When to go rogue...
Should you quit querying and self-publish instead?
First post!
We have a question about when to stop querying agents and consider self publishing , details about how this whole Ask an Author thing is going to work, and more on what’s to come.
If you’re new here, this is an advice column and resource for writers at all stages of the writing and publishing journey to ask questions and seek support. I’m a novelist with two agents in two different genres, and I started this resource after giving a talk, “Ask an Agented Author,” that led to a lot of great discussion and follow up questions. I hope this Substack proves a useful resource and continues to develop!
Question:
As the author of a fantasy novel that is a fresh take on King Arthur’s legend with a secret romance, I’ve queried agents for almost two years to no avail. Do you recommend I keep trying or should I explore self publishing instead?
- Anita Sacco
Dear Anita,
Congratulations on finishing what sounds like a really fun novel with a great hook and a new twist! Writing, let alone querying, takes a huge amount of persistence, and if you’ve been in the query trenches for almost two years, you’ve certainly got the chops to keep going down whatever path you choose.
I have a few questions that influence my take on a situation like this. How many agents have you queried? What kind of feedback or responses have you gotten from those agents? How are you identifying and targeting agents to make sure you’re reaching the right audience for your novel? Is your word count appropriate for your genre? Prior to querying, did you send your manuscript to beta readers who were truly critical and honest with you? Did you get substantial feedback on your manuscript and revise it such it that you know it’s the best it can be? In the course of the past two years of querying, have you gone back and reread your manuscript with fresh eyes to see if you want to make any changes?
I used to hear 50 or so was a good number of agent submissions to aim for. Now I’m frequently hearing it’s closer to 100. If you’ve sent 20 queries, keep going! But if you’ve sent 200 queries over two years, then I’d suggest it’s time to take a look at a few things: your query and opening pages, your manuscript itself, and how your manuscript fits into the existing publishing landscape.
If you sent a lot of queries and received very few requests for more materials, and few truly personalized rejections on your query, then that’s usually a sign that there’s a problem with your pitch. (I’m going to do a future post on interpreting rejections, because it can be tricky. When I say personalized, I’m talking about something specific to your manuscript that gives a sense of why the agent passed but isn’t something they could email to everyone.) If you’re drowning in form letters, you’ll want to take another look at your query letter, especially your blurb, as well as your opening pages. The problem isn’t (just) with your manuscript if agents aren’t even getting to the manuscript, you know?
If you’re getting personalized rejections to your query letter as well as requests for your manuscript, then you know your query materials are solid and it’s time to look at the manuscript itself.
What reasons are agents giving for passing on your manuscript, and—importantly!— do you think they’re right? Sometimes agents see things that we or our beta readers didn’t pick up on, and making those revisions can make your novel not just “better” in some subjective sense but closer to the book you envision and that you want it to be. At the same time, keep in mind that ten agents might have ten different, often conflicting opinions that you may or may not agree with. Ugh! You don’t have to make a revision just because an agent suggests it. Your book doesn’t exist to please everyone—which is an impossible goal, anyway.
So where does this leave you?
Read through all the pass notes you’ve gotten. All of them. Are there any common threads? Things that speak to you? Even if those threads don’t immediately seem obvious, sometimes you can start to see a pattern emerge, or develop an idea for revision that might not be what an agent suggested but gets at the sticking point in another way.
If you start to see opportunities for revision — to your query or to the manuscript itself — then to me that says there’s more work to be done on the book, and that’s work that’s worth doing whether you ultimately decide to self publish or not.
Now, if readers love your book as is, and YOU love your book as is, and agents love your book but don’t think they can sell it — or the revisions you want to make still won’t make it saleable to them — then we’re talking not about the book but about the marketplace. And that’s where we get into the question of self publishing and whether that marketplace would be more receptive to your work and a more exciting place for you to publish.
Self publishing can be hugely satisfying. You have all the creative control, none of the bs of dealing with a corporation (the publisher) and its bottom line, and you don’t have to settle for a tiny slice of the royalty pie, slivered even smaller when your agent takes their cut.
The flipside is that you’re taking on EVERYTHING on your own: editing, copy editing, proofreading, cover design, interfacing with distributors, and all marketing and promotion. You don’t have to spend a lot of money upfront to self publish, but unless you’re a professional editor and graphic designer, you’ll want to hire some people to help ensure that you’re putting out a clean product that meets reader expectations. I can talk more about what to spend money on and what to skip if there’s interest in another self-publishing post! The point I want to emphasize here is that self publishing isn’t really a Plan B for books that don’t get an agent. It’s its own, separate choice.
Do you want to be your own publisher? Do you want to do the legwork of getting your book out there? What kind of publishing future do you want, not only for this book but the next, and the one after that? Is this something you want to see published no matter what and will be thrilled to have it out in the world rather than languishing on your desktop? Or, if self publishing sales aren’t what you hope, will you be disappointed? (Of course, the same question applies to traditional publishing as well!) There’s no right or wrong answer — and I firmly believe a book’s value isn’t in its number of sales. But it’s worth spending some honest time with yourself so you can be clear eyed about your goals and aspirations.
Ultimately, no one can decide for you whether to keep querying, shelve a manuscript, revise a manuscript, or jump into self publishing. I hope the questions I’ve raised here give some food for thought for how to consider the possible options. Whatever path you take, I hope it’s with a book you’re immeasurably proud of, knowing you’ve done everything you can to make it shine.
Question:
Will we be able to see the questions and answers other people ask? And how will I see them, thru an email? I missed the Ask an Author session, will there be another?
- Diane
Dear Diane,
Yes, yes, and not yet but maybe in the future!
The question/answer above shows the kind of format I’ve been envisioning for this project. If you’re subscribed, the questions and my responses will come to you as an email. You can also read them on my Substack, but subscribing means you won’t miss anything.
If you missed the Ask and Agented Author session, you can watch the recording here.
I don’t currently have another event planned, but if you have a question you’d like answered, filled out this form and I’ll answer it as best I can in a future letter.
And speaking of the future…
I’ve received several inquiries about synopses, so I’m going to combine those all into the next post - stay tuned!
I also received a fascinating question about a book on blacksmithing (!) that gets at how to know your audience and figure out what kind of book you’re writing.
Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss these questions and my responses, and let me know how I can help your work!
Happy writing!
Kate