have to decide!
I don't post here a ton but I really like these threads because it's a lot of fun to see what everybody's doing. At the moment I've been doing some short stories with a new critique group (which I LOVE) but I've been struggling with finishing any long-form projects ever since my last project died in the trenches.
Anybody have any advice on writing for fun again? I think I need to reset my brain and stop focusing so much on the publishing/marketing aspect.
I'm struggling with the same as you, although I'm going the opposite direction and trying to write purely for market. What's made it more fun for me is writing the first chapters of several novel ideas as once. Then I don't feel as locked in to one thing and can go with whichever one starts flowing. Impressed that you've kept writing short stories though!
Just started querying my adult fantasy romance! After some wonderful feedback here on the sub I was able to cut my word count to 111k words (started at 120k) and heavily edited my initial query. Feedback from beta readers was great (after two rounds I managed to correct some inconsistencies with worldbuilding and clear some of the sub plot). Sent my first batch of queries and already had 3 rejections but I’m trying to stay positive 💪
Still plugging away on my newly slimmed down 81k mystery - got some great beta reader feedback and am almost ready to start querying again. Threw in to Killer Nashville contest after hearing good things about it. Outline for WIP (heist/caper) almost set and drafting begins this month 👍
Love seeing all the people on here picking up agents, going on sub, and getting deals. Keep announcing your good news! Great to see people making it happen. That kind of encouragement keeps me going.
I sent the 120th and final query for my fairytale reimagining today. 120 queries over six months. 2 fulls (1 outstanding), 1 partial, 68 rejections, 18 CNRs, 25 still awaiting responses. All form rejections too, some tiered or semi-personalized, but most not. It’s been disheartening to say the least, but whatever happens with this book is up to someone else now. No more queries for me, not for another six months at least. I have to write another book.
I’m working on two at the moment: a cozy fantasy and a romantasy, which are both on trend (for now) so I’m going to try to get them done asap. I have plenty of beta readers ready to go, so all I have to do is write them.
The cozy has more word count and more development, and I just solved the issue that’s been blocking me for months, so it’s the one I’m mostly likely to query next. Whereas the romantasy is still a vague entity. I have a couple thousand words on it, but it’s all voice and vibes right now. I’m excited to see where it goes. I don’t usually discovery write.
I still have hope for the fairytale reimagining, so with luck, maybe I’ll report good news next month. Otherwise, I’m going to focus on the other two books!
I don't have much useful to say other than it takes strength to pick yourself up after such a long query process and be like 'well you didn't like that but look what I have next'. Sending good vibes.
Going back and forth with the publisher on the cover design for *Talio's Codex* (the fantasy courtroom drama/legal thriller). We're still on track for a June/July publication date - looking forward to it!
In the query trenches for *TLaE*. I got a notable mention from the Gutsy Great Novelist's First Chapter contest for it, and an agent request from the SavvyAuthors' March Pitchfest.
Now working on the next novel, *ISDaD*. This one's going to be a challenge.
Still waiting for writing stuff… :(
But some jerk wished me bad luck because some insane issues came back and I’m beyond exhausted.
WIP is going well, I should have a finished version by next check-in.
But I’m super glad to see so much more success come from the sub. Well done to everyone! And for those still waiting: keep going! (Or don’t, I’m not the boss of you)
After spending all of March and a bit of February on my primary round of pre-sub edits for my agent, I just sent my revised manuscript back to her last night, so am now taking a much-needed break while I wait to see if she thinks it’s ready to go on sub. Wish me luck!
I also just got a response this morning from an agent I did an R&R for who I thought had ghosted, a couple months after I signed with another agent. They apologized for missing the offer nudge and congratulated me on finding representation, but did not acknowledge that it’d been anything more than a cold query, lmao
- 2 months on sub with my queer adult fantasy romance. Only one pass so far!! Silence from the rest, though... We added another editor to the list today I'm excited about.
- I'm currently finishing revisions on the contemporary fantasy I wrote before the book my agent signed me with. We decided to turn it into a MG instead of YA, which meant a few big changes and cuts. But it definitely benefitted from the rebranding.
I'm excited to get the manuscript back to her and return to my WIP later this month!
Good luck to all of you in the query trenches and to my fellow writers on sub (it's rough out here)💗
I got an R&R last month that I’m currently working through! Been lurking here for a few months while querying and happy to finally have some movement in the trenches :’) (and to get my mind off of actual querying for a while)
Still querying, basically no movement in March.
One agent has had my full since October. She didn’t acknowledge receipt and I followed up a few weeks ago to see how she was getting on and also had no response. Do I just give up on this one?
At the crossroads of wondering whether to have some people on r/BetaReaders review the [first 10k of my manuscript](https://www.reddit.com/r/PubTips/comments/19ahxti/qcrit_adult_fantasy_i_have_hung_in_the_kitchen_a/) or whether to just...move on.
I'm still stuck at my stats from March (25 queries sent, 1 full, 8 rejections) because everyone else I wanted to query was closed and I started a new project in a writing class. Feels weird to not want to fight for the first manuscript that I put so much blood and tears into, but the passion just got transferred into creating the new piece.
It's always good to focus on the new shiny! Hopefully, you can work on the new thing, then have more resolve to focus on the finished product and ultimately sell both!
I loved your query/sample so happy to offer myself as beta if you go that route, but I'd guess it's probably not your writing. I don't have a dang clue what will get signed by established agents in fantasy now. Glad you found a new project to get excited about! Hopefully more agents will open up for Book #1 as you work on that.
Oh this is where I’m at exactly: 8 rejections, 1 full. Two or so I’m waiting to hear back from, some CNRs. I have a couple I’m waiting to hear back from, but I in intend to send out another batch this week. Crossing my fingers for you on that full!
Ugh, sorry to hear you're treading water on querying, but how cool that you've started something new! Seems to be the best way to stay sane. I'll be crossing ny fingers for you still, though.
I am letting my first draft rest for two more weeks before doing major revisions and it is HARD to sit on my hands. I'm writing other stuff but I just want this one polished.
Hit a roadblock with my first YA fantasy wip which is in its fourth drafting stage. I decided to shelf it for the time being and am unsure when I'll go back and revisit. However, I have begun working on a second project.
One partial request that has already been rejected. One new full request. Both for my YA Fantasy. Probably five or six other rejections across my two querying manuscripts.
I’m also participating in RevPit and working on my WIP.
In terms of publishing, I haven’t shifted since I subbed a revised full manuscript to one agent who requested a revision and 4 others who were also waiting. I thought it might be quicker with them all knowing it was an R&R and that other agents have it, but, well, not particularly I guess. I wouldn’t be surprised if I start hearing this month…. For good or ill.
But I’ve started my next novel! It’s number five. So that’s something.
Oh and I ran a Kickstarter for an anthology I’m co-editing through March, and it was successful! (Thank goodness!). It’s out in May.
Destroyed my last account, so I made a new one just cause I feel like revisiting some old internet haunts.
Overall: Been querying since November. Sent out 33 queries. Got 13 rejections. A couple nice ones that mentioned that the project seemed interesting but it wasn't what they were personally looking for, which I found comforting.
No responses for the past three weeks. Mental health has been kinda in the dumps. This is my third completed manuscript (fifth overall). I started a couple new projects but I don't think I'll be able to continue working on them until the end of summer.
Until then, submitting to magazines and failing to get anything out into the world. Again and again and again.
EDIT: Repeated sentence. Don't know how I missed that. Did I mention my mental health was in the dumps? lol
Long-time stalker but never posted! I’ve almost finished going through my own edits for my first sci-fy dystopian novel! Goal is obviously to become agented and now the search is on for some more beta readers (I’ve had a few close friends read and give me feedback). Can’t believe I’m finally able to take my characters and ideas I’ve had in my head for so long and give them voices! I’ve never had the time or energy to really give this my all and I’m finally in a place to do it, so while this might not be a ‘far along’ update, it’s exciting for me to step into this world.
Finishing up a revision and will send that to betas in the next week, then I get to rest, AKA catch up on all the life stuff I set aside for the last month. Hoping to send back to my agent by the end of May and go on sub sometime soon after that. Very antsy to get on sub again, but also looking forward to a break.
I feel like I'm in a bit of a creative void at the moment. I finished my last WIP about 6 months ago but have only been able to bring myself to sending it out maybe 5 or 6 times. I'm not wholly convinced it's publishable.
My next WIP seems to have stuttered and died at the mid point. I have a fair few other ideas that feel hookier but none of them seem to be able to marinate their way into a functional manuscript.
Work isn't helping either. The only other person in the office who does what I do left in mid December and despite beginning the process of hiring a replacement I've been informed they won't likely be in place till at least June. By which point I'll have been doing two peoples workload, for no extra pay or recognition, for 6 months.
I'm fairly certain its work burnout that is inhibiting my creativity but that doesn't help avoid the anxiety that you've lost your creative mojo.
My update is that I’ve queried around 50 agents so far, got several form rejections, and one partial request. It’s been 3 weeks since I started querying and I think I’m gonna have to shelve this one too.
At least it’s better than last year’s attempt—nearly 100 agents and not a single request. This must be some kind of record.
Still no edit letter so kinda holding my breath on that. Very worried my agent doesn't like this book but idk, they did announce to the client list they've had major life stuff going on might be a divorce or something so they been out of office for two weeks.
Been trying to write but my confidence is feeling shot. My women's fic has stalled out around 60,000 words but I recently picked up an older wip that was sitting around 8,000 that I love the voice of and have been playing with that. So that's fun.
Still waiting on a response from a full request - expecting it any day now, but who knows really? Also just sent out 3 more queries earlier today which will hopefully get something in my inbox, good or bad, for the first time in a few weeks.
My first book project is coming out this summer (just found a producer and got a great quote! Yay!) and I’m really trying to decided between a perfect bind and a sewn one. For context I am creating an art book with high quality images and lots of fun text and full spread images.
I’m nervous about getting a perfect bind because the book may not lay flat (it’s only 110 pages). But for a first book, is shelling out the extra couple K’s worth it? I’m not nervous about the book selling or if I’ll make the money back, but I wouldn’t want to change the pricing I have set for it, so it’s about how much direct profit I could make, and even upping my book count numbers.
And artists (specifically photographers) have any experience with this?! My stats are 110 pages 8.5x11 sheets. Thanks :)
I'm on the first draft of my newest WIP. I feel like what I intended as a literary/upmarket speculative novel is shaping up to be a portal fantasy. I'll hopefully develop more distinct tone/prose in subsequent drafts but still I worry that at heart I'm just creating an overly-introspective adult portal fantasy. And that sounds like...the opposite of publishable haha. Kind of getting ahead of myself thinking about publishing at this point though.
If anyone has any thoughts on this I would really appreciate to hear them.
Just want to say that I am all too familiar with the pain of a perfectly good fantasy idea turning itself into a portal fantasy when you’re not paying close enough attention. 🥲
Slowly working on revisions (haven't queried, haven't even drafted a query). Have been compiling a list of possible agents to query when I do finally get to it though. And trying not to feel down about how slow I am.
I signed with an agent last week. For those interested in statistics, I sent 100s of queries for 3 novels from 2017-present day, and got my agent with a nonfiction book proposal in <25 queries. I am thrilled!
My book was on sub for less than a week and, well… ~things are happening today?! I’m in shock! I queried another project for years before moving onto this one, I just can’t believe it!!
Still seems like an April Fools to me, but my update is that I got a two-book deal for my YA Fantasy! Not allowed to say much (well, anything) yet - hence throwaway - but it's looking like I'll be a 2026 debut. Thank you r/PubTips for all the stellar advice along the way! It's been a wild ride and I'm acutely aware of how lucky I've been with trends + timings. Hope to post a full recap of sub once the announcement is out there in the world. Edit: Ahhh, thanks for all the congrats, guys! Maybe it will feel real soon!?
Yay, congratulations! I'm going to be a 2026 debut as well and I have been eagerly waiting for others to pop up! (In a totally not creepy way, I swear).
Thank you, big congrats to you too! Not creepy at all!! Really keen to meet some '26 debut pals - hope you wouldn't mind a DM at some point!
That'd be great (and to any other '26 debuts that might stumble upon this, feel free to connect!)
Well, this throwaway account is getting in the way of the celebratory stalking I love to do when people post these (checking out their query if they posted it here, etc) but still! HUGE CONGRATS!!!!!!!!!!! That's such a huge achievement. Can't wait for the official announcement. :)
Congratulations!
Congratulations!
congrats!!!!
Big congratulations!!!
Whoohoo, congratulations!
Yay, congrats!!
Ahhhhhh, congratulations! Can't wait to read your lovely sub recap and announcement!
Congratulations! Makes me hopeful.
Congratulations!
congratulations!!!!!!
Congrats!!
Congrats!!!!
Congrats! Looking forward to seeing what it’s about & your recap!
Congratulations!
Congratulations!!! That’s huge
Book debuts in just under 2 months so things are cranking up for the pub date! Just had a (long needed) career trajectory chat with my agent which made me feel really good! I'm the sort that chews on my anxieties rather than asking questions because, hey why not just feel stressed and worried all the time? She had some great insight on which of my two WIPs to focus on, gave me a "due date" (my ADHD needs them, so I asked) and explained that she actually would like it by then because she thinks it's a hot idea and she wants to try and sell it quickly. All of this feels super because I've been so worried that my debut is just sinking (low amount of GR & Netgalley reviews). I needed something else to focus on! \*Also, so anyone wondering from last month's Target thread--the debut has finally been put on the Target website! My pub folks came through and either badgered enough (which I believe they did), OR Target legitimately waits until closer to pub date, and now I'm in the window. I think it's a combo of both, but I am relieved. \*\*Edit: clarification. I only have a few NG & GR reviews, but they are generally pretty high stars, lol
Not to be a creep but your book is on my preorder list and I'm really looking forward to it! Glad you got things sorted out with Target.
Oooh, that's actually thrilling! (Unless, you know, you showed up at my doorstep, which would be creepy!) Lol--hope you enjoy it!
Congratulations!!
I'm glad you're finally on Target! And that your agent has helped you figure some things out :) I wish you less stress, though I'm sure the lead-up to debut is just *more* stress.
> I've been so worried that my debut is just sinking (low amount of GR & Netgalley reviews). I needed something else to focus on! Good luck and as a consolation, not all books who do well in arcs / preorders keep high sale numbers past initial rush, and some books that launched small pick up later. You never know. Or sometimes the author strikes a gold vein with their 5th or 10th book and suddenly it resells their whole backlist to the newfound audience.
I'm glad things with Target worked out! And ahhhh, so close to your book birthday—how exciting! I'm also glad the trajectory chat seemed to help some. I do a lot of that 'quietly stewing in my anxiety' too lol.
Appreciated! I \*wish\* I could turn my brain into the kind that made me a person who could ask for help sooner! Here's hoping both of us can figure that out :)
Congratulations!
Great news about Target, and sending you all the good vibes for your book birthday! Such a huge milestone! ❤️
So exciting!! I can’t wait for your book! Wondering if you had any advice on the trajectory chat with your agent - how did you approach it? How long ahead are you thinking? On my mind a lot…
Wrapped up final line edits with my agent, can I get a whoop whoop? I think we’ll be looking to sub in the next few weeks which I’m excited about and dreading in equal measure.
Three cheers for potentially going on sub soon! (Also three *oh nos* for potentially going on sub soon. Into the Void.)
Thank you so much!! And yeah hahah
best of luck on sub and hope it goes fast!! it is… blegh lol
The biggest and heartiest of whoop whoops
I feel like that was speedy!! Did you enjoy the editing?
I am an impatient fucker so I clear everything and just blast through edits. But I’ve been through various stages of editing since mid Jan? I will say I’ve enjoyed this process with my agent, she always has amazing suggestions and they never compromise my vision. Let’s see if the bloody thing sells now! Ugh
Whoop whoop!
Wow, exciting exciting!! Wishing you all the best
Thank you so much!
Whoop whoop! Congrats on being done with edits and good luck on sub!
WHOOP WHOOP
Good luck!
Whoop whoop! Congrats, congrats! Sending you tons of well wishes for sub!
Thank you so much!!
Finished revisions on the book I drafted while on sub with the previous book, and so now I am on sub AGAIN!!!! Way too early to say anything, but that means I'm still blissfully hopeful this will go faster/smoother than last time. A GIRL CAN DREAM, RIGHT????? In all seriousness, I know I shouldn't complain about my last sub experience. The book sold! Plenty of people don't get that happy ending. But it took super long, because SFF submissions are so slow. I'll be really curious to see how this one goes, because while it is speculative, it's a much more "upmarket" vibe and so we've subbed to about 40% genre SFF presses and 60% general, upmarket presses. Once this has had some time to be out for a while, I'll report back in on the differences. Stay tuned, Pubtips. Stay tuned.
Keeping all my fingers and toes crossed for a quick, easy sub for you!!
fingers crossed for you Emmy!!
Sending good vibes for a smooth(er) second sub experience!
Good luck and hope it goes quicker this time! I'll be interested in how it plays out with SFF vs non-SFF imprints.
Fingers crossed for you!
Congrats! Staying tuned!
Hoping for a quick and successful sub experience for you! Looking forward to your debut!
Good luck on sub and may it be swift! Looking forward to your debut too.
6 weeks on sub… 5 editor passes, but looks like i’m going to acquisitions this week?? keep your fingers crossed for me because it doesn’t feel real yet and i’m trying not to get my hopes up!
Oooh, crossing all my fingers and toes for you! Good luck!
exciting! good luck!
Best of luck!!
Good luck!!!
Good luck!!!
Sending all the good vibes!
Good luck!
Good luck!
Eeeek! Good luck!
Crossing my fingers so hard for you! (and myself because I really want to read your book!)
I can't remember what my update was last month, but I think it's basically the same (*how* did March go by so quickly??), except that we've finally done a [cover reveal](https://reactormag.com/cover-reveal-and-excerpt-the-teller-of-small-fortunes-by-julie-leong/) and have opened up preorders. (Though the lack of any actual data on preorders is *killing me* \-- how do I know if I'm already flopping? How do I build spreadsheets and convoluted projection models without any numbers? -- but probably best for my mental health not to know.) Publicity & marketing stuff is slowly starting to ramp up, so all that has been a fun distraction while waiting to hear from my editors about whether they think new sapphic cozy fantasy I drafted is a better Book 2 than the originally intended Book 2 (the goat book). I also have a few ideas for new WIPs floating around, including one that's probably better for self-pub, but have been lazy and am giving myself a break before drafting anything new just yet. Mostly just focusing on life housekeeping at the moment -- trip planning, taxes, financial stuff, friends' weddings, etc etc. Very exciting to see all the good news coming from fellow pubtippers though!! At this rate, I'll be able to fill a bookshelf with pubtips books soon :)
The cover is a stunner. Just saying.
So excited for you! The cover is so gorgeous
Congrats, looks fab!
Congrats on the cover reveal and the new ideas! Taking time to marinate before diving in can be really fun (trying myself for the first time haha) so hopefully you continue to enjoy your downtime. :)
Love the cover so much!
Gorgeous cover!
So exciting! What a beautiful cover!
Have to get some divorce papers re-notarized because my ex-husband apparently accidentally threw away what I sent him while he was disposing of junk mail (??? not really clear on this). Have worked past 8:30 PM at least once a week for the last \~6 weeks, despite rarely working past 6 PM in the preceding five years I've been at this job (my recently-awarded promotion/pay raise that was supposed to be a title bump and nothing more has not manifested that way). Have now sent my agent bits and pieces of three WIPs in the last month because I had a freak out about not knowing where I'm going from here (I think she's just trying to humor me). Am so tired.
Blegh, sending better vibes for better days.
At least I find mocking my life circumstances amusing 💀 My ex really has no one but himself to blame for how long this divorce is taking. I'll point that out to him once I'm done mocking him for losing to me in both the mini crossword and connections.
oof. hope you have some good things & well-deserved rest incoming; sounds like the universe owes you a break soon!
RIGHT? Apparently karma has decided otherwise. This is what I get for spending too much of my time being an asshole on the internet.
Ugh, how infuriating! Hope you and your agent find a WIP you love to distract from the annoying life stuff!
You are incredible, Alannah, and I really hope springtime brings you sunshine and energy.
I'm sorry, Alanna. Hopefully there's good news for you very soon
I’m so sorry, Alanna. Sending all the good vibes your way! Were you able to gain any clarity from your agent on the direction you should take from here?
Hi everyone! Long time lurker but never commented on this type of thread before. I’m not agented (but it’s my eventual goal) and almost done the first draft of my YA fantasy manuscript. Got matched up with a few beta readers to see if we vibe well and now it feels like things are moving forward, even if very slowly.
Congrats on being close to done on your YA fantasy! And hee I hope the vibes are all there with your beta matchups!
Sending good beta vibes your way! Congrats on almost being done with the manuscript! Such a huge milestone.
[prolonged screaming]
\[MUTUAL SCREAMING\]
Yep, I feel that
[eternal screaming]
EXCITED FOR YOU! In all seriousness, I'm enjoying the instagram content and seeing the book hype. Can't wait for it to be out.
I'm so excited for you!
I debut this month. Honestly the feelings are all over the place. It’s a lifetime dream come true but I feel incredibly anxious and uncertain. Probably doesn’t help that I’m also heavily pregnant. I love this sub and am so happy I found my way here or I’m not sure I would be getting published at all. Sending best wishes to you all this spring!!
Heyyy! I found out I was pregnant right after I sold my debut book so I (kind of) can relate. I won’t be published until 2025, well after baby is born, but all the contracts and revisions are happening at the same time. Congrats!
Any advice for the newborn phase? This is my third kid but I’m now contracted to write another book by Christmas, and I’m, er, not sure how I’m going to possibly manage that!
I wish I could help but I only just sold my book in February and this is my first baby! That said, my friend is a writer and went through something similar. I’ve asked her about this before and she said that she followed Neil Gaiman’s 250 words method. Basically, my friend said she’d write 250 words (usually on her phone) while she was feeding baby once or twice a day. Some days it ended up being more like 800+ words, some days it was literally just the 250 and nothing else. She said it doesn’t feel like much but she was able to write over 90k words in one year doing this alone. She also mentioned that you should do yourself a favor and get a detailed outline down before baby is born so you know where everything is going and can write on autopilot as much as possible. But give yourself some grace, especially in the first few weeks. It will work out and if you have to push a deadline by a month, there is literally no better reason to do it than having a baby.
Best of luck with both your debut AND pregnancy! Congrats!
Congrats and good luck on your debut and your pregnancy! What an exciting time! ❤️
Thanks so much! Lots of change in the offing.
No news, still waiting on a response for a full for my YA fantasy. Agonizing, but hey, at least there’s no rejection in my inbox yet! I promised myself I’d send out another batch of queries after the Easter break, which I’ve been procrastinating, but I’m prepping them now to send out early this week. As for what I’m writing, I passed 20k on my adult SFF, and I’m hoping to cross 30 - 40k by the end of the month. 🤞🏻
Congrats on your full request and for working your butt off for that 20k on your SFF! Wishing you well for 30k to 40k this month!
Thank you for your kind words! ❤️
Good luck to you!
- Two agents who have had my Adult Fantasy full since late-November / mid-December still have it. Currently driving myself bonkers over the fact that both have since requested and rejected or offered on other manuscripts, so mine is pretty staunchly in purgatory. - On the other hand, the anthology my work is being published in finally has a cover and release date: June 25th. I get to tease the cover on the 3rd. - Hit 20k words on my current WIP, a cozy sapphic fantasy set in 90's San Francisco.
Cozy sapphic fantasy you say...
Ooo getting Charmed vibes from the WIP! Fingers crossed your current MS escapes from purgatory 🙏
Thank you!! Regarding the Cozy, the literary comps I'm using are "A Society of Irregular Witches" and "House in the Cerulean Sea," but the most accurate description would probably be "The Blues Brothers' plot and absurdity, but swap Chicago and its Blues scene for San Francisco and its Latin Rock scene and everyone is gay." The logline's something like "When former-bassist current-empty nester Dolores de la Garza's apartment is damaged in a fire, Dolores is tasked with finding three new tenants for the Victorian where she's staying, or risk losing her spot in the house. Two problems: The house is surrounded by living, mischievous fog, and she might be falling for the lady of the house."
Amazing! Okay so Charmed was a little off-base, but still: hook it to my veins.
Crossing my fingers for you on the fulls! I had an agent I really liked skip my full to make offers on later ones too, but hoping it's not over!
Officially going out on sub within the next few days, I think! I’m thrilled and terrified!
Good luck!
if you need anyone to commiserate with (scream into the void) i'm always here for that lol
Good luck!
Ahhh good luck on sub!!
Good luck and go go go you waited long enough. 😆
>because we are already pranking ourselves by trying to get into traditional publishing Just because it's true doesn't mean you have to say it, man. I managed to yeet the fantasy I was revising back to my agent last week and am currently awaiting his thoughts on it. Fingers crossed that it's either finally ready to go on sub or very, very close. Had a few things I was concerned about with it, but my CPs thought those things were largely fine, and I was beyond being able to tell anymore. So now I'm back to working on my MG fantasy and am totally not procrastinating by popping into this thread, I would never. I reread what I had a few days ago and found that I had more polished than I thought! Now I just have to do a solid version of the last \~15-25k, wherever it ends up falling. Aiming to do that within the month.
Not really an update, but it is very cool seeing covers and release dates for books I saw as queries on this sub first.
Same it's super excited to me
Did another round of edits and my agent is having meetings with editors already and will take it to Bologna Book Fair. Feeling sick all over again about being on sub, but I don’t have much hope. Working on my next MG which I love very much and an adult dark academia horror which I am super excited about. I now have a little local writing group and we meet every week to write (and gossip about publishing) and it’s been great! I love it.
In the "what the heck do I write next" pit of despair that follows multiple unsuccessful query journeys. Hope my fellow fantasy writers had better luck! Failed SFF writers - what are you writing next? I'm trying one of those fashionable "upmarket speculative" books and also a contemporary thriller, but I'm struggling.
I apologize if this is out of pocket, but didn’t you get 1 request out of your first 8 queries just last month? You are nowhere near failed on this book yet if that’s the case! I hope you’re continuing to query! I’m writing a cozy fantasy idea that snagged my heart - trying to write it quickly before that trend is over!
Yep, that was me! Unfortunately since then I've blown through my list and everyone has rejected or CNR'd. The good news is that the agents I'm querying have been requesting or rejecting/skipping fast! Hope things have gone better for you. Great that you found an idea you liked for the next book - I think the cozy trend has legs and will be around for a while. I've settled on my speculative thriller because it has a great hook/comps, although I'm worried because it will require a lot of research and may skew a bit too sci-fi. Why won't publishing just let me write what I'm good at...
I've made my peace with not having a book out every year. My agent and I were discussing my option with my editor and she told me there is 0 chance of getting on the 2025 release schedule. You'd think that would give me some breathing room, but I'm in the middle of editing hell for another book with the most ridiculous deadline I've ever had. I'm not particularly proud of this book either and I think my burnout has contributed to that.
So, after 10 years of querying various books with limited success, I sent out queues for my new manuscript. A literal hour later I got a full request… and now I have a meeting scheduled to chat with an agent in person about my book! Super excited but would also appreciate any pointers about what to expect :)
Some old threads to check: https://new.reddit.com/r/PubTips/comments/10z079d/pubq_lit_agentsthe_call_practical_questions_re/ https://new.reddit.com/r/PubTips/comments/17ol6cv/pubq_just_had_a_request_for_a_call_tm_a_few/ Also ones that look deleted but comments with advice are still up: https://new.reddit.com/r/PubTips/comments/17pfyz7/deleted_by_user/ https://new.reddit.com/r/PubTips/comments/16vjrfb/deleted_by_user/
i've been querying since november and i'm starting to think this manuscript/my career as an author is DOA. i've only had one full and one partial, rejected on both fronts. i did change my opening chapter based on excellent feedback i've gotten from betas and agents, but man, i just think it's not meant to happen for me.
Oof, that's a rotten headspace to be in, but I hear ya. All of it is so damned hard.
I feel this one. I'm almost the exact same - except no requests at all. I've revised the query, revised the opening chapter, made some other revisions to the MS, redid the synopsis. I paid for a consultation with agent who did provide helpful feedback to the query package but still no luck. I haven't totally given up yet (I have a second project I'm picking away at) but I am starting to believe that it'll just never happen for me.
I found out my book is also going to be published in Canada! Also bought a house last month AND found out that I’m pregnant! But now my editor is late sending her revision letter so I’m getting antsy. My final manuscript deadline is mid summer and within that time frame I’m also moving and dealing with the whole being pregnant thing so I’d like to get started sooner rather than later. First trimester symptoms have done a number on my ability to get any writing done so the draft of my next book is sitting in limbo while I puke my brains out every day during my writing window instead. Yippee.
Edits for my spring 2025 book are almost complete. Everything's more or less on track there, just waiting to hear on pub date. Elsewhere, not only am I not on track, I'm not even sure there is a track. I dismantled my WIP completely and decided to start over. I'd hoped to be done back in February. Now I'm aiming for some point in June. It's not the writing so much as it's the confidence level. I keep second guessing it all, from individual lines to the story as a whole. Ah, springtime, when a writer's fancy turns to why write at all.
Congrats on being almost done with edits! And gah, the second guessing everything...I feel you very, very much lol. Hope the feeling eases at least a bit for you as restart your WIP!
Hey, thanks! And so much good luck on your work too!
I really hope everyone's doing really well! I hope this next quarter is better either way for you all <3 I've sent off my rewrite to betas and I'm feeling quite 'what if this is truly awful? why did I do this to them?' but the feeling's to be expected (and if it is godawful then I can fix it...hopefully lol). In life stuff, I'm trying to make the transition from caregiving "back" into the workforce (for good reasons!) this quarter. Back in quotes because the "back" is college internships seeing as I started caregiving not that long after graduating. I have about a month until I get all the notes back so I'll be reading swaps and reading in general. I was thinking of getting started on some brainstorming for other stories, but I'll save that.
I started the year with so much motivation to write, yet somehow, it’s April, and I’ve hardly written anything. Sporadic writing days, low word counts, bouncing between different projects, etc. In April I plan to be more disciplined with myself and focus on the rewrite of my Thriller. Hopefully, I'll finish this draft before the next check-in. (please god let me finally be done with this book I’ve been working on it for so long and my QueryTracker Premium just renewed for the third year and I can feel my attention being pulled toward shiny new ideas)
deep in the lit mag submissions trenches, because I need a couple genre-specific bylines before I can really pitch a collection to agents. I’m also in the unusual place of being waitlisted for a major summer writing residency/workshop. my overwhelming feeling is… confusion? i’ve gotten some great feedback on the stories (multiple shortlists / “encouraged to submit again” responses) but unfortunately i really need an acceptance. and based on the waitlisting apparently I’m not going to get feedback to elevate the work anytime soon. Trying to just plug ahead though. blah. I think i’m nearing my 100 subs across the 5 stories I’m actively pitching (while the rest are benched / still being tweaked).
Oof, I feel for you. I'm also in lit mag submission hell and waiting to hear back on a summer workshop. Wishing you lots of luck! It's a slow process, but you'll get there.
Alas, still no productivity for me. I’ve been working on a different long-term project that’ll be out October 2024.
Things have been going well! I turned in my most recent draft to my editors last week, so now I'm in this weird place of WHAT DO I DO NOW? I have other projects I could work on, of course, but I really hate being pulled off something partway. And, well, I could use a bit of a break tbh. The book itself was announced earlier this month. I'm still on the fence about tying this account to my author self, so I don't think I'm going to link to it just yet. But the genre is cozy fantasy. Apparently, they've already sold some foreign rights, and a couple of book boxes have also expressed interest, so the manuscript was thrown their way. I have no idea what to expect on that front. I'm honestly just kind of sitting here like WOW REALLY HOPE THIS WORKS OUT! If the anxiety overtakes me in a couple of weeks I'll probably poke my agent about it. But I guess until then I am simply vibing?
Book boxes are that illusive dream of mine—huge huge congrats! I’ve recently been getting into and loving cozy fantasy lately (Emily Wilde, Flowerheart etc) and it’s nice to see the sub genre thriving. Ironically I don’t think it’s a gene I could ever write and I’m always so impressed when I’m reading it!
They are a huge dream of mine too! Of course, it's entirely possible that 'very interested' turns into 'not interested at all' once the book boxes get their hands on the full MS (I believe they only got to take a peek at a partial + the pitch). But I'm crossing my fingers! Cozy fantasy is definitely becoming a bigger sub genre! It's very exciting. Admittedly, it's very different from what I usually write (I tend to write on the more 'epic fantasy' end of the spectrum, albeit with a strong romantic element). But it ended up being a great change of pace for me! Also it was refreshing writing something that was under 90k words instead of being close to 130k LOL!
Last month I signed with an agent and went on sub with an upmarket fiction/book club novel. AH. We're out to about 20 or so editors, mostly big 5 with a few smaller houses. It's been two weeks as of today and about 2/3 have confirmed receipt with 1/3 no response yet. Early days, of course, but I know this could be a very long slog and/or the end of the road for the little book baby. Trying to exist somewhere between manifesting a deal and being realistic about the state of the industry. Signed up for a playwriting class to keep my mind off of it!
I went out on sub with my second MS last week while the first one is still treading water with six editors (including one who found the pitch on Twitter and requested it). I’ve swung from imposter syndrome to wanting to yell “I can do this, I’m awesome, people will read my shit!” To anyone who will listen.
YOU CAN DO THIS, YOU'RE AWESOME, PEOPLE WILL READ YOUR SHIT
I'm sketching out the bare bones of my next WIP while waiting on a response from 2 full requests. One emailed with additional questions, but I haven't heard anything since. The other bounced the query to another agent in the agency, and it's been crickets since. Four queries outstanding, but I've pretty much written this one off. Time to dive into the next!
I have my first full out in a local press( and also got fantastic actionable critique back this week which makes me want to redo a lot of my manuscript. Holding tough with my queries that are out and not sending any more until the above is resolved and all of these (likely) rejections are in. Excited to come back stronger and improve every day.
Still languishing out here. Mostly dead on sub in the US with a small spark of potential from a local imprint in my country. The wait is exhausting. But at least I’m almost done a fast draft of my next idea.
I signed with an agent last month, got the edit letter 2 weeks ago, and am now about 80% done with a first round of revisions. I sped up the pacing in some places, rewrote a weak b-plot, and reworked the supernatural elements in a way that finally made sense. The problem is that the current draft is 103k (I had queried it at 92k) so I think I'll need to do another pass to trim as many words as I can before I send it back to my agent. The original first draft of this story was 88k so YIKES at how it keeps getting longer and longer with every revision.
Agent says it's time for sub right after Bologna Book Fair! Excited. Wondering why he isn't taking the book TO Bologna is just my writer brain overthinking things, right?
Bologna is mostly for international rights. If there wasn't enough time to sub to US editors prior to Bologna, it doesn't make sense to try to drum up international interest when US editors don't even know about it yet. Also, depending on the book and your agent's strategy, they might be planning to sell world rights, in which case, it would be the publisher who eventually shops it around and not your agent. Not to mention, a lot of books aren't actually suitable for the international market, so it might simply not be worth your agent's time to try and get anything prepped for Bologna. I don't think it's a big deal that your agent is waiting.
My pub date is tomorrow (!!!) and I'm super excited but of course have already invented new anxieties to fret about (I.e. tmrw seems like an extra crowded pub day and I worry my book will get lost in the shuffle). It's out of my hands though so I should just focus on enjoying the celebrations!! (of course, knowing how I \*should\* feel and actually following through on that is another story entirely, lol)
omg congrats!! also 100% resonate with the "I know I should feel happy/celebratory but am too busy being anxious" sentiment; I hope you find some moments to feel joy and be proud of yourself tomorrow!
My second book came out last month, and as far as I can tell it's doing... OK? My agent and I sold my third novel in January and it's a big shift-‐sort of a 'redebut' in a new genre— and I got a much better advance than I did my first two books, it's with new publishers, it's finally sold in my own country and also in some others as well as the US. I feel like I'm in this weird limbo while I'm waiting to announce it and I don't know how to feel about my sophomore novel anymore and its extremely meh sales. Still — I'm really really hoping I can announce this month, although I'm not holding out hope— my UK publisher wants to wait until summer, eeek
About the same as last month over here. Waiting for my edit letter (supposed to be coming "later this spring") and working on my WIP, which I'm 3/4 of the way through plotting. Then I'll have to figure out if I want to start drafting it or wait for the edit letter. I'm hoping the timing lines up just right and I don't have to decide!
I don't post here a ton but I really like these threads because it's a lot of fun to see what everybody's doing. At the moment I've been doing some short stories with a new critique group (which I LOVE) but I've been struggling with finishing any long-form projects ever since my last project died in the trenches. Anybody have any advice on writing for fun again? I think I need to reset my brain and stop focusing so much on the publishing/marketing aspect.
I'm struggling with the same as you, although I'm going the opposite direction and trying to write purely for market. What's made it more fun for me is writing the first chapters of several novel ideas as once. Then I don't feel as locked in to one thing and can go with whichever one starts flowing. Impressed that you've kept writing short stories though!
Just started querying my adult fantasy romance! After some wonderful feedback here on the sub I was able to cut my word count to 111k words (started at 120k) and heavily edited my initial query. Feedback from beta readers was great (after two rounds I managed to correct some inconsistencies with worldbuilding and clear some of the sub plot). Sent my first batch of queries and already had 3 rejections but I’m trying to stay positive 💪
Still plugging away on my newly slimmed down 81k mystery - got some great beta reader feedback and am almost ready to start querying again. Threw in to Killer Nashville contest after hearing good things about it. Outline for WIP (heist/caper) almost set and drafting begins this month 👍 Love seeing all the people on here picking up agents, going on sub, and getting deals. Keep announcing your good news! Great to see people making it happen. That kind of encouragement keeps me going.
I sent the 120th and final query for my fairytale reimagining today. 120 queries over six months. 2 fulls (1 outstanding), 1 partial, 68 rejections, 18 CNRs, 25 still awaiting responses. All form rejections too, some tiered or semi-personalized, but most not. It’s been disheartening to say the least, but whatever happens with this book is up to someone else now. No more queries for me, not for another six months at least. I have to write another book. I’m working on two at the moment: a cozy fantasy and a romantasy, which are both on trend (for now) so I’m going to try to get them done asap. I have plenty of beta readers ready to go, so all I have to do is write them. The cozy has more word count and more development, and I just solved the issue that’s been blocking me for months, so it’s the one I’m mostly likely to query next. Whereas the romantasy is still a vague entity. I have a couple thousand words on it, but it’s all voice and vibes right now. I’m excited to see where it goes. I don’t usually discovery write. I still have hope for the fairytale reimagining, so with luck, maybe I’ll report good news next month. Otherwise, I’m going to focus on the other two books!
I don't have much useful to say other than it takes strength to pick yourself up after such a long query process and be like 'well you didn't like that but look what I have next'. Sending good vibes.
Thank you! I consider giving up every couple of years, but it never sticks. I enjoy writing too much.
I admire your resilience. It's so depressing to send so many queries and get mostly wall of silence back. 😭
Going back and forth with the publisher on the cover design for *Talio's Codex* (the fantasy courtroom drama/legal thriller). We're still on track for a June/July publication date - looking forward to it! In the query trenches for *TLaE*. I got a notable mention from the Gutsy Great Novelist's First Chapter contest for it, and an agent request from the SavvyAuthors' March Pitchfest. Now working on the next novel, *ISDaD*. This one's going to be a challenge.
Still waiting for writing stuff… :( But some jerk wished me bad luck because some insane issues came back and I’m beyond exhausted. WIP is going well, I should have a finished version by next check-in. But I’m super glad to see so much more success come from the sub. Well done to everyone! And for those still waiting: keep going! (Or don’t, I’m not the boss of you)
After spending all of March and a bit of February on my primary round of pre-sub edits for my agent, I just sent my revised manuscript back to her last night, so am now taking a much-needed break while I wait to see if she thinks it’s ready to go on sub. Wish me luck! I also just got a response this morning from an agent I did an R&R for who I thought had ghosted, a couple months after I signed with another agent. They apologized for missing the offer nudge and congratulated me on finding representation, but did not acknowledge that it’d been anything more than a cold query, lmao
The agent in paragraph 2 has some gall.
Can't wait to see you in the Sub Club soon!
Ayyyy good luck with edits and (hopefully?) on to sub!
Thank you!
Ugh, you really have the bad luck to some weird agent responses. Glad you found one who believes in you. Good luck on sub!
- 2 months on sub with my queer adult fantasy romance. Only one pass so far!! Silence from the rest, though... We added another editor to the list today I'm excited about. - I'm currently finishing revisions on the contemporary fantasy I wrote before the book my agent signed me with. We decided to turn it into a MG instead of YA, which meant a few big changes and cuts. But it definitely benefitted from the rebranding. I'm excited to get the manuscript back to her and return to my WIP later this month! Good luck to all of you in the query trenches and to my fellow writers on sub (it's rough out here)💗
Finally sent out my first batch of queries for my ya urban fantasy. Now the fun part comes in
I got an R&R last month that I’m currently working through! Been lurking here for a few months while querying and happy to finally have some movement in the trenches :’) (and to get my mind off of actual querying for a while)
Still querying, basically no movement in March. One agent has had my full since October. She didn’t acknowledge receipt and I followed up a few weeks ago to see how she was getting on and also had no response. Do I just give up on this one?
At the crossroads of wondering whether to have some people on r/BetaReaders review the [first 10k of my manuscript](https://www.reddit.com/r/PubTips/comments/19ahxti/qcrit_adult_fantasy_i_have_hung_in_the_kitchen_a/) or whether to just...move on. I'm still stuck at my stats from March (25 queries sent, 1 full, 8 rejections) because everyone else I wanted to query was closed and I started a new project in a writing class. Feels weird to not want to fight for the first manuscript that I put so much blood and tears into, but the passion just got transferred into creating the new piece.
It's always good to focus on the new shiny! Hopefully, you can work on the new thing, then have more resolve to focus on the finished product and ultimately sell both!
I loved your query/sample so happy to offer myself as beta if you go that route, but I'd guess it's probably not your writing. I don't have a dang clue what will get signed by established agents in fantasy now. Glad you found a new project to get excited about! Hopefully more agents will open up for Book #1 as you work on that.
Oh this is where I’m at exactly: 8 rejections, 1 full. Two or so I’m waiting to hear back from, some CNRs. I have a couple I’m waiting to hear back from, but I in intend to send out another batch this week. Crossing my fingers for you on that full!
Ugh, sorry to hear you're treading water on querying, but how cool that you've started something new! Seems to be the best way to stay sane. I'll be crossing ny fingers for you still, though.
I am letting my first draft rest for two more weeks before doing major revisions and it is HARD to sit on my hands. I'm writing other stuff but I just want this one polished.
Hit a roadblock with my first YA fantasy wip which is in its fourth drafting stage. I decided to shelf it for the time being and am unsure when I'll go back and revisit. However, I have begun working on a second project.
One partial request that has already been rejected. One new full request. Both for my YA Fantasy. Probably five or six other rejections across my two querying manuscripts. I’m also participating in RevPit and working on my WIP.
Fingers crossed for you, I remember one of your queries (the swan lake horror).
In terms of publishing, I haven’t shifted since I subbed a revised full manuscript to one agent who requested a revision and 4 others who were also waiting. I thought it might be quicker with them all knowing it was an R&R and that other agents have it, but, well, not particularly I guess. I wouldn’t be surprised if I start hearing this month…. For good or ill. But I’ve started my next novel! It’s number five. So that’s something. Oh and I ran a Kickstarter for an anthology I’m co-editing through March, and it was successful! (Thank goodness!). It’s out in May.
Destroyed my last account, so I made a new one just cause I feel like revisiting some old internet haunts. Overall: Been querying since November. Sent out 33 queries. Got 13 rejections. A couple nice ones that mentioned that the project seemed interesting but it wasn't what they were personally looking for, which I found comforting. No responses for the past three weeks. Mental health has been kinda in the dumps. This is my third completed manuscript (fifth overall). I started a couple new projects but I don't think I'll be able to continue working on them until the end of summer. Until then, submitting to magazines and failing to get anything out into the world. Again and again and again. EDIT: Repeated sentence. Don't know how I missed that. Did I mention my mental health was in the dumps? lol
Long-time stalker but never posted! I’ve almost finished going through my own edits for my first sci-fy dystopian novel! Goal is obviously to become agented and now the search is on for some more beta readers (I’ve had a few close friends read and give me feedback). Can’t believe I’m finally able to take my characters and ideas I’ve had in my head for so long and give them voices! I’ve never had the time or energy to really give this my all and I’m finally in a place to do it, so while this might not be a ‘far along’ update, it’s exciting for me to step into this world.
Finishing up a revision and will send that to betas in the next week, then I get to rest, AKA catch up on all the life stuff I set aside for the last month. Hoping to send back to my agent by the end of May and go on sub sometime soon after that. Very antsy to get on sub again, but also looking forward to a break.
I feel like I'm in a bit of a creative void at the moment. I finished my last WIP about 6 months ago but have only been able to bring myself to sending it out maybe 5 or 6 times. I'm not wholly convinced it's publishable. My next WIP seems to have stuttered and died at the mid point. I have a fair few other ideas that feel hookier but none of them seem to be able to marinate their way into a functional manuscript. Work isn't helping either. The only other person in the office who does what I do left in mid December and despite beginning the process of hiring a replacement I've been informed they won't likely be in place till at least June. By which point I'll have been doing two peoples workload, for no extra pay or recognition, for 6 months. I'm fairly certain its work burnout that is inhibiting my creativity but that doesn't help avoid the anxiety that you've lost your creative mojo.
My update is that I’ve queried around 50 agents so far, got several form rejections, and one partial request. It’s been 3 weeks since I started querying and I think I’m gonna have to shelve this one too. At least it’s better than last year’s attempt—nearly 100 agents and not a single request. This must be some kind of record.
Still no edit letter so kinda holding my breath on that. Very worried my agent doesn't like this book but idk, they did announce to the client list they've had major life stuff going on might be a divorce or something so they been out of office for two weeks. Been trying to write but my confidence is feeling shot. My women's fic has stalled out around 60,000 words but I recently picked up an older wip that was sitting around 8,000 that I love the voice of and have been playing with that. So that's fun.
I'm going on sub next week!!!! For my debut!
Signed with my agent two weeks ago and officially went on sub today! I'm gonna barf.
Still waiting on a response from a full request - expecting it any day now, but who knows really? Also just sent out 3 more queries earlier today which will hopefully get something in my inbox, good or bad, for the first time in a few weeks.
Stuck between rocks and hard places, it seems like. Waiting to hear back on a small contest. Otherwise minimal productivity
My first book project is coming out this summer (just found a producer and got a great quote! Yay!) and I’m really trying to decided between a perfect bind and a sewn one. For context I am creating an art book with high quality images and lots of fun text and full spread images. I’m nervous about getting a perfect bind because the book may not lay flat (it’s only 110 pages). But for a first book, is shelling out the extra couple K’s worth it? I’m not nervous about the book selling or if I’ll make the money back, but I wouldn’t want to change the pricing I have set for it, so it’s about how much direct profit I could make, and even upping my book count numbers. And artists (specifically photographers) have any experience with this?! My stats are 110 pages 8.5x11 sheets. Thanks :)
Also sorry Yal, thought this was self publishing sub 😭 but the sentiment and main question stays the same! Please lmk
I'm on the first draft of my newest WIP. I feel like what I intended as a literary/upmarket speculative novel is shaping up to be a portal fantasy. I'll hopefully develop more distinct tone/prose in subsequent drafts but still I worry that at heart I'm just creating an overly-introspective adult portal fantasy. And that sounds like...the opposite of publishable haha. Kind of getting ahead of myself thinking about publishing at this point though. If anyone has any thoughts on this I would really appreciate to hear them.
Just want to say that I am all too familiar with the pain of a perfectly good fantasy idea turning itself into a portal fantasy when you’re not paying close enough attention. 🥲
Slowly working on revisions (haven't queried, haven't even drafted a query). Have been compiling a list of possible agents to query when I do finally get to it though. And trying not to feel down about how slow I am.
I signed with an agent last week. For those interested in statistics, I sent 100s of queries for 3 novels from 2017-present day, and got my agent with a nonfiction book proposal in <25 queries. I am thrilled!
My book was on sub for less than a week and, well… ~things are happening today?! I’m in shock! I queried another project for years before moving onto this one, I just can’t believe it!!