Life of A Writer

Last week I told you how to research publishers and agents, and today I'm going to list five things you can do while waiting on responses from your research contacts. With that said, let's explore what you could be doing while you're waiting to find out if the publisher or agent your researching appears to be replicable.

1. Write the query letter for your fiction novel.
2. Prepare your chapter-by-chapter outline.
3. Write the synopsis/proposal for your fiction novel.
4. Catch up on work you've put on the back burner.
5. Compile a list of possible book reviewers for your fiction novel.

All of the five things mentioned above will be needed once the responses start to come in and you begin contacting the publishers or agents that you believe checked out to be replicable. However, don't just submit what you think they'll want, check their guidelines first to find out what they want you to submit. Some may want a query letter first, and others may want a query letter as well as the synopsis/proposal. If you send them what you think they want without following the advice and instructions in their guidelines, you'll increase your chances of having your submission land in the publisher or agent's "slush" pile, and I'm sure you don't want that to happen.

Join me again next Thursday to learn how to increase your chances of being reviewed, where to find book reviewers and more in part seven of my Fiction Writing Tips series.

What do you do while waiting on responses from your research contacts? Share it with us in the comments area. By sharing what you do in the comments area below, you'll earn yourself an entry in my Mentoring Session Contest.

Additional reading:

Make the Perfect Pitch: The Novel Query, by Kelly James-Enger.

Mastering the Dreaded Synopsis - Condensing Your Novel, by Lee Masterson.

Writing a Synopsis From the Ground Up, by Dee-Ann Latona LeBlanc.

Helpful books:

A Writer's Guide to Fiction, by Elizabeth Lyon.

The Writer's Guide to Queries, Pitches & Proposals, by Moira Anderson Allen.

Posted by Misti Sandefur, Christian author/freelance writer at 10:32 PM