Make a pop up submission, without a finished manuscript?

[Robert M Derry]

Hi!

I'm new here and I'm finalizing my first novel; Virtual Dreams. I've completed three drafts of it so far and I've now moved onto to a distillation process to cut down all my excess sentences, double adjectives and the like. I really like the look of the pop-up submissions format and I think it might be useful to give me a steer on my opening. I've already cut it down and I think I'm onto a winner, but I'm not sure. I'd really like to make a pop up submission to get a feel as to whether I've got something good, but on the rare chance that I need to follow it up with a full manuscript, I won't have anything ready to submit. Should I submit and if I'm lucky, just say I'll have something in a couple of months? Or get the manuscript finished and submit then, but risk wasting a couple of months on the wrong changes or what might be a bad concept?

Thoughts?

 

[Katie-Ellen]

I'd say not to worry about that, and go for it, and get that feedback on your opening earlier rather than later Think really carefully about the blurb too. Good luck with it, whatever you decide to do.

 

[Sea-shore]

Hiya, I'd second @Katie-Ellen Hazeldine 's comment and say go for it. Peter has said himself, Pop-up submissions are good for sounding things out. Good luck!

 

[Paul V]

Hi Robert. As you'll probably already know, the submitting process, whether to Pop-up or literary agents, is certainly not a quick one! So I think you have plenty of time to review your manuscript. Personally, even if you think your work is ready to go, I'd watch several past Pop-up submissions (and tonights of course) and then look again at your manuscript; I wish I had! We all know how important it is to grab the reader within a few pages but actually seeing the review process and hearing how crucial those opening few paragraphs really are, especially to an agent, was a real eye-opener for me. So much so that if possible, I'll be re-submitting my own submission to Pop-up.

 

[Robert M Derry]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I've made a submission, so hopefully it'll air next week and I can see what kind of feedback I get!

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Keep working on it. It may not air for a few weeks, Robert, hence the sooner you sub the better. The line-up is looking pretty much in place until Pop-Ups stop for Christmas. Meantime, poke about, join in a bit, and you'll get access if you don't have it yet, and you probably don't....you haven't yet posted often enough....to the Writer's feedback forum.