I know I’ve left everyone hanging for a couple of months now. I’m still here! And I have a printed copy of my manuscript. Holy. Freakin. CROW. I had FedEx print a couple of copies, and this thing is massive. It’s on 8 1/2” x 11” copy paper and spiral-bound. Right now, there are 299 pages and 95, 711 words. This could all change when/if a publisher gets their hands on it. 

I began the search for an agent last week. Today is day 8. My awesome editor, K.K. Fox, helped me put together a query letter. For those who don’t know, a query letter is a plug for the book. It’s a formal way of saying, “PICK ME! PICK ME!” I give a few of the book’s most fascinating details, a very basic summary, my bio, and a sample of the manuscript. The sample size varies by agent. Some want just the query letter. Some want the first 5-10 pages. Some want the first chapter, some want the first 3 chapters. A couple of agents requested the first 50 pages with the query. Only one agent has requested the full manuscript with the query. Some agents only take queries through an online submissions manager. Some welcome queries via email but refuse to open attachments, so I must copy and paste everything in the body of the email. In 8 days, I’ve queried 50 different agencies (big faux pas to query two agents at the same agency). If you’re wondering how I keep up with it all, here’s a glimpse of my spreadsheet.

Another piece of the query is a personalized greeting. I have a form letter for the bio and summary, then I address each agent personally. They really notice if an author has taken the time to research them and their agency. I scour their websites looking for other authors/clients I’m familiar with, so I can mention them in the query letter. “I’m a huge fan of…” That little personalized paragraph takes so much time to compose. So far, I’ve only screwed up an agent’s name once (I addressed her as Ms. Patterson instead of Ms. Peterson). I realized a few minutes later when I added her info to the spreadsheet. I was mortified. I sent her another email to apologize for my mistake, then I walked away from the computer for a few minutes. 

Going on these agency websites and seeing the best-sellers-list authors they represent is allowing some of that self-doubt to creep in. How can I compete with these giants? I can’t! Who’s going to want to take a chance on little ol’ me? I’ve already received 5 rejections. To pursue traditional publication, one needs thick skin and a boatload of confidence; two qualities I do not possess. Why am I even doing this? I want to say that just writing the book is enough. That seeing my mother-in-law’s tears of joy when she received her own copy of the manuscript at Thanksgiving and hearing her tell me how proud she is would be enough. To know that my daughter loves these stories so much, she’s considered tattooing one of my quotes on her skin is enough. I want to be content with all of these things. But I also want everyone to know how awesome my little family is. I want people that struggle with mental illness to know that they aren’t alone. I want people to know that God is bigger than their questions. I want women in their 40s to know it’s not too late to do that big thing they’ve always dreamed of doing. And so, I will put myself out there. I listened to Leslie Jordan’s audiobook, How Y’all Doing?, a couple of weeks ago (which is the only way to read this book, IMHO). He talked about his role in the movie adaptation of The Help by Katherine Stockett, and he dropped a little trivia. Did you know that The Help was rejected 60 times? 60! It’s disheartening to say the least as the rejections have already begun to roll in. But then my husband reminds me, “You only need one yes.” 

Winter Sabbatical 2022 begins December 28th!!