Managing Submissions

I've got myself in quite a pickle!

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Because I am very impatient and have a creative mind that NEVER shuts off I have sort of shot myself in the foot..maybe.

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Four years ago when I wrote my first book and started submitting, I got into a nasty habit of collecting only a handful of rejections before putting THAT book on hold and starting something new.

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Therefore, I have collected about 15-20 picture book manuscripts in varying degrees of completion.

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A writer-friend of mine recently told me about a friend of hers who had never written anything, never gone to a conference, never read how-tos for the children's publishing industry but she garnered herself a book deal with the VERY FIRST THING SHE HAD EVER WRITTEN!

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WHAT??!

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She simply sat down with the CWIM and started at "A" and went clear to "Z" making a list of all of those publishers whose needs fit her book. She got one call. ONE. From Walker & Co.

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Walker! "W"

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Had she stopped after "M" she would STILL be wallowing in self-pity...maybe...I would be! LOL!

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I don't give up easily - obviously - I have been at this for FOUR YEARS and counting.

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So today I decided to sit down and do the same thing. I chose my TOP 5 favorite picture books I have written and I am making a list. I am making a list in a way that I can simply cc and paste the publisher's address into my Query letter and hit PRINT....then on to the next one.

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I have also given myself specifics that I can add into my query like, looking for special needs stories, want to inspire and ignite a passion for reading, etc.

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My list looks something like this:

Helen Harriss
Freesone/Peachtree, Jr.
Peachtree Publishers
1700 Chattahoochee Avenue
Atlanta, GA 30318-2112
*animals, folktales, special needs, humor
*send full MS?
*responds to queries/mss in 6 mos
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Thomas J. Greene, Publisher
Greene Bark Press
P.O. Box 1108
Bridgeport, CT 06601-1108
*originality, imagery & color. Intention is to fire up a child’s imagination
*prefers full MS w/ illustrations
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Editor
Health Press NA, Inc.
P.O. Box 37470
Albuquerque, NM 87176-7479
*complete MS
*responds in 3 mos
*100% 1st time authors
*simult subs

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So, 37 years from now when I have made my rounds with these 5 books, I will tell you how it went!

Happy Writing!