As I'm currently in the querying mode again, I was thinking of Cindy Pon's 121 queries sent out into Query Land. That reminded me of a post I did last summer sometime that dealt with precisely this topic. I went back and re-read it -- and realized that I need to take my own advice. Again.
I'm re-posting it for your reading pleasure. Please tell me what you're currently going through, agent-wise, or what has worked for you in the past.
August 15, 2008
OK: I'm guilty of it myself. I've toiled hours over my query letter. I've perfected it. I've tweaked it. I've buffed it. In fact, my query letter is a work of art, right up there with coffee ice cream.
And then I've sat on it. For six months.
Next step? GUILT. If I'm not out there beating the bushes for an agent, then how will Ceilyn see the light of day? I'm certainly not going to be hit over the head and dragged off by the hair to some publishing cave. So I decide to send out the query letter.
Retrieving the somewhat squished and wrinkled pages is the easy part. Determining the agent is pretty simple, too. Head held high, I mail off my one query letter. I'm still awaiting the results.
So -- if you were wondering -- this is the wrong way to do it. If you've taken even one class in statistics, you'll know why. Elizabeth Lyon, author of The Sell Your Novel Toolkit, pleads with us writers to do it the right way, the kinder, gentler, smarter way, the Lyon way.
The Lyon Way:
1. After you've perfected your query letter, send it out to ten agents.
2. Keep track of how many agents request your manuscript. A successful query letter nets 30%, or three out of ten requests.
3. If "successful," send out individualized letters to scores more agents. Increase your odds.
4a. If your query nets you zero, then your query letter is a failure.
4b. This is the good news: you haven't been rejected; just your query letter.
5. Re-write your query letter. Repeat steps 1-5.
If you have successful query letter stories or even "don't do what I did" stories, please share them! Are there better methods out there? Must-read books on the subject?
Showing posts with label find an agent. Show all posts
Showing posts with label find an agent. Show all posts
Monday, March 9, 2009
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Doing Your Homework: Beyond the Obvious
I treasure epiphanies. They occur so rarely in adult life that one must cup the 
moment in trembling hand, cherish the feather-light strokes of wings, the fragile dust of magic, even the transitory nature of the creature.
This, however, was more like the smack in the middle of the forehead, roll of the eyes, and jaded, "DUH!" blurted out to all who would listen.
1. Do your homework. Yes, I know this. I'm actually holding the 2008 Guide to Literary Agents by Writer's Digest Books. Flipping to the back, under Literary Agents Specialties Index, I can even browse agents by topic, specifically Fantasy and Science Fiction. There are lots of other agent resources, but, then, you knew that.
2. Double check your sources. Just because someone is listed in the Guide, it's not carved in granite. If a website is provided, jump online and verify that the agent is still with the company listed. And yes, I've lived through this, having just received an email last week that stated, "Mollie X is no longer with Agency Y. Your email is being forwarded to Jenny Z at jennyz@agencyy.com. Boy, did I feel lame.
3. Don't just randomly query, even within your genre. Now some may disagree with me and recommend that you query anyone with a pulse, but I have discovered that some discretion may simply save time. Take me for an example. To my ever-living shame, I actually queried an agent who specifically stated on her website that she was looking for something other than high fantasy. Yes, she was looking for fantasy, just not what I was peddling. It was a bloody waste of both of our times, and I should have known better. (I'm still wondering if I'm a masochist.)
4. Improve your chances. This was the part I failed to figure out until just the other day. I don't know if I was being stupid or lazy, but here's the deal: create a list of the living authors who write in a similar fashion. Do a Google search for their agents. Then query their agents. So I've googled Kristin Britain and she has Anna Ghosh of Scovil Galen Ghosh Literary Agency listed as the contact for "licensing and rights inquiries." I am currently cooking up a query for Ms. Ghosh, though in checking a list of of her recent sells, I see that this is the only fantasy listed. Hmmmm....Decision to be made.
5. Phone a friend. When in doubt, seek out your beta readers, your spouse, or your mom's friends and ask: if you had to put me in a category, who would the other authors be? Use their ideas to track down the most appropriate agent for your work. Who knows? You might find an answer that you wouldn't have targeted on your own.
Any other tips or thoughts or random bits of genius for all of us agent-seekers? It's a simplistic process but oh so painful...and easier to endure when there are friendly fellow bloggers participating in the same trial by fire. What's your story of failure? joy? humiliation? success?
moment in trembling hand, cherish the feather-light strokes of wings, the fragile dust of magic, even the transitory nature of the creature.This, however, was more like the smack in the middle of the forehead, roll of the eyes, and jaded, "DUH!" blurted out to all who would listen.
1. Do your homework. Yes, I know this. I'm actually holding the 2008 Guide to Literary Agents by Writer's Digest Books. Flipping to the back, under Literary Agents Specialties Index, I can even browse agents by topic, specifically Fantasy and Science Fiction. There are lots of other agent resources, but, then, you knew that.
2. Double check your sources. Just because someone is listed in the Guide, it's not carved in granite. If a website is provided, jump online and verify that the agent is still with the company listed. And yes, I've lived through this, having just received an email last week that stated, "Mollie X is no longer with Agency Y. Your email is being forwarded to Jenny Z at jennyz@agencyy.com. Boy, did I feel lame.
3. Don't just randomly query, even within your genre. Now some may disagree with me and recommend that you query anyone with a pulse, but I have discovered that some discretion may simply save time. Take me for an example. To my ever-living shame, I actually queried an agent who specifically stated on her website that she was looking for something other than high fantasy. Yes, she was looking for fantasy, just not what I was peddling. It was a bloody waste of both of our times, and I should have known better. (I'm still wondering if I'm a masochist.)
4. Improve your chances. This was the part I failed to figure out until just the other day. I don't know if I was being stupid or lazy, but here's the deal: create a list of the living authors who write in a similar fashion. Do a Google search for their agents. Then query their agents. So I've googled Kristin Britain and she has Anna Ghosh of Scovil Galen Ghosh Literary Agency listed as the contact for "licensing and rights inquiries." I am currently cooking up a query for Ms. Ghosh, though in checking a list of of her recent sells, I see that this is the only fantasy listed. Hmmmm....Decision to be made.
5. Phone a friend. When in doubt, seek out your beta readers, your spouse, or your mom's friends and ask: if you had to put me in a category, who would the other authors be? Use their ideas to track down the most appropriate agent for your work. Who knows? You might find an answer that you wouldn't have targeted on your own.
Any other tips or thoughts or random bits of genius for all of us agent-seekers? It's a simplistic process but oh so painful...and easier to endure when there are friendly fellow bloggers participating in the same trial by fire. What's your story of failure? joy? humiliation? success?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
