I’m sending out my novel today. Long ago, when submissions were paper, writers and authors often went through rituals to send out a manuscript for their novel or picture book.

• A lucky cat had to sit on the manuscript.
• It had to mailed with certain types of stamps.
• You kissed the envelope for luck.

IN these days of digital submissions, what is your favorite ritual before hitting the SEND button? Please leave a comment and share your rituals. I need to know what works!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

I’m having a submissions day. This is true: a manuscript that is only in a drawer or only a file on your computer will not sell. It’s only when you send out a manuscript to an editor that you get a contract, a sale, a publication.

Last year, I talked about reevaluating my career and the market place and how that led to a new picture book, Prairie Storms. It’s a story about a year on the prairie and how the wildlife survives the prairie storms.

Coming August, 2011

I’m excited to say that Sylvan Dell will be publishing a companion book, DESERT BATHS. This follows desert animals through a 24-hour period and shows how they take baths. The same illustrator, Kathleen Rietz will be working on this story. Look for it in 2012.

Meanwhile, a sale doesn’t mean that you STOP submitting. Here are some other tips on submissions.

1. Why Rejection Should be Your Goal
2. Are You Still Submitting Before Revising?
3. Are You Still NOT Submitting?
4. Are You Still Submitting Blind?
5. Are You Still Singly Submitting?
6. Are You Still Not Tracking Submissions?
7. The Biggest Mistake in Submitting a Picture Book
8. 8 Sources of Market Info
9. Test Submissions
10. How To Contact an Editor
11. Q&A: How Do I Find an Editor’s Name for Submission
12. 10 Ways to Deal with Rejection

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

Why Would Anyone Choose Rejection?

Is rejection your goal? No, of course not. You and I both want to succeed, to have a manuscript accepted and to sell thousands of books.

When you apply for jobs, though, especially in today’s economy, you may need to send out 20, 30, 50 resumes before you find the right job.

It’s the same for submissions. You must have the right manuscript with the right editor at the right time. So many things could go wrong: you may have the right editor and right time, but you haven’t finished the right manuscript or you just sold it elsewhere.

You may have the right manuscript and the right editor, but–maybe the editor is moving to a different house next month, or maybe s/he just bought a similar project. That means yours showed up at the wrong time.

The variations on the possible scenarios are endless, of course, but the bottom line is that a little luck is involved. And the way to increase your odds is to send out targeted, appropriate submissions, enough to collect a few rejection slips.

For some writers, it is a good goal to get 20 rejections before the end of this year. Yes, 20. Or more.

It means you are submitting, looking for the right combination of circumstances to make that sale. You want your book to be published well, not just published. You want excitement, enthusiasm, joy. And the best way to find that may be by sending it to 19 places that reject it, and a 20th who accepts it.

Go on. Get rejected a lot this year!

Goodreads Book Giveaway

Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win

What is the biggest mistake made when submitting a picture book to a publisher?

You do NOT need to find an illustrator

The question most often asked is this: “How do I find an illustrator for my book?”

You don’t. The publisher chooses the illustrator.
In fact, you cut your chances of selling in half, if you try to team up with an illustrator and submit a package. The editor may love the text, but not the art; or, love the art, but not the text. Either way, you get a no.

Reputable trade publishers do not want you to find an illustrator, or pay for an illustrator, or do anything more than provide illustration possibilities in your text.

After an editor decides to publish your picture book, they decide on likely illustrators by looking at factors like these:

1. Style. What sort of style seems best for this story? watercolor v. pastels? Modern v. traditional? Perhaps, collage?
2. . . .
3. . . .

Like You, the Publisher Wants to Sell Books

Always, the publisher is looking for ways to improve sales of your book by matching it with the best illustrator.

How to Write a Children’s Picture Book A Fiction Notes Ebook 110 pages packed with information. Everything in one, easy-to-read format. Instant access!







Goodreads Book Giveaway



Wisdom, the Midway Albatross

by Darcy Pattison

Giveaway ends March 11, 2012.

See the giveaway details at Goodreads.

Enter to win
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