The Waiting Game

What do you do while you are waiting for THE letter? What letter, you ask, puzzled by the ambiguity of the question? Well where writers are concerned there is only one letter. The one from the publisher to whom you have submitted your opus.

Will it be yes or no? Will it be a positive no. A positive no, do I hear you scream? Well yes, there is a positive no. There is the kind of no that explains why this time around they won't be buying, however they think you have potential. You can submit more to them, they would be really interested in seeing other stories. That is a positive no.

Of course the most horrid no is the one that just has a printed slip. "The Editor regrets..." This is a miserable thing to receive, I guess I could paper a small bedroom with those - did I say small bedroom? I am just trying to save my blushes, I could probably paper the Taj Mahal if I had a mind to.

The sweetest of all is the YES letter. Oh, the thrill of it, the beat of your heart, the joy that sings through you when you receive that approval. There is nothing sweeter apart from falling in love! Yes, folks, I would put it up there with that.

Here I intend to indulge myself with some good news. Last week I received a yes from my British publisher. It was a record for me - they had the novel on their desk for just three days before letting me know they were going to publish. I have in the past waited anything from six weeks to eighteen months, so that takes some beating. It was as sweet as the champagne that John and I quaffed later that day!

Cheerio,

Margaret