When a Yes

Becomes a No and then a Yes again

This is about the twisting fate of publishing’s ups and down and then ups and downs again:

I submitted Sun and Moon Wired Together to two publishers. Within a day of one another, they both said ‘yes’ to the 22-poem chapbook.

Honoring the first acceptance offer, I declined the second …

only to return to the second six months later - after the first publisher found she needed to trim back the scope of her efforts to literary/art journals only.

A sensible move for sure; mounting operational expenses can become too heavy. Poetry books, even those with wings, don’t just fly off the shelves.

I loved working with that publisher whose respect for my work was evident in the detailed effort she put into the cover and layout. I could tell it was really hard for her to rescind the contract.

While the collection will not bear her publishing imprint, it does carry her heartfelt wishes for its success elsewhere in the world.

At that time, I put the manuscript on ice for almost two months as I needed to focus on several other projects, including the completion of Speak Up / Speak Out, a micro-chap accepted by Four Feathers Press.

When it was time to turn my attention back to Sun and Moon Wired Together, I was unsure of how to proceed. So I decided to start at the beginning again and resubmit it to BottleCap Press.

It was wonderful to receive a welcoming, subsequent (and second) ‘yes’ from them!!!

(Side-step: originally, in lieu of this manuscript, I offered this California publisher Moon kissed, Earth wrought, Vision drunk which they quickly acquired for their library.)

Just as they did with Moon kissed, Earth wrought, Vision drunk, they worked closely with me to develop a creative cover that beautifully captured the book’s tone. And when I put them through the editing wringer twice — even after initial editing for the first publisher— they said they were glad we could make the collection as perfect as possible before presenting it to the world.

This Substack is only one of the many ways I can say both wow and thank you to both publishers who journeyed with me and this manuscript until it finally found its home.

About Sun and Moon Wired Together:

Available as both a print edition (USA and Canada) and downloadable digital elsewhere (maybe even Mars!).

ISBN: 978-1-969492-52-5 $10 print/ $3.50 digital download

To order: https://bottlecap.press/products/sunakpg