Say Thank You

I read an article in a newsletter for childrens' writers this morning titled "What I've Learned Along My Path To Publication." ( http://www.institutechildrenslit.com/rx/ws03/whatlearned.shtml ) The long title almost put me off, but I read the tips this published writer listed. There was only one that jumped out at me as something new to me, something I'd not considered before.

Suzan Wiener, author of the article, recommends sending a thank you note to any editor who publishes your work. Her theory is that the editor will more likely remember those who do so and, later on, if she has two equally good submissions on the same subject, she's more likely to select the one from the author who had taken the time to send a thank you. She says that besides being a courteous thing to do, editors like to work with friendly writers.

Any note of this type you send to an editor should be brief and to the point, although friendly and informal. Editors are busy people, and they don't have time to read a two page outpour of your eternal gratitude or a gushing admiration of their publication. They'll spot the phoniness in a flash. Don't say anything you don't mean.

I've written some thank you notes to editors but certainly not to all who have published my work. After the awakening moment I had when reading Ms. Wiener's article, I will try to do a better job in sending my thanks to editors.