Be careful not to neglect the form of your manuscript: it should not be written by hand but typed in the word processor. This is called a typewritten. Favor the A4 format, structure your book in chapters, paragraphs and spare the eyes of the editor by choosing an airy text, a font size of minimum 12 and a spacing of 1.5. To make a book you have the best options now.

Select Publishers

The most common mistake is to send your manuscript to all existing publishers. It’s a waste of time for everyone. Select the editors to which you will send your manuscript according to several criteria:

Genre: target publishers who publish the genre in which you wrote. To send a collection of short stories to an editor who only publishes novels is meaningless.

The editorial line: check well on the publisher’s website what its editorial line is and if your book can match. Do not hesitate to look at the books already published in bookstores or on the internet for digital publishers to see if yours can find its place there. Also try to send your manuscript to a specific person rather than to the publishing house in general.

Treat the Letter or the Email Accompanying the Manuscript

It should be brief, sober, and give a quick summary of the book. Do not neglect this text, take the time to think. if it is not this letter that will make the publisher take his decision to publish you, the fact remains that a manuscript accompanied by a letter full of mistakes or poorly written will have little chance of eliciting any interest. Do not write a novel because it is unlikely to be read, it is your manuscript that counts above all. Do not forget to leave your details so that we can call you back.

Be Patient

Avoid calling the publisher or re-launching it a few days after sending your manuscript. Needless to say, publishers get a lot of manuscripts a day, so you’ll have to be patient before getting the verdict. The response times are sometimes long. It takes on average between one week and nine months before knowing the decision.

Staying Open

When the publisher will answer you, and whatever his answer, we advise you not to steer, or against a refusal which author has never been refused in his career, whether it is argued or no, not for a maybe if you rework your text. In the latter case, it is a chance that is offered to you, do not neglect it: it will always be interesting for you for your text to work with a professional who can advise you. In any case, try to accept the critics, as long as they remain constructive.

Do Not Get Discouraged

It is rare to be published on the first try. The criteria for choosing a manuscript are so numerous that you should not be discouraged. If one publisher does not retain your book for publication, another will do it. Which great author did not suffer several refusals before being published for the first time? So, courage and perseverance are required.

Do not be discouraged

These tips may not be enough to win the Holy Grail, but they will at least prevent you from the direct classification of your manuscript under the pile.

Then it’s up to you to play: it’s your writing, your style, your story, your characters that will make the difference, so good luck.