What not to do if you want to be published

If you are thinking of submitting a manuscript to a publisher or agent you really should read this list of 29 DON’Ts from Carole Blake of the Blake Friedmann Literary Agency .

Here’s number ONE.

1. No gimmicks. Don’t send food, flowers – or anything else. Food goes straight into the bin … just in case. I’ve read lots of crime fiction.

I once received a large parcel that weighed almost nothing. Inside was a rubbish bin and a letter saying the writer assumed the submission would end up there so was sending me one to speed up the process. The partial for a crime novel that was attached looked rather good. I left the bin, letter & ms on my desk. Next morning our office cleaner had removed the contents and put the rubbish bin neatly next to my desk. There was no way to contact the author despite a story on our website and some tweets … That was the end of that.

And I suspect a lot of folk might wince at Number 13

13. Don’t have a silly email address. I recently had a submission from someone whose email address was ‘blahblah’. And don’t share an email address with your spouse. This is business correspondence: you need to look professional. Your own email address costs nothing.

Read the other 27 on Bang2Write website for screenwriters and novelists.

photo credit: Recycled Poetry via photopin (license)