Dear Traci,

Firstly, thank you so much for taking the time to send us Quiet Whispers – we really appreciate your interest.

We're very aware of the hard work and effort that has gone into your submission and think you have an interesting premise. However, after careful consideration, we don't feel that Quiet Whispers is quite right for us at Bookouture.

Unfortunately, due to the number of submissions we receive and the size of our team we are unable to give more detailed feedback. Whilst we're not able to accept re-submissions for manuscripts that we've already viewed, please do keep us in mind for any future manuscripts.

Once again, our genuine thanks for your submission. We wish you the very best for your future success.

Best regards,

The Bookouture Pitch Team

@mallorythomas I'm sorry to hear that, but it sounds like you were very close!

@seaaircarol Yes, they just wrote back yesterday-- they liked the premise more for a thriller or suspense and thought the stakes were too high for a romcom (and of course, I've also heard feedback that the stakes aren't high enough/compelling enough). I really appreciated them getting back to me!

Did you ever hear back, @mallorythomas? What a strange situation!

81k Contemporary Romance
Submitted 1/10
Rejection 2/14

Personalized feedback (ish?) BUT it included the following notes: "For me, this plot would actually work better as a romcom than as a thriller" and "If you fancy rewriting it as a romcom, please do let us know." But what I submitted was DEFINITELY a romance and not a thriller in any sense of the word so that's mega confusing. Going to reply to ask for clarity (did they mean it would work better as a thriller and NOT a romcom??) but unsure if I'll hear back.