Where Do Your Manuscripts Go? (And Other Fun Facts)

Every day, aspiring writers mail their manuscripts to us here at Peachtree Publishers. Many wonder where exactly they go and why it takes months to hear a response. I'm here to tell you. 


Step 1: Our fabulous USPS carrier brings us big bins filled with mail. 
Step 2: The mail is sorted and manuscript submissions are put to the side.
Step 3: Manuscripts are then stamped with the date they were received and placed in a bin.
Step 4: All manuscripts are moved to the back of the office and filed with the other submissions.
Step 5: Oldest manuscripts are read first. Several months' worth of submissions are in front of the newest arrivals.
Step 6: Each manuscript is carefully read and considered. Promising manuscripts are passed on to a senior editor, while manuscripts that won't work for us are sent back with rejection letters, as long as a self addressed stamped envelope (SASE) is included. If no envelope is received, the manuscript is recycled.
Step 7: Once a letter has been sent, every manuscript is logged with the author's name and title info.

It is important to keep in mind that getting a rejection letter from a Publisher doesn't necessarily mean that you are a bad writer, or that your story isn't any good. Sometimes a story doesn't appeal to the editor that reads your manuscript, or simply isn't a good fit for a publisher. It is important to look at a publisher's catalog before sending in a submission to see if your story relates to others on their list. I often tell writers to look up publishers in Writers Market and read submission guidelines before submitting. Knowing who you are sending your story to is very important. For example, we sometimes get submissions for Southern adult fiction because Peachtree originally published in that genre. If writers had taken the extra step and read our guidelines, they would know that we publish children's picture books, middle grade, and young adult books now. In the time it takes us to respond and mail your manuscript back, you could have sent it to a more appropriate publisher.


A few more tips:
Do you have more questions? Leave a comment and I will answer to the best of my abilities. Keep an eye out for future posts as well, where I will explain about cover letters, acquisitions processes and anything else publishing related I can think of!




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