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Online Platform Do’s and Don’ts

February 26, 2010 in Agent, Publishing | 46 comments

Since I have an online platform — and since a lot of agents talk a lot about online platforms for their clients and for prospective clients (even though this is more important for non-fiction writers who hope to sell projects on proposal) — I get asked about it fairly often. And for fiction writers and children’s writers, it’s a difficult topic. I’ve been thinking about this a lot lately and have some thoughts to share. People seemed to like my do’s and don’ts for the Pitchcraft article, so here is another list for online platforms and online presence.

Basically, most authors and writers these days have an online presence, whether through Twitter or Facebook or a website. I think that every person trying to break into publishing should at least have a 3-page website (welcome page, About page where you talk about yourself and your writing, and a contact page or whatever other things you think might be interesting to throw up there). I don’t, however, suggest that everyone blogs or Twitters or Facebooks. The reason?

If you aren’t comfortable with social media and you don’t have any content that has value to it (other than hawking your own book or talking about yourself), then you won’t get an audience for your online efforts anyway. This blog, for example, offers value. You wouldn’t be reading it if I insisted on talking about MY clients or MY own writing or MY cat. I give you stuff YOU can use. A lot of writers who blog fall into the trap of only talking about their own stuff. While this might help other writers come together around one writer’s journey, or whatever, the appeal will be limited (and, I’ll add, all those aspiring writers who read the blogs of other aspiring writers could probably spend their time more wisely by, you know, writing).

So if you’re only Twittering or Facebooking or blogging to give information about yourself and to hawk your own projects, people will stop reading. Also, if you’re clearly uncomfortable with social media and you feel forced to do it, your efforts will clearly reflect that. There are enough bloggers and Twitterers out there already. We don’t need any reluctant Web 2.0 people joining the ranks… there’s too much other content to sift through already.

Finally, with kidlit especially, and with fiction writers, there’s the question of audience. Kids don’t really read blogs that much. Teens hang out online but they’re more interested in social networking with friends, so there’s little conclusive data on how they interact with blogs (unless some one has read a study and has a link on hand… I’d love to check it out). If you write for kids, your audience for your online presence won’t necessarily be… kids. You’ll hit other writers, book bloggers, parents, librarians, and, if you write for older kids, some of your teen readers.

So make sure your content is geared toward your audience. And make sure it’s good content. That’s at the heart of building an online presence. With that in mind, here are some more tips!

DO’S:

  • Create interesting content.
  • Leverage everything you do — blog about school visits, author events, books you’re reading, movies you see that have a good writing take-away, milestones of your book’s journey to publication if you’re that far along (check with your editor, though, to make sure you can post cover images and other production-related stuff), your agent search, etc.
  • If you’re an illustrator, share sketches and finishes, talk about your process, talk about the tools you use, show works in progress.
  • Use pictures or cover images to liven up your posts.
  • Tweet or Facebook or post interesting links you find, don’t just blah blah blah all by yourself.
  • Leverage other people to create content for you — host blog tours, have guest blogs, do interviews, bring added value by using your blog to spotlight fun and different people who fit in with the theme of your blog.
  • Write about things that interest a wider audience — like here, sometimes I write articles on writing craft that can apply to children’s writers but that can really benefit a broader audience, too.
  • Do contests and giveaways — remember, people are always asking “What’s in it for me?” when they read blogs.
  • If you write NF, use your blog as a place to talk about interesting things you’re learning about your subject matter, or research you’re doing  yourself, or articles and research that’s currently coming out. For example, if you’re writing about butterflies, post the latest news, or current migrations going on, etc. With non-fiction, whether you’re writing picture books or novels with certain real world elements, you can make a blog that will become a resource to teachers… who might then teach your book int he classroom!

DON’T:

  • Rant or talk endlessly about yourself — make your blog a place that other people will want to visit. Besides, if you rant about how hard it is to get published or what scum publishing professionals are, it’ll come back to bite you. The agent who clicks on your blog link in your query will think you’re a negative and difficult person… not a positive business partner who will be a joy to work with.
  • Force it. Again, there are too many blogs online to try and add yours to the heap if you’re not committed. You’re better off not having one instead of doing a bad or unenthusiastic job.
  • Leave your blog hanging. Blogs are a huge time commitment and endlessly hungry little monsters. By the very virtue of a blog, your most recent post will be the first thing visitors see. If it’s from eight months ago, you’ll look outdated. If you can’t update at least once a week, you should think of a static website like the one I mentioned above.
  • Promote via Facebook. Use Facebook to get in touch with friends and fans and writing buddies. Don’t use your Facebook as a platform, just set up a simple profile and use it to connect.
  • Exist in isolation. When you’re staring to blog, reach out. Respond to comments on Twitter. Post comments on the blogs of people who comment on your blog. Read other blogs. You can’t expect the “social” part of social media to be a one way street. (Note, readers… I am a total hypocrite because I am too swamped to do this part… Forgiveness, please.)

This should at least get you thinking about how much social media you really need and how much to get involved in. It’s a slippery slope. Some people start and can’t stop, others start and can’t wait to stop, leaving their blog skeletons up for the whole world to see. Find your own style. Concerns of online platform are more pressing for non-fiction writers, so the pressure is less for fiction writers, but you should still have SOME kind of online face. We do look for one, even for fiction folks.

If your book is picked up by a publisher, they’ll expect you to do some online marketing. It’s better to have at least a small website and some presence than none at all.

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Can I Requery If I Get an Offer?

February 19, 2010 in Agent | 10 comments

Another interesting question I got from a reader is from Deni:

A writer very carefully searches out and queries agents he/she believes to be a good fit for their manuscript, but is personally rejected or receives no response. The writer then manages to interest a publishing house on their own, but would still prefer to have representation. How would you suggest they proceed? Do they return to the agents that rejected them in the first place (they ones they thought a good fit)? Or search out others that didn’t feel like the right person from the beginning?

I’ve written about the exciting possibility of interesting a publisher on your own and then trying to get an agent several times before. My big advice is that, if you are interested in being agented at some point, you should probably look for an agent first and go through all the ups-and-downs and rejections there instead of submitting directly to publishers. 99% of work that writers think is ready, isn’t. An agent will be a better sounding board for you than a publisher.

However, lots of people do go on to submit directly to editors and they land offers on their work. Shows you what I know! In that situation, if you still want an agent, the playing field changes a little bit. If you sign an agent up at this stage and bring them into negotiations with a publisher, they will take a 15% commission from you for stepping in. They will also give you better money and terms and will translate the contract into English for you, and otherwise be very valuable assets, but be aware that you are, pretty much, waving a flag that says “Hey agent! Free money!” when you write agents to say you have an offer. Some will definitely bite. Some still won’t.

The same goes for agents who have rejected you before, and this is what I told Deni. You can always ask. Try going back to the agents who rejected you and say you’ve received an offer. Just know that, even though there’s an offer on the table, that might not change their minds.

If I don’t like a writer’s style or voice, I wouldn’t sign them on as a client just to make a few quick bucks on a sale that’s already in progress. I sign people on for the long term. If I didn’t want to read a submission from the person once, I definitely wouldn’t want to read a career’s worth of submissions from them as their agent. I’d rather work toward getting offers for my existing clients or finding new clients whose style is a better fit for me.

But for Deni and any readers who might one day find themselves in this situation, and if their offer comes from a well-paying and reputable publisher, I hope they can use this new leverage to get noticed by their list of dream agents. There are a lot of variables at play here, of course, but I can’t think of a better “Get Out of Slush Free!” card.

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Pitchcraft

February 15, 2010 in Advice, Agent | 36 comments

Going to conferences always gives me inspiration for blog posts! This past weekend, I was at the San Francisco Writers Conference to meet writers, and there was a good crowd of kidlit people there, which is always nice to see. This conference, and many others, does agent consultations.

Consultations work like this: writers sign up for a time slot (3 minutes, 5 minutes, 10 minutes, etc.) with an agent or editor at a specific appointment time. At other conferences, there’s a free-for-all where agents and editors are just sitting at tables and writers have a certain amount of time to pitch them before a bell rings. Whether it’s run with appointments or in this “speed dating” style, the two scenarios have one thing in common: me, sitting behind a table, listening to pitches.

And once you hear writer after writer pitch, you learn a few things about how writers pitch. Here’s a quick list of do’s and don’t’s in case you ever find yourself in a face-to-face pitching situation.

DO:

  • Do present your story quickly and don’t go into unnecessary detail.
  • Do leave yourself wide open to answer questions should the agent or editor have them… don’t be so blinded by rattling off the pitch you’ve memorized, because you’ll miss the parts of the story that raised questions from your audience… and questions can give you valuable insight into what about your pitch worked or not.
  • Do answer questions and try to think of it as a conversation, not a monologue.
  • Do give yourself time to hear the agent or editor out afterward, don’t talk for the entire time.
  • Do bring a card or some materials with you, just in case.
  • Do take notes while the agent or editor is talking, you’ll likely be nervous and won’t remember what they said unless you write it down.

Now, for the important stuff. DONT:

  • Don’t interrupt an agent or editor’s question if it comes in the middle of your pre-rehearsed speech, keep an open mind.
  • Don’t try and make an editor or agent request the project, especially if they say it’s not a fit.
  • Don’t make the editor or agent take any of your materials. It’s good to bring them but lots of people don’t take stuff home… respect that wish.
  • Don’t be nervous or read the whole time… talk naturally and make eye contact… try not to read from cue cards or notes too much… it’s YOUR STORY… you wrote it… you know it.
  • Don’t make ME read anything. I personally cannot read in a consultation environment. It’s loud, there’s too much going on, I can’t concentrate. I always like to read samples later, when I’m in my own environment and can concentrate. You can ask me to skim something or to look over your query letter, sure, but don’t ask me to evaluate your writing on the spot. First, I personally have very little control over my face and can’t hide my emotions well. I hate reading in front of writers because I know they’re scrutinizing my face for a reaction. If their writing is bad, I don’t want to make a funny face and offend them, so it’s best not to put me in that situation. The only thing I can ever tell when taking 2 minutes to look at a writing sample is whether it’s good or not, but I would never just tell a writer that judgment because a) everything is subjective and b) saying “this is good” or “this is bad” isn’t helpful at all.
  • Don’t put so much pressure on yourself.

This last point is really important. Folks, here’s the dirty secret… pitching tells us NOTHING about your writing. Pitching and writing are two very different things. You could have the worst pitch in the world but your novel could be amazing. Or you could have (as is more often the case) a crackerjack pitch and a lousy, boring novel. So my decision to represent you won’t hinge on your pitch. Heck no. It hinges on your writing.

And I always ask for you to send me a writing sample (unless the project is obviously not for me). You can stop worrying about “making me” request it. So don’t freak out about the pitch. We’re just two people who love books, talking. We have lots in common already.

A consultation is just your chance to get some feedback on your pitch, to hear some questions and reactions about your story, a chance to ask an agent or editor a burning question, and practice for talking about your writing to publishing people. It’s no more complicated than that, so don’t make it into a panic attack. I think this is the healthiest attitude a writer can have when approaching a pitching situation.

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Agents Aren’t a Magic Bullet

February 12, 2010 in Advice, Agent | 36 comments

This is a bit of a controversial question, asked by Kristin. And I think this is a very important issue that many writers don’t think about. Read on:

Lately I’ve been reading some blogs written by authors out on submission, and they talk about how landing representation was only the first of many hurdles. I am wondering, do you have any sense of how many AGENTED writers never go on to get published? Either with their first project or succeeding ones?

While I can’t give exact figures for this — nobody can, I don’t think — I do have to say that getting agented does not guarantee that you’ll be published. This is something writers don’t usually consider. After all, getting good enough to snag an agent is a huge task in and of itself. After crossing that hurdle, a writer wants to rest on their laurels, bask in their success, and sign a book contract already. Right? Well, sometimes, sure. But getting an agent is the first step in a long, long process. First, revisions have to be done. Writers usually have no concept of what an “editor ready” manuscript looks like. Then, the agent must go out on submission. Then, editors might have their own revision ideas, if they don’t end up biting on the manuscript. That means going back to the drawing board on the project with the author. All of this might happen before contract. Or the manuscript could get flat-out rejected by publishers. It’s too quiet. It’s too flat. It’s too one-dimensional. The voice didn’t grab me. There’s something similar on our list. I don’t know if I can position this in a crowded marketplace.

All the same rejections you’ve gotten from agents, basically, but now your agent is the one getting them and (if you have the stomach for it) passing them along to you.Not to mention all the things you have to worry about once you sign that publishing contract. The editor wants significant changes. Copyedits are due yesterday. Oh, your book came out and it’s not selling. Returns are coming in. People don’t show up to one of your events. You need a bigger web presence. You’re getting bad reviews on Amazon. People on Good Reads think something about your book sucks. Your editor hates your second book. Or whatever. Not to depress you, but the journey to publication and past publication is FULL of hurdles. It’s set up for a track meet, in fact. But that’s for another post altogether… (By this point, though, you will likely have an agent to support you and strategize with you. They’ll be your coach or running partner, to extend a bad analogy.)

I don’t usually talk about my own writing here, but this is an issue close to my heart. You see, I know, firsthand, that agents are not a magic bullet. As I’ve mentioned elsewhere on the blog, I was an agented writer at one point. That summer, when I got my first offer of representation, I was ecstatic. Then I got five others. Six offers! A few editors started looking at my (old) blog and emailing me, soliciting my submission. My manuscript went on simultaneous submission in the UK, so it was out with at least 20 publishers all over the world. Surely, with all that excitement and enthusiasm, it would sell. Right?

Well, no. It didn’t. Looking back on it now, I realize it was not as strong as it needed to be, writing-wise. It wasn’t “editor ready.” And I had gone with an agent who had limited experience in the kidlit market. Nothing against her, of course, but I don’t know if we did the strongest revision possible together. Something that would’ve made it irresistible for the YA audience. I sure as heck didn’t know what I was doing in that regard! A more kidlit-savvy agent might’ve challenged me to aim higher. Or I landed an agent when I wasn’t ready, as a writer, because my revision toolbox wasn’t full yet. But enough people wanted to sign me that I thought I was home free. (See my note about Kidlit Newcomers.) So it went out on a huge submission and… nothing. About a year after that, I was starting to work in the publishing field and, until I figured out what was and what wasn’t conflict of interest, I decided to play it safe and part ways with her.

But I always keep this hard-learned lesson with me… nothing is certain in publishing. I’ve signed up projects that I was THRILLED with… but they didn’t go on to sell. I’ve sold things that I wondered about initially. Part of the process is enthusiasm and a polished manuscript and a passionate agent… and the other part seems like good luck and fairy dust and matching the right thing to the right person at the exact right time… something that feels about as mysterious as alchemy.

An agent is a valuable resource, and I’m not just saying that because I am one. :) We help give writers perspective, we resurrect fallen spirits, we give hope and guidance and editorial advice. We work to make those connections and to match those manuscripts to, hopefully, their future editors. But we can make no guarantees.So while I can’t say, with certainty, what the numbers are, I will say that there are probably more published authors who have literary agents, statistically, than unpublished authors. And, when adding an agent to the mix, an unpublished author has a much higher chance of becoming a published author. But that’s about as far as I’m willing to take it. And, again, I think it depends a lot on the strength of your agent. Are they a specialist in your chosen field? Will they keep trying if round after round of submissions fails? Will they stick with you for more than one project? Will they talk about your career and tell you which projects are worth pursuing and which ones, frankly, won’t sell? In this unpredictable market and with the mercurial nature of publishing, there are many more factors in play than just signing that agency agreement and calling it a day!

ETA: I tried to fix the lack of spacing in this entry. I hope it works for everyone! Don’t know why it’s doing that…

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What Next?

February 5, 2010 in Advice, Agent, Editors, Writing | 22 comments

Here’s a question I received a while back from Michele:

What is a writer to do when and agent really enjoys their work but passes? Obviously a form rejection tells you you’re way off the mark. If you are rejected because of an issue with the writing you can look at fixing it. But a rejection because the agent doesn’t connect with the story leaves a lack of direction. Do we leave our work as is and search for other agents? Do we assume the MS isn’t marketable and scrap it? Do we consider submitting other another Ms to that agent in the hope it will be a better fit? And, if we did submit to that agent again (and got accepted) would he/she pitch the stories the he/she already passed on? If the agent works for a house we really respect, do we query a different agent there with a future MS because they might be more passionate about our work?

Rejection isn’t just disappointing and hurtful, it’s frustrating, too. The writer is left with very little direction, as Michele so astutely points out. If the writer goes back to the agent with a question or a request for more detailed critique, the agent will usually decline to elaborate or not answer the email. We simply don’t have the time and energy to give personalized advice to everyone who wants it. So what’s next?

I’ll address Michele’s thoughts in order, starting with the first two. After an agent fails to connect with the manuscript, do you submit to other agents or do you scrap the MS and call it unmarketable?

When we submit a client’s manuscript to editors, we often get detailed feedback. If we made our client do a revision after every rejection, the client would feel jerked around, it would take forever, and there’d be no guarantee that the editor who offered some thoughts would go on to buy the project. It’s exactly the same here. I personally submit to smaller rounds of editors to see if we get some of the same feedback over and over. If we do, I can guide the client on a revision before submitting to other editors (or editors who wanted to see a revision). I suggest you do the same. Send to a group of agents and see if they all say the same thing. If they do, maybe think about revising. If they all hate it, try another group or, yes, it might be time to consider how saleable your work is. But do bounce it off several people before making revisions or the drastic decision to give up on that manuscript. There are so many tastes and opinions out there that letting one person’s rejection decide these questions isn’t the smartest thing to do.

As for querying that agent again (or another agent or editor at the same agency or house) with a different manuscript… I say you can try, but only after some time goes by and you really hone your craft. We really do get annoyed hearing from writers we’ve just rejected, if we rejected them because of basic writing issues. We’re going to think their new writing has the same issues, because so little time has passed since we saw those issues in a previous piece. Michele astutely wonders, also, if getting representation after a previous rejection means we’ll have to represent the previous project, too.

This is a sticky situation.I firmly believe that all writers are on a path toward improvement. So I never swear off a writer just because they’re not “there” in their craft, their ideas or their execution just yet. You never know. Everyone starts somewhere and then they go on to grow and learn and really impress people. That’s why I’m always going to at least look at a project from a writer who I’ve read and rejected before. If I do end up offering representation to them after time has passed and after they send along a different project, we’ll talk about their previous project. In most cases, writers who improve a lot tend to hate their previous work because they can see all the flaws in it. I can’t stand to look at most of the things I’ve ever written because I know so much better now. If the client wants to pursue it, we’ll look at it together and see if it’s viable. If it’s not, I am under no obligation to represent a client’s past work and drawer novels because I put my name and reputation on the line with everything I send out to editors, too.

If you still want to work with the same agency or house but want to try another editor or agent there, do make sure that you’ve done significant revision. And wait until you’ve heard from all the other agents and editors who you have submissions out with. One of them might have feedback for you. If you’re really set on working with a particular company and they’ve already rejected you once or twice, really do put everything you’ve got into that next submission, since you may not have that many more chances. And, as always, patience is your #1 asset at this point.

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Spend a Week or a Weekend With Me!

February 3, 2010 in Advice, Agent, Editors, Events | 40 comments

Okay, I doubt that little old me will be the main draw for you with these wonderful opportunities, but I’m surely a bonus. What opportunities, you ask? First, I want to tell you about the weeklong Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers workshop that’s happening June 14th to the 18th, 2010, in Sandy, Utah.

This is an intensive workshop with writers, teachers, illustrators, editors, and agent (me!), for people who want to write kidlit (you!). Instead of a big conference where presenters can only speak for 45 minutes to a huge room of people, this will be an incredibly intimate, concentrated and unique workshop-based experience. Small classes, in-depth instruction, an entire week spent on the craft of kidlit. Faculty in attendance will be Carol Lynch Williams, Sara Zarr, Kevin Hawkes, Sydney Salter, Ally Condie and many more. I’m so excited for this opportunity. Registration is now open, so check out the workshop website.

If you’ve got no time for a Utah getaway but still want this kind of close personal attention from agents, editors and other writers, do check out the Big Sur Writing Workshop, which is hosted by the Andrea Brown Agency. We have one coming up March 12th through the 14th in beautiful Monterey, CA. Myself and some other ABLit agents will be attending, as will several editors and guest authors. December’s workshop was fantastic, and I can’t wait to do critique, meet writers and run workshop groups all over again. Check out the workshop website by clicking here.

These types of conferences are such an important resource for writers and everyone should experience such a process at least once. Huge conferences like the SCBWI nationals are essential, too, but this is a great opportunity to showcase your work, get personal feedback and learn and grow in a very intimate environment. Speaking of conferences, I’ll be at the San Francisco Writers Conference on Valentine’s Day weekend. See you there!

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What to Query With

January 29, 2010 in Advice, Agent, Queries | 42 comments

This answers a question that both Haylee and Siski asked a while ago, about what to send out or query with when you’ve got several projects kicking around your desk. Lots and lots of writers have multiple projects that they’ve completed. This is even more true for picture book writers, who may have 20 or more manuscripts.

The problem is, if they are beginning writers, those 20 manuscripts likely have some of the same issues. If I look at a manuscript that someone has queried me with and it lacks a strong character, for example, or a strong plot, or the voice is wrong, or there’s a lack of active language, or there’s no scene setting, seeing that the author has 19 more, hot off the press and ready to go, isn’t going to be a draw for me. If they were all written around the same time, or even before the one I’m looking at currently, they’re likely suffering from the same issues as the first manuscript.

Every time you sit down to write, you are getting better. You’re learning. Sometimes it takes writing an entire novel-length manuscript to teach you a valuable lesson about your own craft. And sometimes, that lesson won’t get published. Sometimes, in fact, it takes five manuscripts, ten manuscripts, twenty, for you to feel your way around the novel form. The same is true for picture books. In fact, it’s even more true. Picture books are deceptively simple and it is awfully hard to make a great one. Lots of people think otherwise, and happily churn out an entire slew of drafts. I think it’s more reasonable to see your early work and your early, prolific output as more of an exercise rather than a finished product. As such, I don’t want to see all of your exercises in my inbox. Some practice is better left for your eyes only.

If you get the itch to query and you’ve got multiple projects, query  with your absolutely strongest one. I read thousands and thousands and thousands of queries and manuscripts. I can tell where an author is from looking at their work. Not every project — especially not the ones you wrote when you were still beginning and figuring things out — will sell. Show me only your strongest work. If I’m considering taking you on, I’ll be asking about your future projects and what else you have in mind, since those will more likely be even better. I will very rarely say, “Hey, do you have any problematic drawer novels I can sell?” unless you are a 12 out of 10 genius.

Agents really dislike it, actually, when people send a stable of their work on first contact. Pick the best one. If I want to see more, I’ll ask. This is especially pertinent to picture book authors. If I like the project they query with, I always want to make sure they have at least two more that I love before I take them on.

Bonus Tip: If you query an agent and get rejected, wait at least 6 months before querying them — of anyone — with a different project. Per my thinking above, the new thing you send me is most likely going to have the same issues that I noticed when I just rejected your first project. If you send out a project and it garners lots of rejections and little personalized or positive feedback, the cure isn’t jumping back into querying with a different project. The smarter thing to do would be to go back to the drawing board for a while and work on craft.

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Resubmission Versus Requested Submission

January 25, 2010 in Agent, Queries | 33 comments

I’m seeing some of this in my slush and want to clear something up very quickly. When I request something from you, I’m emailing to ask you, “Hey, can you send me a full manuscript?” or, “Hey, can you send me a few picture book manuscripts to review?” or, “Hey, do you have an illustration portfolio?” This means that I saw your work, read it, and really liked it. When I do this, I’ll give you instructions so that you can submit it as requested material and bypass my slush.

There are a few tricksters out on the Internet who say that writers should just mark something as requested material, trick the agent into opening it, and get past all the gatekeepers and become Dan Brown. Here’s the thing: we know what we request and why we request it. So it is not only a waste of time but also an annoyance to mark something “Requested” when it really isn’t. This tactic probably works better for mail submissions, when the agent or editor might get confused about the name and open the envelope anyway, and not email, where we can instantly search your submission and figure out whether we’ve corresponded with you before or not. Either way, the jig will be up when we open your “Requested” submission and realize that it’s just slush. We’ll be able to tell, nine times out of ten, because it won’t be of the same kind of quality as something we’d normally request.

To clarify, sometimes I will ask a writer to resubmit. This is if they do not follow our submission guidelines. Some agents, at my agency and other agencies, will automatically delete a submission that doesn’t follow guidelines. Our guidelines require the first 10 pages pasted into the body of the email, along with the query letter. If I get a skimpy submission of query letter only, I will send the writer a form message asking them to resubmit. Yes, I asked them to (re)submit something. Yes, this is technically a request from me (that they follow the submission guidelines). It is not, however, a requested submission.

I can’t tell you how many enterprising scamps have then emailed me, proclaiming that they’re sending in a requested submission. It’s not. It’s me giving them a chance to correct their submission error. I know exactly what I’ve requested, as does every other agent in the world. This kind of cheekiness isn’t appreciated. I hope the distinction between a requested submission and a resubmission request is clear and makes a bit of sense.

(I know some of you will call me a hypocrite to insist on submission guidelines while also writing a post about flouting submission guidelines and sending a writing sample anyway. So be it. I still stand by what I said there — only if you really want to take the risk and be a little bold. That trick isn’t for everyone’s sensibilities and there is a chance you’ll piss certain people off. All I can say is that I love having a writing sample to read, I think the more you send to sell yourself the better (within the 10 page limit, of course), and that it has worked in my personal querying life. Please take that with as much salt as you like.)

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Rejection Follow-Up Part 4

January 20, 2010 in Agent, Queries | 30 comments

Wow. Here I am again, writing about rejection follow-up. This one will be short because I think the point is easily made. Writers: I invest my time and energy in the success of my clients. That is what I am paid to do. I brainstorm ideas with them, talk to them, figure what houses and editors are good fits for their work, give them notes on their manuscripts and, in general, spend a lot of time thinking about their careers. I do not do this for the people in my slush. Unless what they send me completely blows me away and they become my clients.

If you query me, please do not expect me to critique your manuscript for you after I reject it. Do not turn around and ask what was wrong with it, what parts didn’t work, what could be better. I understand that you want these answers. I understand that writing and querying agents can be a lonely, confusing process fraught with pain and rejection.

But it’s not my job to provide free critiques to all of Creation. At conferences, organizers charge a lot of money for a critique with an agent. Because they’re worth that much. That’s not my ego talking. Let me explain (with a brilliant analogy I borrowed from another writer). A person usually balks at a repairman who comes and fixes their appliance with a 15-cent washer and charges them $500 bucks. “All he had to do is stick that washer in there!” they shout. What they don’t take into account is the years that repairman spent learning the trade or the time he spends practicing it. Sure, the washer cost 15 cents, but it’s not like the customer knew where to stick it himself.

It’s the same thing with the skills I’ve learned. They have come through me from an expensive education, work experience and years and years and years of reading, writing, and soaking up the wisdom and expertise of agents and editors. If I send you a form rejection letter, do not ask me to trot out my skills for free. That repairman’s job is to learn how to repair things well enough that he can make a living. My job is to work with a select list of writers and sell their projects. Your job, as a writer who wants to attain publication, is to learn how to write with a level of skill and craft that will get you published. Like with any other job, you need to invest time and, often, money (in the form of classes, conferences, books, etc…. but never pay an agent or agency to read your query or manuscript!) in order to get started.

There are tons of resources out there, including the SCBWI, conferences and other writers who you can include in a critique group. I would love to be a resource for new writers, because I know and understand where they come from and what they’re going through, but I can’t provide individual assistance to everyone who wants it. That’s why I keep this blog and reach out to as many as I possibly can with articles that are as relevant as possible to the greatest number of people at once.

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Agents as Editors and Kidlit Newcomers

January 15, 2010 in Agent, Editors, Publishing | 35 comments

I wrote a post a while back about being an agent who loves to get editorially involved in client manuscripts. I think I’m part of the majority on this and that majority doesn’t just include new agents. Most agents, whether fresh on the scene or established, are finding themselves doing more editorial work these days.

Why? The publishing industry is in flux right now. Houses have been restructuring, having layoffs, piling more work on their remaining staff. Editors, associate editors and editorial assistants are finding themselves faced with a lot more to do, including all sorts of in-house duties that most writers can’t even imagine. Editors are finding less time to do the actual, you know, editing that probably attracted them to publishing in the first place. In fact, most editors routinely report that part of the editing they do for their authors — let’s not even get into the reading they do for manuscripts that come in on submissions — takes place at night and over the weekends.

Editors are the ultimate gatekeepers in publishing. Agents are the first line of defense, in this analogy at least, against the slew of submissions that would inundate all major houses if they accepted anything unsolicited. Now that the gatekeepers are finding themselves with less time to edit, it has become that much more important that agents send out projects that are polished, compelling, carefully revised. That means agents have to do more work with a client before going out on submission, and the barrier to entry has gotten higher.

Gone are the days when editors feel like they’ve got the time and resources to take on a severely flawed book and uncover the masterpiece hiding somewhere deep inside it, like Michelangelo liberating David from the marble. That’s now mostly an agent’s job, I think, and that’s only if they want to invest the time.

This doesn’t mean editors don’t edit once the acquire. Editors still work just as hard — and oftentimes much harder — now than they ever did. They give brilliant insight, amazing notes, gentle suggestions and really help an author learn and grow. An editor-author relationship really can be a wonderful thing. But the beautiful disasters aren’t going to catch an editor’s eye or convince their acquisitions committees as much anymore. Since their jobs have changed, the job of the agent has, too.

In children’s books, there’s an additional obstacle that’s developed this past year or two. Children’s is a market that has, so far, refused to go as deep into the toilet as many other book markets. In fact, it has done rather well throughout the recession. So a lot of agents who never would’ve thought to represent children’s books are now picking up clients and going on submission when they perhaps don’t know the market as well as agents who are experienced in the children’s book world. These newcomers haven’t read a lot of children’s books themselves, they don’t know what makes a good one, they might not be able to give the best editorial advice for the market.

This is an additional problem for editors, who are getting submissions of lesser quality from a first line of defense that has some newbies in it. This isn’t an issue at my agency — we’ve been exclusively representing children’s books for almost 30 years — but I’ve heard about this problem from editor friends and saw it with my own eyes when I worked at Chronicle.

Not only should you be querying with a manuscript polished enough to make an editor’s acquisition argument easier down the line, you should also query agents who are experienced in children’s books. A lot of people are trying to get into the game. If you want editorial guidance and the benefit of real experience, make sure your list of potential agents is full of real children’s book pros, not just people who hear the siren song of a strong (as strong as it can be in this economy) market.

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