I recently sold my debut book to dream editors at two big five publishers. Now, what does that mean? How did that happen? Let’s dissect the clickbaity headline and get into some of the details of my publishing journey.
I have another post about how I got my literary agent, so I won’t go into detail on that, but if you’re interested the whole story is here
Disclaimer: The publishing process is complicated and looks different for everyone. This is just my personal experience, that doesn’t mean it will be the same for others.
To start, let’s go all the way back to September 2024, when I got my wonderful agent. Right after I signed, we jumped into edits. My agent is quite editorial, meaning we did a considerable amount of editing together (to tighten the story and enhance the world), which I loved. I really felt we made the story so much stronger, and she noticed things that I never would have seen on my own! We did three larger rounds of edits and then a final finishing touches. We worked on it from September until the beginning of January. Really, we were pretty much done mid-December, but given the upcoming holidays, we took our time with the final pieces (last little line edits and small tweaks). Then finally, in the first week of January 2025, my agent sent my book baby out on submission.
“What is submission?” you might be asking. In simplest terms, submission (or sub for short) is when your literary agent sends your manuscript out to editors for their consideration, and you hope (with bated breath) that one of them loves it enough to make an offer. The process, for me, was much scarier than querying because this was the final step and I knew I’d done all I could to give my book its best chance, but I also knew that the market is very competitive, and it was kind of out of my hands at this point.
Sub is something that’s not talked about a lot in the publishing world. It’s become a bit of a foggy, scary, secretive thing within the community. There are many reasons for that, for one, it’s a stressful time, it’s the last step in a process people have been working towards for years. Then, you typically don’t want to speak publicly about which editors you submitted to or who might be interested, in case things don’t work out, or to not accidentally alienate anyone in the industry. It’s also a lot of waiting and nervously wondering and frantically refreshing your email for the fifth time that hour. So, as a result, most people don’t talk much about it.
Here’s a timeline of my experience to give you a bit of an idea of how things can go. I was incredibly fortunate to have a shorter journey than some, but I know the sub process can take months and even years sometimes. And that’s not a reflection on your talent, but on the oversaturation of certain genres, editor timelines, and sometimes luck (the right person seeing it at the right time). Anyways, that’s enough rambling, let’s get into why you all clicked on this newsletter.
THE TIMELINE
(January/February 2025)
January 9th - We go out on submission (I enter a new existence of pure stress)
January 16th - An Editor writes to say they are sharing with their team (I die)
This I later learned was second reads, where editors share a work they like with their wider team for more opinions and support before they pitch it. This doesn’t mean you are guaranteed an offer but it does show interest.
January 16th to January 28th - Crickets (aka Norees loses her mind and develops an unhealthy addiction to refreshing her email)
January 29th - Another editor tells us they’re taking my book to acquisitions (I almost pass out)
Acquisitions usually comes after second reads when the editor pitches your book to their wider team to convince them to give them the greenlight to offer.
February 4th - A third editor wants to meet me (I screamed and then tried not to vomit)
February 6th - I have my first call with an editor (this was absolutely terrifying even though they were so sweet and complimentary, I was still so nervous)
After the meeting we got a note from the second editor that we made it through acquisitions and they would be putting together an offer!
At this point it didn’t feel real and I half expected someone to jump out yelling ‘April fools’
At this point we set a deadline for the remaining editors and I tried to pretend I wasn’t vibrating out of my skin.
February 18th - I officially get my first offer!! (I did go and buy myself a cake and immediately texted my mom)
February 19th - I get my second offer!! (at this point I was sobbing on the floor in disbelief and joy)
February 24th - I have my second editor call (she couldn’t have been more lovely)
February 26th - I accepted two offers from Doubleday CA (Penguin Random House) and Gollancz (Hachette) for a 2 book deal! (dreams actually do come true? what?)
What Now?
Since I got my offer I’ve started edits with my editors and have absolutely loved working with them to enhance my story. Their visions aligned perfectly with mine and it’s so cool to see this book get closer and closer to its final form!
What I learned
This was my first time navigating this process and if there were just a few things I learned that might help someone else as they enter the big scary time which is sub:
Find a way to distract yourself. Focusing only on sub just makes you more stressed. For me, I dove into a new book. Maybe take up a new hobby, go on a trip, do anything that will take your mind off things.
Work out a communications process with your agent. My agent didn’t share rejections with me which really helped. I knew when I got a notification it would be good news. But some people need to see those rejections, so figure out what works best for you.
Confide in friends. Having writer friends who had been through the process helped me more than I can say. Without them I never would have stayed sane throughout it all.
If you’ve stuck with me all the way through this, thank you truly, this ended up far longer than I expected! As someone who read every single thing about sub I could find, listened to podcasts, and hunted down ‘how I got my book deal’ blog posts, I hope this helps anyone who is going or on sub and stressing about it. Know you are not alone, it’s a seriously stressful process and any and all emotions are valid.
Now time for some shameless self-promotion:
THE ARCANE ARCHIVES
Spring 2027
In a world where every soul has a life book, Astra works as an Archivist, tasked with protecting the life books of everyone who has ever lived. When her brother goes missing, Astra steals his life book in a desperate bid for clues, leading her to the mysterious Castor, who has no memory of her brother – and no life book of his own. In search of Astra’s brother and Castor’s true identity, they set off to the Isle of Skye for answers and, as they grow closer, they uncover dark secrets that will change the world as they know it.
Perfect for fans of Ninth House, The Atlas Six, and The Library of the Unwritten
Congratulations! This premise is so amazing. I'm so excited to read your story!
Big congratulations! And thank you much for the learnings. I’m prepping for this next step myself. Off to devour more content on the subject!