Summary: In Monty Python and the Holy Grail, we follow the saga of King Arthur and his knights when, at one point, they encounter the Keeper of the Bridge of Death. Arthur explains that the Keeper of the Bridge of Death asks each traveler three questions. He who answers the three questions may cross in safety.<br> <br> Sir Robin asks, "What if you get a question wrong?”<br> <br> Arthur answers, "Then you are cast into the Gorge of Eternal Peril,” which appears to be a fiery, hellish pit shooting up flames now and then for effect.<br> <br> Sir Lancelot courageously agrees to go first. “Ask me the questions, Bridgekeeper. I'm not afraid.” The questions turn out to be:<br> <br> What...is your name? What...is your quest? And what...is your favorite color.<br> <br> Lancelot answers each question easily and crosses directly. “Right, off you go," says the Bridgekeeper.<br> <br> The next knight, excited that the questions are so easy, rushes up to take his turn.<br> <br> The Keeper of the Bridge of Death asks, "What...is your name?"<br> <br> "Sir Robin of Camelot."<br> <br> "What...is your quest?"<br> <br> "To seek the Holy Grail."<br> <br> And then the Bridgekeeper asks, "What…is the capital of Assyria?"<br> <br> Sir Robin exclaims, "I don’t know that!” He flies into the air screaming, as he is cast into the Gorge of Eternal Peril.<br> What Is a Gatekeeper?<br> A gatekeeper, like the Keeper of the Bridge of Death, has the authority to grant (or deny) you passage into the next stage of your publishing journey—perhaps one of the final stages: that of landing a book contract or getting a byline in a coveted journal.<br> <br> Traditionally, we writers seeking publication have to enter a system and gain entrance from someone in order to be published.<br> <br> A gatekeeper might be the acquisitions editor you meet at a conference, who listens to your pitch and asks to see your full proposal.<br> <br> It’s the agent you query in hopes he'll represent you to publishers.<br> <br> If you’re hoping to land an article in a periodical, the gatekeeper is the editor who reads and responds to your query with a yes or no regarding your idea.<br> <br> It’s the person who receives your poems, essay, or short story through Submittable and decides if it will find a place in the spring issue of a literary journal.<br> <br> Generally, it’s someone who is in a position to green light your project or at least get it to the next stage.<br> Gatekeeper as Decision-Maker<br> Gatekeepers may or may not be the final decision-maker, depending on how a company is structured and how big the staff is. But especially someone you meet at a writing conference is there, representing the publishing company, and has been granted the authority to say yes or no on the spot, allowing you to move on to the next level with them if they say yes or ask for your full proposal...or move on to another publisher or publication if they no.<br> <br> Most gatekeepers have been in the business a long time—long enough to recognize quality art when they see it; they can sense that certain something that sets one project apart from the rest. They can tell if it pops, if it sings.<br> <br> And they know it from the business angle, too. They know what sells. They know their publishing company’s standards and style and whether your project is a good fit.<br> <br> Gatekeepers are people who have the power to invite you in or turn you away. If you’re turned away, you move on. You approach another gate and stand before another gatekeeper.<br> New Gatekeepers<br> Brooke Warner writes that the gatekeeper role is more complicated these days than in the past. As a former gatekeeper, she knows firsthand what it’s been and is noticing what it’s becoming. At her website, she writes, “[T]he role gets falsely propped up by supporters of traditional publishing and complet...
