Monday, July 12, 2010

The rules and whether or not to bend them

I recently submitted my first novel to a writing competition. The competition rules specify that the novel should not currently be under consideration by other publishers, or sent to other publishers pending the outcome of the competition. They do not mention agents. Should I wait for the outcome of the competition before approaching an agent about the manuscript, or would it be okay to begin approaching agents now?

I was convinced I'd answered this question, but apparently not ... Apologies to the person who sent it in as it's taken exactly a month for me to answer!

You could, technically, send the manuscript to agents but then what will an agent do if she wants to take it on? She can't send it anywhere until the competition outcome is announced. And if you win the competition, then she can't send your manuscript anywhere anyway, nor can she do much for you, as the conditions of your entry into the competition were no doubt set in stone and there's no room to negotiate them. Conclusion: wait until you find out what happens.

1 comment:

Ivan Pope said...

Pesonally, I think this response is little short of insane.
What are your chances of winning this competition? And if you do win, what are the likely results?
If you approach an agent now, how long would it be before you hear back? How long before you find someone to take you on? How long before you sign a contract? How long before they start to submit your novel?
And when does the competition end precisely?
Personally, I'd regard having an agent as somewhat better value than the theoretical chance of winning a competition. I'd say query, query and query again - worry about the competition if push comes to shove.