Article written to be run in newsletter for Coffee Time Romance.

HAPPY DAYS ARE HERE AGAIN
By Sloan McBride

It has taken years to write the best book you can write. You’ve tweaked and polished it until you believe it’s the one, the shining novel that every editor will bid for and every agent will be pounding on your door begging to help you sell to the right house.
The time comes, you’ve researched the publishing houses, you’ve followed all the guidelines and you send in your submission. The response you expected in a number of weeks turns into a number of months, and when you finally receive it; your book has been rejected. Disappointment sets in and your ideals fall a notch.
Failing to be discouraged, you attend a writers’ conference and make appointments to speak with editors and agents. Nervously you hope the pitch will peek interest and you’ll be able to get through it without tripping over your tongue or forgetting the name of your characters.
Take a breath. I know these things sound scary, especially to those just beginning. I would therefore like to offer some helpful tips.
(1) Tweaking — Every time I pick up the alleged completed manuscript, I find more things to tweak. You must stop! There comes a time when you need to just let it go.
(2) Continue to learn— Although you think you know everything you need to know…you don’t. I am continually taking workshops to better my writing, research and learn more about the industry. It is constantly changing and the popular genres go through cycles.
(3) Decide the avenue you wish to take— Do you want to do traditional? Then concentrate your determination on the various print houses and getting your work in front of their eyes any way possible. Or, do you want to go for the newer trends and give e-publishing a try? Same rules apply, but because there are more individual e-publishers, you could possibly get a look where before you had none.
(4) Associate yourself with writing organizations— You will gain a multitude of knowledge from their groups.
(5) If you do not have friends who are writers already, make some— No one else can understand the tumultuous life a writer leads better than another writer. Other writers will have various levels of knowledge about the writing craft and industry which will help you in your endeavor.
(6) Take chances— I mean to say have courage enough to enter contests and pitch the story at conferences. If you don’t let someone else see your work, you will never get fans or fix the problems we never see in our own writing.
(7) This is my best tip…always enjoy what you’re doing— After ten years of writing, I still love every story and every character. I still get that rush when I’m telling someone about a new book I’m writing and the characters involved. If I didn’t, there would be no point in writing at all.
You pitched the book, the editor asks for a partial which you send within two weeks. With hopeful anticipation, you await some kind of response. A full manuscript is requested and another two months pass before you receive “The Call” or the e-mail. They want to send you a contract and publish your book. Happy days are here again! All your hard work has paid off. You have reached that point in your life where you can pat yourself on the back because you weathered the storm, and although you got wet (tears sometimes), you didn’t give up.
Whether you want to be a writer full time or part-time, whether you want to publish or just write for friends and family, there is one last bit of advice I will impart, and that is perseverance. If you do not keep at it, even through the down times, you will never have a chance to do the goofy dance, or pop the cork on the bottle of champagne with your best buds because you sold.
I hope at least some of you can relate to a part of this article and it helps. I’ve been at it a long time and I’m not slowing down. I look forward to writing for years to come and hope I see a lot of you right there along side me.