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Q&A Will the publisher/agent tell me what to write?

I recently read this answer, which suggested that an author's first novel will be rejected, and the publisher will instead get the author to write the novel they want to publish, assuming they feel...

1 answer  ·  posted 6y ago by Thomas Myron‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

#4: Attribution notice removed by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-12T17:49:04Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/38936
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#3: Attribution notice added by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-08T09:48:47Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/q/38936
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision by (deleted user) · 2019-12-08T09:48:47Z (almost 5 years ago)
I recently read [this answer](https://writing.stackexchange.com/a/32509/10394), which suggested that an author's first novel will be rejected, and the publisher will instead get the author to write the novel they want to publish, assuming they feel the author's writing has potential. This is bad news for me, as I have an entire universe mapped out with endless novel series, which I intend on publishing. If the publisher is just going to reject the first one and tell me to write something else, then how can I ever publish what I want to?

**Is this true?** Do publishers/agents frequently reject first-time novels, and instead get you to write the novel they want to publish? If this is the case, **what can I do to get what _I_ want to write published?**

Note: I'm aware of self-publishing and how it works, so please don't make that the answer to the second part of the question if there's another option. If there's nothing I can do, and publishers will _always_ force me to write what they want, then I'll look at self-publishing.

#1: Imported from external source by user avatar System‭ · 2018-09-15T14:52:28Z (about 6 years ago)
Original score: 7