Why It Is a Bad Idea for Publishers Not to Correspond with Authors Who Submit Manuscripts
As a former editor of Primavera, a literary journal, I understand how time-consuming it is to correspond with authors who submit manuscripts. I spent a lot of time writing detailed personal letters to authors before e-mail was widespread. I even got thank-you letters for my rejection notes because writers are eager to get specific feedback.
Recently, many book publishers have told authors that writers will receive a response within six months only if the editors are interested in publishing a manuscript or seeing some work from the author. I find this new policy confusing. (more…)