Wednesday, November 4, 2015

The Thrills and Chills of Being on Sub!!

Hi, writer friends! I'm posting today for the Insecure Writers Support Group monthly blog hop. My topic for the post, appropriately since it pervades my thoughts each day: being on submission with publishers! 



I signed with my lovely agent Sandy Lu in August, and after a couple rounds of minor edits on my contemporary fantasy, Huntress Found, we went on sub in mid September! It's true what they say - in the life of a writer, you rarely achieve such heights that you never have to worry about rejection again. When you're querying agents, you just want to get that agent. Then when you get an agent, it's on to possible rejection by publishers. And once you get published, there are always people that don't like your book. It really never ends, which is why I try to stay as relaxed as possible about the whole thing. If we let ourselves get sucked down in that maelstrom, jumping from one insecurity to the next, it sucks a lot of the joy out of writing. So, for now I wait patiently for news. Sandy says it usually takes editors eight to twelve weeks to read a manuscript, so we might start hearing back this month. If you'll bear with me for an Oprah moment, I like to use positive visualization and imagine hearing the news that editor(s) love my book. And that's how I stay sane with it all! That, and gratitude for the things I do have and the lessons I've learned.

In the vein of agents, I've started doing query brags and critiques as my way of paying it forward to the writing community. On Friday I'm posting the query that got my agent's attention. If you have a query you want help on (MG, YA, NA or adult), or a query that brought you success, let me know! Otherwise, I hope everyone's having an awesome week. 



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25 comments:

  1. Rachna ChhabriaNovember 4, 2015 at 9:32 AM

    Congrats Alexia on getting your agent. I wonder how I missed reading about it. Fingers crossed that you hear good news soon. Hugs.

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  2. Roland D. YeomansNovember 4, 2015 at 10:27 AM

    Great news about getting your agent. Being on sub is just another stage in our evolving journey as an author. Be like a chef, who once putting in the cake to bake, goes on to another item to prepare. Focusing on your next book will help you endure the waiting. :-)

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    1. alexiaNovember 4, 2015 at 6:27 PM

      Thanks! And oh yes, I am cooking away on the next book, never fear :)

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  3. Joylene Nowell ButlerNovember 4, 2015 at 10:38 AM

    Congratulations. And very nice take on reality. Nothing ever guarantees permanent success. Best selling authors still have negative talk. I don't want much, except to be interviewed on Charlie Rose, sell all my novels to a huge movie company, and meet Oprah.

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    1. alexiaNovember 4, 2015 at 6:27 PM

      Thanks! And you're my kinda positive thinker - I'll take a movie deal and an Oprah interview, too!

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  4. Tyrean MartinsonNovember 4, 2015 at 10:57 AM

    Congratulations!!! I love your visualization exercise! I think that's a great way to maintain sanity in the waiting moments/days/weeks/months. Just keep writing and visualizing!
    And, way to pay it forward! :)
    -Tyrean Martinson from http://tyreanswritingspot.blogspot.com/

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  5. UnknownNovember 4, 2015 at 1:51 PM

    Congrats Alexia. That's great news. I try and take that attitude every time I send off a short story. Sounds like you have a better handle on it than me though. I'll have to work on my visualisations.

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    1. alexiaNovember 4, 2015 at 6:28 PM

      Thanks! I have a lot of fun visualizing :) I like to dream big!

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  6. Madeline Mora-SummonteNovember 4, 2015 at 2:08 PM

    Keep doing that positive visualization! And good luck to you! :)

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  7. C.D. Gallant-KingNovember 4, 2015 at 3:18 PM

    Congratulations on landing on agent! And Kudos to you for paying it forward.

    IWSG November Post

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  8. Alex J. CavanaughNovember 4, 2015 at 8:08 PM

    Hope your story find a home!

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  9. Cathrina ConstantineNovember 4, 2015 at 9:33 PM

    Congrats on getting an agent and having your book on submission. I wish you much luck. Keep the positive thoughts!!!

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  10. Erika BeebeNovember 4, 2015 at 9:50 PM

    What great news, Alexia! I hope everything runs smoothly for you 😊

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  11. AnonymousNovember 4, 2015 at 9:50 PM

    Keeping all my fingers & toes crossed or you!!

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  12. Rebecca M. DouglassNovember 4, 2015 at 10:50 PM

    I think it's great that you have an agent and and MS out on submission! Beat those insecurities to death and write on!

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  13. dolorahNovember 5, 2015 at 12:46 AM

    Waiting for anything is very hard. I'm sure you will get good news.

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  14. alexiaNovember 5, 2015 at 1:18 PM

    Thanks, everybody! I love all the positive vibes :)

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  15. Stephanie FarisNovember 5, 2015 at 1:57 PM

    My word to sum up what life is like once you have an agent/publishing deal? "Waiting." That's all you're ever doing. You send your book to your agent and wait. She gets back with her feedback, you revise it, then she sends it to publishers...and you wait. Even once you're published, you always have to wait, wait, wait for approval on the next thing you've written.

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  16. Cherie ReichNovember 5, 2015 at 4:09 PM

    Good luck, Alexia! And that's so true the rejections never end, but they weren't our audience anyway. :)

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  17. Nick WilfordNovember 5, 2015 at 5:06 PM

    Sounds like you've got a sensible attitude. We can write the best query and do everything we can and hope people like our stuff, but there's so much that's out of our control. Good luck with the subs - sounds like you're in a good place with your book and I'm sure things will continue to go well!

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