The Waiting Game
Getting published is definitely an exercise in patience. Granted, every book, magazine article or agent/publisher submission guidelines suggests that the process can take months. In retrospect, for many submissions, I’ve experienced shorter waiting times. I had four agents respond within a a few days to a few weeks with their “no”. I had a publisher respond in five days asking to see a manuscript. An agent has kept in touch with me every few weeks with updates on the process. This is good. And yet, it’s hard to wait.
On the other end, agents and publishers are probably working non-stop answering queries, reading manuscripts, working with writers. They are busy, busy, busy. But as the writer who’s sitting and checking her email every few minutes to see if someone wants to buy her work, the wait is excruciating. I find myself wondering, what part of the book are they at? Have they even picked it up to read yet?. How much longer do I have wait….?
But every great goal requires work and patience. Losing weight takes time. Saving money takes time. And hearing back about a pitch from a publisher or agent takes time. Maybe that time will be today. I think I’ll go check my email again…
