That seems to be the name of the game in writing. Everything takes time–writing, editing, reediting, reviewing, reading, editing again, polishing, querying, attending conferences and conventions–but there seems to be the need to get things done as fast as possible.
The problem is when they are, you get to sit and wait to find out if the agent/publisher is interested, first in the query (about 2-4 weeks for a response) then the first 3 chapters (about 4-6 weeks for a response) then the whole manuscript (about 6-12 weeks for a response.) By the time you are done waiting, a minimum of three months have flown by! If you are REALLY lucky and you make it through the whole process, it’s usually about a year before your book comes out.
It’s no wonder people have jumped onto the self-publishing wagon. Why wait when you can publish in a flash–just upload your file and you’re done!
But what do you think? Do you think it’s worth going through the process of getting the benefits of a professional to edit and market your book? Or do you think getting it out there the sooner the better and doing everything yourself is your best bet?