Making a move...

I began the submission/query process earlier this month. Spending hours researching agents and publishers who would be willing to accept unsolicited manuscripts. Drafting the letter to be personalized to each, making sure my submissions were in accordance with their guidelines. There was one thing no one ever tells you about this process.

It's a PITA.

And that can be literally a pain in the behind, as you sit at a desk for several more hours, focused on getting each submission just right. You hit the send button, set it on its way....only to get a "Thank you for considering us but...." letter back in return. If you're lucky. I got one reply that said, in its entirety, "Very sorry we can't help you." Yeah, that was the whole email. I had to laugh, then share it with writer friends, who laughed too.

The remaining queries I have left will take months to hear back from, if I hear back from them at all, as they were listed as "we will contact you only if we are interested in reading more". Do I want to wait months to hear something? Heck no. I want to see my book, in print, in my hot little hands sooner rather than later.

So I'm thinking I'll be self-publishing after all.

Call me impatient, but self-publishing was always the backup plan to the traditional route, should that not go as planned. Now, I'm thinking that it will likely be sooner than I originally thought. I've found a reputable company with fantastic consumer reach, that's affordable(ish). I add the -ish because for now, affordable is relative with our currently limited income. Anyway, I plan on publishing through them for both print and ebook. I've already designed my cover (and I L-O-V-E it!), used that same design for some promotional materials that I can get at cost through my studio's photo lab. I'm working on a list of other marketing and promotional ideas, and hope to get the ball (and funds) rolling for self-publishing after the first of the year.

One way or another, I'll be published in 2016. I have a feeling it's going to be a great year. :)

Till next time,

H.C.