One Down...

A few thousand more to go...

Well, I got my response back from the publisher. It basically said that due to difficult economic times they decided it might be unwise to invest in an unknown author, especially when they didn't think my book would be a "commercial success". The wording of the letter sounds a lot like the one they sent to my friend Elgon, who also sent his book to them. I don't feel too terrible about it because they didn't take the time to specifically craft a letter telling me not to quit my day job. Really, if I were going to craft a generic letter to politely let down an aspiring author seeking my resources in the incredibly competitive world of publishing, it would sound a lot like DAW's.

Anyhow, the thing that kind of stresses me out about this is that not too many recognized names in publishing make open submission as easy as DAW. I knew that when I set out, so I was really hoping they would pick it up. The battle only goes uphill from here. I think my next course of action will be to query Tor. Their process is a little more complicated, but they still take open submissions.

While the first three chapters of my manuscript swims through the treacherous slush pile at Tor, I think I'll be actively searching for an agent. After Tor, I'm not really sure who else in the fantasy genre I would trust to send my book to as an open submission. It would be really great if someone like Del Rey would pick me up, but I won't hold my breath. I know you take what you can get in this business, so we'll just have to see what turns up.

I'm not discouraged, though. Admittedly, I was a little sad to see the box containing my manuscript returned to me so quickly, but after that moment of sore disappointment, my resolve was strengthened even further. I'm going to get this thing published, damn it. Come hell or high water, by hook or by crook, someday you're going to walk into a bookstore and pick up the latest J.A. Goguen, with those letters in big, embossed script.