I recently submitted my Medusa novel to a publisher I found because they approached me to review one of their books. Now, my nonfiction blog isn’t a big deal. With only a couple hundred regular readers I’m sure it didn’t lead to sales. The book, honestly, wasn’t that good. Still, the website was friendly and welcoming. As I filled in the proposal form I was honest, as it asked me to be. How many copies, it asked, do you think your book will sell? Be honest, it advised. I put a number, realistic, that my own publisher would’ve been satisfied with. Most books, truth be told, sell less than 1,000 copies. When they sent their rejection note a week later they said that I wasn’t well enough established as a fiction writer. In other words, I couldn’t bring in enough money. I’m not established enough? How are you ever going to get established if even a small publisher like that won’t give you a chance? Here’s ...
Blog of a struggling writer.