Some people do it right the first time

Finding a publisher is such  painful job, but sometimes some people do it right the first time. See this excerpt from Vikas Swarup's  (Q&A / Slumdog millionaire, Six suspects) interview in rediff.com on how he got published

'How did you find a publisher?


I wrote four-and-a-half chapters and started looking for agents. What is the use of writing if I don't get a publisher? I sent it to 10 publishers in London whose addresses I got it from a writer's handbook. There was an eleventh agent whose name I got from a web site. I sent it to him too. The next day he responded. Peter Buckman was living in Oxford, and he came down to my home.

My friends advised me before he came: 'If he asks for money to get your book printed, don't sign!'

Later, I found I was his first client. He told me at the first meeting that my book was realistic, it had a fast pace, and it has lovable characters. He asked me to complete my book so that he could market it.

In 2003, I was posted back to India. I had no time to finish it. It was August 2003, and I had one more month in London. The plot was in my mind, so I took up the challenge and wrote down the remaining chapters in one month. Over one weekend I wrote 20,000 words! I sent the book on September 11 and left London on September 12. Soon, Buckman got a publisher for me. '

And then what happened? This

'The huge success of Q&A, his debut novel, has left Vikas Swarup bemused. Published by Doubleday, the novel has been translated into 14 languages. Film Four of UK has bought the movie rights, while audio and musical versions will also be launched. And, it has made Swarup a millionaire.'

Wikipedia adds 'Critically acclaimed in India and abroad, this international bestseller has been translated into 43 different languages. It was shortlisted for the Best First Book by the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and won South Africa’s Exclusive Books Boeke Prize 2006, as well as the Prix Grand Public at the 2007 Paris Book Fair. It was voted winner of the Best Travel Read (Fiction) at the Heathrow Travel Product Award 2009.
A BBC radio play based on the book won the Gold Award for Best Drama at the Sony Radio Academy Awards 2008 and the IVCA Clarion Award 2008. Harper Collins brought out the audio book, read by Kerry Shale, which won the Audie for best fiction audio book of the year. Film4 of the UK had optioned the movie rights and the movie titled Slumdog Millionaire, directed by Danny Boyle, was first released in the US to great critical acclaim. It won the People's Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival and three awards (Best Film, Best Director and Most Promising Newcomer) at the British Independent Film Awards 2008. The National Board of Review picked Slumdog Millionaire as the best film of 2008. The movie swept five awards out of its six nominations at the Critics' Choice Awards, and all four nominations awarded at the Golden Globe Awards which includes best director, picture, screenplay & score, and seven BAFTA Awards. It received 10 Oscar nominations of which it won 8, including Best Picture and Best Director. From The NY Times' report: "[T]hough it had no actors nominated for prizes, [it also] swept many awards other than those on the top line, including prizes for cinematography, sound mixing, score and film editing. Slumdog’s eight Oscars was the largest total won by a single film since The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King won 11 in 2004."[1] The film was released in the UK on 9th of January 2009 and in India on 23 January.'

Good hai, boss!