Ten Tips to Impress an Acquisitions Editor
August 24, 2009 by Lillie
Writers who are submitting work to magazine or book publishers want to make a good impression from the first contact. These ten tips will help you do just that.
- Target the market—make sure your work is a good fit with the publisher.
- Know the editor—verify her name and spell it correctly.
- Follow submission guidelines—your work may not even be reviewed if you don’t.
- When in doubt, find out—ask questions rather than do it wrong.
- Take your cue from the editor on formality and style—be businesslike and formal until the editor responds less formally.
- Tailor your pitch to the publication—let the editor know you are familiar with the magazine or book imprint.
- Respect the editor’s time—don’t expect them to chit-chat on the phone.
- Follow-up only after the response time has passed—response times are published to let you know how long to expect to wait to hear from the editor.
- Say thanks—everyone likes to be appreciated.
- Remember, editors are people too!
Taking into account the large number of people who want to publish their work, to impress an editor to choose you is a difficult task. Your advices can help – Thanks.
Irene,
I hope they help. They are really quite basic, but so often writers forget the basics in the excitement of submitting to an editor.
It’s true – some tips are basic, but often these are exactly the things that people forget.
Thanks Lillie
Morro (if you wrote Your Name @ Morro de Sao Paolo, I coul address you as a real person instead of what appears to be a place, and you would still get your keyword link),
I wasn’t sure if the tips were too basic, but as you say, those are the things people often forget.
The most important is to ensure you follow submission guidelines. Above all, persistence and patience do pay off. Thanks
Ventrilo (if you wrote Your Name @ Ventrilo, I could address you as a real person instead of a keyword, and you would still get your keyword link),
Writers sometimes think publishers will make an exception for them, but publishers generally follow their policies and rules and expect writers to as well.
That’s good advice!
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Bluestocking,
Thanks!
And to hit the point home on #9, a hand-written thank you note makes all of the difference.
Rick,
That’s a very good point. A hand-written note is rare and takes a little more time so is even more appreciated.
These are some very practical tips to getting yourself and your work noticed in a very respectful way. In reviewing your tips, it became clear to me that these rules are very transferable to many businesses. You could almost substitute the word “client” for “editor” in many cases and it would be just as applicable.
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Blane,
Good point. These are really just tips for common courtesy and smooth interaction.
I agree about following submission guidelines because that is a very common mistake to make. They will disregard your work if you do not follow all of their guidelines, so it would be a waste!
C,
You’re right—not following the guidelines is a very common mistake and wastes a lot of time for writers whose work isn’t considered and editors who could be reviewing submissions that did follow the guidelines.
Yeah, we should try to be genuine, humble and easy-going, when we’re meeting the editor for the first time. Remember, try not to “selling out” ourselves too obviously, as some of the editors didn’t love this type of person!
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wilson,
Yes, we need to be respectful of the editor but also confident of ourselves.
Your ten tips to impress the acquisitions editor is truly helpful. How would I make a follow up? Would it be better if I send an email or make a phone call? Or, it is okay if I just send a text message?
Christopher,
Generally you would follow-up the same way you made the original submission, which would depend on what the publisher prefers. If you e-mailed the submission, an e-mail follow-up is appropriate. If you snail mailed the submission, follow-up by letter. I would not phone or text the editor in any case.
You are absolutely right. we must discuss on doubts rather than do it wrong
Dj,
It would be a shame for a writer to miss out on a gig because they did something wrong that could have been prevented by a simple question.
This is a wonderful piece of information that provides excellent insights on submission guidelines. Great work and the details are to the point. I do agree with you that editors have to follow the rules and regulations before approving the writers work. Keep posting useful articles like this.
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richard,
I’m glad you found the post helpful.
Great post, Lillie! These are very good tips and can definitely help a writer make good with an Acq. Editor. I have found that adding a personal touch to the letter — such as by noting something on their Web site to show you have visited it or how much you enjoyed reading something they just published — can make a good impression on the editor.
Excellent point, Dawn. That little touch shows you’ve done your homework and are targeting that editor for a reason rather than just sending queries for every name you could fine.
Excellent tips. Many of them were totally new to me. I never bothered or knew about certain things. Sorry for being ignorant. Aspiring writers should compulsorily read your posts to excel in whatever they are doing.
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Girish,
We’re all ignorant about certain things until we have the occasion to learn those things. When I first started writing, I knew absolutely nothing. My first manuscript was an absolute disaster, but I persevered and edited it and learned more and more. It’s not what you know when you begin that matters—it’s whether you learn and get better.
These tips do good for article marketing also, or to any form of general writing. Following guidelines is one of the prominent thing we easily forget. I am sure proper reading of the guidelines, before writing or posting would ensure lots of time saved for both the writer and the editor.
Michael,
Many of us could pay more attention to following guidelines in many aspects of life, not just writing.
Its really nice of you to admit that at the begining you also made mistakes while writing.
Rahul,
Everyone makes mistakes when they first start out. None of us are born knowing how to write, though we may have natural talent. That talent, though, has to be nurtured, and we have to learn techniques and the publishing industry.
Thanks for the tips, getting yourself and your work noticed in a very respectful way should be quite easy following your guidelines. I agree with the ninth tip, everyone really likes to be appreciated. Keep posting useful articles like this.
Thank you, andy. I’m glad you found the post useful.
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