How to use this Page

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Vicki Leigh, author of CATCH ME WHEN I FALL. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Vicki is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

      

Adopted at three days old by a construction worker and a stay-at-home mom,
Vicki Leigh grew up in a small suburb of Akron, Ohio where she learned to read
by the age of four and considered being sent to her room for punishment as an
opportunity to dive into another book. If she couldn’t be a writer, Vicki would be a
Hunter (think Dean and Sam Winchester) or a Jedi. Her favorite place on earth is
Hogwarts (she refuses to believe it doesn’t exist), and her favorite dreams include
solving cases alongside Sherlock Holmes. Vicki is an editor for Curiosity Quills
Press, and is represented by Sarah Negovetich of Corvisiero Literary Agency.
You can find her on Twitter, Facebook, Google+, Pinterest, and YouTube. Her first novel
is CATCH ME WHEN I FALL (Oct 2014), book one of the Dreamcatcher series.

 

 

My road to finding my agent is a bit different than most, an exciting journey that took me to cloud nine with a terrible bout of whiplash. I took a route that many might not recommend, a risky one that could’ve had catastrophic consequences. But let’s start at the beginning.

ONCE UPON A TIME

In January 2013, the idea sparked for my upcoming Young Adult debut, CATCH ME WHEN I FALL. I’d shelved one story by this point, having received multiple rejections for what I now realize was a horrible manuscript, and was anxious to begin something new. As someone who suffered from vicious nightmares, writing from the point of view of a character who protects the living from them was both exciting and therapeutic. For seven months, I poured my heart and soul into my book, and after multiple rounds of revising via the help of my fantastic critique partners, I sent out my first queries.

(What are the best practices for using social-media to sell books?)

BREAK INTO TWO

In July 2013, a week after I emailed my first group of agents, a fairly well-known pitch fest began—PitchMAS. When the event opened to entries, I quickly sent in mine, hoping that maybe, by some fluke, my manuscript would stand out amongst all the other fantastic ones. For weeks, I obsessively watched my email, received a couple rejections from the agents I’d queried, and then something amazing happened: out of all the people who entered PitchMAS, my book was chosen to be featured on the website, on display for agents and editors to see.

I stalked my entry like an overprotective parent watches their kid on the playground. Partials and fulls were requested of me by agents and editors alike, and by the time PitchMAS ended, my entry had the most requests in the entire contest.

DARK OF THE NIGHT

But as it is with every story, my happy ending wasn’t without thorn bushes. Of the eleven or twelve agents and editors I sent materials to, the majority of them passed. Rejections came rolling in from the rest of the agents I’d cold queried prior to PitchMAS, and soon, my jubilant mood dampened.

Then I received a Revise and Resubmit from Alison Heller, an acquisitions editor at Curiosity Quills Press. I absorbed her notes like paper towel soaks up water, and applied all her suggested changes, including re-writing my ending.

And she loved it.

(Why you should only query 6-8 agents at a time.)

By November 2013, I had a contract from Curiosity Quills Press. But when I scanned through the document, my heart raced. How was I supposed to know what I was doing? I’d never seen a publishing contract before. Immediately, I knew I couldn’t do this on my own.

That night, I emailed Alison to let her know I was interested but would like to seek assistance in negotiating the contract, and then I emailed a few more agents—including Sarah Negovetich, the lovely lady who would become my publishing soul mate.

HAPPILY EVER AFTER

Within just a few days, I heard from Sarah. She loved my query and wanted to read my full manuscript. I kept Alison abreast of the timeline and held my breath as I waited to for Sarah’s response. Would she love it, or would I have to do this alone, after all?

Then a few days later, Sarah replied: “I’d like to set up a call.”

Cue fainting spell.

For probably an hour, Sarah and I chatted. She had loved my book, and she told me all the reasons why. Then she asked questions like: what I planned for the rest of the series, what other story ideas were waiting to be written, and where I saw my career in the next five to ten years. But through the whole conversation, I couldn’t stop thinking: Sarah hasn’t actually said she wants to represent me.

I was so nervous; my words didn’t come out—people who know me well can attest that I’m usually very bold and opinionated—and the fear that she’d think I’d be boring to work with sprung to mind, intensifying my anxiety.

But something I’ve learned about agents since: they love to talk. By the end of our conversation, when she finally did offer me representation, I knew Sarah was the one for me.

THE END

Every path is different, and no way is the best one. Would I recommend querying agents and editors at the same time? Maybe not. But I don’t regret it for one minute, because, while it was terrifying not knowing whether my adventure would end in success or failure, my choice brought me to Sarah—and made one of my biggest dreams come true.

Be confident. Never give up. And never be afraid to put yourself out there. Value ingenuity. You never know where it’ll lead.

GIVEAWAY: Vicki is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

Writing books/novels for kids & teens? There are hundreds
of publishers, agents and other markets listed in the
latest Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market.
Buy it online at a discount.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• 10 Keys to Becoming a Successful Writer: An Agent Spills Secrets.
• Agent Spotlight: Clelia Gore (Martin Literary Management) seeks Young Adult and Middle Grade.
• How I Found My Literary Agent: Sara Polsky (young adult fiction).
• Polish Your Work Before Submitting: 6 Revision Tips.
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and writing a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

 

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Susan Blumberg-Kason, author of the memoir GOOD CHINESE WIFE. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Susan is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

Susan Blumberg-Kason is a freelance journalist in Chicago. Her work has
appeared in the Chicago Sun Times, TimeOut Chicago, Journal of the
American Dietetic Association, and Chicago Parent magazine. She lives
in the Chicago suburbs with her husband and three children. Her memoir (Sourcebooks,
July 2014) is GOOD CHINESE WIFE: A LOVE AFFAIR WITH CHINA GONE WRONG.
Kirkus says of the book, “An American freelance journalist’s painful account of how
a hasty marriage to a Chinese man turned her life upside down…it is the author’s
courage to face her mistakes that makes the book worthwhile.”
Connect with her on Twitter. 

 

I STARTED QUERYING 6 YEARS AGO

Six years ago I started querying agents for Good Chinese Wife, a memoir about my tumultuous first marriage to a man from central China. A writer friend advised me to complete fifty polished pages of my memoir and a nonfiction book proposal before querying agents. That was all I would need, he said, because that’s how agents sold nonfiction.

So I started querying with fifty pages and a proposal. For every ten letters I sent, I would receive about two requests for a few chapters, four rejections, and no replies for the others. It might not sound very promising, but it gave me hope. I couldn’t help but marvel that two agents wanted to read my story!

After repeating this process a few times to no avail, I started to worry that my sample chapters weren’t up to snuff. I also realized I really didn’t know how to write a memoir. Each chapter seemed like a stand-alone story, which wasn’t a bad thing. But I knew the chapters didn’t flow together. So I enlisted the help of one of several independent editors over the next two years.

(How should you discuss a book’s series potential in a query letter?)

THE FIRST BITE FROM AN AGENT

One agent found my query in her slush pile and wrote back an encouraging and enthusiastic reply. And she requested my full manuscript! I didn’t have the full, but sent her my proposal, sample chapters, and some other writing clips. She seemed like the dream agent: young, eager to build her list, and she had lived in China during the very time I was in Hong Kong.

She didn’t sign me, but said she would be happy to read more if I completed the manuscript so she could see it in its entirety. I spent the next nine months writing and revising. I continued to work with an independent editor. And I stopped querying other agents. But when I eventually contacted this agent with my full manuscript, I received no reply. It took me a couple of months to figure out that she had moved agencies. Although I felt like a stalker tracking her down, she still seemed enthusiastic about my story.

But after nine more months and as many follow-up e-mails, I decided to move on. I polished my query letter and waited until just after New Year’s Day of 2012 to start querying again.

Right away I started to receive more requests than ever for fulls and partials. One day in mid-January, I read an interview with Carrie Pestritto of Prospect Agency on The Guide to Literary Agents Blog. I saw that she was looking for memoir and that she enjoyed one of my favorite books (Adeline Yen Mah’s Chinese Cinderella). So I queried her and didn’t think about it again until two nights later when Carrie requested my full manuscript.

(Would your story make a great movie? Here are 7 tips on writing a film script.)

SUCCESS WITH CARRIE

The following afternoon, Carrie e-mailed me to say that she was enjoying my manuscript and wanted me to let her know if another agent offered representation before she finished reading. I replied that I would definitely do that. And I mentioned that half a dozen agents were reading either a partial or the full. This was the furthest I’d gotten with an agent, but I didn’t allow myself to read too much into Carrie’s e-mails in case she decided to take a pass.

I didn’t hear from her the next day, but by the middle of the following day, she e-mailed to offer representation! It was almost four years to the date when I first started querying agents!

Although I still had to hear from other agents, my gut instinct told me to go with Carrie and not look back. Publishing is a lot like dating. If someone calls on Tuesday for a Saturday night date, that’s much more promising than the person who calls Saturday morning for a date that very evening. I wanted an agent who loved my story just as much as I did. And Carrie showed that way more than anyone else.

Carrie turned out to be every bit the dream agent I first envisioned when I started querying agents all those years ago. As it turned out, she had also spent time in China and had studied Mandarin. Carrie helped me with revisions, cheered me on during our submission rounds (which took another year), and found me a fabulous editor in Stephanie Bowen at Sourcebooks. When I write in my acknowledgements in Good Chinese Wife that my life wouldn’t be the same without Carrie, I mean every word and then some. I hope my story will show other writers that patience, hard word, and perseverance really do pay off in the end.

GIVEAWAY: Susan is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

Don’t let your submission be rejected for
improper formatting. The third edition of
Formatting & Submitting Your Manuscript
has more than 100 examples of queries,
synopses, proposals, book text, and more.
Buy it online here at a discount.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• Agent Spotlight: Siobhan McBride (Serendipity Literary Agency) seeks Literary Fiction, Horror, Mystery/Crime, YA and Nonfiction.
• Successful Queries: Literary Agent Katie Shea Boutillier and “The Art of Falling.”
• 5 Mistakes Writers Make (And How To Avoid Them).
• Agent Spotlight: Catherine Luttinger (Darhansoff & Verrill) seeks Science Fiction and Fantasy.
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and writing a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Rebecca Brooks, author of the erotic romance, ABOVE ALL. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Rebecca is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

Rebecca Brooks has backpacked alone through India and Brazil, traveled by
cargo boat down the Amazon River, climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, explored ice caves
in Peru, trekked to the source of the Ganges, and sunbathed in Burma. Her first
novel, ABOVE ALL, (Ellora’s Cave, July 2014) has been called “a beautifully
powerful story,” “SEXellent,” and “a thinking woman’s romance.” Her books
are about independent women who leave their old lives behind to try something
new. Find her on Facebook, Twitter @BeccaBooks, and Goodreads.

 

 

 

The First Query

When I finished my contemporary erotic romance, Above All, I knew I didn’t want to send a million queries only to realize after a million rejections that there was more I could to do my opening pages and pitch. So I did my research and picked 10 agents that I thought were really top notch. When the first agent I contacted wrote back immediately requesting the full, I thought for sure I was on my way.

I decided to also submit the manuscript directly to 3 romance publishers that accept unagented submissions. There are different schools of thought about this. If a publisher rejects the book, an agent can’t pitch it to them later. But I wanted to explore all my options. What did I have to lose?

(How many agents should you contact at one time?)

One agent I especially had my eye on was Andrea Somberg at Harvey Klinger. She has a great track record and works in a variety of genres. Above All is steamy, but it also has a strong story component. As more of a crossover between romance and women’s fiction, it seemed like a great fit for her. I waited anxiously for her response. The first agent had been so enthusiastic. Why wasn’t my inbox filled with requests?

You can guess where this is going. I got form rejections or radio silence from every other agent. The one interested agent passed. Andrea didn’t even want to see the full.

I could have continued to query—10 isn’t a very large sampling—but I decided to put the manuscript aside for a while. I hoped that if I came back to it in a few months, I’d be able to see what was missing. I truly believed in Above All, but I needed some distance before deciding what to do next.

The Book Deal

Five months passed and I was hard at work on my second romance, How to Fall. Out of nowhere one evening I got an email from Ellora’s Cave, one of the publishers I’d submitted to and the last I had to hear from. I admit that I barely bothered to read the email. When I saw “Thank you for your submission,” I thought, Oh well. It was worth a try.

But then the next line said “Congratulations.” I was so confused. It took a few more readings for it to sink in. Ellora’s Cave had accepted my novel. I’d completely skipped the agent stage. I was going to be published.

(See a list of literary agents who seek romance.)

The Second Query

I didn’t need an agent anymore. I had an editor at Ellora’s Cave who was great. I’d also connected with another agent who agreed to negotiate the contract even if she didn’t represent me. But I still wanted an agent. I wanted someone to help me build my career and navigate the publishing world beyond my first novel. So I set out to query again.

What a different experience. Thirty minutes after I pressed send, Andrea requested the full. Three days later, she sent me an email that made me cry. (Admittedly I’d been pretty stressed out, but still. It was a really nice email.) Not only did she love Above All, but she really got what my writing is about. I contacted other agents who had the manuscript to let them know, but after two long phone conversations with Andrea, it was an easy decision.

I’m not saying that if you’re looking for an agent, go snag a book deal first. Nor is the idea to bombard the same agents with repeat queries because surely they’ll like the book if they only sit down and read it. My point is that the process from book to agent to publisher—or from book to publisher to agent—can be roundabout, slow, and full of surprises. I can’t say exactly what led Andrea to decline to read Above All the first time around. But I’m glad I tried her again. I like to think she’s happy that she gave it a second look, too.

GIVEAWAY: Rebecca is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

How to Blog a Book by Nina Amir discusses
how to slowly release a novel online to generate
interest in your writing and work.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• New agent Lara Perkins seeks talented writers of children’s books.
• Are you querying right now? See a successful query that WORKED.
• The Pros and Cons of Getting a Creative Writing MFA.
• What to write in the BIO section of your queries.
• Writing literary fiction, upmarket crime fiction, or nonfiction? Try this agent.
• How Writers Can Empower Themselves in 2014.
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and writing a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

 

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Lori M. Lee, author of GATES OF THREAD AND STONE. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Lori is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

       

Lori M. Lee is the author of young adult fantasy GATES OF THREAD AND STONE
(purchase it on Amazon or IndieBound), which came out Aug. 2014 from Skyscape.
Lori has a borderline obsessive fascination with unicorns, is fond of talking in capslock,
and loves to write about magic, manipulation, and family. She lives in Wisconsin
with her husband, kids, and a friendly pitbull. Connect with her
on Twitter, Facebook or Pinterest.

Changing things up

I’d read somewhere that writing the query before writing the book would help focus the plot. Since both an overly complicated plot and, subsequently, a query that just never felt right (despite numerous attempts to rewrite it) had been problems with my previous manuscript, I decided to try it for my next project. To my surprise, the query came easily, and the one I ended up sending out to agents changed little from that first draft.

An unexpected referral

I was determined not to repeat the same mistake I’d made with my previous manuscript by querying too soon, so I took my time making sure my book was as polished as I could get it. I decided to enter a random drawing for a first chapter critique by an author whose books I enjoyed. I ended up winning the critique, so I sent her my first chapter hoping for some insight. She responded shortly after saying she had nothing to critique and could I please send my second chapter instead. Surprised but also tentatively optimistic, I sent my second chapter. Once again, she had no feedback but mentioned that she’d forwarded my chapters to her agent Suzie Townsend (of New Leaf Literary) and hoped I didn’t mind.

At that point, my brain short circuited, and I’m pretty sure my response was something like “!!!oifseks!!!” As it turned out, Suzie loved my pages and encouraged me to query her as soon as the manuscript was complete.

(Why writers who don’t have a basic website are hurting their chances of success.)

The “Call”

About a month later, I’d done all I could for this manuscript and took the querying plunge. I emailed Suzie on a Friday night at 11:45 pm (b/c when I’m tired is when I’m feeling bravest). Thirty minutes later, she responded with: “YES PLEASE SEND!!!! Right now! :):)”

Ecstatic, I sent off my ms and put it from my mind. (And by that, I mean I obsessed over it day and night.) About a month later, I got a sheepish and apologetic email from Suzie saying she’d responded within days to receiving my manuscript and wondered why I hadn’t replied. She checked her email and found it never sent. But she still wanted to talk! And she included a couple pages of revisions notes for me to look over as well.

We set up a phone call, during which I was too anxious and wired to remember to say ANY of the things I’d planned to. When she asked what else I was working on, even though I had it written down right in front of me, I blanked and went, “Um… this book about… a girl who has a monster in her… and this boy… who captures her.” And then because I could unfortunately HEAR myself, I added, “Wow, that sounds terrible.”

(Hear a dozen agents explain exactly what they want to see the slush pile. See if your work is a match.)

Suzie was kind enough to laugh and take it in stride, and despite my bumbling, she still offered me rep. Whew! After the call, I did the usual, which was to run around the house a few times (is that not the usual?) and then I contacted all the other agents in possession of my manuscript to inform them of the offer.

In the end, although I had several offers from really stellar agents, I knew that Suzie was the right agent for me. The book she signed me for, Gates of Thread and Stone, released in August, and I couldn’t be happier.

GIVEAWAY: Lori is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

Writing books/novels for kids & teens? There are hundreds
of publishers, agents and other markets listed in the
latest Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market.
Buy it online at a discount.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• A new agent wants unique literary voices, women’s fiction, narrative nonfiction, memoir & comedy.
• 10 Dos and Dont’s For the Aspiring Novelist.
• The Value of Tough Love and Honest Feedback.
• Agents Share Their Query Letter Pet Peeves.
• Agent Maria Vincente seeks clients NOW.
• Open Your Eyes and Ears: Writing Inspiration is all Around You.
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and writing a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Margo Kelly, author of the YA thriller WHO R U REALLY? These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Margo is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

      

Margo Kelly is a native of the Northwest and currently resides in Idaho. A veteran
public speaker, she is now actively pursuing her love of writing. Margo welcomes
the opportunities to speak to youth groups, library groups, and book clubs. Find
her on Facebook, Twitter and Goodreads. She has September and October 2014
signings in Meridian, ID and Boise, ID. Margo’s debut novel is WHO R U REALLY
(Merit Press, Sept 2014), a young adult thriller-suspense. Kirkus said of the book,
“Kelly’s first novel is a suspenseful page-turner.”

 

 

A CHANGE IN CAREERS

In January, 2009, I decided I wanted to change careers and pursue a long forgotten dream of becoming a published author. Sound familiar? I purchased Janet Evanovich’s HOW I WRITE and Writer’s Digest’s GUIDE TO LITERARY AGENTS, and I began my research into the industry.

Six months later, I finished my first manuscript and I started sending out query letters. The rejections flooded in. I had tough skin. I knew rejections were part of the process, but one of the form letters pushed me over the edge. I struck a match and sent the rejection up in flames. (Yes, that was back in the days of snail mail.) Then I took a deep breath and went back to querying.

I also started writing my next manuscript. I read more books on the craft of writing, subscribed to magazines and journals that would help me better my skills, wrote flash fiction to tighten my story telling, and connected with two great critique partners that I met through online communities.

A year later, in August, 2010, I had finished my second manuscript and began to send out query letters. The requests for partials and fulls came in right away! I was so excited! But then rejections followed. I paid attention to the agents’ feedback, because I wanted to improve the story and make it saleable, but it was tricky, because while one said, “The main character is too naive” another said, “The main character sounds too adult.” I revised nonetheless.

I HEADED TO MY FIRST CONFERENCE

With a bright and shiny polished version of the story, I headed off to my first writers’ conference. I met up with my critique partner, Melissa, and we had an absolute blast. Plus, two agents at the conference requested my full manuscript, and I just knew one of these fabulous agents was going to offer me a contract. Yes-sir-ee!! I went home too excited to work on any writing. I was waiting to hear from the agents.

More than a month later, I sent very polite follow-up emails to the two agents from the conference. Both responded, explaining how busy they were (of course, I understood, I wanted them to take care of their current clients first, that made sense). But I was demoralized. I couldn’t seem to start a new manuscript. So I pulled out my first novel and dusted it off. I figured I could work on rewriting it and improving it until I found my writing mojo again.

(Looking to attend a writers’ conference? Start here.)

Three months later, one of the conference agents emailed to tell me she’d decided to shelve my manuscript, unread. She was no longer looking for new clients. By the summer of 2011, the second conference agent emailed and apologized for the delay in reading my manuscript. She said the writing was great, but it didn’t excite her enough to offer me representation.

My tough skin had been broken, and I wasn’t sure I wanted to continue down this publishing path. Then I was diagnosed with a rare 12mm lesion in the middle of my brain. After a lot of time and money, the specialists decided there was nothing they could do about it. I had to reevaluate my life, my priorities, and my goals. What if my time was limited here on earth? How would I want to spend it? Through self-evaluation, I realized writing was still important to me, and as a result I refocused my efforts with great fervor.

11 MORE QUERIES

On November 11, 2011, I sent out eleven queries for my novel, WHO R U REALLY? A dream agent from my dream agency requested a partial the same day (it was a Friday). Monday, she requested the full. Wednesday, she requested a phone call. Thursday, we discussed ideas for revisions. I loved all of her suggestions, and my mojo exploded! She said if I could accomplish these revisions, she’d offer me formal representation. I wanted it! I got to work, and I was on fire! I sent her the revised manuscript about a week and a half later (I know, it sounds like I rushed it, but I’m telling you: I was ON FIRE!!). She read it right away and requested more revisions. I got right back to work. I was still excited about the process, and I was thrilled to think that someone had caught the “vision” of my story. While I was busy working on more revisions, she surprised me and mailed me a contract! YES! Not to mention, in the time I was working with her on revisions, other agents had requested partials and fulls. Out of respect, I contacted them to let them know I’d received an offer. One of the agents told me I’d be nuts to not accept the offer from this great agency.

(How long should a synopsis be? Is shorter or longer better?)

On December 12, 2011, I signed with Brianne Johnson of Writers House. I’ve been smiling ever since, because I have the best agent from the best agency.

From there, we finalized revisions and made another title change before sending the manuscript out on submission. It took a while to sell, partly because the main character’s age put the story on the fence between middle grade and young adult. However, Jacquelyn Mitchard of Merit Press (an imprint of F+W Media) saw the “merit” in the story and made an offer. WHO R U REALLY?, will finally be published on September 18, 2014.

Now I’m polishing my next manuscript, and I’ve already started writing another. The publishing process certainly requires persistence and patience, but the future is so exciting.

GIVEAWAY: Margo is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

Writing books/novels for kids & teens? There are hundreds
of publishers, agents and other markets listed in the
latest Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market.
Buy it online at a discount.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• New Literary Agent Seeking Clients: Gemma Cooper of The Bent Agency.
• Interview With Agent Helen Zimmerman, Who Seeks Fiction and Nonfiction.
• Sell More Books by Building Your Writer Platform.
• Exactly What Your Pitch Should NOT Look Like.
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and how to write a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

 

 

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Stephanie Wahlstrom, author of THE ACCIDENTAL SOCIALITE. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

(What query letter mistakes will sink your submission chances?)

 

       

Stephanie Wahlstrom grew up in Edmonton, Canada. A significant amount of her
time was spent making up and acting out stories. She graduated from the University
of Alberta with an English and Sociology degree and I also have a Bachelor of
Motion Picture Arts (that’s a fancy term for Film School) from Red Deer College.
Later, she went back home to write “My Green House,” a factual TV series.
Her debut novel is THE ACCIDENTAL SOCIALITE (Swoon Romance),
humorous women’s fiction. Find her on Twitter.

 

I MADE A RESOLUTION

On January 1st 2013 I made a resolution: I was going to get published by the end of the year. At this point I hadn’t even properly edited The Accidental Socialite, never mind looked into agents or what the publishing process entailed. I polished my ms and started sending it out in February, which was probably too soon as I ended up doing more severe edits after the first round of feedback. I had a few requests, but it was always “I like it, you have a great voice, but I’m not passionate enough to offer representation.” Every. Single. Time.  Then I heard of the PitchMadness contest by Brenda Drake. The request window for agents opened on my birthday and I took it as a sign.

And then I was rejected a further 25 times. It was the end of June when I started to think about self-publishing.  I absolutely could not fail at this goal, and although it wasn’t the way I wanted to go, self-publishing was looking like the only option. I had myself a little cry for my publishing dream that never was, put my big girl pants on and started researching cover designers.

Deep down, I knew I didn’t really want to self publish, so I threw out a Hail Mary at the beginning of July and tried one last contest: PitchMas.

PITCH-MAS

This time the requests weren’t from agents, but from publishers.

I sent the ms out on Thursday night, and by 5am on Friday I had an e-mail with an intent to offer from a publisher. I was supposed to meet my boyfriend in France for a weekend away in six hours, so I quickly let everyone who had the ms know what the deal was. I felt terrible because it didn’t give the publishers who had received the ms the night before any time, but I didn’t know what else to do. The plane landed in Cannes and I totally ignored the “Don’t turn on your phone until you are safely inside the terminal building” (or whatever the equivalent in French was) and turned on my phone to find an offer from publisher two. I’d already told the woman next to me my life story, so I updated her on this development and she very kindly pretended to care and promised to buy the book.

By the end of the day I had two very different offers for multi-book deals from publishers and did not know what to do with myself … so on Monday I went to the Manolo Blahnik sale to celebrate my almost book deal and bought a pair of nude patent Mary Janes for 80% off. I was winning at life that week.

In late 2012 I’d taken a course with Curtis Brown Creative on writing for children taught by agent Stephanie Thwaites and writer Tony Bradman.  I e-mailed Stephanie asking for a cheeky bit of advice because I really felt I needed the help of an agent to choose/negotiate the best deal possible.

(How successful writers are using the Internet and social-media to sell more books.)

SEEKING THE HELP OF AN AGENT

To my surprise, Stephanie actually asked to read The Accidental Socialite, so I sent it to her and in a few days she started talking about what “we” could do. I got stupid excited and awkwardly asked if she was my agent, because it would be really cool if she was, or not, you know, playing it cool over here and not like the girl in the corner at prom who finally got asked to dance, and by the most popular boy at school no less. FYI Stephanie isn’t a boy and there wasn’t dancing involved – or at least not on her part – I spent most of the whole month of July and August doing happy dances. Anyway. She said yes and fund me a co-agent in New York at ICM Partners (was Lyndsay Hemphill, now Tina Wexler).

I was all like, EMERGAHD! I have the same agent as Winnie The Pooh! Not only had my dream come true, I’d hit the jackpot when it came to agents with Stephanie and Tina. I sat down with Stephanie and she talked about my career… implying I was going to have one.  This was real!!!

Stephanie worked her magic and in the end I actually had three offers from publishers. Then it was decision time. The first publisher who had shown interest was super passionate about The Accidental Socialite and seemed to really get it which I think is the most important thing you can find when you work creatively with anyone. I felt really comfortable with Georgia McBride and Stephanie agreed, which is how The Accidental Socialite ended up with Swoon Romance in North America. Happy dance!

 

The 90 Days to Your Novel 2-Pack is an inspiring
kit that will be your push, your deadline, and your
spark to finally, in three short months, nail that
first draft of your novel. The two items are
bundled together in our shop for a discount.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• Notes to the First-Time Novelist.
• “How I Got My Agent,” by Novelist Holly LeCraw.
• Literary Agent Interview: Jessica Sinsheimer of Sarah Jane Freymann Literary.
• Sell More Books by Building Your Writer Platform.
• Write Now, Edit Later.
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and how to write a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

 

 

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Mary Weber, author of STORM SIREN. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Mary is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

      

Mary Weber is a ridiculously uncoordinated girl plotting to take over make-believe
worlds through books, handstands, and imaginary throwing knives. In her spare
time, she feeds unicorns, sings 80’s hairband songs to her three muggle children,
and ogles her husband who looks strikingly like Wolverine. Her YA fantasy
STORM SIREN released August 19, 2014. Jay Asher, New York Times
bestselling author of Thirteen Reasons Why said of the book, “There are
few things more exciting to discover than a debut novel packed with powerful
storytelling and beautiful language. STORM SIREN is one of those rarities.”
Find Mary on Facebook (MaryWeber, Author), or Twitter (@mchristineweber).

 
I Needed A Writing Community

Six years ago I showed my mother the beginnings of my earliest book (about vampires, because I may have just read and adored Twilight, ahem). She complimented me. “Here’s a list of all the things I like!” she said (because that’s what mothers are supposed to say). And then promptly handed me five (yes, FIVE) books on writing. “Here, dear. I think these will help you.”

That is my mother. An encourager. An author in her own right. And a mentor.

A few months later she connected me with a freelance editor friend and the three of us added another member and formed a critique group.

Three years went by. The vampire story was replaced by an urban fantasy, and in the course of those years I wrote my busy heart out, critiqued with my group, and researched everything I could on agents and publishing. Basically, I STALKED Chuck’s Guide to Literary Agents Blog. The writers on here were all so encouraging. “Keep going. Keep learning. Keep writing,” they cheered.

(Learn why “Keep Moving Forward” may be the best advice for writers everywhere.)

Then I Began Querying.

The replies started out as silence or “Not for me.” If an agent happened to mercifully slip in an extra snippet of feedback on the note, I would edit and adjust accordingly. Until eventually a few of the rejections became more personalized – emails of “Not interested in this project but feel free to send me another.” Or a couple times requests for rewrites on the urban fantasy story. Followed by rejections of those rewrites. (Holy kracken those ones stung the worst.)

But by the end of that process three things had happened:
1. I’d racked up a sweet total of eighty-seven rejections (and cried more times than I can count).
2. I discovered that, while the urban fantasy really wasn’t going to sell, somehow, amid all the studying and rewriting, I’d actually learned to carve a decent story.
3. A friend paid my way to a writers’ conference with the belief that they are the best way to personally connect with editors and agents.

She Was Right – I Also Needed Connections

You know those manuscript pre-submissions a writer can send in ahead of time to the conference editors and agents? I mailed in my urban fantasy as a sort of last ditch effort. Despite my submission being on brown-inked pages (because my printer broke), two days into the conference I received an invite to chat with the publisher of Thomas Nelson, HarperCollins. “We can’t use this story,” he said, sitting across from me, holding my pages. “But have you ever considered writing YA?”

“UM NO, BUT YES.”

Six weeks later, he connected me with one of TN’s editors who invited me to meet up at another conference later in the year. I came up with ideas and early chapters for two young adult stories, the first of which she rejected. The second I pitched to her at the conference over a cup of tea.

(What are the BEST writers’ conferences to attend?)

I also pitched it to a number of agents while there, but it was one gentleman by the name of Lee Hough whom a mutual friend introduced me to, that I knew right away I wanted to work with. (I later discovered he was the agent for such NYT bestsellers as Same Kind of Different as Me and Heaven Is For Real.) Unfortunately, Lee wasn’t available (or even necessarily interested) to take on a YA author at the time.

But…we began talking. Which led to more talking over the next few months as he was kind enough to give me career guidance.

Convergence

Four months later (probably upon finally realizing my annoying self wasn’t going away), Lee called and signed me. Shortly after, Thomas Nelson made an offer on Storm Siren.

I’m grieved to say that seven months after I signed with Lee he passed away from cancer. However, those months of his agent-guidance and kindness made (and continues to make) a heck of a difference on my publishing journey. My agent now is Andrea Heinecke from the same agency (Alive Communications), and I’m so grateful for her incredible guidance as well.

So here I am, thinking it’s a crazy honor to write this post for Guide to Literary Agents. Especially after spending three years pouring over the pages of this blog. Thank you to the authors who said: Keep reading, keep stalking (in a non-creeper way), and keep writing.

And to you, dear writers reading this…I wish you the very best of luck as well. Keep going. Keep stalking. Keep writing. And may your journey rock.

GIVEAWAY: Mary is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

This guest column is a supplement to the
“Breaking In” (debut authors) feature of this author
in Writer’s Digest magazine. Are you a subscriber
yet? If not, get a discounted one-year sub here.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• Don’t Judge Your Work Until It’s Time to Edit.
• Things to Do AFTER You Get a Literary Agent.
• Sell More Books by Building Your Writer Platform.
• Shortcuts Are Overrated. Why Writers Gain Value With a Long Road.
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and how to write a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Kate Dyer-Seeley, author of the mystery SCENE OF THE CLIMB. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Kate is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

      

Kate Dyer-Seeley writes the Pacific Northwest Mystery Series for Kensington
Publishing. The first book in the series, SCENE OF THE CLIMB, features the
rugged landscapes of the Columbia River Gorge and a young journalist who
bills herself as an intrepid adventurer in order to land a gig writing for Northwest
Extreme. Kate lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and son, where
you can find her hitting the trail, at an artisan coffee shop, or at her favorite pub.
Better yet—at all three. Connect with her on Twitter and Facebook.

 

The Dream List

I’ve been reading mysteries since I was a teenager—actually even longer. I started with Nancy Drew and Trixie Belden as a kid, and have been devouring every series I can get my hands on ever since. As a fan of the genre, I’ve read some great and some not-so-great series over the years and without even being conscious of where it would lead me, I started making a dream list of my favorite authors. The list is lengthy today, and includes notes about why a particular series or author resonated with me. It rests in the top drawer of my nightstand where I can quickly jot down thoughts as they occur (which is usually at 2:00 in the morning, but that’s another story).

My path to actually writing a mystery is nearly as lengthy as my reading list. If I look back, it also began at an early age. I recently found a copy of the first mystery I wrote in the third grade, circa 1982, Lincoln Elementary School. The story involved a haunted house, a bike with a flat tire, and very little plot or structure. I went on from there to dabble in creative writing throughout high-school, college, and my early career, but mostly I enjoyed reading fiction with little thought of writing it. I focused my writing efforts on non-fiction, submitting and being published in number of national and international magazines.

(Why writers who don’t have a basic website are hurting their chances of success.)

When I decided to take the plunge and write my own mystery, my reading list suddenly became my dream agent list. I wrote down my top ten favorite authors and researched who represented them. At the same time, I attended a writer’s conference here in the Pacific Northwest and pitched a select group of agents and editors of small presses who were interested in acquiring new mysteries. I figured it would be good to test my pitch in person and see what sort of response I received. That way I could tweak my pitch before sending queries to my dream list.

Prepared for the worst (I’m totally neurotic about my own work), I presented my pitch at the conference and surprisingly received great feedback. Everyone wanted to read the manuscript, which was thrilling, but also meant that I needed to send out queries to my dream team—fast.

I sent my manuscript to the agents and editors I met at the conference and sent queries to my top five agents. Again, because I’m my own worst critic, I figured I’d save the other five for later in case everyone else rejected it.

If there’s any advice that I’ve learned and can pass on it’s this:

1. Be professional. In all my correspondence I made it clear that there were other agents and editors reviewing my submission.
2. Do your research. I sent personalized queries to each agent, with specific examples of how my work was similar to other clients on their list.
3. Be patient. Yeah, right. I’m still working on this one.

(How successful writers are using the Internet and social-media to sell more books.)

The Waiting Game

Waiting is the worst! I spent gobs of time here reading through other writers’ paths to publication. I tried distracting myself with a number of activities with little success. My phone came everywhere with me, and I would get an equal sense of excitement and dread anytime it dinged with a new email.

Fortunately everyone on my dream list responded quickly (within the first hour in one case, to a week). By mid-September, I had a total of twelve agents and two small presses reading my work.

At the time it seemed to take forever, but in hindsight my process ended up being really fast. By early November I had an offer from a small press and an agent. As soon as I received the first offer, I reached out to all the agents reading my manuscript. It was amazing how quickly everyone responded.

I found myself in the surreal position of having multiple offers to choose from. Speaking with agents who were excited about my book and pitching me, still makes me pause today.

The Dream Agent

Ultimately, I ended up signing with my “dream” agent, John Talbot of the Talbot Fortune Agency. John had been number one on my list based on the fact that I was a huge fan of a number of his clients. After we spoke on the phone, I knew immediately that he had the vision and contacts to not only sell my manuscript, but to help build my career. He sent the book out on submission in early January and we had an offer a few weeks later.
Build your dream list—your dream agent is out there waiting for you!

GIVEAWAY: Kate is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

Agent Donald Maass, who is also an author
himself, is one of the top instructors nationwide
on crafting quality fiction. His recent guide,
The Fire in Fiction, shows how to compose
a novel that will get agents/editors to keep reading.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• “The Book Chooses the Writer” — Here’s Why.
• Agent William Callahan of Waxman Leavell Seeks New Clients Now.
• Learn About a Writing Retreat in Europe.
• Author Sandi Tan Explains How Patience is Your #1 Tool.
• Sell More Books by Building Your Writer Platform.
• 10 Reasons Picture Books Are Not Just For Kids.
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and how to write a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

 

 

 

 

 

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Cassandra Dunn, author of THE ART OF ADAPTING. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Cassandra is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

        

Cassandra Dunn is the author of THE ART OF ADAPTING (Touchstone/Simon
& Schuster, July 2014). Kirkus Reviews said of the novel, “Dunn’s debut novel
treats readers to a family in transition. . . . A neatly wrapped, happily-ever-after
tale of a broken family that survives and thrives.” Dunn received her MFA in
creative writing from Mills College. She was a semifinalist for the Amazon
Breakthrough Novel Award and a finalist for Glimmer Train’s Short Story
Award for New Writers. She’s published 12 short stories. She is represented
by Harvey Klinger. Her website is cassandradunn.com, and you can
connect with her on Facebook or Twitter.

 

 
I HAVE A MANUSCRIPT WHAT DO I DO NOW?

Like most aspiring authors, I had no idea what I was doing when I started seeking out an agent. I had a completed manuscript, and I was proud to have a finished novel. Was it ready to go out into the world? Not even close. But I didn’t know that at the time.

I finished my MFA program with a memoir that I soon abandoned, got married, had kids, got lost on my writing path, and eventually found my way back to writing, this time focusing on fiction. I wrote some short stories, and managed to get a few published. I chose an unpublished story that had been selected as a Glimmer Train finalist and kept adding to it until I had a novel. A terrible, unbalanced, meandering novel full of rookie mistakes, but a novel just the same. I was hooked. And I knew that I could do better.

I wrote a second novel, a little deeper than the first, full of bigger tragedy and greater risk, and I entered it in the Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award competition. It survived round after round of cuts, eventually making it to the semifinals. I gave it a brief (too brief) revision based on some of the reviews it had received and on feedback from an online novel workshop. Then I assembled a list of new agents who were actively list-building, and started sending it out. I got enough requests to see more of the novel to know that my query letter was decent, but each agent ultimately passed. I was about 60 failed queries in when I decided to shelve that novel and focus on the next one, which was coming along quickly.

(Can writers query multiple agents at the same agency?)

THE END OF ONE NOVEL, THE BEGINNING OF ANOTHER

That novel, The Art of Adapting, came from my heart — the scenes and characters waking me in the morning, my fingers and wrists cramping each afternoon from not being able to type fast enough to keep up with my thoughts. It was personal, inspired by my uncle, and it mattered to me more than anything else I’d written. I finished a draft in three months and sent it to two trusted friends for feedback. As I waited to hear back from them, I worked on more short stories, publishing a handful of them. I wanted agents to see that I was serious about writing, publishing, pushing myself.

I revised The Art of Adapting with the notes from my beta readers, and started compiling a list of agents. This time, I decided not to start with junior agents. I aimed for my dream agents right off the bat, because, why not? I was methodical. I researched, looking for agents who wanted women’s fiction, who had positive feedback from other queriers, who had recent sales and impressive author lists. I made a list of 25 agents, knowing I might need more than 50 eventually, and broke them into groups of 5. Each Monday, I was going to query 5 agents, taking the time to craft a personal letter for each of them. I was not going to check my email every 30 seconds to see if any of them had responded. I was going pass the time working on short stories and attending writing conferences to make connections and conquer my shy nature. But then the unthinkable happened. One of the agents in my very first query group responded right away. Harvey Klinger asked for the first chapters. Then the whole book. And then he offered to represent me.

(Learn why “Keep Moving Forward” may be the best advice for writers everywhere.)

BUT IT’S NOT THAT SIMPLE

The book wasn’t ready to go out to publishers. It was still chock full of rookie mistakes that made me cringe (show, don’t tell!). Over the next few months Harvey helped me revise the entire manuscript chapter by chapter. He’s a tough but encouraging critic, and his guidance was one of the best gifts I’ve ever had as a writer. I felt like that revision phase was a test of our relationship, to make sure we were a good fit. For me to see if he really got the heart of my story, and for him to see that I could take criticism and was determined to do the work necessary on a project.

And that’s my best advice for aspiring authors. Be determined to do the work. Not just the fun part of writing that first draft, but the long, heart-wrenching editing passes where you kill your darlings, the awkward networking, the bio-building of getting your name out there in some capacity. And when your work is as ready as you can make it, aim high. And show don’t tell.

GIVEAWAY: Cassandra is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

Join the Writer’s Digest VIP Program today!
You’ll get a subscription to the magazine, a
subscription to WritersMarket.com, discounts
on almost everything you buy, a download,
and much more great stuff.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• 5 Things Agents Can Do to Make Writers’ Lives Easier.
• How to Write While Managing a Full-Time Job.
• Sell More Books by Building Your Writer Platform.
• Interview With Literary Agent Kimberley Cameron (Kimberley Cameron Literary).
• Sell More Books by Building Your Writer Platform.
• How to Bring Subjects to Life in Your Nonfiction Writing.
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and how to write a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Jessica Arnold, author of THE LOOKING GLASS. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Jessica is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. (An international winner would get an e-book.) You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

    

Jessica Arnold writes YA, codes ebooks, and is currently a graduate student in
publishing at Emerson College in Boston. If she has a spare moment, she’s always
up for a round of Boggle. Her debut YA novel is THE LOOKING GLASS (April 2014,
Month9Books), a story about a 15-year-old who wakes up to learn she is trapped
inside a cursed 19th century version of a hotel. You can connect with Jessica
Arnold online through her website, Facebook, or Twitter.

 

This Is Easy. Or Not.

The first time I tried my hand at querying agents, I was painfully ignorant. I had my freshly finished first novel in hand and getting it published seemed like the logical next step. So naturally I started Googling publishing houses. (Yes, I am yet another graduate of the Google school of publishing.) When I finally realized that—who knew?—most publishing houses didn’t accept submissions from ordinary folk like me, I Googled those magic words: how to get a literary agent. Judging from the two and a half million hits I got, I wasn’t the first one to ask. I spent hours looking at query critiques (thank you Miss Snark), successful queries, and query writing tips. Eventually I sat down and wrote one of my own. This isn’t too bad, I thought. Yes, I was naïve. It didn’t last long.

I could probably dig through the musty archives of my email inbox and figure out exactly how many rejections I received for that first book, but that’s a part of the past that I have no desire to reacquaint myself with. If I had to guess, I’d say that the total would be looking at one hundred in the rearview mirror. Eventually I made a decision that ranks high on my Best Choices list: I ditched the dud manuscript and decided to write something better. I like to think that I succeeded. But, because I’ve buried my first book in a dank, dark place on my external hard drive and sworn never to touch it again, I guess doing a real comparison would be impossible.

(Definitions of unusual literary terms & jargon you need to know.)

Take Two

The good thing about having already queried a project was that when I was ready to submit a new manuscript (I even had a snappy title—The Looking Glass), I’d already found my querying legs and had a good idea of how to go about things. That said, I made a few fatal errors that to this day are enough to make me want to move to a foreign country. For instance, pretty early on in my querying I realized that I’d been typing the name of my previous book in the email subject line. Oh the horror.

My first months of querying The Looking Glass were at best disheartening, although I actually received fewer offhand rejections than I had with my previous manuscript. However there were many agents who requested the manuscript, seemed enthusiastic, then politely declined several weeks later.

Then—it happened. I looked down one morning at work and realized I had missed a call. The area code—New York City. Oh my gosh. Oh my gosh. I listened to the voicemail and—yes, an agent wanted to speak to me. This was it. This was The Call. I called him back, only to find out that he was calling not to offer me representation, but rather to tell me exactly why he was not doing so. Lovely. Immediately afterwards I ran into the nearest restroom and nearly threw up.

The scarring Not-The-Call call effectively capped all enthusiasm I had for the manuscript. Signing it off as a lost cause, I sat back, brushed off the disappointment, and decided yet again that I would write something better.

(Literary agents share helpful advice for new writers.)

Things Never Happen Quite as You Expect

When manuscript number three was just starting its journey through query swampland, I received an unexpected email. Carrie Pestritto of Prospect Agency, the assistant to one of the agents who had shown interest in (but ultimately turned down) The Looking Glass, had now become an agent herself. She said she wanted to see the manuscript again if I didn’t already have representation. I was flattered, but honestly my gut reaction was something along the lines of “Yeah, whatever. . . . She’s not going to want that dud.” However there was also no way I was going to turn down an interested agent, and so I gritted my teeth, braced for another rejection, and sent the book over.

A few weeks later, I got a second email from Carrie saying she loved the book and wanted to offer me representation. It was a good day. It also happened to be my birthday, and you can’t ask for better than that. We talked on the phone a week later and Carrie was delightful and had great ideas for the book. I tried to be delightful too; the truth was I was just insanely nervous. In the end, I happily signed the contract and off we went skipping down the long, long yellow brick road of revisions, re-revisions, and submitting. Oh my—the original manuscript needed a lot of work. But I lucked out. Carrie was a dream to work with and remained enthusiastic about the project even when we were on round five of edits. And all the hard work paid off in the end—a two-book deal. I almost couldn’t believe it.

If there’s a moral in all this it is that getting an agent isn’t easy, but sometimes things work out better than you had hoped. If you’re slogging through the query swamp, stay hopeful. Stay stubborn. And carry on.

GIVEAWAY: Jessica is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. (An international winner would get an e-book.) You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

Are you a subscriber to Writer’s Digest magazine
yet? If not, get a discounted one-year sub here.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• Writing romance or women’s? Agent Sarah Younger wants your query!
• The awesome story of how writer Taylor Reid met her agent, Carly Watters.
• How to Deal With Writing Rejections.
• Query letter FAQs answered.
• Sell More Books by Building Your Writer Platform.
• Writing fantasy, sci-fi, historical fic, women’s, YA or MG? Query this agent!
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and how to write a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Kristi Belcamino, author of BLESSED ARE THE DEAD. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Kristi is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

     

Column by award-winning former journalist Kristi Belcamino, whose debut
mystery BLESSED ARE THE DEAD has been compared to Sue Grafton’s books
and offers chilling, authentic glimpses into the mind of a psychopath while also
mining the psyche of an extremely likeable and sympathetic protagonist. The
novel (HarperCollins June 10, 2014) was inspired by Belcamino’s dealings with
a serial killer during her life as a Bay Area crime reporter. Find Kristi on Twitter.

 

I PULLED THE TRIGGER TOO EARLY

When my youngest started kindergarten, I sat down and wrote my first book. I naively thought my novel was then ready to go out into the world.

Wrong.

Premature

The first agent who requested a full (within an hour of me sending my query) rejected it soundly a week later, with words that still sting to this day: “… it is not strong enough to measure up against the heavy hitters in the genre.”

Body blow! Even though it hurt, he was right. I pulled the trigger much too early.

(Postscript: a year later I asked him to take another look at my revised novel, this time he really liked the writing, but said that type of crime fiction didn’t float his boat. Fair enough.)

(Why agents stop reading your sample chapters.)

THE CALL (NO, NOT *THAT* ONE)

As I hinted at above, I spent a year polishing that first draft. I studied craft, read all the great crime fiction writers and revised over and over again. I, also, continued to query. One day I got an email that an agent wanted to call me. The call, the call, the call!

But it wasn’t.

She spent 90 minutes on the phone telling me everything she liked about my book. When she first started reading it on her phone on the train home, she thought she would switch to her laptop once she got home. Instead, she sat on her couch, with her coat still on and read it until the end. On her phone.

I was ecstatic! But she ended the call talking about our future together but never made an offer.  (I’m still baffled to this day.)

But that’s when I knew I was close. Onwards. I’d been corresponding with another agent for about two months when she said she wanted to call me about some revisions I had done. Of course, this time I knew not to get too excited about a call. But this time, this agent offered to represent me. I told her that I’d let her know in a week. I had about 10 other agents considering my manuscript and I knew it was protocol, not to mention good karma, to give them a heads up. But I had pretty much already made a decision to go with her. I really liked her and she was super smart. By the end of the week three agents said they’d get back to me on Monday. Ego restored. I was going to get more than one offer and have to decide. Win!

Then I got an email from an agent I hadn’t even queried: Stacey Glick of Dystel & Goderich. Her colleague had read Blessed are the Dead and dubbed it a “Stacey Project.” She said she’d get back to me Monday morning. I immediately searched her on Publishers Marketplace. Good grief. She’d sold five books just that week alone.

But I wasn’t to be swayed. I would remain loyal to the first agent who offered. I knew her. I liked her.

Silly me. I had no idea what a powerhouse Stacey Glick is.

(How to collaborate with a freelance editor.)

STACEY THE SUPERSTAR

On Monday, Stacey Glick called me.

By the time I hung up, there was never any question of not signing with her. Never a question. For so many reasons. She is an amazing agent, is super smart, incredibly cool, and knows her stuff. In fact, she already knew what editors would like my book. I could go on and on, but by the end of the conversation, I knew I wanted her in my corner. I didn’t even need or want to talk to the other agents still considering my book.

Then, I realized I had to make the hardest call of my writing career. I had to call the first agent who offered and tell her I was going with someone else.

It sucked.

I felt like the biggest heel on the planet. I was sick to my stomach about it.

But I had to set emotions aside and make a business decision. Even though I had felt loyal to that first agent who offered, I knew in my heart that Stacey was the right agent for me.

And as it turned out, Stacey ended up selling my book to the editor she mentioned during that first phone call. I could not ask for a better editor or agent in my corner!

GIVEAWAY: Kristi is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

How to Blog a Book by Nina Amir discusses
how to slowly release a novel online to generate
interest in your writing and work.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• Writing fantasy, mystery, literary, urban fan, sci-fi or horror? Query Shira Hoffman.
• Writing the Male POV: 5 Tips.
• Author Antonio Hill explains: 5 Keys to Writing a Great Thriller.
• Agent JL Stermer puts out a call for more women’s fiction and young adult.
• 5 Ways to Build Solid Relationships in Your Story.
• Sell More Books by Building Your Writer Platform.
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and how to write a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Natalia Sylvester, author of CHASING THE SUN. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Natalia is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

       

Natalia Sylvester is the author of CHASING THE SUN (New Harvest/Amazon
Publishing, June 2014). Born in Lima, Peru, she came to the U.S. at age four
and grew up in South Florida, where she received a B.A. in Creative Writing
from the University of Miami. A former magazine editor, Natalia now works
as a freelance journalist and copywriter. Her articles have appeared in Latina,
NBCLatino.com, Writer’s Digest, and The Writer magazines.
Find her on Twitter: @NataliaSylv.

 

There’s a long version and a short version of this story.

THE SHORT VERSION

I went to a writers’ conference in 2010 and ended up getting offers of representation from two of the agents I met there.

THE LONG VERSION: ATTENDING A CONFERENCE

I attended the Writers’ League of Texas Agents & Editors Conference in June 2010. I was just a light polish away from completing a final draft of my novel after having worked on it for nearly four years. I felt ready enough to start pitching agents.

What I wasn’t ready for was pitching it verbally. Though I’d practiced a short pitch in front of my mirror, my husband, and my dogs, I arrived at the conference a nervous wreck. It was a Friday night, and my 10-minute consultation with Brandi Bowles of Foundry Literary + Media was on Sunday. I resigned myself to practicing my pitch by my lonesome in the corner of the room when a fellow conference attendee approached me.

“So what’s your book about?” she asked. Within minutes, I realized this conference wasn’t just about networking with agents, it was about networking with other writers. Together with about four others, my new friend and I helped each other practice and hone our pitch. We worked out the kinks and the nerves. By the time Sunday rolled around I was feeling pretty confident. I sat down with Brandi and told her about my book.

And guess what? She didn’t offer me representation right then and there. What she did offer was feedback. Really great, spot-on suggestions for how I could make my work stronger before sending it out to agents.

I took it all in. Later that afternoon, when I had the chance to pitch another agent who requested I send him a full, I asked if he’d rather I send him the manuscript right away, or if it’d be okay if I took a couple of months to really polish it. “Always send the best work you can, even if it takes a little longer,” he said. It took this in, too.

Essentially, I left the conference with an important To-Do List:

1. Keep revising, taking into account the agents feedback I’d received.
2. Meet with my new writers’ group that I’d met at the conference to get even more feedback.
3. Don’t rush. Query only when the book is ready.

Four months passed before I got through all these steps. I started querying in late October and within a few months had received offers from both Brandi and the other agent I’d met at the WLT Conference.

I call this the longer, more honest version of this story because the truth is this: You may not always walk away from a conference with an offer of representation. But if you keep your mind and ears open, you’ll definitely walk away with the tools necessary to get there.

GIVEAWAY: Natalia is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

If you’re think in the middle of writing your novel, WD’s
Story Building Collection Kit is 6 items rolled into one
bundle at 69% off. The kit’s books & webinars focus on
plot, structure, character, showing & telling, world building
first pages, and more. Available while supplies last.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• Why Your First Few Pages Are So Important.
• Query Agents in Bunches and Tiers.
• NEW Literary Agent Seeking Clients: Dana Newman of Dana Newman Literary.
• Sell More Books by Building Your Author Platform.
• Why You Should Read Your Work Aloud as You Go.
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and how to write a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

 

 

 

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring A. Lynden Rolland, author of the YA supernatural novel OF BREAKABLE THINGS. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Lynn is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the print book, whereas other readers worldwide can win the ebook. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

     

A. Lynden Rolland was born and raised in Annapolis, Maryland. As a former
English teacher, she enjoys visiting classrooms to discuss reading, writing and
publishing. When she isn’t writing or chasing her two young children around
town, she moonlights as a writing tutor and gymnastics instructor. Her debut
novel is OF BREAKABLE THINGS (April 2014, Month9Books), a YA supernatural
story. You can connect with A. Lynden Rolland online through
her website, Facebook, or Twitter.

 

PINK SLIP IN THE MAIL

The first time I mailed a query letter the envelope gave me a paper cut. I should have seen it as a sign. The fact that I used snail mail tells you how long ago this journey began, and the fact that I sent out only one query tells you how naïve I was going into it. I checked the mail with a childlike diligence every day. A week later, there was my SASE, perfect lettering and all. My penmanship is typically slop. It’s a cursive-print hybrid mess that only a handwriting analyst might understand. But with lettering so intricately lined, so neatly arranged, the SASE had to contain good news. I rushed back to house, tossed the rest of the junk on the table, crisscrossed my legs and fell to the floor, ripping open the envelope. At first, I didn’t think there was anything there besides my query. Was it possible that my dream agent had accidentally forgotten to include the shining request for the full manuscript? I expected it to fall out with a thud like a block of gold.

(Classifying Your Book: How to Research & Target Literary Agents.)

I thumbed through the contents again, flipping the envelope upside down and shaking it. Out fluttered a neon pink square. Pink. Freaking pink. Surely such a positive color would be representative of good news, but immediately the term “pink slip” came to mind. If that was the intention, I’m telling you now, agent: NOT FUNNY. Not funny at all. I didn’t even receive a personalized rejection. Hell, I didn’t even get a full sheet of paper! Just the standard thank you, ‘this business is subjective’ blah, blah, (shoot me in the face) blah.

I didn’t think it would sting quite as badly as it did, but that horrid, pink demon-slip left quite the paper cut on my ego. Everyone gets rejected. If I’ve heard it once, I’ve heard it a million times. But writers take things to heart. Writers are perfectionists. We analyze and internalize things more than other people. If we weren’t overly emotional, we wouldn’t write dramatic fiction.

MORE REJECTIONS

Eventually, I racked up over forty rejections. I took the criticism in stride. I rewrote; I reworked; I revised. Every time I wanted to jump off the roof, I reminded myself that my house wasn’t high enough … I’d only break a leg, and then I’d be crippled and still rejected. Pass.

Many agents were encouraging. They liked my writing. They liked my premise, but I was already hearing the word trend. YA Paranormal was on its way out. I came very close with one agent, but in the end, it just didn’t work out. I was thankful for her advice, but I was crushed. Hope is a beautiful thing; each time an agent would request the ms, the elation was such a high. But the tricky thing about hope is that it acts similarly to helium. It doesn’t last forever, and when I was inflated to cloud nine, that only meant I had further to fall. And fall I did. I was done with it.

(Definitions of unusual literary terms & jargon you need to know.)

AND JUST WHEN I WAS ABOUT TO GIVE UP, THIS HAPPENED…

I gave up. I shelved the manuscript. My skin was not thick enough to withstand the knives of rejection. Ironically, the same week, I received an email from Rachael Dugas at Talcott Notch Literary Agency. She requested the first fifty pages. A few days later, she requested more. It was not my first full request, and I was no longer that optimistically eager moron. This time I didn’t get my hopes up. A month later, I checked my email to find:

Hi, Amy–

Thank you for your manuscript and your patience. I simply loved [Of Breakable Things] and would be interested in representing you. Can we set up a time to chat sometime early next week, perhaps sometime Monday afternoon?

Best,

Rachael Dugas

Blink.

Squint.

Reread.

Jaw drop.

My first tiny piece of success as a writer. I fell to the floor in tears. Would the moment have been so gratifying if I’d succeeded the first time? Certainly not. I’d like to believe that those paper cuts have made my skin a little thicker, but if anything, at least they’ve made me a bit more colorful, a bit more interesting, and a bit more appreciative.

GIVEAWAY: Lynn is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the print book, whereas other readers worldwide can win the ebook. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

 

Hook agents, editors and readers immediately.
Check out Les Edgerton’s guide, HOOKED, to
learn about how your fiction can pull readers in.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:

• How to Write Your First Novel: 6 Pieces of Advice.
• A writing routine is healthy — but is it totally necessary?
• How to Sell Pieces to Magazines and Newspapers.
• Need an agent? This new agent is seeking fiction, memoir, and more.
• Writing YA, mid grade or picture books? New agent Clelia Gore wants your query.
• How I Learned to Kill My Darlings (and Improve My Writing).
• Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and writing a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform shows you how to
promote yourself and your books through social
media, public speaking, article writing, branding,
and more. Order the book from WD at a discount.

 

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent”

is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Maria Mutch, author of the memoir KNOW THE NIGHT. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

 

        

Maria Mutch

KNOW THE NIGHT
(March 2014,
Simon & Schuster and Knopf Canada) is about her experience of being up at
night with her oldest son, who has Down syndrome and autism, combined with
the 1930s Antarctic adventure of Admiral Richard Byrd. Find Maria on Twitter


.

 

 

BE PREPARED(How much money can you expect from selling your first book?)

9 MONTHS LATER(Find out why agents stop reading your first chapter.)

TALKING WITH AN AGENT

This guest column is a supplement to the
“Breaking In” (debut authors) feature of this author
in Writer’s Digest magazine. Are you a subscriber
yet? If not, get a discounted one-year sub here

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:A new agent wants unique literary voices, women’s fiction, narrative nonfiction, memoir & comedy.

10 Dos and Dont’s For the Aspiring Novelist.

The Value of Tough Love and Honest Feedback.

Agents Share Their Query Letter Pet Peeves.

Agent Maria Vincente seeks clients NOW.

Open Your Eyes and Ears: Writing Inspiration is all Around You.

Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter

or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and writing a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform

Order the book from WD at a discount

.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent”

is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Richard Ellis Preston, author of ROMULUS BUCKLE & THE CITY OF FOUNDERS. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Richard is excited to give away a free copy of his novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

 

        

Richard Ellis Preston, Jr.

ROMULUS BUCKLE AND THE CITY OF THE FOUNDERS



(47 North,
July 2013) is the first installment in his new steampunk series, The Chronicles of
the Pneumatic Zeppelin. Booklist said of the debut, “”What a glorious, steam-filled,
larger-than-life, action-packed adventure!” Richard has also written for film and
television. He currently resides in California. Find Richard on Twitter



.

 

 

HOW LIGHTNING STRIKES (AFTER 20 YEARS)SUCCESS IN SCREENWRITING BURNED ME OUTA REFERRAL: YET ANOTHER DOOR OPENED BY A CONTACT

If you’re think in the middle of writing your novel, WD’s
Story Building Collection Kit

Available while supplies last


.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:When Can You Call Yourself a Writer?

Read a Query That Worked and Snagged an Agent.

“How I Got My Agent,” by Novelist Carsen Morton.

Sell More Books by Building Your Author Platform

.

Literary Agent Interview: Peter McGuigan of Foundry Literary.

See a List of Writers Conferences and Events.

Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter

or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and how to write a query letter.

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform

Order the book from WD at a discount

.

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent”

is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Monica Wesolowska, author of HOLDING SILVAN [a memoir]. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Monica is excited to give away a free copy of her book to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

        

Monica Wesolowska has published both fiction and memoir in numerous
literary journals and anthologies, including Best New American Voices 2000,
The Carolina Quarterly, Literary Mama, and the New York Times Bestseller My
Little Red Book. She has taught writing at UC Berkeley Extension for a decade
and lives with her family in Berkeley, California. Her book, HOLDING SILVAN

Find her on Twitter

.

 

 

AT FIRST, I WAS HESITANT TO TRY…Holding Silvan

. With my memoir, I wanted a “yes” and I wanted it now, and fear of rejection couldn’t hold me back.

Don’t get me wrong. I know that wanting doesn’t always get us what we want. After all, I’d wanted Silvan very much. And during my pregnancy with him, I’d been filled with new confidence. I‘d even started sending out a collection of my stories. Determined to have an agent before I gave birth, I’d flooded agents’ mailboxes, braving the flurry of paper slips that returned with wishes for good luck elsewhere; and then something unimaginable happened. During labor, my baby was asphyxiated. His brain was severely damaged. Thirty-eight days later, Silvan died.

What did words matter to me then? What were characters compared to a child? I thought I’d give up writing forever. As if to seal the deal, the day after Silvan’s death, I got this last rejection from an agent: “I don’t care about your characters.”

On that day, I laughed hollowly. I thought I cared even less than this agent did.

THROUGH GRIEF, I WAS ABLE TO CREATETHE VALUE OF A REFERRALHolding Silvan

took six months to sell. Those months of waiting felt miserable but, really, compared to losing a child, how hard could anything be?

So when people ask how I got my agent, I say it’s complicated. It took years of writing alone, it took the sudden help of others. It took grief and joy. It took luck and love. It took Silvan and my certainty that someone would soon care enough about our story to say, “Yes.”

GIVEAWAY: Monica is excited to give away a free copy of her book to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

WD’s Novel Writer’s Tool Kit

Available while supplies last




.

 

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:Literary Agent Interview: Michelle Johnson of Inklings Literary. She Seeks New Writers.

Find Out At Which Conferences Agents Will Take Pitches From New Writers.

Writing Historical Fiction Based On A Family Story.

Write the Book You Want to Read.

Sell More Books by Building Your Writer Platform.

How to Use Storyboarding and Plotting Techniques On Your Novel.

Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter

or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and how to write a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform

Order the book from WD at a discount

.

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent”

is a recurring feature on the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, with this installment featuring Brian McClellan, author of PROMISE OF BLOOD: Book One of the Powder Mage Trilogy. These columns are great ways for you to learn how to find a literary agent. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Brian is excited to give away a free copy of his novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before. (Please note that comments may take a little while to appear; this is normal).

 

Brian McClellan is the author of Promise of Blood,

The Girl of Hrusch Avenue

” and the upcoming The Crimson Campaign,
due out in February of 2014. He lives in Cleveland, Ohio with his wife and two
dogs and a cat. In his spare time he plays computer games, makes homemade
jams, and tends to a hive of honey bees.  You can find Brian via Twitter


,
Facebook
, or on his website.

 

 

 

SINCE I WRITE FANTASY, I WENT TO CONVENTIONS“I CAME HOME DEFEATED”…on sale on Kindle for $1.99

for the month of September 2013.)

I researched query letters. I found dozens of examples and looked over them, reading about what made them good or bad. I read agent’s blogs to find out what they were looking for. I tried to find as many as possible for works of genre fiction because, after all, that’s what I was submitting.

I kept my query letter short and sweet. I told them the length and genre. I told them the hook¬—the reason that readers would pick up my book instead of someone else’s. I gave them a single paragraph that summed up the story, and finally I provided my credentials (of which I had very few).

My query, what I had spent weeks working on, was a basic form letter. But it’s a terrible idea to send form letters to agents, so I changed it a little bit for each agent: I addressed them by name. I commented about the books they represented, or an author friend that had recommended them, or that I had met them at such and such a convention. I made each letter into its own personalized query.

PERSONALIZED QUERIES PAY OFF

Join the Writer’s Digest VIP Program

Other writing/publishing articles & links for you:New Literary Agent Seeking Clients: Pooja Menon of Kimberley Cameron & Associates.

5 Things Agents Can Do to Make Writers’ Lives Easier

From Self-Published Memoir to Traditional Book Deal.

Sell More Books by Building Your Writer Platform.

Follow Chuck Sambuchino on Twitter

or find him on Facebook. Learn all about his writing guides on how to get published, how to find a literary agent, and how to write a query letter.

 

Want to build your visibility and sell more books?
Create Your Writer Platform

Order the book from WD at a discount

.

 

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

 

 

 

 

   

Gina Damico grew up under four feet of snow in Syracuse,
New York. She received a degree in theater and sociology from
Boston College, where she was active with the Committee for
Creative Enactments, a collegiate murder mystery improv comedy
troupe that may or may not have sparked an interest in wildly
improbable bloodshed. CROAK is her first novel. Kirkus Reviews
said of the book, “The central mystery is genuinely puzzling, and
Lex’s narrative voice is funny and fresh. . . . Fantasy fans who like
their tales gritty and filled with irreverent humor will be eager for
the follow-up.” Gina lives in Boston with her husband, two cats,
and a closet full of black hoodies.

 

 

 

PLEASE DON’T GET MAD AT ME…

Okay, I’m going to say this right up front so that you have time to lower your pitchforks and put down your cauldrons of burning oil:

I never had to query to get my agent.

A few years ago, I had a terrible HR office temp job wherein I was required to do absolutely nothing but sit in front of a computer. Boredom led to writing, and a book began to emerge. It soon became a behemoth. At around 150,000 words, I stopped, read it over a few times, did some editing, did some research, and ended up querying about eight agents, all of whom rejected me. And all with very, very good reason.

I didn’t get depressed, because I had expected this to happen. Getting a book published is a long hard slog through a swamp of muck and grime, or so all the advice books told me, and I was fully prepared for rejection. What I was not prepared for was the entirely different book concept that jumped into my head while the rejections were rolling in. It was way better. It had much more promise. So I started writing that one instead.

LET’S GIVE THIS CONFERENCE A TRY…

Fast forward. New Book was ready to go, but before I jumped back into querying, I decided to give a conference a try. So I attended Michael Neff’s New York Pitch Conference, which is really more of a workshop on how to write a pitch for your book – a pitch that you then deliver out loud to four real, breathing editors from major publishing houses. So I went in there with my little book, worked on my little song-and-dance, and soon the time came to pitch it to the first editor. Michael introduced her, then also introduced someone else named Tina Wexler who would be sitting in on the pitches – he told us who she was, but I somehow missed what he said. I went through the whole morning thinking she was…I don’t even know. The editor’s partner? Her caddy? Just a casu

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Colette is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before.

 

 

     

Colette Martin is the author of LEARNING TO BAKE ALLERGEN-FREE
(June 2012). When her son was diagnosed with eosinophilic esophagitis
in 2001, triggered by allergies to wheat, milk, eggs, soy and peanuts, she
had to reinvent how her family ate. Having first learned to bake in her
grandmother’s kitchen with wheat, butter, milk, and eggs, Colette
understands first-hand what it means to transform her kitchen to
accommodate multiple food allergies. Colette is Vice-Chairperson
of the Board of Kids with Food Allergies. You can follow her:
Facebook: Allergen-Free Baker, Twitter: @colettefmartin,
Pinterest: Colette Martin.

 

 

 

THE WRITER’S DIGEST CONFERENCE

The very first writer’s conference I attended was the Writer’s Digest Conference in 2009, and I wasn’t sure what to expect. I knew I wanted to write a book about food allergies, but hadn’t yet nailed down the book concept.

I had read about the pitch slam, and I was intimidated. For those who have never attended one, it’s a bit like speed dating with agents – three minutes to talk to each agent (usually after waiting in a very long line). Oddly, there is no opportunity for the agent to read anything you’ve written; that first step is all based on a verbal exchange – something that can be difficult for many introverted writers.

Further, I had heard that agents were very hard to find, and I was under the impression that they were all tough, critical, and bossy. I almost chose to pass on pitching to agents, but a writing mentor encouraged me to go for it. I decided I had nothing to lose by participating, and I learned a couple very important things…

I LEARNED THE FOLLOWING:

1. Agents are nice – far nicer than the people I was accustomed to dealing with in the corporate world. And while I dislike generalizations, I would characterize all of the agents I have met as polite, respect

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Oksana is excited to give away a free copy of her book to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before.

 

 

 

      

Oksana Marafioti is the author of AMERICAN GYPSY: A MEMOIR
(FSG Originals, July 2012). She moved from the Soviet Union when
she was 15 years old. Trained as a classical pianist, she has also
worked as a cinematographer. Currently, Oksana is a Black
Mountain Institute-Kluge Center Fellow at the Library of
Congress. See her website here.

 

 

 

 

ALL I NEEDED WAS A LITTLE PUSH

When people ask what made me first decide to write American Gypsy: A Memoir, I jokingly reply, “My agent.” In reality, this is kind of true. Though my family story was always something I wanted to explore, I never had the guts to dive in. Not until I met someone who gave me a push.

A few years back I attended the Las Vegas Writers Conference. I had a finished book in the genre of paranormal urban fantasy which I pitched to professionals until my lips felt like they were going to fall off my face. After giving away dozens of pages with the story synopsis and a short personal bio, I got a few leads and a request for a full manuscript, which was amazing.

At the end of the day I noticed a woman who looked so young that at first I was certain she couldn’t be an agent. I remember asking someone that perhaps she was a student here for the student writers contest. When I was assured that Brandi Bowles was indeed and agent with Howard Morhaim, a very reputable New York literary agency, I decided to pitch to her, too.

Brandi liked the story, but she very politely said that she wasn’t taking urban fantasies. I was ready to convince her to reconsider when she asked something really odd. “Have you ever thought about writing a memoir?” I remember looking at her as if she’d spoken Mandarin. I didn’t know people could sell books about their families unless they were Madonna, and I said as much. But she insisted there was a story worth telling, and I promised I’d write a few sample chapters.

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Benedict is excited to give away a free novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before.

 

 

 

       

Benedict Jacka became a writer almost by accident, when at 19
he sat in his school library and started a story in the back of an
exercise book. Since then he’s studied philosophy at Cambridge,
lived in China, and worked as everything from civil servant to
bouncer to teacher before returning to London to take up law.
See his website here. Benedict’s latest novel is CURSED
(Ace, May 2012), an urban fantasy.

 

 

REAL LIFE ISN’T AS NEAT AS STORIES…

I started writing novels in my last year of secondary school. My first novel was a children’s fantasy, set half in our world and half another. I finished it in my Gap Year, bought a copy of the Writer’s Handbook, and started sending out submissions. Agencies #1 through #3 said no, but Agency #4 was interested. I went in to see them, met a very nice agent lady, and plans were made for an editor to take a look at the book with an eye towards making it publishable. I’d gotten an agent . . .

. . . except that as things turned out, I hadn’t. Real life isn’t as neat as stories – it’s slower and it’s messier. The report from the editor took a long, long time to get back. In fact it took so long that by the time I got it, I’d started and finished a second book.

The editorial report was on the ambivalent side. It wasn’t quite sure whether my first book could be published or not, but it was leaning towards “not.” I sent them my second book to see if they were more interested in that one, but it was quite different from the first and after another long wait they decided they didn’t want that either. In fact, they decided they didn’t want me after all.

BACK TO THE SUBMISSION PROCESS

At this point I made one of those minor, didn’t-seem-important-at-the-time decisions that end up having a major effect on your life. I was a bit annoyed at the agency for stringing me along for so long, but the agent I’d dealt with had always been nice to me and so I got in touch with her to thank her for at least giving me a try. She told me she was sorry things hadn’t worked out, and gave me the names of eight agents who she thought might be interested in my second book.

I started making submission packs – one cover letter, one chapter from my second book, and o

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

 

 

    

Anne Greenwood Brown is the author of LIES BENEATH
(Random House/Delacorte, June 2012), a YA novel about murderous
mermaids on Lake Superior. She is a guest blogger on Writer Unboxed
and a member of The Apocalypsies (2012 YA/MG debuts). You can
follow her on Twitter @AnneGBrown and check her out on Facebook.
See the novel’s book trailer here.

 

MY FIRST WRITERS CONFERENCE

In April 2010, I got in my car and drove four hours to my first writers’ conference. The plan: pitch my “Serious Piece of Work” to two literary agents and ultimately score a huge publishing deal.

The first morning, I met with Agent #1. She was everything my Midwestern mind conjured up when I thought of publishing professionals from Manhattan: tall, beautifully dressed, glossy, didn’t pronounce the letter R. She proceeded to tell me that there was no market for my “Serious Piece of Work.”

LET’S TRY THIS AGAIN…

As I licked my wounds, I prepared for my second pitch session–this time with Molly Lyons of Joëlle Delbourgo Associates. Molly looked very friendly in her picture. Plus, she went to Amherst College, my dad’s alma mater. I reasoned that she had to like my novel because I knew all the words to the Amherst fight song.

But thirty minutes before that second pitch session, the conference coordinator announced that Molly was unable to make the trip, and her colleague, Jacqueline Flynn, had come in her place. I quickly Googled Jacqueline on my Blackberry. She represented nonfiction, specializing in business books. Seriously? I almost bailed on the meeting. I’d already been told my Serious Piece of Work was a piece of something else. Why bother?

Despite feeling defeated, I decided it would be unprofessional to bail on the appointment. Besides, I could always use it as a practice pitch. Strange thing though. When I sat down, I forgot to mention my Serious Piece of Work. Instead, I told Jacqueline about a MG novel I wrote for my kids.

“That sounds good,” she said. “Send me that.”

TWO “YES” VOTES

Four months went by and, as I sat in the Arby’s drive-thru, my phone rang:

“Hi, Anne. This is Jacquie Flynn from Joëlle Delbourgo Associates. I was at a hockey tournament this weekend and my son forgot his book at home. He pulled your manu

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Jennifer is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before.

 

 

 

      

Jennifer Bosworth lives in Los Angeles, California, where
lightning hardly ever strikes, but when it does she takes cover.
She is the writer half of a writer/director team with her husband,
Ryan Bosworth. Learn more about her and view the book trailer
for her YA novel, STRUCK, at jenniferbosworth.com.

 

 

 

A FEW GLASSES OF WHITE WINE…

The first time I met my agent, Jamie Weiss Chilton of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency, I’d drunk way too much white wine while standing in the hot sun, and ended up telling her an extremely embarrassing (and rather raunchy) story.

This auspicious first encounter occurred at the Santa Barbara Writers Conference, during their agent meet and greet event. It was my first time at the conference, and I knew a total of zero people. I showed up at the meet and greet, and immediately relegated myself to the sidelines, too afraid to approach any of these complete strangers and say words to them.

Lucky for me, a group of writers noticed me in seclusion and invited me into their inner circle. Fast forward: a couple of glasses of wine later, we were all pretty gregarious, and I was feeling far less shy when, suddenly, a couple of agents appeared in the mix. I was in the middle of a . . . ahem . . . a somewhat embarrassing and colorful story. I had no choice but to finish it and deliver the racy punchline. I won’t tell you the story. Suffice to say that it was not one I wanted prospective agents to hear.

Afterward, introductions were made and I found out I was pitching to not one, but two of the agents at the next day’s pitch fest. Gulp. But, hey, at least I made a first impression, right? I wasn’t sure if it was a good one, but it was an impression.

A HURRIED FIRST DRAFT

The next day, nursing a white wine hangover, I pitched my book, STRUCK, to Jamie Weiss Chilton, and she seemed to love the idea. She asked me to send her the first 50 pages, I told her I would, and we went our separate ways.

Whew. I was relieved that my naughty story hadn’t scared Jamie away. But what I didn�

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Regina is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before.

 

 

 

 

    

Regina Jennings is homeschooling mother of four from Oklahoma.
She enjoys watching musicals with her kids, traveling with her
husband and reading by herself. Regina graduated from Oklahoma
Baptist University with a degree in English and a history minor.
She has worked at The Mustang News and First Baptist Church
of Mustang, along with time at the Oklahoma National Stockyards
and various livestock shows. For more posts by Regina or
information about her novel, SIXTY ACRES AND A BRIDE (Feb. 2012
Bethany House), please visit her website – find her on Facebook or Twitter.

 

 

If you were an agent would you want to represent an aspiring novelist whose professional claim to fame was that she weighed pigs at the Oklahoma National Stockyards?

That’s what I thought.

When I decided to write my first book I had no contacts. I didn’t know a single author. There were no friends to introduce me to an agent and no opportunities to cross paths with literary types at cocktail parties (do they still have those in the big city?). I was blazing across new territory.

Or that’s how I felt, but I saw evidence that others had been there before. Their desperately carved messages scarred the canyon walls—Agents don’t look at emailed submissions. You have to know someone to get published. No one signs newbies unless you’ve been on TV wearing a swimsuit… and America’s Funniest Videos doesn’t count.

But among the doomsayers were those dispensing encouragement as well—Learn the art of querying, Go to conferences, Miracles happen. And a miracle was what I needed.

ON A QUEST

I’d had my eye on a certain writer’s conference, one that would be attended by an editor with my dream publishing house and several agents I’d been stalking. Was my writing good enough? We would soon find out because my husband bought me a ticket for my birthday. In a few months I’d be pitching my novel to a real-life, fire-breathing, rejection-shooting agent.

That would be great, wouldn’t it? The only problem I saw was that the week after conference every agent in attendance would be flooded with submissions. The

Add a Comment

“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at [email protected] and we’ll talk specifics.

GIVEAWAY: Cassie is excited to give away a free copy of her novel to a random commenter. Comment within 2 weeks; winners must live in Canada/US to receive the book by mail. You can win a blog contest even if you’ve won before.

 

 

      

Cassie Alexander is a registered nurse. NIGHTSHIFTED (May 2012
St. Martins) is her debut novel. Publishers Weekly said of the book,
“Medical drama and vampire cold wars intersect in this solid urban
fantasy debut.”

 

 

 

56 REJECTIONS…

I always knew I was on to something with NIGHTSHIFTED. Which was good, because it took ten months and 56 rejections to finally get an agent who agreed with me.

When I finished writing NIGHTSHIFTED and had buffed, polished, and shined it to within an inch of its life, I came up with a query letter and sent it to all the writer-friends I had. After their valuable input, and with permission to query their some of their agents while name dropping their names, I figured this was it. This would finally be the book. It was finally time.

Now, Nightshifted was my 10th book, and none of the rest were ever published. I’m no stranger to rejection — which wound up being a good thing, because I got a ton of them.

BATCHES OF QUERIES

I sent out queries in batches of five a week. I figured that way if something was wrong with my query letter, I’d know. And right off the bat I got a ton of interest, requests for partials, the occasional full. I felt like I was truly on my way.

But slowly, one by one, interest shifted to polite rejections. My book was too dark, or they didn’t like the voice. Luckily, I was mature enough as an author to know that those were the kind of things I couldn’t change – but each of those rejections still stung. I had five fulls out over the summer of 2010, and I was so positive one of those agents would sign me. Imagine my slow-motion shock and terror

Add a Comment