Yes, this is a blog post of random agent thoughts.
A few weeks after my father’s heart stopped beating for the last time, we discovered among his office files a three-ring binder labeled “497 Random Thoughts.” Over the course of …
Queries
What Are Literary Agents Looking For in a Writer?
As a writer getting published can be a frustrating task, especially when it comes to finding a literary agent to represent your work. A literary agent plays a crucial role in the publishing process, acting as a bridge between writers …
Four Questions to Ask Yourself When Writing BIPOC Characters or Stories
“If I add a BIPOC character to my novel, will it improve my chance of finding a traditional publisher?”
I’ve been asked that question several times over the years. There are several motivations behind posing it. However, I believe that …
Four Questions to Ask Yourself When Writing BIPOC Characters or StoriesRead More
Ready, Set, Send
It’s not far into childhood before we learn the “Ready, Set, Go!” game. Parents, arms extended, could simply say, “Jump!” and the toddler would happily respond. But even the rhythm and anticipation of “Ready” (not yet), “Set” (not quite), and …
How to Make a Literary Agent Smile
When you imagine a literary agent behind his or her desk, what kind of expression do you see on their face? Depending on how you feel about your recent interactions with a literary agent, you may imagine a grumpy face, …
Hidden Treasure on Back Covers
While Amazon or other online retailers can deliver our books in one or two days, there is one experience that online retailers will never be able to deliver: the thrill of flipping our wrist to see the back cover.
When …
Six Phrases to Avoid in Your Query
Finishing a query is big deal! You’ve spent hours in front of your computer wrestling the words that capture your passion, imagination and life experience into a query letter.
To give your dream the best chance of getting an agent …
Getting an Agent to Read Your Entire Query
As a literary agent, I love seeing stacks of queries in my inbox. Like the other agents at Books & Such, I enjoy discovering unique book ideas, moving memoirs and fresh new voices. However, all literary agents must balance limited …
When An Agent Doesn’t Reply
blogger: Cynthia Ruchti
When an agent doesn’t reply to your query, proposal, burning question, or manuscript submission, is it because she/he doesn’t care?
Admittedly, sometimes writers–whether aspiring or veteran–choose the default answer, “Yes! That must be it! I’m not important …
The “Perfect” Query
Blogger: Wendy Lawton
You’ve seen a number of agent blogs and agent twitters talking about query tips and #queryfail. Agent websites are filled with instructions on how and how-not to query. Nearly every writers conference offers a session or two …