After faffing about since 2009, I finally knuckled down and took the final stop in the novel writing process.
I wrote a query letter. It was about 250 words and it took me the better part of an entire afternoon.
And then, despite the hammering of terror in my chest, I looked at the list of prospective literary agents I’d put together and actually sent the query letter and a sample chapter to one of them. I had to force myself to hit send, but that doesn’t matter! What does matter is this; I took the big flying leap of faith on the road to publishing my novel.
I’m 100% certain I will be rejected.
But that doesn’t matter, because I finally did it. I sent it out there. It’s out there in the universe now.
In time, I’ll either get a rejection response or I’ll get no response, and I’ll move on to another potential agent. And then another. Because that’s what you do. The process will repeat, on and on, until eventually I have a published work in my hands that I can point to, admire, and feel proud about.
And maybe someone will ask me to sign a copy and I’ll feel absolutely amazing, even if that’s the only copy that I ever sell. And even if nobody ever asks me to sign it, I’m pretty sure I’ll be able to convince my local public library to buy a few copies and then I can have the surreal experience of checking my own book out of the library. And won’t that be awesome?
Yes. It will be.
Cynical Idealism 
I too just finished the excruciating process of writing my query letter and synopsis. Painful. I put together a spreadsheet of agents to submit to. Now I’m all ready once I finish up this last bit of revisions. Feel your pain but admire your tenacity. It’s how you have to think 🙂 Best of luck!
Matthew…..i know congratulations is such a trite word, but I do wish you a HUGE congratulations on getting this last step and putting yourself and your wonderful novel “out there”. I am very, very proud of you, although that is something that I have felt about you for many years. Remember your first “comic book”? I have known this day would come and once again, at the risk of repeating myself…..CONGRATULATIONS!!!!
It might be a trite piece of advice from a silly self-help book, but remember that every failure is a step on the road to success, while inaction is a step not taken at all. Keep moving forward!
Very cool – congrats! To quote a wise old man, you’ve taken your first step into a larger world. Good luck!
Nice post. Anybody reading it can relate. If I could use I’ll my rejection letters for toilet paper, It’d take months to run out. So keep it up!