WRITING QUESTION #3

Q - How long should I wait for a response before sending my submission to a second, third, etc. publisher? Especially with timely subject matter, it seems like the waiting makes it less likely to be accepted (it will be out of date before I've worked my way through the list of possible publishers).

A - The answer is that you don't wait. With a timely subject--such as something tied to current events or even a holiday piece--you can make a simultaneous submission to all the publishers on your list (unless they say no simultaneous submissions). The important thing is that you always indicate it is a simultaneous submission. In your cover letter, just indicate that "Because of the timeliness of this issue, I am making a simultaneous submission to all interested publications, but will only sell it to one of them. I will let you know if it goes to another publisher and when reprint rights will be available if you would be interested in picking it up as a reprint later." Or something to that effect. In the case of a simultaneous submission, it is not necessary to tell the editor what other publishers you are submitting it to--since you are only going to sell first rights to it to only one of them.