Advice - how to respond to editor?

[smalleststar]

Hi, I put this query up in the romance forum and I've had a welcome but small response. I just wondered if I might catch more people here. I sent in a partial to Harlequin Mills & Boon, to the Modern/Presents line. They like it (hooray!) and want to see the rest. The thing is, I haven't written the rest. The editor seems to acknowledge that as a possibility in her letter (... if the manuscript is complete we would appreciate receiving it for further consideration...). I have about another 40,000 words to write. I am tied up with other essential things now, but I think I could get it finished by either the end of June or the end of July (depending on how some other things work out). I have two questions:
1) does the editor expect me to reply to this (I guess standard) letter, telling her when I will be able to get the complete manuscript back to her? It would seem polite, but then from her point of view it's just business and we're not penpals or anything. She might just expect the manuscript whenever it's ready.
2) how much do I need to stress about the delay? Am I going to miss some critical window of opportunity if I delay until end of July? The other stuff I have to do is non-negotiable, so the only option would be to try to do it early mornings/late nights. That would be OK, except I know the tone of my writing is affected if I try to do it in spurts like this, and I'm desperate to get it right.

Sorry if this sounds very naive, but I'm really a complete novice at this. Any advice at all would be welcome. Thanks,
Deborah.

[NeuroFizz]

My advice, for what it's worth, is to not query until the manuscript is finished and polished, which means well beyond the rough draft stage. Typically, we get one shot at agents and editors, and if we are not ready to supply a final version when requested, and in top form, it's likely that ship will sail without us. You have no choice but to be honest at this point, and hope the editor has the patience to wait for the full product. Maybe your way is how it's usually done in the romance arena, but to me, querying with an incomplete manuscript just doesn't make sense.

[BuffStuff]

I'll add that I, personally, would go with option 1 in your case. It wouldn't be any huge breach of etiquette and, at the very least, a short and polite letter would keep you in her mind and let her know that you're taking the opportunity seriously, and are working toward supplying her with a full MS. Take a guesstimate on the amount of time it'd take you --in a worst-case scenario -- to be ready to mail out the completed & polished final submission and then add a few weeks to that date.

[Cat Scratch]

I agree that a brief note telling her when she can expect it would be ideal. But in regards to #2, she will be able to tell that you're clearly a novice at this, since most seasoned writers (and even many beginners) know the Cardinal Rule of Don't Submit Until it's Finished. Knowing this may turn her off to your idea, but at the same time if you deliver it when you say you will and the manuscript is good then you're still safe. However, you run the risk that her slate is full and she is no longer soliciting new material.

Congrats on the request!

[Sassenach]

:::::snipped::::

since most seasoned writers (and even many beginners) know the Cardinal Rule of Don't Submit Until it's Finished.


I'd say that the sign of a rank newbie. A seasoned writer would know better--or at least know enough to check.

[James D. Macdonald]

Tell the truth.

And write your book.

[Jamesaritchie]

I agree with UJ. Tell the truth and write your book. And hope to God you don't run into roadblocks along the way. It is never, ever smart for a new writer to query about a novel until after it's finished and polished.

[Cat Scratch]

I'd say that the sign of a rank newbie. A seasoned writer would know better--or at least know enough to check.

I agree. Just trying to play nice.

[janetbellinger]

If that happened to me, I'd drop everything else and write day and night for three or four days until I had t h erequired number of words and then send the completed mss by the quickest means posttible.

[smalleststar]

I agree. Just trying to play nice.

Playing nice is always the best position!

Thanks all for your advice. I'll write the letter and finish the ms as fast as I can. Lucky for me, I write very fast. I won't make the same mistake twice. I really thought the rules were different in romance. (As though there are any rules in romance, ha ha).

[Sassenach]

I really thought the rules were different in romance. (As though there are any rules in romance, ha ha).


There are quite a few rules in romance, varying with genres/sub-genres.

[Gillhoughly]

(... if the manuscript is complete we would appreciate receiving it for further consideration...)

Yes, this happens all the time. They won't go into cardiac arrest about it, but you might! Relax and finish your book.

You may be busy with other things, so just decide you will make time for it. If all you manage is one hour a day, then that's more than you would have had by putting it off until your schedule is clear.

Because here is a Great Truth--it NEVER gets clear. Something will always come up to steal your writing time. The best thing is steal it right BACK. :D

1) does the editor expect me to reply to this

Only if you're still breathing and cogent.

Thank her for her interest, explain you've another 40K to go and will be delighted to send it along as soon as you're finished.

IF you write 1000 words a day you will have it done in forty days. That's not too hard!

2) how much do I need to stress about the delay?

DO NOT mention that at all, she won't be interested. Trust me--she's heard everything by now.

Focus on writing a whole four double-spaced pages a day for the next 40, then send it in with a cover letter. In it you mention that the MS is the one she requested from you in May and thank her for giving you the opportunity of being considered.

While the MS is off at camp you WILL work on your NEXT book. If they really like the first one, there's always the possibility they'll want to see what else you have.

Am I going to miss some critical window of opportunity if I delay until end of July?

No.

Publishing is a year-round sport.

Focus on writing, not the obstacles. However important they may seem now that will totally vanish once you get THE phone call.

One of my best friends has a demanding, sometimes 80-hour a week job. Last summer and fall she fought off a bout of breast cancer.

In between work, tests, and radiation treatments, she still wrote FIVE novels during that 12 month period and turned them in on time. They're good, too.

Whenever I think I can't find time to write I think about her, then get to work.

You GO, girl! 'k????

[Cat Scratch]

Just be careful in your mad dash for the finish line that you don't get sloppy and/or careless. A hastily-written ms full of mistakes is the fastest way to the reject pile. A well-done manuscript is better than a quick one.

[Jamesaritchie]

IF you write 1000 words a day you will have it done in forty days. That's not too hard!


Unless, like most novels, you need a second, third, or fourth draft. I would not suggest writing 1,000 words per day for the next forty days, and then handing in that draft.

And, of course, if you've never done it before, nothing is easy.

[James D. Macdonald]

It isn't like Harlequin is going to suddenly stop needing manuscripts.

The start of your book sounds publishable. Make sure the last half of your book is publishable too -- and you won't do that by finishing it in a week, living on cigarettes and coffee, typing twenty hours a day. There are people who can do that and come up with publishable first drafts. Please consider that you may not be one of those people. If it takes a year ... it takes a year. If it's publishable, it'll be published.

[smalleststar]

Yes, this happens all the time. They won't go into cardiac arrest about it, but you might! Relax and finish your book.

Thanks for this. That has made me feel better. And I'm sure you're right, they will be used to it, because there are bound to be other newbies like me doing it wrong! I know these editors never waste a word in their letters, so she had to be acknowledging the possibility of it being unfinished in that '..if it is complete..' comment.

I will send her a simple acknowledgement letter and I'll figure out the schedule somehow. Thanks all for the reminders not to get too sloppy in my haste. I'll try to keep focused on getting it right, not just finished. Most of all I think I have to try and feel excited about the story again, not just scared about messing up such a lovely wide-open opportunity.

Thanks all for your advice.

[blackbird]

The writing is the main thing you should concern yourself with right now. However, that being said, I do have to admit I am not entirely guiltless of having engaged in this practice, myself. However, what I've done in the past is to at least wait until the manuscript is VERY NEARLY ready--in other words, nothing I couldn't reasonably expect to accomplish within 2-3 weeks, or about the average turnaround time on an agent's response.
But the risk you run there is that, of course, individual turnaround times can vary greatly from one agent to another, and there's always a chance you might be caught completely off guard. My advice at this point would be to send her a note saying something to the effect that you are in the process of polishing or revising the manuscript, and will send it on just as soon as your work is done. Of course, there's a chance she may still ask to see what you have so far. In that case, I would say go ahead and send what you have ready, with an explanation that you are revising or polishing the rest (and, of course, this isn't a lie beacause in essence that's what you're doing, right?) Give her a time frame of when she can expect to receive the rest, and then work like heck to make sure you live up to your end of the promise.

[Gillhoughly]

Unless, like most novels, you need a second, third, or fourth draft. I would not suggest writing 1,000 words per day for the next forty days, and then handing in that draft.

Something I picked up from C.J. Cherryh was to write fast it to get it down, then rewrite brilliantly.

Donno how brilliant I am, but when one writes every day the rewriting gets less and less necessary. I used to re-write about 80 percent of every page--LOTS of fixing. Now I rewrite about 5 percent of every page, if that much.

Writing is like learning a musical instrument--the more you practice, the better you play. Usually! :)

[aruna]

I think you should definitely continue to write now, even if it's just 500 words a day, to keep up your momentum even while you finish off your other work. I know I need to finish my first draft in one long gasp, otherwise it falls to pieces; rewriting takes longer.
Take the extra time out to write; there's a reward in that.

[roger]

I hate to go against prevailing wisdom but I don't think what you have done is necessarily the mark of a rank newbie, or not in the UK. I read an article in the Observer, in which Robert McCrum (a big noise in the literary establishment over here) complained that too many deals were being done on the basis of a synopsis and sample chapters. The way he represented it was that this was becoming something of a trend. My own publisher (Macmillan) has told me that agents are increasingly expecting decisions to be made in this way, and yes on first novels, which increases the risk to the publisher because they do not know whether the writer will actually be able to deliver.

I would think that a publisher like Mills and Boon would be able to make an assessment on the quality of writing from a partial. If they like that, and believe it is up to standard, they will be willing to wait for the rest. I don't think they will consider you inexperienced or naive. You could argue that in commercial fiction, it makes sense to check whether what you're doing is on the right lines.

[L.Jones]

You've gotten a lot of good advice here.
FYI - when Harlequin extends an invite to submit it's an open invite. It doesn't self-destruct after a few weeks or months.

The editor doesn't need your note to tell her you are going to be late, she's already told you to send it when you are done with it. BUT it's a good idea to send a note to show that you are a considerate person and to put your name and the title of your book before the editor's eyes again.

One thing though: Please get over the idea that you have done this 'wrong'. You might not have done it 'smart' or according to convential wisdom but it got you a response that thousands of writers doing everything by the so-called rules would have loved to recieve. Relax. Get to work. This is where you are now, no sense feeling as if you violated some writer's law.
Write the way you need to in order to get the job done.

annie
Luanne Jones (Heathen Girls - MIRA)

[James D. Macdonald]

I haven't sold a book except as three-and-an-outline in years. Only the first one was fully written.

A first-timer should have the full novel -- since finishing a novel is the hard part. Lots of people have half-a-novel in their desk drawers, and some of those opening halves may be brilliant.

Once you've proved that you can actually write a satisfying conclusion, you get lots more leeway.

[jchines]

Look, what's done is done. You've got the request. I would go ahead and try to get the novel written, and written well, so you can get it turned in before they forget who you are. Will the delay be a problem? Maybe, but I couldn't say for certain. Be honest, and get it done. (Then read it over at least once before rushing to get it in the mail.)

As to whether or not it was a mistake? Well, every bit of advice I've heard from editors and pros has said a new author shouldn't submit before the book is done, done, done. Aside from everything else that's been said, it leaves you in the fairly stressful and panicked position of figuring out what to do now that the editor requested a manuscript that isn't finished.

I've sold two novels to a big publisher, with a third going to my editor this week. I'm not yet at the point where I can sell one with a partial, but I hope to get there soon.

Anyway, bottom line, you're here now. Get out of here, finish the book, turn it in, and see what happens. Good luck!

[Bartholomew]

Yikes!

Rock and a hard place, mate!

If you need some help getting it done in a rush, I'll be glad to offer any assistance I can. Just drop me a PM.

[HConn]

Just to reiterate: The most important thing is that you send them a good book. Sooner would be better than later, but later is okay if it means the work is up to par.

[smalleststar]

Thanks for your advice. I really do appreciate it and I'm beginning to calm down a bit from my initial fright. What do I know (nothing, obviously!) but I do suspect there might be some UK/US difference in approach on commercial fiction, as you suggested Roger. I guess I'm going to find out anyway!


FYI - when Harlequin extends an invite to submit it's an open invite. It doesn't self-destruct after a few weeks or months.

Very amusing! This was my unfaced nightmare scenario. It's good to have it spelled out that it doesn't happen quite that way.

I agree, I've managed to get myself into this (happy, really) situation, so the thing now is to do the necessary work to make it come good. It's a great motivator. I wouldn't have believed how rapidly I could crunch through this dull but essential stuff that's in my way.

I have insouciantly imagined that I'll be able to get the next 40,000 words out in 2-3 solid weeks and I'm hoping to clear my desk within the next few days so I can crack on. I'm the kind of writer who has to have a water tight outline, so I'm not anticipating anything going awry with the storyline. It's just whether the words comes out with the right kind of tone and pace. I find the romance usually just flies for me though. Unlike the other stuff I try to write, thrillers usually. I sometimes wonder if that means that the romance is what's 'right' for me. But I really want to write the thrillers (as well as the romance).

Thanks again for all the advice and encouragement. I'm very grateful.

[roger]

Sounds to me like you know exactly what you're doing - and more importantly, what you still have to do! Good luck.