cathschaffstump | Blind Dating or Wisdom? Agent Match Up

I wrote to Nathan Bransford just to get it out of the way. I had my rejection in hand in five minutes. As I mentioned, I expected one from him, and one from Ellenberg, if I get a reply from Ellenberg in two weeks at all. BTW,

manzabar, I forgot to mention that Ellenberg is John Scalzi's agent. I know how you feel about him!

I don't necessarily expect a rejection from my next query, Kathleen Bransford, who is both a fantasy and a young adult agent. I feel my chances are more on an even keel there. Those who have corresponded with her have good things to say.

***

You know, what is interesting about using a tool like Query Tracker is that you really can research agents thoroughly, and since I'm not approaching this from a desperation angle (I'm determined to find an agent with a good fit) I've easily ruled out agents that have been rude to others often, weird, philosophically unaligned (can you see Substance being represented by a fundamentalist Christian?), or who aren't shopping for my genre.

I would like an agent, but not at any cost. It's like considering a hire from this angle as well. If I get a bad vibe, or a place doesn't feel suitable, I'm not hooking up.

***

The slush pile is hardly a reality yet. I've searched and found 216 agents. Thirty of them do not accept unreferred writers. That gives me 186, of which I've discarded 5 and queried 9. Two are still out there. Seven are nos. That gives me a whole 172 agents left to query. That could keep me busy for a bit.

So, the plan is first AAR/email agents. Then AAR/snail mail. Why? Ease, pretty much. I'd also like an ecologically friendly work place if I can get it. Then nonAAR/email. Then nonAAR/snail mail. Pretty straightforward.

Will I do the slush pile if all this comes to naught? Realistically, all could come to naught. I probably will. I could sit on the manuscript, or I could try for the longshot. I'll have the rest of my life to sit on the manuscript, and if I have a book deal in hand, it might leverage an agent.

All right. Enough of this for today. Back to the students, the emails, and the planning.

Catherine

(to quote Donkey from Shrek: Pick me! Pick me!)

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I am not an expert, but I wouldn't mind looking at the query if you feel inclined to toss it my way. If not, that's perfectly cool as well.

(screened comment)

I've taken the initiative and sent the samples to your email at your website.

Catherine

If it helps, I thought you had a strong query, I just didn't think I was quite the right fit. I hope you find the right agent! Good luck!

Thanks for writing, Nathan. It does help to know that you found my query strong. I'll just be adding you to my lj, then...

But rest assured, I'm not feeling too down. I know that some projects are right for some agents and they aren't right for others. If I have an agent working for me, I want them to believe in my project, like Peter Pan abjures children to believe in Tinkerbell. Or something like that.

I used up my quota of life angst writing a dissertation. I know that rejection is nothing personal. It fits or it doesn't. Yes, I like and believe in my book, and I'd like to get it published. But yes, it's not going to light everyone's fire. That's groovy. I can live with that. Someone is going to bite eventually. If not on this one, then the next one.

Or, if you prefer:

You were my 8th query. Karmically, I haven't paid my dues yet.

Thanks for writing. No hard feelings here whatsoever.

Catherine

You've just gotta look at it as a game. The first few rejections were like bamboo shoots under the nails, and rejections after a full read? Like they were putting my eyes out with hot pokers. I mean, always positive, always very kind, but still, harsh. But, you know, almost three years, two novels, and a drawer full of rejections on? I just look at it as a game - a long game (which always reminds me of the Dr. Who ep, but that's another story).

Keep plugging along, lady. Race is the prize, etc.

That which does not publish us makes us stronger?

They tell me that 5 years, and you're in...I'm just sayin'. But we all know what a great writer you are, you Faulkner award winner, you.

Thanks for the reassurance and support.

It's just a long, hard slog and we gotta hold it lightly, otherwise we'll go crazy. Er, crazier.

You're doing great, hon. And after last night's shenanigans (eek!), it's all about perspective.

good luck!

I never had any luck with email queries. Most of the agents I e-queried didn't let a writer send sample pages because they didn't want attachments. I got the best responses from snail mail queries. My now-agent told me it was my sample pages that led her to request a full, and that my query letter on its own woulnd't have done it.

Just food for thought...

Thanks for the food for thought.

I have had two partial requests from equeries, and that's not bad out of 8. But yes, I will certainly be snailing some people as well.

It's hard saying what works. It's always different for everyone, isn't it?

Catherine

I'm biased since I got my book deal out of the slush pile . . . but I'm still amazed that you found 216 agents that take both fantasy and young adult! Gawd, am I looking the wrong places? I found a quarter that many and, as someone famous once said, I have not yet begun to fight.

For both fantasy and young adult, if you look at

http://www.agentquery.net

you'll find 52.

I'm submitting to YA folks unless they tell me for sure they don't want fantasy, and after some research as well.

I can't plug agentquery enough.

At any rate, I too may get my deal from the slush pile. Only time will tell.

I do love agentquery as well. Where were they when I was first submitting!

don't ever menti npeter pan again. ori go o na n'i do believe in demons' chant.
maybei shoudl stop sendign 'i yo udont' take her manuscript i'll wipe you off the net' thoguths their way when yo usend yoru stuff out.

Please don't threaten agents on my behalf! I'd like to get them on my own merits, rather than through my tough friends! :)

Catherine

it is half tongue in cheek but the three rejections in one day had me back offand thik' uh-oh..."
i thin ki'm the only one who sounds al lfanatic and agressive about it. i'm wodnering how i coudl get an unbiassed view of this. it's jsut weird hwne yo useeh ow osmeone believes i nthe story they write and whe nthey show you snippets the yactually ARE that kidn of good as i n'wow. what anice cool breeze' kidn of good
and the none after the other jsut goes nope. i think it's because i have no knowledge whatoever of this business so the firstthingi call out is 'it's unfair!"
waittill i finish a boo kand shop it around. i'll probably be ver gratefu lthat i follow this journal.

I'm pretty sure that it's not the quality of the book. You're right. It's probably a good book.

It's a question of whether they think they are the right agent to handle the book, or if the concept interests them. It's all subjective.

I think that one of the reasons it's so hard to break into publishing is that there are many people just like you--writers who have written good books. Which book do you back? The one that captures your (as the agent's) imagination.

I need you to be my agent. You believe in me. I want an agent who believes in me as much as you do, and I'm willing to look until I find that person.

Catherine

that's agood one. i nsoem cases it' sems to be amatter of bulls-eye. i mea when yo uread hary ptoter you can hardl ybelieve that lie kfifty agents first werne't itnerested until oen said 'hey, this soudsn cool'.

i don'tthink i'd be agodo agent. if ihad the papers at al lthat is. i'd be too eage rto get eveyroen's story out so\\andi cna't be objective. remember beta readgn in fanfic world? i'd promised to check someoen's fic over once and i stayedu ptill three readign it and only then thinking 'shit. i wassupposed to keep track of errors and continuity glitches etc'. i was too caught up in the story. adn part of me thinks it coudl be because this person just didn't need any more beta reads or because i don't use ther ight reading track to proofread properly.

Blind Dating or Wisdom? Agent Match Up

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