You finally did it.
You polished your proposal, refined your sample chapters, prayed over every word, and hit send. Your pitch is now out of your hands and sitting in an agent’s or editors inbox. Now the waiting begins.
For many writers, this can be one of the hardest parts of the publishing journey. Once the pitch leaves your hands, you’re no longer in control of the outcome. You might begin questioning yourself and all the questions creep in:
Did they receive it?
What if they hate it?
What if I never hear back?
What if my writing isn’t good enough?
The waiting room has a way of amplifying our fears.
But what if the waiting period isn’t simply a pause between action and answer?
What if it’s part of the process?
While you’re waiting resist the temptation to refresh your inbox every fifteen minutes. Instead, of stressing out, keep writing. Start the next article, draft the next chapter, or develop the next idea. The healthiest writers are those who understand that their calling is bigger than any single pitch. They also understand that not every pitch gets accepted. Though it feels like rejection, the editor or agent is not rejecting you—they just do not think your pitch is right for them, right now.
Waiting can become a place of growth as it reveals where we’ve attached our identity. Are we only called if we receive a “yes”. Does a “no” invalidate us as a writer? Are we only valuable when we receive an offer? The waiting period invites us to anchor ourselves in something deeper.
Publishing moves slowly. Agents review submissions carefully. Editors discuss with teams. Decisions often take longer than writers expect. A delayed response is rarely a statement about the worth of your project.
So keep showing up. Whether this pitch opens a door or not, your writing journey is not on hold. The waiting room is not wasted space; it is part of the process.
I hope this helps someone in the middle of the waiting room to keep working, hold on and keep the faith.
While waiting is hard, it has been helpful for me to see the waiting season as a time of rest and preparation – and doing things that when the waiting is over you may not have time for.
Once the agent or publisher responds there will likely be more work, and more demands. Change this, rework that, adjust these other things. That next season may be a few days, a few weeks, or months. Appreciate what you’ve accomplished to hit ‘send’ and do what you can now until it comes back to you.
The song “While I’m Waiting” by John Waller (from the FIREPROOF soundtrack) has always encouraged me. At the beginning of the song, you can feel the drudgery “while I’m waaiiiitiiiing…” I will worship, serve, etc, but focus clearly on the wait. Then after the bridge by the end the focus becomes on the worship, serving and the singer will do all these things “while I’m waiting.” My goal is to try and appreciate the potential rest and opportunity to do things while waiting, rather than focus on the waiting. No, I’m not perfect at it, but I’m better than I used to be, and I’ll take that as a win!
I love this so much. God wastes nothing regardless of any outcome. Thank you for this encouragement.