In 1992 I wrote a political thriller called Kiss of the Assassin. One of its subplot
centres around the Soviet Union's involvement in the Vietnam War and later the
union's eventual collapse.
After months of
research, years of editing, six workshops, revisions, and help with my query
letter, I submitted to every agent/publisher in my genre. The response back was
the same, “Sorry, no one's interested in Vietnam.”
This year, because of a
renewed interested in the War, I pulled Kiss from the
shelf and subbed a few chapters to my online writer's group.
Footnote: In the 90s
if you told me what company you served with in Vietnam, I could estimate where
you were and what major incidents you may have encountered during your tour.
Twenty years has passed
since I began Kiss, fifteen years since I set it aside. Why
couldn’t I, considering the initial response of my writer’s group, do a quick
proofread and start querying?
Because...
One of my beta readers
read an article recently first published in 2006 by a Russian defector on the
killing methods of the KGB. While my research on the Soviet Union was thorough in the 90s, that article alone proved I no longer had command of my subject
matter.
Information revealed in the article stated that the KGB
assassins used undetectable radioactive compounds that mimicked cancer and
killed within days. My assassin in Kiss of the Assassin uses an empty syringe. This is not a huge blunder by itself, but coupled with the
two other inconsistencies he found would have shattered my credibility as a
writer.
After two published
novels, a collaboration, a silver medal for my 2nd novel, I know I
can write. But had I sent out this manuscript without fixing the inaccuracies,
I would have either ruined my chances of finding a publisher or proven I
was an unreliable storyteller.
Before assuming your
edited, critiqued, revised manuscript (no matter how young) is ready
to submit, always, always, always seek the help of beta readers you trust; or better, if you can afford it, hire a professional fiction editor.
Don't allow even the
smallest of novice mistakes to ruin your chances. Never submit your manuscript too soon.
Happy Writing!
