Blind Dating or Wisdom? Agent Match Up
Oct. 19th, 2007 01:31 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
cathschaffstumpI 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, ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
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!)
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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Date: 2007-10-19 07:47 pm (UTC)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