How to Get to Editors

Dear Sally…

Get to editors by getting in the loop. Join the main writer’s group(s) for your category/genre, then actively monitor the group’s online forums and newsletters and attend its events. Suddenly you’ll have chances to connect with editors. At group chapter meetings, guest editors may invite attendees to submit a manuscript, bypassing their houses’ “no unsolicited submissions” policies. At group conferences, faculty editors do one-on-one critiques (for a fee). At small group workshops, faculty editors work directly with the attendees on their manuscripts. And in group newsletters, editors post alerts whenever they suspend the “no unsolicited submissions” policy (usually when they’re switching houses). Get in a loop.

Happy writing!

The Editor

11 Comments

  1. Like any job, it’s about connections. Hang around long enough, you meet people. At least I hope so. That’s my game plan. Thanks for the confirmation.

  2. I’m in a number of writers’ forums on different sites, but am obviously in the wrong ones ’cause I’ve never see anything about editors. I guess I have to dig deeper…

    • Have you tried SCBWI meetings? (Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators) The organization has a website under that name which gives names, addresses of local chapters in near every state and many foreign countries.

  3. Yes, conferences are an excellent way to get an editor’s attention! Also, another way to get past the No Unsolicited Submissions dilemma is to get an agent. That’s what I did. 🙂

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