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What a laid back crew, she's to be commended on her training. (The bully and the cat's licking made me nervous, though, like it could all be one second away from mayhem.)

That's the blog title of the week!

Where's the duck's shark costume?

It's not fair that the cat and the dog got wear a shark costume. Equal rights for ducks.

Have to tell you my cat came running when he heard the vacuum noise! He watched the whole thing with me! Thanks for the laugh.

How in the world did you get the cat to stay on? My cat runs as soon as I take the vac from the closet. Too cute.

I saw the title and thought you would be reviewing really bad queries.

Saw this on GMA and I knew, I mean I really knew, it would end up in your pond.
Hahaha, it is about the most dumb-ass awesome thing I have ever seen and it...made...my...day.
Thank you oh great finder of sharkish things.

Cats around the world have just voted that cat off the island. I mean, you can expect that kind of behaviour from a dog, but a cat?

That's incredible. Thanks for sharing.

Beautiful Thanks!

I was captivated by this...the song and the artistry. Loved it.

This is stunningly beautiful. Thanks so much for posting it!

Nice! Thnx.

Wow. Great. I'm off to show my artistic 13 year old. Love the story behind the drawing too.

For some reason I thought of Paige and Travis.

Seems they're always intersecting and vanishing. I'm too immersed in the third book of the trilogy.

Great writing by Mr. Lee, thanks for the reccomendation of The Breach.

Makes me want to pull my light table out of storage and animate again...

Perfect for this Tuesday morning as well. An uplift I needed for sure, thanks Janet.

Thank you. Really.

Wow! This is SO cool! And kudos to the choreographer as well as the animation artist. I feel like I want to see the whole dance by real people...although then we'd lose some of the animation-only special effects :) Thanks for sharing!

That's funny, my husband and I were just talking about the possibility of moving there.

Texas is pretty close though.

Looks GORGEOUS. It's been weirdly cold in the Carolinas for the past few weeks - warm weather sounds REALLY enticing!

I saw a recent documentary on monitors. They are quite disgusting, and big, and strong, and would probably eat those poor ox. Not sure a random, chance encounter with IT would be worth the picture of THAT.

I am noticing a growing obsession of yours to covet pictures of virtually anyplace closer to the equator than New York.

It might just be time to consider making the move to South Florida. It's my understanding that if you move there from New York City and meet the criteria of being of retirement age, and having rarely driven a car of your own, that the state will issue you the largest sedan that money can buy to take onto the Turnpike at 90 miles an hour.

It's snowing AGAIN in NJ. I'm all for Mexico in winter, um, and early spring. It's March !

Dear Ms Reid

Somebody ought to iron that iguana. He looks like he slept in those duds.

d

Writers entrance?

The entrance to your office building?

ha ha!

Yesterday I took a photo of a giant inflatable shark dressed as Santa sitting on the roof of the Aquarium of Paris but it seems after the fact. Should I send it?

:) Nice.

Squee! This is in Biloxi Mississippi, new post-Katrina construction right on the beach. I knew Fine Print had moved, but I didn't know they had a southern lair. Are there any openings for interns who like shrimp po'boys? #justwondering

Terri

That
is awesome.

Is National Geographic trying to knock Discovery Channel out of the shark business?

That is the best but pub I've seen yet.

So cool! Why step on in, my pretty.

Oh, come on! Stay a while! We are getting a cold front and it's supposed to get down to 85.

This is cool! I wish all advertising was this inventive and unique.

Fantastic!

Cool! And yet disturbing.

I think I'll wait for the next bus, thank you.

AWESOME, although I don't know if I'd be brave enough to board. My shark fear is a little high.

Best. Bus. Ever.

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Gives a new meaning to the term

Bus "fare".

Fantastic!

Oh my - as a certified JAWS fanatic, I absolutely LOVE this!

Are you, by any chance, a 4 year old boy in disguise? Just checking... ;)

Careful you don't get a visit from a guy who looks like Raymond Burr.

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0047396/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1MHVqAWGmI

Decades ago some Japanese cultural anthropologists determined that Americans are the most childlike people in the world. In no other country will people spend hours watching a machine dig a hole.

I thought that was your desk being moved into your new office.

Yeah, but nobody digs a hole quite like an American. Part of the reason I went to engineering school. #rawr #vroom

Holy Crackamoli, THAT is a hi-lift! This from the person who never should have been moved to an upstairs office where I can watch the guy across the street at the scrap yard smash cars and stuff all day.

OMG I LOVE FREE BOOK DAY!!!!!!!!!!!

:D

Wow! Congrats! It's not creepy if I rub your blog for good luck now, is it? Unless maybe it makes my mittens all staticky...

Congrats! My husband would drool over the new Updikes. :)

Cool and congrats, Janet! That's a good haul too. :)

Congratulations on your lucky draw. Anything with Updike and See is a good haul. ^^

It's fun to be a winner!

Now I follow them too!

I love these! I really wish I had something to add, but after "insert under short leg of table" I can't really do any better.

I don't have anything to add to the symbols; however, I first saw this list a few days ago on a tumblr account I find amazing, and thought I'd share that. http://tkmbnd.tumblr.com/

Absolutely wonderful. Printing and posting where I write. Or don't write. While putting away my Pringles.

I wanna play! I wanna play! I just sent in my contribution.

I love these! (Good one, Catherine.) We use AYKB around here all the time for fun and frolic.

HA! Loving these!

Ummm...you're welcome? ;-)

I saw these a few days ago. I love the addition of 'as you know Bob!" Awesome.

I'm going to start drawing the mixed metaphor on papers even if there is no mixed metaphor. I just really like that drawing. What's better than a snake with a cat head?

I think AYKB needs to become part of the official list. :)

I wish I could come up with a clever scribble for "use SAID instead of exclaied, shouted, hissed, screamed, snarled, etc....) because that one needs a symbol too.

Great post, Janet!

Ha! I felt smart for knowing all the symbols in the first image, and then quite silly for laughing at everything else as much as I did. So clever!

Why can't each morning be like that?

Well actually it can...ah ha...replay.

Do you think we could get all those musicians in my little Civic for my morning commute? :)

Love it! Love the smiles. Made me smile, too!

That was beautiful.

Also, you label made me chuckle.

Fun! But I was waiting for tympani to show up, and Hall of the Mountain King. ;-)

This was my morning commute. Thank you.

Now you've tempted me to go play the violin instead of writing. Well, okay. Maybe for a few minutes anyway...

The best part is the baby. She's like, "Eh, I see this every day."

Great. Now I'm crying.

Thanks, Janet. Thanks, flashmob. Thanks, universe.

Well, that puddled me up.

Thank you Janet and Jessica.

#getbacktoworkTerri

Terri

Love this! There are so many of the flash mob videos I love, but this is one of my favorites. More proof that they need to stop cutting the art/music programs from the schools.

Thanks for posting this...nice way to start the day.

What a beautiful gift.

Ahaha beautiful. Can you imagine their story when they get to work? NO REALLY GUYS THERE WAS THIS WHOLE ORCHESTRA IN THE SUBWAY...THEY WERE SERENADING ME!!!

Lisa, that's exactly what I thought too. Time to remember that art and music aren't extras in our life, they make our life.

Sadly it was without a live orchestra. It would have been difficult squishing them into the back of the Element I suppose. But I would have been willing to try.

I wonder what they play for the ride home...Taps?

It sure beats listening to my kids argue from the back seat every morning! (although I'm lucky enough to work at my kid's school and our students still have art and music classes 2-3 times a week for 30-45 min each.)
erica

I would cry happy tears if that happened on my commute...

The faces of the children make my throat close up and my nose begin to prickle. How lovely.

Thank you, Janet.

Love it :)

I love it!

Fun! I liked moving the mouse in very small circles, making the shark dance.

Well. That was delightful! :)

As if I need something else to help me avoid work! I just wish I co8uld throw some people in there with the shark...

What fun. I liked the shark. :-)

Very cool!

Now that is awesome!

That shark can dance!

Mesmerizing!Could use some blood on the water. Some chum, a diver or two with manuscripts in hand. And I mean hand, not hands.
A shark's got to eat.

Love it and want to add this to the chum pool:

http://www.zooborns.typepad.com/zooborns/shark/

Terri

I was going to comment, but Lydia said my comment verbatim.

So I'll just say, "Ditto."

Great. Now I’m afraid of the computer. And therapy was going so well.

RRuin, that is what I was going to say. It'd be even better if the cursor was a manuscript or a query letter and the shark had it's mouth open.

My son is thrilled. He has been screaming, "The SHARK GAME!" for five minutes now.

I run a teen advice blog, and my readers love that kind of stuff. I added a link, so thanks for sharing.

Totally brain dead after a really long day. I clicked and stared for a moment wondering WTF and then hit the mouse by accident...very finny indeed.

Fintastic!

Major bummer. All I get is a blank screen.

Waaaaaaaaay more fun than should be allowed. Now, where did I put that bait?

~ Just Joany/Yaya
Yaya's Home
Red Wagon Flights

Now, Maude's posting is just thoughtless and inconsiderate. Doesn't she know there are thousands of snakes on the internet at any given time? Poor things. I'll bet they have grounds for a class action suit here.

Oh dear. I'm so sorry. Definitely don't read Crews' books! (I've added a disclaimer.)

Well, that might save you from the class action suit...

(I have to say, I *love* your disclaimer!)

LOL!

BTW, if you can't find tar, molasses works just fine.

Maude,

I have a good recipe for octopus too in case the feast shows up at your house.

;o)

There is a recent issue of the Georgia Review that has an excellent piece on Harry Crews and then includes a piece by him that was really great. He is an interesting writer if nothing else, which is something I greatly respect as so much writing can be simply for the sake of writing and doesn't really provide insight, entertain or tell a larger truth.

James Buchanan
www.orchardwriting.com

Here's some more work avoidance:

http://genderanalyzer.com/

You'll be happy to know, Janet, that you're 98% female!

And 100% woman!

Just discovered your blog because you left a comment on mine...

Love, love love. There need to be more of you literary agents on the net, venting about the things that tick you off! Tell all your literary agent friends. Please. ;)

I'm thinking Janet must have followed her own advice and got back to work. Either that, or the mob scene was so brutal she wound up in court trying to free the octopus and snake (and probably others) from the local animal shelter...

I have a 43% chance, so the first thing I'm doing in a Z.A. is calling you and we're meeting up for lunch.

I have a 62% chance of survival. I think it's due to the stockpile of food (winters in MN can keep me at home for a week or more) and my shooting skills.

Sadly only a 54% chance of surviving. I think what dragged my score down is that I've never fired a gun before. But damn, if there's a Zombie Apocalypse, I'm a sure quick learner.

Janet, thank you for bringing this informative and illuminating quiz to our attention. Just by having taken it, I feel more prepared.

51% chance. I think I got more than 50% because I don't care what happens to loved ones and, while I'd try to help strangers, I'm just too damn scared to risk my life for them.

I think I got only 51% because I can't run very far and I've only used a gun once.

My dog, on the other hand, only has a 43% chance. Probably because he can't shoot a gun and pees under pressure...

Of course, I had to take some of the other quizzes there. My body would be 60% successful as a human shield, even if it's only worth $4790.

Oh, and I could take 24 five-year-olds on in a fight. Mostly, I'm sure, because I fight dirty.

Ha, I am completely safe from Zombie attacks. Zombies eat brains and I have none.

No, see you just need an apartment with a zombie-proof door. My friend Nathan on the upper East Side prides himself on the fact that his apartment door weighs about a million pounds and he lives in a sixth floor walk-up. He figures that zombies aren't coordinate enough to get up six flights of stairs, but of they do, they'll never get through his door.

I only have a 48% chance. My guns bumped it up, but I tend to freeze in panic situations.

75%. Rural firearm ownership FTW!

Of course, I had to drive 3 miles today for a decent cup of coffee. So I guess there is a downside.

46% for me, too. Also, I could survive for 1:35 chained to a bunk bed with a velociraptor. You?

I have a 77% chance only because I'm out to save myself. These are tricky questions where being humane will be the death of you. Neat, fun exercise.

57 seconds. I could survive nearly a minute, probably because I'm a crazy idiot who would attack the thing with the arm it bit off.

Dang it! How did I get a 39%? I'm gong to find Anthony in the country, or maybe I'll just wander through the city looking for a sixth floor walk up.

Julie, please bring coffee with you.

And bagels. Because there will be no bagel making during the zombie apocalypse.

One minute, 6 seconds with the velociraptor. I also managed 52 countries, although I'm sure I would have done better if I knew how to spell all the ____stan countries.

I have a 73% chance of surviving zombies. I guess I better work on sprinting...

75% chance of surviving a zombie attack. 10% chance of surviving my next panic attack....

46% chance of the zombie attack, 60seconds with the velociraptor. But vampires--now there's one I might be able to get away from (if I wanted to *grins*).

You're funny, Ms. Reid. Veddy funny. :) I have a great agent, so I only read agents' blogs to keep up with the goings on around the industry and just for fun, and yours is one I regularly peek in on.

Yasmine

I am so dead. My recommendation is for my friends and/or loved ones to shoot me before I get infected, then use my body for food. Properly smoked, I would make a passable pulled pork sandwich.

But how much would your dead body be worth, Bill? There's a quiz for that, too, farther down on the page...

$5,375. Can I have an advance on that now?

Talk to your agent about that...

:)

Say, is anyone else getting worried about Janet? I know it's not 3:00 pm EST yet, but has anyone actually seen her since last night?

73% zombie, 1 min 25 sec raptor. Bring em on :)

On a much more likely level - especially having just returned from a family Thanksgiving that involved young nieces and nephews and their cohorts; I can take 17 five-year-olds in a fight.

That's nice to know.

My blog, by the way, reads at an Elementary School Level and I have a 56% chance of surving a zombie apocalypse.

I got a 49% chance with the zombies and I would survive 57 seconds with the raptor. I feel pretty cocky now, with those high survival rates and all.

By the way, I've heard that Bill Cameron would make a nice pulled pork sandwich. So good of you to offer up yourself first.

I am delicious.

Now there's a line to use on girls:

Hi! I'm delicious! And if we have a zombie apocalypse, you can kill me and ...

Ahem.

Maybe it wouldn't be all that popular among the ladies, after all -- unless they're lady zombies...

31%! Fail. The zombies got me. And I thought my impressive food stores would save me!

From the man himself, "I'm delicious". Anyone hungry? Oops, that's right it's not the zombie apocalypse yet. Darn it.

I've driven around and had book events with Bill Cameron. All I have to say is that he is tougher than he looks. He'd take a lot of tenderizing or marinating or something.

I hear that beer is a great marinade...

yes, beer would do it. yummie.

Well, if beer in your marinade, I come pre-marinaded!

I have an 86% chance of surviving a zombie apocalypse, but the test doesn't take into account the array of weaponry in my house -- no points for swords, knives, spears, armor, or knowing how to use them!

And I can survive a 1 minute, 38 seconds against a raptor... though after watching Jurassic park I'd put that number closer to 2 seconds.

I got a Genius rating too but it's absolutely true, my blog is genius. hahaha in my dreams

Sometimes you just need a laugh. I scored a genius rating as well. I'm guessing that's owing to the fact that I recently switched to a mostly photo format. Not because I actually get my commas in all the right places.

Weird. I got an rating of "elementary". I'm guessing it is only evaluated the most recent posts based on word complexity. Hard to tell since they don't really disclose how your site is evaluated.

If you base my "readability" on older posts of mine, I get a readability (using a separate program to evaluate) of college post-graduate. Probably based on the use of these words and phrases:

malignant
pernicious
vitriolic
confluence




and my personal favorite:
microcephalic, fecal-brained asshat.

I find it interesting, but I prefer this badge instead (Zombie apocalypse survival):

Evidently, My Concern For Others Is A Liability

Now I know something is wrong with the test. The reading level on my blog is genius, and it's entirely pictures.

My website got College (post-grad). I'm happy with that, but how do they determine this in one second?

Maybe "genius" is a codeword for "crazy." After all, there is very little difference between the two.

Fineprint's site got genius and Colleen's blog got high school. Something is definitely wrong!

I did this last year and came up with a Junior High rating. Blogged about it here.

Hmm. My markets column got a junior high school rating. My blog on writing style got a genius rating.

Does that mean it only takes a junior high education to find a market for your work, but it takes a genius to write well?

Lots to think about here...

I rated "genius" on my blog--how silly.

It does look cool on the sidebar, though.

I got high school. Interesting.

Considering I'm a high school drop-out who ended up going to art school -- I'll take it as a compliment!

ROFL! I got a "college" rating -not bad for someone who has only a high school diploma.

Mine was rated "Beauty School Dropout"...

...don't think that's a good sign...

I've decided to take my elementary school rating as a compliment on the accessibility of my writing.

The alternative - that I'm a simpleton - couldn't possibly be correct. I hope.

I got Junior High School... which is okay, I guess, since I write YA... though, my blog is mostly for writers...

Ah well, the newspaper is written at a fifth grade reading level, we'll just call my writing, "highly commercial". Thanks for the fun time waster.

Post Grad, my friend!

I'm a genius, apparently. But I'm sure that rating will go down when I post the velociraptor quiz and poke the penguin...

Hahahahahahaha!!!!!!

mine is junior high. hummm.

I got elementary, for both blogs!
sanitybakery.com

(the second is thedogatemyprayerrope.wordpress.com)

I'm in Junior High. God, I hated Junior High.

Ha! I got college (post grad) and I occasionally blog about puppies.

Post grads like puppies, too...

College ~ Post Grad

Breathtakingly beautiful! Wonderful mix of modern technolgy and ancient art.

I saw the exhibition of the ancient Timbuktu Manuscripts today - also breathtaking. Some are a 1000 years old and some even discussed (wait for it) grammar rules!!!!

Kewl!!

Wow. Thanks for sharing this. I've just emailed the link to everyone on my list.

Another thing to be thankful for--- art online.

Is it just me, or does the face of the Venus de Milo look like Bill Clinton from that angle? (The photo on the entrance page.)

Funny, I've always been taught (and therefore have taught my kids) that Keats's "beauty is truth, truth beauty" was meant to be satirical coming from a man who was facing the truth of his own death after having watched the same disease kill his mother and brother.

The links you gave us, however, were breathtaking and thought-provoking. Thank you, that was very cool.

You always know where the best stuff can be found. Thanks for always sharing it with us.

Oh, that backseat would be bad for people who get carsick! 0_o

haha, cute...I call these cars, happy cars, but seriously I wouldn't take a man 'seriously' if he pulled up in one to take me out on a date! Give me that ol' pick-em-up truck any day. Okay, Janet, my research shows these latest round of 'happys' will be rolling off the production line in 2010 to the happy tune of 18k!

aw how freakin cute is that :) yay 2010!!

I'm all for anything that doesn't run on gas. Where I live, there is NO public transportation of any kind. Our village has a population of about 800 people, and you can walk everywhere, but the next closest town (where most jobs and shopping are) is 30 miles away. Traffic isn't bad, but a top speed of less than 55mph would be a problem. I'm impressed by all the alternative energy sources that keep popping up though, and I'm sure someone will develop something that will completely replace the internal combustion engine for good.

Okay I giggled and snickered my way through that video... I really needed that today!

However I'm debated showing it to my husband. He might never get dressed again.

Viva la Revolution!!!

Australia is ahead of us in so many ways. They invented shrimps, barbies, and dingos; they discovered named the Outback after a chain of steakhouses, and best of all, they understand the meaning of "clothing optional."

Now... who the F#$& is this "Ferrell" you keep mentioning, and why is he getting a "mortgage?" (Ugly, ugly word by the way.)

Don't writers who work at home get to have no-pants day every day?

The guy in the video said it best: "If they'd had this at my last job, I may never have left."

Look what happens when you let a bunch of law students loose in your office with a camera... now if they had 'TrackyDack Tuesday' well I'd be there... the world would be a better place if we could wear our sweatsuits to work.

The women obviously weren't so keen on this idea.

My company has allowed shorts on Friday now. I could live without that given some of the legs that get bared.

No, mine will not be seeing the light of day.

As an Australian from Melbourne, can I point out that this is clearly 'A Sydney thing'. :-)

So Somers and Ferrell are pantsers?

"Look at the freak in the skirt." Thanks for the much needed laugh.

I'm scratching my head as to why two blokes with wives want to go to see a bunch of blokes without their pants on.

But you *can* bet your bottom dollar I sent this to my lawyer friends in Melbourne.

Well, I only got six right...not the one about Gerald Ford!

Great quiz; funny how a lot of myths come down as 'history' eventually. It's why I wonder how much 'myth' reall WAS history at some point.

I got them all right ... Pixies know these things. Goats don't.

Boy I thought I knew my history...only 5 out of 10 right. Good thing I write only fiction.

Hey, mine said I was a genius! No one's ever called me a genius before! (Except my mom. But I don't think she counts.)

7/10

Five out of ten.

Eight right, and I don't even like history. I guess I did pay attention after all.

I got 5 right, not bad for a Brit, my favourite show QI tackles a lot of myths like these :)

I got seven. I'm reasonably satisfied with that.

I would have gotten eight, but that Bush story just sounded so plausible . . .

Eight out of ten. I'm fairly pleased with that.

Seven out of ten ain't bad, since I'm not American.

Poor flamingo has no clue what's in store for him.

I think I saw this scenerio on "Animal Planet."

Flamingo is gone; snake does not eat for a week or so. Hank should not visit his agent, no matter how spiffy he looks.

Something tells me Janet's office is starting to look like a zoo. Gee, then, I should fit right in. Right after I finish my crime novel, that is.

Is it just me, or does Janet seem particularly fond of stuffed and/or plastic animals???

When I was two I told everyone my dad worked with animals because every night he came home and said work was a zoo that day.

(He was a lawyer)

Looks like you can say the same thing!

(Shouldn't this be labeled, "Get back to work, Janet"??)

I have a pair of plastic flamingos given to my neighbours on their fiftieth anniversary. One is a groom, the other is a bride.

They have both since passed away, along with their daughter who gave them to me.

They still peek at me from the bushes, their lace and satin a little tattered.

Nice pic. Hahaha. :-)

Poor Hank. I see your assistant is eying him while no one is looking.

Funny, I don't see any silencers on those weapons.

Note to self: wear teflon when returning overdue books.

Oops! Meant Kevlar, not Teflon. Unless those things are spitting tomato sauce.

Back to lurking....

LOL.

Oh, I'm now stealing this shamelessly from you, now. That's some good shit.

Chutney in her hoodie: soooo cute!!! :)

You're right--it should go without saying, but there are plenty of people who feel that they can learn everything they need to know via the internet, so why not learn how to be their own agents while they're at it?

As for Chutney, those photos are adorable!

Ah, Chutney is adorable.

I wish I could be surprised at the thought of people wanting to take on agenting without any expertise, but I actually know people who've considered it. To them, if you can read and use a phone, then there's not much else you need to know. Sigh.

Sooo cute! What kind of dog is that? Love her ears!

Chutney is a Corgi! How did I not know this?

And now Spot (aka Ch. Winbucks Triplet) is jealous of her very spiffy hoodie.

Btw Writer Beware has a very good post from Victoria today on why one should not search for agents on the Internet--meshes rather well with the advice here.

Chutney looks very much like my own little terrier, minus those remarkable ears! Nice outfit. Needs some little fashion boots for her feet, though. My little guy comes up and shows me how cold his feet are when he's had enough of the snow.
There are always those who think someone else's job looks easy and they can do it just fine. They usually don't learn how wrong they are until it's way too late.

What do you think of an editor who asks for an exclusive (no money) contract to work with you on getting your book up to speed? My book fell through in acquisitions but the editor still wants to work with me. Is this a dumb deal to sign? I hear mixed reviews. (Of course, my agent is looking elsewhere first . . . but I still wondered about this fallback plan). And of course, I wouldn't take your word as Gospel. But I did see the Virgin Mary in my toast this morning.

Ahhh, the pics of your dog remind me of my Cockapoo Hans who I sadly had to give away.

oh! so adorable!!! soo cute!

My corgi, Calvin, wolf whistles at Chutney!

It is valid to warn writers that they should not be their own agents.

I would also caution agents that they should not try to be writers. That whole "brainstorming with writers" thing? Does not help. Nor does changing our words for us. If there is a problem in the text, tell us the problem and let us fix it our own way.

Chutney looks a little like my MinPin mix. Unlike Chutney, my dog refuses to wear a sweater, even when it's eighteen degrees outside!

I can't imagine being a literary agent, myself.

Simon & Schuster's website refers writers to authorlink (http://www.authorlink.com/membership/compareplans.php). Do you think this is a worthwhile for a writer?

I'm going to politely disagree with bran fan. One of my best beta readers is not a writer, but is a voracious reader of my genre. Because she's read so much, she can often pinpoint problems and make amazing suggestions based. And of course she can smell a cliche from a mile away, because she's read so much in the genre. So . . . tell me, who has read more than an agent? If you can't trust your agent to make good suggestions . . . you need another agent. It would be like not trusting your editor. Or your mom.

And Chutney OWNS that hoodie. Some dogs look embarrassed in doggie clothing, you know? Not Chutney . . . she says, "oh, you making fun of my hoodie, b$%^&!?" (dogs can say that without the #$%^)

I do like Tina's version of Pround Mary better than CCR's. More pep in that step. Whatever the version though, I find it just an above average song. A little below my man Otis with a 5 on the bestseller scale/

Don't worry, If I ever entertained the notion I could serve as my own agent, I wouldn't be a regular here. An agent has a completely different skill set and contact list, I wouldn't know where to start.

In my mind's eye, "agent" is pencilled into the space in my plan between "write book" and "cash big check." I'd never try and go without one.

Kristin, I love your blog. I visit daily. I take notes. Unfortunately, you don’t represent my genre. I’m my own agent, I admit it. Like a lot of authors writing for a smaller market, I am unagented. I’m okay with that right now, but I fully expect for a time to come when I outgrow what I am capable of and need an expert. Maybe by then you’ll represent gay romantic suspense.

Just checked out your blog. LOVE IT. It gives a face to that scary "agent" out there in cyberspace who may or may not be reading my hapless query. Your pooch is too cute, a hoodie, the ultimate accessory for cold weather.
G. Chapin-Mcgill

Don't know how I found you but it's a good find. Hope I can kick up here awhile.

I found your blog while doing some research to find my future agent. I am wondering what you consider a 'conference', which were listed in your end-of-the-year stats. Would Denvention (August 2008) be considered a conference according to your definition? Would the appearance you are making in Boulder on January 20? I'm just trying to figure out some of the jargon. Thank you.

In other words, don’t use the information learned here in lieu of an agent. Or, god forbid, feel ready to take on agenting yourself. The very thought frightens me!

Frightens you? Scares the heck out of me!

Chutney looks absolutely adorable! :-)

It may not be advisable to use the information to act as an agent, but it is useful information when contacting and working with an agent. This blog and other agent blogs help the writer to know what the agent is looking for and how to properly submit to an agent.

The photo's are so cute. I'm glad it wasn't just me posting a pet photo in a new holiday coat. Thanks.