• Skip to main content
  • Skip to after header navigation
  • Skip to site footer

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Interview with Steve Laube
    • Statement of Faith
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
  • Guidelines
  • Authors
    • Who We Represent
    • Awards and Recognition
  • Resources
    • Recommended Reading
    • Christian Writers Market Guide Online
    • Christian Writers Institute
    • Writers Conferences
    • Freelance Editorial Services
    • Copyright Resources
    • Research Tools
    • Selling What You Write
  • Blog
  • Contact
  • Twitter
  • FaceBook
  • RSS Feed
  • Get Published
  • Book Proposals
  • Book Business
  • Writing Craft
    • Conferences
    • Copyright
    • Craft
    • Creativity
    • Grammar
  • Fun Fridays
Home » The Writing Life » Page 81

The Writing Life

Writers Learn to Wait

By Steve Laubeon December 5, 2016
Share
Tweet
43

Good publishing takes time. Time to write well. Time to edit well. Time to find the right agent. Time to find the right publisher. Time to edit again and re-write. Time to design well. Time to market well.

While there can be a lot of activity it still feels like “time” is another word for “wait.” No one likes to wait for anything. Our instant society (everything from Twitter to a drive-thru burger) is training us to want things to happen faster. Business experts claim faster is better (see Charles Duhigg’s book on productivity Smarter, Faster, Better). Many years ago I wrote about how long it takes to get published which gave an honest appraisal of the time involved in traditional publishing. Reviewing that post from half a decade ago reveals that nothing has changed!

A successful author learns how to wait well.

Waiting for the Agent

Why can’t agents respond faster? Don’t we just sit around all day and read? We try our best to reply to submissions within eight weeks and are relatively good about that. But if your project passes the first review stage and we are now reviewing your entire manuscript remember that reading a full manuscript is much more demanding than reading a few pages in a proposal.

If you are already represented all I can say is that agents do their best to be responsive to your questions and phone calls. Crisis Management is part of our job description. Remember that one of the first things a First Responder must do is triage. Some issues are more critical than others which can create consternation if yours is next in line instead of first.

But if your agent is unresponsive that is a conversation for another blog post.

Waiting for a Publisher

After working hard to get your proposal just right we send it out to a select list of publishers. Then we all sit back and wait. It can take 3-6 months to hear an answer from a publisher. The longest our agency waited was 22 months before we received a contract offer. No kidding. Just shy of two years. [Both I and my client had already moved on, thinking the project was dead.] But that is truly the exception. I believe that if we don’t receive some sort of answer within four months it is probably not going to connect.

That record was recently surpassed by a client who was contacted by a magazine asking to publish a poem she submitted twenty-six years ago…in 1990. You read that right. I wrote about it in October in case you missed the article “How Long Should You Wait for an Answer?” In 1990 I was still working as a bookseller and never dreamed I’d be a literary agent. Evidently this magazine keeps great files and a new editor must have been going through the archives!

Waiting for Your Contract

Once terms are agreed upon it can take quite a while to get the actual contract issued by some publishers. Many can take as long as two months to generate the paperwork. We once had to change the date of the contract because it had taken so long to create the paperwork that the due date for the manuscript was earlier than the actual date on the contract! This delay can be excruciating. Ask your agent what is typical for the specific publisher you are working with. That way your expectations will be set.

Waiting for Your Editor

You met your deadline. And then you wait.

Months.

And you begin wondering if anyone is reading the manuscript at all!

This is actually quite typical. The publisher needs to have the manuscript in hand to know that it actually has been written. But don’t think the editor is sitting at their inbox, on the due date, with rapt anticipation of receiving your contracted manuscript. They manage their time in order to keep things in the queue and moving along. It can very frustrating to wait. The key here is to be in communication with your editor. It is okay to ask! Or talk to your agent to see if they know if there is anything going on that is preventing that editor from working on your book.

Waiting for Your Marketing and Publicity to Kick In

The new author is so excited about their new book that they want to start chatting about it the day after they turn in the manuscript. A great athlete or sports team wants to peak at the right time, never too early. The same with book promotion. If you begin tweeting and creating Facebook posts, without inventory online or in stores, to back it up the window of sales opportunity closes.

“But e-books solves that issue because they can be ready today!” you shout. True. But don’t forget that a lot of people still buy physical books in stores, online, and off your back table at an event. The physical book is still alive and well and must be available if your publicity and marketing is to be effective.

Waiting for Your Money

When I became an agent I didn’t know I’d become a Collections Agent…not just a Literary Agent. Getting paid can take time (i.e. waiting).

Waiting for the “on signing” advance — normally the publisher will take a full 30 days before issuing the check after the contract is counter-signed and officially executed.

Waiting for the “on acceptance of manuscript” advance — this can vary widely. Just because you turned it in doesn’t mean it is acceptable. One publisher we work with will not issue an “acceptance” check until the book has gone through every stage of the editorial process and has been sent to production for typesetting. This can take months. My suggestion is that you take your due date and then add four months…that way you don’t budget for the money to come earlier.

Waiting for the advance to earn out and new royalty earnings to arrive — yes, some books do not earn out their advances. But many do earn out and the royalties eventually start coming, even if in tiny increments. This can take awhile, depending on the advance and the book. We recently had a client’s book with a small advance finally earn out five years after it had been published.

Indie Authors Wait Too

For those of you who are publishing independently you may feel like you’ve skipped most of these stages. And that is partially true. But a wise writer won’t put their book out into the market before it is ready. This means taking the time to write the best book possible. Taking the time to have the book edited professionally…not by just anyone who took an English class is school. Taking the time to find the right book cover to represent your book. Taking the time to create and execute a strategic marketing plan (a plan that is more than simply uploading an ebook and charging 99 cents). Taking the risk of investing enough money in the right places for the right results.

_____

At each stage the writer chaffs at the process. This is quite understandable. I once read an author’s angry screed (on their blog) criticizing their publisher for the excruciating process of getting their book out. The problem, as I see it, is that the author’s expectations were not in line with reality. Much of a writer’s angst can be avoided by understanding the process and modifying their expectations to match.

Therefore my encouragement for you is to learn how to wait. Some scientists even claim that it might be good for you (click here for the article). It is to your benefit to accept the nature of this process and embrace the agony of waiting. Anticipating the result can be as fulfilling as holding the finished product.

[A version of this post first ran in 2011.]

Leave a Comment
Category: Book Business, Contracts, Get Published, Indie, Marketing, Steve, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Agents, Book Business, Contracts, Editors, Get Published, Marketing, Traditional Publishing

The Writer’s STEP

By Karen Ballon November 30, 2016
Share
Tweet
23

As some of you know, I have asthma. As does one of my very best friends. And you know what these two…ahem…”seasoned” asthmatics love to do? Hike! Yup. We plod along, coughing and wheezing and laughing (or, to be more accurate, gasping) about how they’ll find our poor deceased selves on the path, but that’s okay, because at least we went out doing what we love. I realize that people who don’t know …

Read moreThe Writer’s STEP
Category: Career, Encouragement, Faith, Get Published, Inspiration, The Writing LifeTag: Encouragement, Faith, The Writing Life

Deadlines…A Date With Destiny

By Dan Balowon November 29, 2016
Share
Tweet
11

We need to create some new English words to describe certain things. For instance, I do not like the fact that people who handle money for others are called “brokers.” I also dislike the term “deadline” as it indicates something negative will occur at a certain date or time. Maybe it is why some or most people are fearful of deadlines. I do not like a “line of death.” Even “target date” has a …

Read moreDeadlines…A Date With Destiny
Category: Contracts, Editing, The Writing LifeTag: Deadlines, The Writing Life

Who are the Major Retail Outlets for CBA Books?

By Steve Laubeon November 28, 2016
Share
Tweet
13

[This post had to be updated and revised in March 2017 and again in August 2019 due to numerous changes in the industry.] The question came up recently asking which retail store is the most important to a CBA publisher for selling print editions of their books? And to which store are the most books sold? CBA is a label to describe the Christian book market. It used to be an acronym for Christian …

Read moreWho are the Major Retail Outlets for CBA Books?
Category: Book Business, Book Business, Book Sales, Economics, Marketing, Publishing History, The Publishing Life, The Writing Life

Lessons from a Crab

By Karen Ballon November 16, 2016
Share
Tweet
23

No, the title isn’t talking about a grouchy person. It’s about a real, live crab. One that I encountered one day on the Oregon coast as I walked along the beach. It was early morning, with the rising sun streaming across the vast water, the glory of the sunrise reflected in the wet sand. I’d gotten a little to close to the surf as it came in, and since I hadn’t rolled up my pants legs, I had to …

Read moreLessons from a Crab
Category: The Writing Life, TheologyTag: The Writing Life, Theology

How Do You See God?

By Karen Ballon November 9, 2016
Share
Tweet
14

I love going to the Oregon coast. love the power and beauty and sense of God’s creative genius that surrounds me when I’m there.  Ever since I was little, I’ve looked on the ocean as a friend, even played tag with the water as it came in, daring it to wash over my bare feet, running when it got close, laughing when it caught me. (Yes, I still do this.) Recently, though, while at the coast, I was …

Read moreHow Do You See God?
Category: The Writing Life, TheologyTag: Faith, The Writing Life, Theology

Writing from Weakness

By Dan Balowon November 8, 2016
Share
Tweet
31

I believe some of the most powerful books ever written by Christians will be published in the coming years. Why? Despite our best efforts, Christians failed to transform culture through the ballot box, boycotts, ministry/church programs and use of the media. Worldwide, Christians are not a moral majority but an imperfect minority. All the seminars, books, and evangelistic meetings did not make the …

Read moreWriting from Weakness
Category: Agency, Book Business, Encouragement, Faith, The Writing LifeTag: Encouragement, Faith, Theology

Waiting for Perfect

By Karen Ballon November 2, 2016
Share
Tweet
24

Recently a friend and I walked on a beach in Oregon. All around us were countless treasures the tide had brought in and deposited in the sand. Rocks, shells, driftwood…so many  beautiful, intriguing items to pick up and examine. I’ve always been a gatherer when I’m on the beach, collecting items to take home and put in my garden, remembrances of my visits. But my friend? She picked up as many …

Read moreWaiting for Perfect
Category: The Writing LifeTag: The Writing Life

How Long Should You Wait for an Answer?

By Steve Laubeon October 31, 2016
Share
Tweet
50

You have sent your project to an editor or an agent. Their guidelines state “We will respond within 6-8 weeks.” Do you mark your calendar on day 56 and send that person a query the minute the deadline passed? This past week one of my clients set a personal record for waiting. She was contacted by a magazine asking to publish a poem she submitted…in 1990. You read that right. …

Read moreHow Long Should You Wait for an Answer?
Category: Agents, Book Proposals, Pitching, The Writing LifeTag: Agents, book proposals

Announcing “The Christian Writers Institute”

By Steve Laubeon October 24, 2016
Share
Tweet
47

I am very excited to announce the launch of The Christian Writers Institute! Come visit at www.christianwritersinstitute.com. Over three years ago I began thinking of the need for a place where writers could find the best teachers all in one spot. The idea percolated for awhile until this year when its development began in earnest. It is great to see it finally become a reality. This new online …

Read moreAnnouncing “The Christian Writers Institute”
Category: Book Proposals, Career, Christian Writers Institute, Conferences, Craft, Creativity, Editing, Get Published, Grammar, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Christian Writers Institute, education, writers conferences, Writing Craft
  • Previous
  • Page 1
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 79
  • Page 80
  • Page 81
  • Page 82
  • Page 83
  • Interim pages omitted …
  • Page 85
  • Next
  • Home
  • About
    • Who We Are
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Interview with Steve Laube
    • Statement of Faith
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
  • Guidelines
  • Authors
    • Who We Represent
    • Awards and Recognition
  • Resources
    • Recommended Reading
    • Christian Writers Market Guide Online
    • Christian Writers Institute
    • Writers Conferences
    • Freelance Editorial Services
    • Copyright Resources
    • Research Tools
    • Selling What You Write
  • Blog
  • Contact

Copyright © 2025 · The Steve Laube Agency · All Rights Reserved · Website by Stormhill Media