CONFESSIONS OF AN ACQUISITIONS EDITOR

Acquisitions Editor.

The very word conjures up visions of a crone with a pack of generic rejection notices and a paper shredder, gleefully destroying every authors' dream of publication.

Well, here's me in my comfy bathrobe, going through queries and always on the lookout for something new and exciting.

When my current publisher was backed up by the onslaught of query letters, I volunteered to lend a hand. Not that I knew anything about acquisitions (is there a training manual somewhere?) but I know what I like to read. I've also studied the market and have an idea of what sells.

I love all the letters I receive. Some are funny, some show nervousness, all are hopeful. But, here's where I go off the beaten path of query letter/synopsis/outline.

When I open e-mails, the first thing I look for is genre and word count. I work for a house that is strong in genre fiction. Our word count doesn't exceed 85,000. This is the only way to make books cost effective, for both the buyer and the publisher. While mainstream publishers push the idea that BIGGER is BETTER is a BLOCKBUSTER is a BESTSELLER, we have more realistic expectations. Sometimes the best novels come in small (55,000 words) packages.

I know all the writing books stress that the query letter is “The most important letter you'll ever write.” Really? How about the letter to the IRS explaining that strange tax deduction? To Santa for a new computer? To Match.com to complain about bad hook-ups?

To be honest, I don't initially read the query letter. Blasphemy!

Instead, the first thing I do is Google the writer's name. I'm expecting to see at least a website. I'm hoping for many more hits. How active is the potential author on the Internet? Does this person blog? Have they joined any professional/social sites other than Face Book? What has this person been doing to foster their career goals?

Because it's not just about the writing anymore. My mantra: marketing starts the minute you decide you're a writer. Waiting until the novel is finished puts you behind the pack. Name recognition is key. Why would anyone in the writing field want to withhold words, to refuse the reading public a sample of their “voice?”

I doubt if the big houses bother to investigate. I wonder if they even look at their slush pile before sending rejection notices. Although the expectation is that a big house will supply an endless marketing budget for the book of an unknown author, that's not going to happen unless your name is Paris Hilton or Prince Charles. Marketing has become the responsibility of the author.

Although this might not seem “fair” to authors, the notion that a well-written novel deserves publication and will sell itself is a pipe dream these days. Competition is stiff and only the savvy author survives. If I have to decide between a blockbuster novel by an author who contemptuously believes he/she is above marketing and good book by an enthusiastic promoter, I'm going to go with the latter. That's the author who will sell books and make a profit for the house. And, like it or not, publishers do not publish pro bono. Profit is always the bottom line.