A Publisher's Conversations with Authors: The Pros and Cons of Multiple Submissions
It is Tuesday. Time to tall turkey. Monday's madness is over, and Wednesday will take us over the hump, so Tuesday it is--for some serious discussion with authors. Tuesday talks mean to address authors in waiting and self-published authors who would like to go a more traditional route or who would at least like to take their steps with a publisher by their side. Today's topic is about multiple submissions. Some publishers accept; some do not. Are you required to tell? What are the advantages and disadvantages of multiple submissions? To answer the obvious question first, yes, ethically, you should tell publishers that you are making a multiple submission. Most publishers understand that authors cannot wait weeks for one publisher after another to react to their books; therefore, multiple submissions, especially for a cutting-edge book or one that might become dated, is often the most pragmatic way to go. And, of course, once a publisher accepts your book, you should immediately