Query-stats and Mint Chocolate Chip

Q: When you request a partial submission or a full submission based on the query and first ten pages, what makes or breaks the submission?

You apparently liked the beginning enough to consider representing the story. What later turned you off? Made you ask to see more of an authors work?  Make a decision to work with an author on revisions? Or compelled you to offer representation?

It's just that we writers get our hopes up when an agent requests a partial or a full ms., and often, in our minds, our story just keeps getting better ... If you liked the beginning, why wouldn't you like reading on?

The keywords are in your last paragraph:"get our hopes up" and "in our minds". You're just taking a leap and assuming that my liking the beginning and  requesting a partial or full means I am "consider[ing] repping the story".  In fact, it just means that I think it shows a bit more promise than the other dreck I have been served that week, and am willing to see a bit more.

Sort of like if I go to an ice cream parlor where they give samples, and I taste all of the flavors... and then I decide on one or two and get a couple scoops... that doesn't mean I am going to marry the cow.

So here's my guide, let's see if it helps:


QUERY STAGE:
Auto-reject, doesn't even get a look:  Queries that don't follow sub guidelines. Queries that are not for the types of books I represent. 20%

A brief glance at query & pages, then a quick form rejection: Queries that are not personalized to me at all (not even with my name). Sample pages that begin in any one of about 30 stock ways, so cliche that MOSES rolled his eyes when he got queried with them. Atrocious grammar and spelling. 10%

Read the query & 10 pages, form rejection: Pretty much everything -- seriously. See previous post "On Rejection" for more. 50%

Read the query & 10 pages, then nice personalized rejection: Things that are good, definitely have promise, but are just not for me. Things that have been referred to me by a client/friend or from somebody I met at a conference. 15%

Request full: There is something special here. Could be plot, could be funny dialogue, could be an awesome premise.  It might be actually super-awesome, or it might be a fluke -- just the best of a bad bunch. I just want to read more. 5%  (I don't bother to request partials, I consider the 10-page sample in the query your partial. Other agents do this differently).

FULL STAGE:
Reject full with reasons:  I reject almost all fulls, but I try to at least give a bit of feedback.  Maybe I liked it but didn't love it. Maybe I loved it but didn't think I could sell it. No matter what... almost all of the Full roads end here.  Length or depth of notes depends on how much time I have, how far I got in the book and how much I found to say. 95%

Extensive notes and invite to re-submit: This is kinda rare actually. It means that I loved a LOT about the book but there was something deeply flawed about it. A deep enough flaw that I need to make sure you are actually capable of, or WANT, to fix it.  4%

I'LL TAKE IT! I am totally in love. A smitten kitten. Bring me this book!  I wanna make you a star! Seriously, I have to not only love it but also think I can sell it in order to make an offer of representation. That happens almost never. 1%

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What is YA anyway?

Q: Would you say there's a fine line distinguishing whether something is actually genuinely YA or whether, MC age aside, it's just fiction with a young protag? I'm writing a steampunk fantasy that may straddle it, is why I ask.

I personally don't believe that YA fiction is "just fiction with a young protag." Books like PREP by Curtis Sittenfeld are not YA because, though they have a teen protag doing very teen things, the POV is an adult looking back at high school through experienced eyes.

YA is generally about young people experiencing big things for the first time, not about an adult looking back at being young. Whether the book is 1st, 2nd or 3rd person (and yes, even if the book is historical) it is happening "in the moment", not thirty years and two failed marriages ago.

The books can be literary, sure, but they also tend to be faster-paced than most adult fiction. There tends to be lots of stuff happening on the surface -- like, you know, characters doing things, not just staring at a wall and philosophizing.  They tend to end with a note of hope, and at the end, generally resolve most loose threads, questions and relationships.

YA books can be murder mysteries or science fiction, romantic comedy or epic fantasy, dystopian or historical or literary or post-modern or steampunk or any combo of any of those things you can imagine.  What they CAN'T be, is "about grownup sh*t".

Lengthy, slow-paced works with ambiguous endings about Wall Street brokers having like - psycho-sexual crises, or going through bankruptcy, or having loads of affairs to numb the pain of a dead-end job, or whatever?   Not YA.  Even if the brokers are super-precocious 18 year olds.

Fast-paced commercial fantasy about a girl who has a gift for killing and becomes the kings assassin against her will, and must band together with an equally gifted hot guy to resist both the monarchy and their own sexual attraction, an attraction unlike anything either of them has ever known?  Very possibly YA or at least has YA-crossover potential, even if the protagonists are 19 and 22.  

So does this make sense, or did I just confusee the issue more?

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Beauty Contests

The manuscripts I want are very often desired by multiple agents, and those (in my experience at least) are pretty much always The Usual Suspects; a group of five or so of my agent pals that I know have very similar taste to me.  I know for a fact that at least one of these folks is likely to be in the running for anything I want. (This is why I always ask who else has offered - it is hilarious how often the same names come up).

I also know that they all have different styles and different personalities, but they have in common that they are all terrific agents, and none would be a bad choice. So I have to be faster, and pitch harder woo, if I want to get the author.

When multiple agents are fighting for the affection of an author, that is a Beauty Contest. And like a real beauty contest, it is kind of thrilling but mostly sucky. We are lucky in that we need not actually put vaseline on our teeth, but it's still a competition!

INTERVIEW: When I give you a call, I have to explain who I am, who the agency is, why we'd be the awesom-est for you. You get a chance to ask questions too, of course, and hopefully my answers are suitable and happy-making. I tend to be very clear up front about how and how much I like to communicate with my authors, how much I value transparency, etc, and I am pretty informal. Because I like to start as I mean to continue. If I am passionate about something, you know it -- so you might as well get used to that right off the bat!  Unscientifically, I would say that 70% of the time, authors go with the first person to express interest... so agents have to have a lot of energy in this section of the competition if they want to get in front of that statistic.

TALENT: How many sales have we made? How much hustle do we have? Are we clearly knowledgable? Have we already made notes for you?  Have we already made a submission list?  Do we love your book? HOW MUCH?  What can we do for you that nobody else can? It's showtime baby, get out there and dazzle 'em!


SWIMSUIT: This is the tackiest part of the beauty contest and it basically comes down to Hotness. If you're the kind of author who is all about the bling, you'll give more points in this section to the "neon lizard bikini" agency, the name or huge-name clients of which would be recognizable to somebody outside the industry, probably because of very strong Hollywood connections. If you are the kind of author who fancies themselves more literary, you will go with the "classy maillot", which is possibly oldest or most venerated agency. Etc. (For what it is worth, I think of my agency as the "awesomely cute boy shorts tankini" in this metaphor.)

EVENING WEAR: Look, you already know we are pretty, talented and personable at this point, but there has to be one more hoop. So you could take the largely symbolic step of checking out how we walk in a circle wearing a dress, or you could talk to some of our other clients. Now the thing is, my clients are my clients in no small part because they LIKE ME. The chances that I am going to give you the contact info of somebody who hates me is really slim. Sort of like how I would never wear the crazy unflattering dress with bugle beads all over it. Come on.

Now it is time for judgement.  Having been on both sides of the winners circle I can tell you... "Winning" can be a rush and is splendid. "Losing" ranges from disappointing-but-a-good-learning experience to Totally Heartbreaking.

In fact there are two books that I might actually never quite get over having lost, and I am sure there will be more in the future. I always keep my eyes peeled for those books and authors though, to see what happens.  In one case, the book hasn't yet sold...  but in the other case, it sold for a lot of money to somebody I NEVER would have sent to.  I don't have any doubt at all that I would have sold it, but it would have ended up a very different sort of book. So in fact, the author probably chose correctly.

And that is the whole thing about this particular beauty contest, actually. It isn't really about hotness, or who wants world peace. A lot of the judgement comes down to your own gut feeling about who has the best vision for your book and whose style you'll get along best with. I can at least content myself with knowing that I am so open about who I am and what I like, that if somebody DOESN'T pick me, it almost certainly wouldn't have worked out anyway. 

Authors, if you had multiple offers of rep, how did YOU choose? What ended up being the "clincher" for you?  Were there any surprises along the way?

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The Luxury of Choice

I've spent the last couple of days trying to power through my slush pile, and I actually managed to get through all pending queries. So if you sent me anything before today, you should've gotten a response. If you didn't, it means that either I never received your missive, or you didn't follow submission guidelines.

Which brings me to a problem I've encountered a lot lately. Several times in recent months I have asked for full manuscripts, been close to the end of a great manuscript, or finished the manuscript and offered representation and had the author say, basically, "Too late, chump." Well OK, they have been very nice and polite about it but... grrr!  GRR!  I WANTED THAT!!  WTF WHY WHA?!

OK, so I take responsibility for the ones that I hadn't even gotten to at all yet. It is my fault for having an overly full inbox. I should have been more on top of it. If Agent Speedy LaRue got the jump on me, well, fair enough, I guess.

But if I have the full?  And am reading it?  And maybe like LOVING it??  Or I have read the whole thing and adore it and get in touch with the author?  It is kinda seriously crushing to hear that they've already accepted an offer of representation. If you thought you wanted me even a little bit, why would you not give me the chance to throw my hat in the ring?  And if you knew you DIDN'T want me to throw my hat in the ring, why did you query me in the first place?

Course you don't have to take my advice. I know that most people say only to contact those who have a full. But if I were you, and I got an offer, I would get in touch with everyone who has an equery, partial or full. (Yes, queries too!  Yes!  Why not? People have email now! They will be able to get back to you, or ignore you, in a very timely manner.)

MOST of them will probably say "no thanks but best of luck." But a couple might say yes please! And then you will have the luxury of choice. Why would you not want that?

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There's always a market for Awesome.

Q: Are chapter books a tough sell for a debut author? What if they are 10,000 words?
Q: Are Nonfiction picture books possible to sell? What if there are photos? 
Q: Is there a market for boy YA? What if it is paranormal? What if there are sharks?

These are examples of the class of question that is the most frequently asked, and also possibly my least favorite. Don't get me wrong, I totally understand why authors ask... it is just that I don't have an answer!

People love to make pronouncements about what will or won't sell, or what there is or isn't a "market" for, what you can or can't do as a writer, and they are mostly wrong.  For every person who has said "Picture books don't sell" in the past year, there are ten picture books that did just that. For every blog post waxing philosophical about some imaginary rule like "Picture books must NEVER be over 1000 words!" or "You must NEVER write a YA in second person!" or "Delete all prologues! -- there are examples of people who have broken those rules and thrived.  They may only be the exceptions that prove the rule... but they are out there, waiting to torment writers who just want to know for a FACT that they are on the right track.

I've said it before and I am sure I'll say it again:

There is always a market for AWESOME. 

"Boy Books" are notoriously difficult to sell. But the first thing that I ever sold -- when I barely knew how to be an agent yet! -- was a boy book, and I sold it in just a couple of weeks.  And it has gone on to garner starred reviews and awards and just general love from the universe. Why?  Because it was really, truly Awesome.   

 
In this down economy, when picture books are supposedly near-impossible to sell, we as an agency have sold 30+ in the past year. Why?  Are we magicians? Are we bewitching editors? No. (Well... maybe. I mean, I can't give away ALL the secrets.) But I can tell you this: We've sold this many because they're Awesome -- they are the best of the best.

How many "Kinda Good" or "Just OK" picture books have we sold?  I'm gonna guess ZERO.

 

Nonfiction is often said to be difficult to sell. And it is.  But if you have a perfectly wonderful, well-written, interesting, surprising, timely piece of nonfiction that will appeal to schools as well as bookstore patrons, on a topic that is not overdone but also not completely obscure, you'll probably find it fairly easy to sell.

So you see that it is pretty much impossible for me to say if your nonfiction picture book will sell (particularly without a point of reference, writing sample or anything else) -- because it totally depends on not only how good that individual book is, but also the timing of it: what other books on similar topics the editor has seen recently, the weather is like in New York that week, etc.  So a lot of it is not only being Awesome, and The Best of the Best, but also, Good Timing... which means, well, work hard and hope you have a four-leaf clover.

And no, I can't easily answer this type of question.

Get it?

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From Publisher's Marketplace

Some big news for Kate.

2010 E.B. White Read Aloud Award winner Kate Messner's SILVER JAGUAR SOCIETY series, in which a group of kids whose families are part of a secret society bound to protect the world's artifacts pool their unique talents to solve mysteries tied to the creations of their ancestors, starting with book one: THE STAR-SPANGLED SET-UP, to Scholastic, in a three-book deal, for publication starting in 2012, by Jennifer Laughran at Andrea Brown Literary Agency.

If you want to get inspired (or possibly feel like the world's biggest slacker), go to Kate's blog and check out all the stuff she has on her plate. She's a 7th grade teacher, an awesome and prolific writer, an energetic mom, and she still has time for, like, kayaking. She's a constant source of amazement and bafflement to me!

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Time to part ways?

Q: There are lots of agented writers on AbsoluteWrite and other forums, posting anonymously and expressing their concerns about lack of communication from their agents and whether it’s time to sever ties. These are usually reputable agents but some time into the subbing process, communication starts dropping off and emails are no longer responded to within the week like used to be the case – or at all. [Could you do a] blog post on ‘when a writer should be worried about their agent’.

First of all, do you have realistic or unrealistic expectations?

WHAT AGENTS (often) ARE:  Agents play a lot of roles. They are talent scouts. They are salesmen. They are negotiators. They are cheerleaders. They can be editors or writing coaches. They are usually diplomats, and occasionally bullies.

They also generally have a great deal of interest in piles of money and would be happy to swim in it, Scrooge McDuck style. (Mmm, actually, maybe that's just me...)

But a big part of what agents are is professional enthusiasts. And as much as nobody likes to talk about it, that initial enthusiasm can definitely flag. Agents, like editors (and like the public and most all of you, no doubt!) appreciate variety and freshness in products, whether buying them or selling them.

And not everything sells, let's face it. So yeah, if your book has been out... and out... and out... and it hasn't sold... and you don't want to revise... and you aren't working on anything new... I can understand an agent starting to cool. So ask yourself:

* Have you and your agent discussed a submission plan? Do you understand and feel comfortable with it? Do you trust your agent?

* Are you willing to revise (or even overhaul) your first book, if it goes out to editors and doesn't sell in a first round?

* Are you working on new and exciting project(s) while your first book is on submission?

* Are you communicating with your agent about what those projects are?

WHAT AGENTS (usually) ARE NOT:  Psychics. Magicians. Babysitters. Crit buddies. Licensed Therapists. So ask yourself:

* Do you sit on your hands and not email or call... but then freak out that your agent doesn't like you, is ignoring you, or doesn't know what you are thinking?

* Do you send your agent absolutelyeverything you write, daily in-progress first drafts, in a deluge, incessently, without even re-reading them?
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* Do you email or call multiple times a day for non-urgent questions, and/or expect an immediate response to non-urgent questions on weekends, holidays, or when you know that your agent is out of town?

* Are you... how can I put this delicately... are you a downer? I mean, I want my clients to be honest  and communicate with me. I definitely want to help them problem-solve and work out issues. Still, there is such a thing as overkill... do you share GOOD news as well as bad? HOPES as well as fears? Fun and exciting project ideas? What are YOU an "enthusiast" about? I really do want to hear that! Because if all I get from a person every time I talk to them is a big ol' ball of misery, well-- that doesn't make me overjoyed to hear from them. You know what I mean?

(PS: NONE of my clients fit any of those descriptions, so y'all can quit trying to figure out who I am talking about. This is generally speaking!)

WHAT TO DO IF YOU REALLY THINK THERE IS A PROBLEM: It is rare, I hope, but it is something that I know does happen. Maybe the agent seriously falls off the face of the earth, or maybe they just seem to be dragging their feet when it comes to you specifically. Maybe they are reacting badly to new work you are submitting, or maybe you feel like you can't get a straight answer out of them.

It isn't easy to tell how you are going to work with somebody until you actually do it. But obviously an agent isn't doing you any good if you can't even get hold of them, or if they don't want to sub any of your work. So ask yourself:

* You know (or ought to know) how very, very, excruciatingly slow publishing is. Maybe your agent just doesn't have any news to report. Are you truly being patient?

* If you ARE truly being patient, but you just aren't getting feedback from your agent, have you called or written to ask for updates/news, or submission plans?

* If you have called or written to ask for updates, and you haven't gotten a response, have you called or written to ask for an appointment to talk seriously? You need to have The Big Conversation in which you ask for a game-plan, or tell to be more responsive, and express what your needs are in the relationship.

* If you have done all of those things and had The Big Conversation... are you happy with the result? Do you feel like your agent "gets you" and will fix whatever problems you've had?  Do you like them, trust them, and feel that they appreciate you and your work?

If you've had The Big Conversation and you are NOT happy with the result, it is probably time to part ways.  Don't feel that this is a stigma. It is not a bad reflection on you as a writer OR them as an agent... sometimes things just don't work out, for any number of reasons, and you are better off not having an agent than having one with whom you aren't 'on the same page'.

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Work Your Inner Fierceness

At the conference I went to last weekend, I got asked this question above any other:

What kind of books, exactly, are you looking for?

I sigh. You see, I know that I am looking for children's and YA books, but the thing I am always most looking for is... something I have never seen before. So I don't know what it is yet. (But I'll know it when I see it!) And since I represent authors, hopefully for their whole career and not just one project, the better question to ask might be what kind of AUTHORS, exactly, am I looking for.

I've been watching a certain brilliant reality show of late. One whose host is a razor-sharp judge of character and fierceness. You guessed it: RuPaul's Drag Race, in which a handful of pro and semi-pro drag queens participate in a variety of challenges and stomp it out on the catwalk to determine who will be the next drag superstar. (I can hear you thinking, "Jennifer, are you suggesting that clients must wear high heels and lipsynch for their lives?" NO NO, BEAR WITH ME!)

Ru always tells the girls that she is looking for four qualities above all others in her superstars, and I think that they are really important too (in life as well as art, actually). They spell C.U.N--actually, you know what, let's not do the acronym.  Ahem. Anyway:

• T is for TALENT
• U is for UNIQUENESS
• N is for NERVE
• C is for CHARISMA

TALENT: Dude, you have to be a good writer. There, I said it. You've written an awesome query letter, you have terrific web presence, blah blah blah, I don't really care unless I am in love with the book.  I think that there is such a thing as native talent, something that you are born with, but that you can always make your skills sharper. So don't rest on being "good" writer, you have to get better. As Ru would say, you better work!

UNIQUENESS: If you do what everyone else does, if you write what everyone else writes, you might be OK, but you won't break out and be truly successful. Plus, I will pluck my own eyes out if I have to read it.

NERVE: Now I realize that lots of authors are shy and maybe even a bit neurotic. They hire agents so we can be the tough guys and take care of business. But I still need my authors to have a spine, be driven and at least a bit fierce. That means speaking up for yourself, having self-confidence, putting yourself out there (even if you don't necessarily feel like it...) It also means bravery in terms of your writing. In  authors: NO BABIES. In writing: NO PABLUM.

CHARISMA*: Yep, I have to like you, and I have to think that other people will too.  It's important. Do you need to wear glitter and wigs? No. Do you need to be a cheerleader-type? NO! But do I want to work with somebody who is presentable, engaging, funny, thoughtful, easy to talk to?  Heck yes I do. Or at least somebody who can turn those qualities on when they want to.  So work it!

Authors, what qualities do you most want in an agent?  (Bonus points if you can frame your answer as a reality-show metaphor...)

(*ETA: I changed this one up a bit. See comments for further discussion of the C-word...)

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How far can I go (with an analogy)?

Today in one of my critique sessions, an author asked me if, from an agent's perspective, it was "OK to be an unpublished writer."

I told him that in a way, sometimes, it can even be preferable.

Sure, your "cool" friends might make fun of you for not being published yet. But so what? Good writers know that there is nothing wrong with waiting for the right deal to come along. Take pride in being a debut author!

Anyway, I'd rather my authors not be seen as having "been around the block" too many times, as desperate, or as easy pickins, available for any old weirdo with a few dirty dollar bills and a wrinkled contract in his hand. (And nobody wants to hear how much you "experimented" with self-publishing.)

Your perfect agent or editor will appreciate that you waited, and will love that you chose to share your gift with them. After all, you can only debut once.

And... err...

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Jenny Hikes to Fitchburg

I'm on my way to the NESCBWI conference in Fitchburg, MA, tomorrow. Cue lots of Thoreau-related humor (from me).

Meanwhile, here's Some Things I Did Today, Boston edition:

* Had great meetings with Houghton and Candlewick.

* In Houghton office, saw an upright piano that'd been handpainted by H. A. Rey, with Pretzel the dog all along the front of the case, and Cecily G. the giraffe adorning the side panel. It was the cutest thing ever - but I was too shy and dazzled to take a picture, it seemed rude. Apparently it had been in the cafeteria and they were like "oh, we're going to get rid of this" (!!!) so somebody rescued it.

* Ate lobster twice. Once in "roll" form, once on a salad.

* Stayed in an officially haunted hotel. I downloaded "Ghost Radar" app on my iPhone and confirmed it. :-)

* Went to an open house at Charlesbridge and listened to Mitali Perkins give a wonderful talk about the reason, then the real reason, then the real reason behind the reason she wrote her latest, BAMBOO PEOPLE.

* Saw Ducklings. Made way for.

* Hung around the Boston Public Garden. Saw alleged "swan boat" which is NOT, as I for some reason pictured it, like a gigantic shiny boiled sweet hollowed out and made to look like a swan that you ride inside of.  Sad.

* Also did I mention, saw DUCKLINGS??

DUCKLIIIIIINNNNNNNGS!!!!

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Prequeries & Followups

Twitter Q: If a query is rejected, are follow up questions such as "Do you know of agents who would be interested?" appropriate?

 The short answer: Nope.

But blogs are for long answers, aren't they? And this actually reminds me of a couple of trends that are threatening to drive me batty.*

Prequeries: "This is my project. May I query you, and if so, what should I do?"

This is maddening and it happens at least five times a day. That is at least five emails that I shouldn't be getting. Look, we are open for submissions. The submission directions are right there, on the website, big as life. If we didn't want to get your queries, why would we bother having submission guidelines? How did you get the email address to send this to if you didn't LOOK at the submission guidelines or website? What did you think that they meant?  AHHH!

OK, taking a deep breath. The point I am making is, DON'T PRE-QUERY. If you want to query, just follow the directions and do it already. The worst that can happen is, we say No. So what? You never heard the word No before?  Toughen up, buttercup.

Followup #1 - The Fawner: "Thank you so much for your rejection, it means so much to me that you even took the time to look at my poor little query, I am as a worm unto you O Great One"

Look, it is no big deal. You asked "would you like to rep this?" I said "No thank you." The loop is closed now. If you are a person who absolutely must say thank you, a quick "Thanks for the look" is OK (not needed, but OK.)  And if I have given you notes or specific feedback, a "Thanks so much for the feedback" is totally appropriate.

A weirdly fawning thank you to a form rejection, though, is never called for. It isn't going to make me remember you as That Nice Polite Guy, it is going to make me remember you as a bit of an oddball, at best.

Followup #2 - Mr. Grumble: "I did do my research and follow all the directions to the letter, and yet you say it is "not right for you". Hm. Well, you are a hypocrite. I happen to know you represent lots of YA books, so... any clue as to what agent it might be right for, then, if you're so smart?"

Hey, whoa there, fella! No need for the attitude. I know that the original asker of the question would never be so rude about it, but followup requests for referrals, whether posed nicely like the original asker, or rudely like Mr. Grumble, boil down to the same thing.

* If I loved your submission, I'd want your submission. I don't.

* If I hated your submission, I am not going to give you a list of my friends to inflict it on.

* If (much more likely) I felt lukewarm or 'meh' or 'just ok' or 'fine' about your submission, I've already stopped thinking about it and have moved on with my life now.  I don't want to do research for you, I don't want to re-read it and scour my brain about who I know might like it, that is not my job.  Again, the loop is closed. You asked, I answered, the end.

Hand to G-d, if your book is not for me but I know of an agent off the top of my head who I KNOW would love it, I will definitely definitely tell you, and even offer to pass it on myself or say you can use me as a reference. I promise.  I have no reason to keep this information from you. I want you all to succeed. Really!


* Though items similar to these appear in my inbox many times every day, these examples are fabricated by me and not quotes from actual authors.

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A Bird in the Hand

Tweet-Q: Would you rather rep a writer with a deal on the table? I heard this is ideal for 1st.

I don't presume to speak for every agent here, but for myself, I'd actually say this is a less-than-ideal situation.

If you have an offer from a publisher already, and you query me (or any agent) with a subject line like "Offer From Random House!" or similar, I will definitely read your query immediately. However, that is by no means a guarantee that I'll offer rep.

I still have to love the book.

Also, when I send out a project that is MY project, I have worked hard to craft a great pitch. I've made sure that the manuscript is in as good a shape as I can make it. I have created a submission list based on both my knowledge of individual editors tastes and needs, and with the input and advice from my entire agency.  Publisher expectations are also set - they know the kinds of rights I am going to want to keep, for example, and they will make their offer accordingly. I have often timed the submission in a particular way for a particular reason... and I find that I have a pretty good success rate.

When YOU do those things, and then try to bring me in after the fact, I haven't been able to do any of that good stuff, including (especially) choosing the editors that I think will be the best fit.

The offer on the table is usually not a great offer. The publisher is usually not in a particular mood to negotiate considering that there was no agent involved when they first made it... so while I'll probably be able to negotiate the advance up to cover my commission, and improve the terms, it isn't like you'll be leaping into a totally different sparkly-deal stratosphere just because you hired me.

The point I'm making is, it is fine to do things backwards and get an agent after you get a deal, it will probably help you and certainly won't hurt you.  But it is by no means better to do so.  And I personally think you are likely to get a better deal with an agent in your corner from the beginning.

(And for those who think that they CAN'T get an agent as a debut author... I'm gonna have to call shenanigans on that one. Half my clients are/were debut authors!)

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The Old Girl's Club

Q: I've been noticing that at least in the "writers forum" world, male writers are seriously outnumbered by women who write. I'm also seeing a relative scarcity of male agents. Now, I realize that there is no "old girl's club" per se, but has anyone studied the unbalance in new debut fiction published between men and women authors? Can a female agent be expected to warm up to the work of a male writer as easily as the work of another woman? Is this a silly question? I know there are sucessful male writers who write what would be considered "women's fiction", but I'm beginning to wonder how gender plays in the market, both reader/consumers and publishers.

Though this question was originally asked on my Absolute Write Ask-the-Agent thread, that thread is actually closed. I thought I'd answer it here since I've gotten similarly worded questions a number of times recently, both on forums and in person at conferences.* 

Thing is, 80% or more** of the people buying literature are women. This goes for all kinds of mainstream fiction, male protagonist & female protagonist, debut as well as backlist. In the realm of mysteries and narrative nonfiction, possibly the numbers are slightly more even, but I am willing to bet that even there the majority of readers are still women. [ETA: And as is pointed out in the comments, horror, SF/F & hardboiled crime probably skews more male] .***

In children's publishing (The Bunny Division) certainly most editors, agents and buyers are women. Not all, but most.****

Writerly gender is probably split pretty evenly in Literary Fiction land. My expertise is children's books, though, and I'd still say that in children's, lady writers are the majority. I would also suggest based on purely anecdotal evidence that male writers and illustrators are better paid, and disproportionally more lauded and more award-winning... but I could certainly be wrong. I haven't crunched real numbers on that one.*****

But I am sorry that I could not resist teasing you a bit, and I didn't even really give you an answer. The plain truth is, there IS an Old Girl's Club.******

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* Tact-level varies, but the question is always posed by a man - which doesn't mean anything, per se, just noting the "unbalance".

** This statistic provided by the Out Of Thin Air But Probably Right Dept.

*** Still, a few brave male authors are able to somehow muddle through, and "Man type" books still get published. How, I am not sure -- I guess a few women gatekeepers are able to cast off their femininity and warm up to them. 

**** Probably because most men don't want to hang around reading children's books all day. They have real stuff to do, don't they? Putting out fires with their big barrel chests, etc. 

***** And the two very biggest names in children's books are women, so that would skew the statistics a bit. 

****** But of course, I can't tell you any more about it, and you aren't invited. Sorry! :-) 

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On Rejection

Q: When you get form rejections from agents, how can you know if your manuscript is unpublishable crap or if you just haven't found the right agent yet?

I know this is going to be difficult to believe for a lot of you, but, I swear it is true: Rejections are not personal, and they are not value judgments about your work.

If anything, they have a heap more to do with the agent than they do with the author. Look, as you can see from the sidebar, I have about 22 clients. My first year as an agent, I picked up 16 of them. In the two years since, I've added about three a year.  There is no limit set in stone, of course, but I can afford to be very picky.

I get 200 queries a week, or so, not counting ones that just come to the agency generally. So you do the math.  Oh you want me to do it?  OK.  You have roughly a 1 in 3,467 chance that I will not send you a rejection.  Did all of those 3,467 things just suck?  Heck no!  Lots of them were probably terrific, or at least had potential to be terrific. Lots of them were probably terrific for somebody but just not me. Lots of them needed work. Some of them might have been just... wrong, for whatever reason.  But one of my form letters went to the vast majority.

"Query" means question. So think of it this way. You're asking us a simple question, we are replying simply.

The question that we are answering: Do you want to represent this?

The question we are not answering: Is this good?

To answer the second question and find out if, indeed, you are writing an "unpublishable piece of crap", you need to listen to fellow authors and teachers and your own gut instinct. Get a critique partner or join a writer's group. Here's a quick vlog from YA author Jackson Pearce about helpful rules for critique partners. You could also pay for a critique at a writer's conference. Take a class. Read your book aloud to the cats and see if they hide.

So you do these things. It becomes pretty obvious that you have a book that doesn't make readers clutch their heads in pain. The cats haven't tried to claw you to death. You love your book and you know other (smart, well-read, preferably published) people do too. You know that you have followed the query directions to the letter. You are getting rejections - some of them personalized, some with notes for revision.  At this point you can pretty much assume that rejections mean you just haven't found the right agent yet.

For me, rejections and acceptances are entirely down to my personal weird quirky taste, and the fact that I only take on three or so new things a year. Very occasionally there is some concrete point I can give the author, and I try to do so when it is easy to see. But I advise against replying to a rejection with a plaintive "Whyyy??", because you probably won't like the answer: "I didn't like it enough."

Which totally sounds mean, right? But think about it this way: I also don't like the color yellow. Or the flavor of clove. Or Irish Wolfhounds. Or the way birds legs look like dinosaur legs. Or messy food. Or summertime. So what? Are any of those things bad? No! They just aren't for me.

So what do you think? Still going to take rejections personally?

(Yeah, I thought so.)

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I've had this account for five years, just so that I could comment on other people's blogs. But... you know. I have things to say, and sometimes they go long. So I am going to start talking here.

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