Does My Manuscript Need Help?

Getting a novel published is no small feat. Writing that first novel is a labor of love. After months or even years, it is finally done and you are ready to find a publisher. You go through the painstaking steps of researching publishers, you find a few that might be a good fit for you and you send off your manuscript.

You expect rejection. Seriously, this is your first try. Breaking into the literary world is big feat, and you haven't learned the ropes yet. After a few rounds your are more intone with what publishers are looking for. You may even make a few changes to your story here in there. None of the changes are drastic. You are still hopeful that someone will see your literary genius for what it is and pick up your book.

After a while, the rejections keep coming (which may I add isn't a huge deal...it happens to the best writers), and you may start to question if your story needs a little more work. The question is when do you break down and make those changes. Is there a point where you need to do a close assessment of your work? How much change should you look into?

Writers are always looking for ways to improve their work. Sometimes major overhauls are needed to help your story be more marketable and more appealing to publishers. It isn't a sign that you are a about writer, or that you have no hope of ever being published, it just the way the business works. Even after your book is picked up by a publisher, you may be making even more changes per their request. Your manuscript is not written in stone! A certain amount of flexibility is expected out of writers, and you will need to be able to roll with the punches.

As for making changes, I guess there are a few things to consider. I wouldn't stay up all night analyzing and critiquing your work. However, read over your material and make sure it stays fresh and unique. If you have something you want to change or add, take it for a test drive. Little changes are easy to do and undo, but big changes can be a little more cumbersome. Work with your idea, and flesh it out a bit before you slice and dice your manuscript. If you still like your idea, then make a game plan. How to you intend to merge this new information into your manuscript? Where will it fit? What will you need to get rid of? If you get rid of something, will it have an impact on the rest of the storyline (continuity issues).

Be sure to make all of your changes before you send in your next round of queries to publishers. You want to be sure to put your best foot forward! Plus you want what you submit to be true reflection of your story. This may delay your "schedule," but hopefully the wait will be worth it.