Writing tips. publishing

Why Won’t Publishers Publish my Novel?

Getting published is like pushing a piano through quicksand, blindfolded.

ChatGPT-generated image for the author Jim Parsons

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You’ve been told the answer is you need a literary agent, right? That is the only way to get publishers to take notice, yes?

So, let’s add the cry: ‘Why won’t literary agents accept my novel?

I will at least remove that blindfold for you, even if you choose to keep your shoulder to the piano.

It’s not you!

Could I perhaps ease the pain of rejection by using a familiar trope for when a relationship isn’t working: ‘It’s not you, it’s me.’

You see, I understand you have worked hard for months, perhaps years, to perfect what you believe is a great, perhaps unique, novel.

You have had beta readers criticize it to death and have responded slavishly to resurrect it using their suggestions; you have edited and re-edited, as good little authors should — in short, you have tried damned hard to make this work, and still the agents are giving you the silent treatment or that crisp little ‘Not what we’re looking for’ message.

What more can you do?

Could you do any more? The simple answer is no. Stop fretting. It’s not you. It has nothing to do with the quality of your work.

When you offer your book for publication or to an agent to assist you in that endeavor, you are not engaging in a battle for recognition of worth; you are engaging in a lottery. Sure, the lottery has a few entry conditions such as ‘book must be a great read and well-edited’, but chance is still the main factor in this lottery.

Let’s look at the conditions all ticket holders face.

The statistics of publishing

Two to four million new books are published each year, including self-published volumes, and the smaller prize pool you wish to enter for, those books published by a traditional publisher, still represents 500,000 to 600,000 volumes.

So, dear aspiring author, you want your amazing, unique bestseller to be one of those 600,000… am I right?

Can you imagine how much dross, how many wads of paper from the slush pile, the average publisher must wade through to arrive at the very best 600,000?

It is obvious why top publishers rely heavily on the opinion of trusted literary agents to do a lot of that first reading for them and present them with a select few that the savvy agents believe have a chance.

Why won’t publishers publish my novel?

Now why are publishers so choosy? Why won’t they just toss a few books out there by struggling new writers to see how they go? Show a bit of humanity and kindness to the poor and earnest?

They will not ‘give you a break’, because publishing houses are businesses, not not-for-profit charities.

Be realistic! Each publisher has a limited number of manuscripts that can be converted to books over a year with the staff and resources available to them.

Even a major publisher with a large staff and plenty of working capital can only manage a thousand or two. Small indie publishers might produce 5 to 20 novels for the year. Whether an elephant or mouse in the industry, each publisher knows manuscript choice is a gamble. Each publisher must ask: Will this selection of books pay my staff and bills for the year and leave me with sufficient profit to make it worth my while to stay in business?

When you hear about a book flopping, the author’s ego may be bruised, but it is the publisher’s pocket that is battered.

I am sure this is self-evident to most readers, but some aspiring writers still seem to believe it should be about the value of art, not mere money.

The decisions publishers must make

Publishers know better. Books are their bread and butter, so they need to assess manuscripts carefully. They will look at buying trends, asking whether there are now enough novels out there about mutant Ninja werewolves or will one more still sell.

They will look at your unique novel about a homeless man and his faithful dog saving the planet, realize they have recently bought a manuscript with a very similar plot to release in April, so, not wanting their two books to compete, they reject yours because they consider the other one the ‘uniquer’ of the two — sorry.

Then the big decision crunch… your novel reveals itself as a ground-breaking, fabulously written, surefire winner, maybe a bestseller… but you are unknown and a lot of marketing work and dollars would be needed to get your book known.

Meanwhile, the manuscript for the tenth poorly written stereotypical novel by a big-name bestselling author they represent is also on their table for July. They know it is rubbish, but the author’s established fan base alone will ensure good profits. Will they risk swapping him out for the new unknown writer. Sorry — your manuscript is not what we are looking for.

The role of literary agents

Let’s move on to the literary agents that keep refusing to represent your work.

How does a literary agent make his or her income? Unless they are shonky and charge you a fee (not real agents at all, then), an agent will only get a return for work when your book is sold to a publisher and is earning you an income. They get a percentage.

The books they select to send out to their list of publishers must have a good chance of selling and earning them that income.

Hey, here’s a thought: why not send out thousands of manuscripts on the understanding that, among them, one or two will do the trick?

The answer is simple. As I said earlier: publishers trust particular agents to choose wisely for them and save them a lot of pointless reading. If an agent were to start sending mountains of crap manuscripts, they would quickly be dumped and no longer trusted by the publishing community. In the symbiotic relationship between publisher and agent establishing and maintaining a reputation is paramount.

Why bother with getting published?

Do I mean to discourage you?

Um… yes. If your only reason for writing is to be published and … ha ha ha … make a million or two, then give up. There are easier businesses to succeed in.

But is writing just a business venture?

If writing is like breathing to you — you would die without it — then keep going. How could anything I have written possibly discourage you?

Putting words together creates a peculiar joy that quite a few of us feel. Getting published is a secondary and minor bonus to the pleasure of writing THE END on a page, while ideas for another plot are already swirling in our head.

Write with love, for love.

Jim Parsons is an Australian author and novel-writing mentor.