This article is for those who struggle to be among the rare indivuduals who sign with either a larger publication or smaller press. While there are many who forgo the trudge of attaining this status, this article is written for those who continue to strive toward this form of publication.
Before I spew my two reasons, it it only fair that I disclose my writing background. Near ten years ago, I had two Epic Fantasy books published by Twilight Times Books, which at that time, was a small press with a good reputation. After the second book, I took a ten year hiatus, but now I am returning. With so many changes with self-publishing since my absence, I am yet to decide whether to return to the traditional landscape or experiment with the self-publishing market.
I'm going to attempt to condense this in one article, but may expand the thought process in following articles.
Your work is not polished
Agents and Publishers don't embrace stories that require lots of work to prepare for distribution. This reponsibilty is on you. As a writer, you must flesh things out, then polish. Then...polish again. If you have a good story, it deserves to be edited on the development level with scutiny before submitting to others. A bit of line editing would also not hurt before your manuscript is ready for review. Editing services may be costly, but this process is paramount next to completing the manuscript to begin with. Let me be clear. You should never be the sole editor.
Your submission process is flawed
The basic miscue of sending your manuscript to those who are not interested in your particular genre.
You are not following submission guidelines.
Get a firm grasp of how to create a strong, complimentary query letter. This topic would take an entirely seperate article, but there are many online resources that can aid in this endeavor.
These are the two reasons why you are not getting published. This can be a long-game endeavor. If you truly desire to go the traditional publishing route, I encourage you to practice due diligence. And that begins with your manuscript. Again...edit, polish, and polish some more.
Oceans of Love,
Jack
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