Dear Mr. McGuire,
Thank you for your submission to House of Anansi Press. Anansi has been experiencing a severe backlog in submissions that has resulted in very long delays. We apologize for the wait.
After careful consideration and considerable review, our editorial board has decided that, although you demonstrate writing potential, Blind Spot does not suit our current list. Please feel free to submit again if you have another manuscript for us to consider. We wish you all the best in finding a suitable publisher for your work.
I sent Anansi a query (standard cover letter and 30 page sample of the novel) in September 2005 (two years ago). They responded to the query asking for the full manuscript in October 2006 (one year ago). And this arrived a year later. To recap: submitted the novel 2 years ago, finally got rejection today.
Question: is this a standard form letter or is it encouraging. I *think* it’s just a form letter, though I might call them to ask.
This is the last response I was expecting, so now I can go ahead with my plans to publish Blind Spot online, (free audio, free bloggy-text, free pdf, and bound copies from lulu.com for anyone who actually wants to buy it). Stay tuned for news.
And I have started editing Novel Number Two … it’s coming along well. Hope to have it in shape by the end of December.
Admirable perseverance! Have my first novel shut down by all publishers would be quite a blow to my (admittedly delicate) self-confidence.
So kudos to you for forging on with novel #2!
Look fwd to seeing Blind Spot online..