What I Did After Receiving My Unagented Book Deal Offer
Going the small press route as a new author has a learning curve. Here's what's worked for me.
We love a writing journey!
And every stage is. a. journey.
When I sent out 185 queries and small press submissions, all I needed was One Right Yes. And, ultimately, I received that Yes from Quills and Cosmos Press, bringing my debut onto the small press track for publication in 2026. (Hurrah!)
Writing groups and chats tend to have similar questions when it comes to authors deciding to go small press—I know I had so many!
So, writing friends, here’s what worked for me in this particular instance.
I Have a Publishing Offer—Now What?
I started querying THE KEEPERS, for real1, in August 2024, sending out aforementioned huge volumes of outreach in the pursuit of literary representation. I’d been hitting refresh for so long on my inbox, waiting for the email that would change my life to come in… and then, one mid-April day, it did.
Thrilling! I laughed, I cried, I danced; in short, I confused my cats.
But then what?
Panic.
Before The Call
Let’s take a step back, to when the offer becomes a formal, tangible thing. It moves from submission forms to emails to speaking to another human. (Gasp!)
The Call. Such a lauded event that those in the Query Trenches capitalize it. The Call is the moment when you speak to a literary champion extending an offer. It’s a whole event.
The email that came in made clear, in my case, that this was indeed an offer.
Dear Sarah,
I hope this letter finds you well. I’m thrilled to inform you that Quills and Cosmos Press is very interested in publishing your novel, THE KEEPERS. The unique narrative and compelling characters have truly captured my imagination, and I believe this story will resonate with many readers.
That was a huge relief: I knew what to expect going into The Call!
But also, I’d never done this before, and I had no idea what to expect going into The Call.
I received the offer email on a Wednesday, and we set The Call for that Friday. In those two days pre-conversation, I had a lot to do.
Involved in all the research from my querying foundation work, tucked away with shreds of hope and dignity, were resources about questions to ask on The Call.
I gathered these, asked my agented friends in writerly spaces about their questions, and set up a Google Docs page with Q&A space for each of my questions where I could record responses from the publisher as we spoke.
Next, I studied my lists of outstanding queries/submissions, as well as of agents/submissions I’d wanted to send but hadn’t been open, to ascertain:
Had any opened? (No.)
Were there any other queries/submissions I wanted to send out before The Call, before etiquette declared that sending more would be uncouth? (No.)
Of the queries/submissions out in the wild yet, which would I be nudging? (All of them, I have no chill.)
Doc ready with a blinking cursor, freshly showered and caffeinated, I was ready for The Call. As ready as one can be, anyway, when speaking with someone extending an offer that could change one’s life2.
The Two-Week Wait
On The Call, I spoke with the publisher, learned more about the offer, the contract, the company, the books-in-progress—then I asked for two weeks to make my decision.
That two weeks is industry standard after offers. Perhaps it’s different for some in the small press world, but is standard for literary agents; because I still had several fulls out with agents, I wanted to ensure I played by the rules of this game.
Upon hanging up from that very memorable first Zoom, on day one of the offer period, I had a few immediate courses of action:
Nudge every agent who had my partial or full manuscript for consideration
Nudge outstanding queries, too, just in case
Apply for membership to the Authors Guild
Reach out to signed authors to learn about their experiences
All of that was surreal, the to-do list I’d been waiting to make and execute.
Nudging
I’ve mentioned it before, but let’s reiterate that, unlike other How I Got My Agent (Publisher) posts, my journey included zero additional positive responses. Polite declines or ongoing silence came in from every side.
My favorite was a “regretful step-aside” from an agent who’d had my full for eight months. She stepped aside 20 minutes after I sent the offer nudge.
My least favorite was closing with no response an agent who’d sent the most enthusiastic and personal request for my full, then never responded in the end.
It was a weird time, closing every3 open query and submission.
Contract Review
The single biggest piece of advice I took to heart in my research period was always have a professional look over any legal document before you sign it. This was followed by the additional wisdom that not every lawyer, even if they’re a contract lawyer, is familiar with publishing contracts.
To me, that left one clear path: Joining the Authors Guild.
My membership was approved a few days after applying (which was so cool) and within ten minutes of official membership, I sent the contract to one of the brilliant services the Authors Guild offers, through which members can receive free legal advice.
The Guild noted that response to contract review would be about one-two weeks; I received full and clear notes in six days.
10/10, very highly recommend. The AG reviews any publishing contract, from agents/agencies and from publishers.
I’ll be real in that sending contract notes back to the publisher was probably the most nervous I was during the whole process. The AG’s notes were thoughtful and thorough, as well as annotated with specifics where publishers were likely to push back or disagree. I am not the most confrontational person to put it lightly and my head was basically an Instagram Reel set to the tune of Doechii’s “Anxiety.”
Unsurprisingly, the publisher responded thoughtfully and thoroughly herself, and my anxieties were unfounded on that front.
The Other Authors
This was a big one for me in terms of determining if this yes was my One Right Yes; I liked what I’d read, I loved what I’d heard, and I’d done as much fact-finding as I could on my own.
But lived experience is priceless.
I asked the publisher to get me into contact with other signed authors. Keeping in mind my offer is from a new and small press, I emailed with the first two authors to have signed, whose books will be coming into the world in 2025.
Both were brilliant, honest conversations that ultimately encouraged me to sign, and to feel like I was doing so with full awareness of the choice I was making.
ALSO as a bonus, now I have contact with others in the same publishing house—my new favorite kind of network to build.
Bonus note: Arlo Zven Graves’ The Ice Moves for No One releases June 17th and I cannot wait to buy a copy! The limited edition hardcover will also be on Kickstarter soon.
Signing
I have no chill. I do not play it cool.
I wear my heart on my sleeve, and I mean that very literally. I tattooed my witches’ mark from my book that publishes a year from now… a year ago already, before I knew any of this.
No chill at all.
So I did not leave my new publisher wondering where things stood, especially as I closed the rest of the doors I’d nudged open to peek through; they weren’t for me. This one was.
I had requested another Zoom on deadline day, two weeks after our original Call, and very un-chill-ly signed and returned the eDoc contract to Q&C before we Zoomed.
After Signing
The post-offer, pre-signing period was nerve-wracking and still filled with uncertainty.
After I signed, the initial feelings were delight (I have a book deal, a REAL book deal!) and relief. Also more panic (this is real and real people will read my books).
Immediately After Signing
While my husband popped the Veuve Clicquot I’d requested for Signing Day, Quills and Cosmos announced me as their fifth signed author.
Because a small press is agile, the same-day announcement helped No-Chill Sarah to drop the ~vague~ social media front and celebrate aloud—which was very cool.
One of the best pieces of advice that I received, and followed, should be intuitive but somehow isn’t always:
Celebrate with everyone in your life.
Those who understand—for me, that inner circle is my spouse, who gets every detail whether he wants it or not, as well as my writing friends and group chat. Sharing my signing champagne with a few of the incredible authors in my querying group chat was a complete highlight, not least because we got to see each other’s faces and hear each other’s voices!
Those who don’t get it but love you—family! Friends! Folk from normie life, the ones who’ve spent every holiday asking if there’s any news yet about that book you’ve been writing and don’t know the chaos and despair of traditional publication. Now that there is news (!!!!!!!!) they want to cheer with you! And then you get to smile patiently again because the book won’t be immediately available for them.
The Real Work Begins
And then—the real work of this book business begins.
Hahahahaha it’s already been insane but it’s still only the start!
Like being cast for a role after brutal rounds of auditions and callbacks, the real work is in the rehearsal process ahead of performance time.
Later this summer, I’ll be diving into developmental edits. Rounds of them, polishing this book into its best shape—working with my publisher. Then more edits, including copy and line, well ahead of proofs. Let’s not forget later on the fun bits of cover art (and again rejoicing in the strong no-AI clause in my contract!) and all the rest.
Eventually it’ll be time to do absolutely wild things like actually publish, and have a launch party and a marketing plan, and do conventions and events and signings and—
And reveling in a world I’ve created getting into readers’ hands, out in the world.
-Sarah
I unsuccessfully queried an earlier version of THE KEEPERS in November 2023, before engaging an editor and completely restructuring the entire book.
This is not hyperbolic; publishing a book is A Big Deal. Finding someone to do it with, the right someone, is partnering to make a dream come true. It’s work, and a lot of it, but let’s not lose sight of The Dream.
I did all I could to close all of them; I received a small press rejection four weeks after signing my publishing contract, despite having emailed to withdraw. We do what we can.
This put the biggest smile on my face for you! (And had me taking diligent notes 👀) Thank you for sharing your joy and your process 🫶🏻
This is the first and only post I've read of yours, and I just want to say your joy, giddiness, and enthusiasm absolutely shine through your words. Congratulations so much on your book deal (!) and all the best with all the real work ahead!