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The other two have given me addresses of where to send my synopsis and sample chapters to. One also included guidelines about the different types of children's books; length, style, pictures, etc. It is useful for anyone that is completely new to publishing, and I have taken note of a couple of things.
I have started writing a synopsis, but it is tough going. I shall have to sit down at the computer one afternoon when I haven't got anything else on and bash it out. Again, once I have started, it will probably be all right. After that there will be no more excuses for not sending it to publishers.
29th September 1999
Yesterday I actually did it! I sent a synopsis to a publisher.
For once I had a Saturday with nothing to do; no church fetes, Guide trainings, TARS meetings or singing rehearsals. A free weekend is quite a luxury for me, so I took advantage and spent the morning at the computer. I had started scribbling some notes for a synopsis, but I hadn't got very far. With a CD playing, I settled down to write, deciding that the best way was to not have the story in front of me, but to write what I remembed. That way I got just the essential plot points without cluttering it with the myriad of little incidents that helped create my community.
Once I had finished, I only had to add in a couple of things that I had forgotten. The finished synopsis is just over two pages long and literally gives just the bare bones of T'Tenneb. There is absolutely no mention of D'Nalkcub, or the first night's entertainment in the meeting house, or Nala's kite, or J.J.'s jokes. Someone reading it could imagine a completely different story to the one that I have written. I just hope that it makes the reader want to know more. That is what it's supposed to do.
After the milestone of the synopsis, I set about correcting the speech punctuation in the two sample chapters that I had chosen, A Desperate Flight and The Everlasting Willow. The local teacher that had done some proof reading had lent me a book that explained the rules of writing speech and I had copied the important bits. What I discovered during correction was that I had usually done the opposite to what I should have, putting a comma where there should have been a full stop, and vice versa. I wonder if I will ever remember to get it right. I also adjusted anything else that needed it, according to whether I agreed to the pencilled comments of the proof readers or not. Those two chapters are probably about as near perfect as I will ever get them.
Two down, twenty to go.
That was it. There was nothing else I needed to do. I had everything that a publisher would want in the first instance, all neatly printed on A4 paper, double spaced on one side only. The one thing that stopped me from writing the letter on Saturday was that the printer ran out of ink! It was finally yesterday (Tuesday) that I came back on the computer and drafted a very short covering letter to the first publisher that replied to my letters with a positive. I also had fun printing out the envelope, a recently discovered feature of this particular program, but it does look good. I then added an SAE and took it all to the post office to be weighed before posting. As usual before dropping anything important into the box, I paused for a moment and wished it success.
Now It's back to waiting again. I don't know what I'm scared of the most; the publisher saying no, or asking to see the whole manuscript. Up to now, I have known the people that have read T'Tenneb, but sending it to someone else is like....waaaaaaahhhhhh!!! I can't think of any other way to describe it.
I had one more letter back from a publisher, saying that their schedule was full. I wonder if the other two will ever get back to me?
Out of curiosity, I calculated the word count. The guidelines that I have recommend 20 - 45,000 words for a novel. I was afraid that I wouldn't reach that. What have I got?
53,000
That was another Waahh!! point. I just hope the publishers don't consider it too long. I can't see why they should. Arthur Ransome's books are over 300 pages long. That has to be way over 45,000.
23rd October 1999
Well, I received my first T'Tenneb rejection letter on the 4th of October. It looks very much like a standard letter as the date and my name are written in by hand. this is what it says,
Many thanks for sending in your work to us here at **********. It has now been looked at by the relevant editorial department.
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