Wednesday, July 31, 2013

Summer Query Extravaganza 19

You know the drill. Contact me on twitter if you want your query showcased. Comment on the query before and after yours. All query critiques are subjective. And rabbits don't come out of my hat, but I'll do my best. Objects in mirror may be closer than they appear. Buy one and I'll throw in a set of free steak knives, just pay separate shipping and handling fees.

As sent to me:

Dear superstar agent,

Complete at 96,000 words, FIGHT CAMP is a (light) science fiction/dystopian novel for young adults that may appeal to readers of Veronica Roth’s Divergent series and Marie Lu’s Legend series.

Sixteen-year-old peaceful and inquisitive Aran Fenn knows nothing of the world outside the placid walls of her Domain until she goes away to summer camp. She wakes from an ease-filled life into a violent reality of aggressive campers and Ultimate Fight training. As Aran strains to trust her bunkmate, who knocks her out on the first night of camp, and the boy who helps heal her wounds in secret, she finds going home to her family isn’t an option.

Aran learns that the Regime, an obscure militant research group, created the Domains to study whether lives dominated by poverty or privilege creates the strongest army for an impending war. She discovers her green eyes link her to the fiery legend of the Phoenix Born, whom the people of the Domains hope will unite them and bring renewal. This very connection also provides the Regime with a valuable component in creating an undefeatable army.

Angry that she is nothing more than a pawn in the Regime’s game of life and death, Aran escapes camp. The Regime hunts Aran in a high stakes game of survival of the fittest. She doesn’t want to abandon the people who look to her for freedom, but she longs for home- though she’s not sure what that means anymore. It’s in her blood to resist and rise, but her family claims her heart, prompting her to have to choose whether to fight or flee. 

Small bio and closing...


With my crazy comments:

Dear superstar agent, Smiles.

Complete at 96,000 words, FIGHT CAMP is a (light) science fiction/dystopian novel for young adults that may appeal to readers of Veronica Roth’s Divergent series and Marie Lu’s Legend series. Hello, fellow dystopian writer! Pleased to meet you. 96K might be on the high side for YA. 

Sixteen-year-old peaceful and inquisitive Aran Fenn knows nothing of the world outside the placid walls of her Domain until she goes away to summer camp. I'm on the fence about the two MC adjectives. I think MC adjectives work better outside the first sentence. Makes it look like you can't show. Also summer camp doesn't sound so bad. She wakes from an ease-filled life into a violent reality of aggressive campers and Ultimate Fight training. Is this camp mandatory? Because if it's volunteer, than she asked for it and my sympathy goes down. I think whether she is forced or goes willingly is an important factor. As Aran strains to trust her bunkmate, who knocks her out on the first night of camp, and the boy who helps heal her wounds in secret, she finds going home to her family isn’t an option. This is leaving me with a lot of questions and the inevitable comparison to that famous dystopian. Why is she there? Why do they need to train in this manner? What's behind all this? Why don't they train as teams instead of as opponents? 

This is giving me Aran's motivation is to left alone. I'm not sure that is the strongest motivation to make us care for her. I need a reason to like her. A reason to care what happens to her. A person who wants to be left alone usually doesn't inspire that.

Aran learns that the Regime, an obscure militant research group, created the Domains to study whether lives dominated by poverty or privilege creates the strongest army for an impending war. I'm guessing she was on the privilege side. But who is the Regime fighting? The stakes are missing. She discovers her green eyes link her to the fiery legend of the Phoenix Born, whom the people of the Domains hope will unite them and bring renewal. Without being shown the suffering of the Domains, this doesn't affect me as much as it should. Their suffering could be her motivation. Also since green eyes are hard to hide, wouldn't this be obvious since she was born. This very connection also provides the Regime with a valuable component in creating an undefeatable army. Kind of vague. I'm not really sure what this mean and why I should care since I have no idea of their opponent.

Angry that she is nothing more than a pawn in the Regime’s game of life and death, Aran escapes camp. And she didn't know about the goal of the camp from the start? Sorry but she sounds selfish. She runs away? Let other people fight, but leave me alone. The Regime hunts Aran in a high stakes game of survival of the fittest. She doesn’t want to abandon the people who look to her for freedom, but she longs for home- though she’s not sure what that means anymore. It’s in her blood to resist and rise, but her family claims her heart, prompting her to have to choose whether to fight or flee. I'm not sure which fight this refers to. Fight for or against the Regime? And where can she flee? No other place was mentioned. You are giving the reader her choice but not what will happen in either case. She has to flight or flee or blankety blank.  

Small bio and closing...



There's nothing wrong with the writing of this query; it just doesn't bring me close to the character. You've got the set-up but not the heart. Aran needs a stronger motivation. It needs to be shown that the situation matters to her so that it can matter to us. Right now the query makes her seem self centered and uncaring, though I'm sure that's not the case.

This is really rough, but it might give you ideas:

23-year-old Aran has helplessly watched the Regime do this to her people for years. Or 23-year-old Aran learns half the population has faced this. Then, despite her inexperience, the Regime sends her to training camp and expects her to fight (with more detail). They need an army to face blank

Only Aran feels this. Her green eyes link her to the fiery legend of Phoenix Born and the Regime has no intention of letting her go. She's the perfect leader to defeat an undefeatable army.

Only she won't be used as their rally point, until they bring blank into it. Now she has to fight for the Regime or blank will happen

Announcing the Agent Greeting Contest Prizes

The Agent Greeting contest (details here) will start on August 5th with the opportunity to win a query critique from not one, but five agents. Five random winners will each be randomly assigned to an agent. I will direct the winner how to email their query to their agent.

Now to get to the good stuff: the identities of the agents! Take a good look and see whether your query falls into their areas of expertise. Agent Greeting will be open to all fiction genres and age categories, but the agents might be more helpful with queries that fall in their wish lists. 


Agent #1:





Danielle Smith an associate literary agent at Foreword Literary Agents where she represents picture books and middle grade authors and illustrators. Her enthusiasm for children’s literature began as a young child, but grew exponentially when her own two children were born and shortly thereafter she began reviewing books at her top rated children’s book review site There's A Book. For more than five years she’s been involved professionally with books through print and online publications such as Women’s World and Parenting Magazine, as a member of the judging panels for The Cybils awards for fiction picture books, as well as locally by serving on the board of The Central Coast Writer’s Conference. She is most interested in finding new author/illustrator talent, children’s fiction and creative non-fiction from picture books through







Agent #2: 

Jordy Albert is a Literary Agent and co-founder of The Booker Albert Literary Agency. She holds a B.A. in English from Pennsylvania State University, and a M.A. from Millersville University of Pennsylvania. She has worked with Marisa Corvisiero during her time at the L. Perkins Agency and the Corvisiero Literary Agency. Jordy also works as a freelance editor/PR Director. She enjoys studying languages (French/Japanese), spends time teaching herself how to knit, is a HUGE fan of Doctor Who, and loves dogs. 

She is looking for stories that capture her attention and keep her turning the page. She is looking for a strong voice, and stories that have the ability to surprise her. She loves intelligent characters with a great sense of humor. She would love to see fresh, well-developed plots featuring travel, competitions/tournaments, or time travel. Jordy is specifically looking for:

* Middle Grade: contemporary, fantasy, action/adventure, or historical.
* YA: sci-fi, dystopian/post-apocalyptic, contemporary, historical--Though I am open to looking at other sub-genres, I'm looking for YA that has a very strong romantic element. 
NEW ADULT CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
* Romance (contemporary and historical).


Agent #3


Sarah Negovetich of Corvisiero Literary is fully aware that no one knows how to pronounce her last name, and she's okay with that.

Her favorite writing is YA, because at seventeen the world is your oyster. Only oysters are slimy and more than a little salty, it's accurate if not exactly motivational. 

Sarah's background is in Marketing. FYI, your high school algebra teacher was right when they told you every job uses math. She uses her experience to assist Corvisiero authors with platform building and book promotion.

Sarah is only accepting MG and YA fiction manuscripts. She is open to any genre within those age groups, but prefers speculative fiction. Contemporary is not her favorite, but she will look at it. She is not interested in seeing poetry, novels in verse, short stories/novellas or anything focused on saving the environment (she's all for recycling, but doesn't want to represent it).


Agent #4

TR 

Tamar Rydzinski worked at Sanford J. Greenburger Associates prior to joining the Laura Dail Literary Agency. She graduated from Yeshiva University in 2003 with a major in literature and a minor in business.

Tamar is not interested in prescriptive or practical non-fiction, humor, coffee table books or children’s books (meaning anything younger than middle grade). She is interested in everything else that is well-written and has great characters, including graphic novels. A fantastic query letter is essential – “you need to make me want to read your book, and be excited to read it,” she says, “with those first couple of paragraphs.”


Agent #5


Michelle L. Johnson is a literary agent, the founder of Inklings Literary Agency and has a business administration background in addition to a lifetime of working with books (sales, editing, and writing) and authors (marketing, promoting, event planning). She is also a script/story consultant for an independent film under production in Halifax, NS.

Before founding Inklings Literary Agency, she was with Corvisiero Literary Agency. She has spent many years in the editing field for private clients and multiple independent publishing houses.

She has also owned and operated a Writers' Center and Bookstore in Virginia Beach, organizing numerous special events for authors and artists alike.

Michelle is closed to unsolicited query until further notice, but in fiction Michelle looks for Contemporary, Suspense, Thriller, Mystery, Horror, Fantasy, including Paranormal and Supernatural elements within those genres.

She is also interested in romance of every heat level, including very well written erotica.

In Non Fiction, she is interested in Memoir, True Crime.

She is especially fond of plot twists that surprise her and deep, well-rounded characters that make her laugh and cry.

Not looking for: Textbooks, Cookbooks, Short Stories, Picture Books, Poetry, Coffee Table Books, Christian Fiction, Screenplays, Steampunk.



Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Summer Query Extravaganza 18

I hope you'll excuse a little excited self-gibbering today. My book Kindar's Cure has started showing up on Amazon and other sites. I say started because apparently the loading is done in stages. My cover picture and the pricing arrived before the book blurb. Sort of interesting information for the yet to be published.   

You know the drill. Contact me on twitter if you want your query showcased. Comment on the query before and after yours. All query critiques are subjective. And rabbits don't come out of my hat, but I'll do my best. Objects in mirror may be closer than they appear. Buy one and I'll throw in a set of free steak knives, just pay separate shipping and handling fees.

As sent to me:

Dear Wonderful All Knowing Agent:
 
23 year old Sophia Hudson isn't expecting anything out of the ordinary to happen during her last year of college. Her life is so humdrum that she finds excitement through celebrity gossip. Honestly she’s just hoping to keep her head low, and squeak by without much effort before collecting her photography degree. But her cynical outlook changes when her bushy afro walks into Dr. Matthew Brooks’ anthropology class. Sophia finds herself strangely drawn to the professor/sometimes poet, and is surprised when eventually he hints that he is interested in her too.

Sophia has longed for a relationship; she’s wanted to be loved, to have someone there to fend off the loneliness, and to fill the gap in her heart where her father’s love should have gone. She is quick to pin her hopes and dreams onto Matthew. But she quickly discoverers there is more to him than pretty words, and the ability to command a classroom. The man she has built up in her head essentially doesn't exist. The real Matthew Brooks is a man of dark secrets, which slowly bleed out and choke her. He’s actually a polygamist, with a violent lust for control, who has been pulling all of Sophia’s strings from the start. Is Sophia strong enough to assert herself as a person, while escaping from Matthew without him destroying her life?

Power of the Podium is NA thriller at 54,000 words.
I look forward to hearing from you,

With crazy comments added:

Dear Wonderful All Knowing Agent:  Inventive but all-knowing should be hyphenated.
 
23 year old (You need hyphens here too. 23-year-old) Sophia Hudson isn't expecting anything out of the ordinary to happen during her last year of college. Her life is so humdrum that she finds excitement through celebrity gossip.(Sharpen. 23-year-old Sophia Hudson is experiencing an ordinary final year of college. The only excitement in her life is celebrity gossip.) Honestly she’s just hoping to keep her head low, and squeak by without much effort before collecting her photography degree. (As as start, I've seen this before many times. MC is Jane Average.) But her cynical outlook changes when her bushy afro (I see you're trying to include her ethnicity but this is an awkward way to describe her. Why not proud afro or well-styled afro or defiant afro. Try using an adjective that could also apply to her personality. Then you get a double whammy.) walks into Dr. Matthew Brooks’ anthropology class. Sophia finds herself strangely drawn to the professor/sometimes poet, and is surprised when eventually he hints that he is interested in her too. (So far nothing about a thriller here. Sue me, I peeked at the genre first.)

Sophia has longed for a relationship; she’s wanted to be loved, to have someone there to fend off the loneliness, and to fill the gap in her heart where her father’s love should have gone.(Does this describe half a freshman class, or is that just me? You'd think a senior would outgrow it. This sentence could be distilled down to Looking for love, she is quick...) She is quick to pin her hopes and dreams onto Matthew. But she quickly discoverers there is more to him than pretty words, and the ability to command a classroom. The man she has built up in her head essentially doesn't exist. (Essentially weakens the sentence. You're saying there are exceptions. Meh, he's not so bad. X O on the wimp out.) The real Matthew Brooks is a man of dark secrets, which slowly bleed out and choke her. (Generic details that don't tell me much, except for the 'secrets.') He’s actually a polygamist, with a violent lust for control, who has been pulling all of Sophia’s strings from the start. Is Sophia strong enough to assert herself as a person, while escaping from Matthew without him destroying her life? Now I'm engaged, but you saved it for the last tiny bit. 

Power of the Podium is NA thriller at 54,000 words. I don't know about NA, but this word count seems low for YA or adult. I figure NA fits inside there somewhere. Of course, I'm used to speculative fiction word counts. Title should be in all caps or in italics.  

Thanks and I look forward to hearing from you, Don't forget the grateful thanks. 

To me it seems like this query takes too long to get to the good stuff. You give us some details about her life and her situation but leave the action and plot to the end. Essentially (sorry, I had to do it), your query has a lot of backstory. You have included her motivation, she wants to be loved. But try to get to it sooner. 

23-year-old Sophia Hudson has spent her whole college career wishing for love. All she has to show for it is a pile of supermarket magazines describing exciting celebrity romance. Then her stately afro walks into Dr. Matthew Brooks' anthropology class.

She's quick to pin her hopes and dreams on this professor/sometimes poet. Secrets. Bad stuff. She must ... or ...

I hope this helps.

Monday, July 29, 2013

Query Questions with Tamar Rydzinski

Before we get to the interview, the details for my Agent Greeting contest are here. The prize is a query critique by mystery agents who will be announced Wednesday. And there are now three four agents involved, which means three four winners and a runner-up! And it's official, there will be four agents and one of them, hint hint, is doing this interview!

Writers have copious amounts of imagination. It's what makes their stories so fantastic. But there's a darker side to so much out of the box thinking. When a writer is in the query trenches, their worries go into overdrive. They start pulling out their hair and imagine every possible disaster.




Here to relieve some of that endless worrying is a new series of posts called Query Questions. I'll ask the questions which prey on every writer's mind, and hopefully take some of the pain out of querying. These are questions that I've seen tossed around on twitter and writing sites like Agent Query Connect. They are the type of questions that you need answers for the real expert--agents!

If you have your own specific query question, please leave it in the comments and it might show up in future editions of Query Questions as I plan to rotate the questions.

Please welcome Tamar Rydzinski of the Laura Dail Literary Agency shares her answers to common query questions. Thank you so much Ms. Rydzinski for taking the time to respond and ease some fears about the query process.




Is there a particular time of year that is better to query?

Nope!

Does one typo or misplaced comma shoot down the entire query?

It depends. If the typo is in my name, then that makes me think the querier isn't being careful and that isn't something I appreciate. However, we all mistype sometimes. And we all make grammatical mistakes. So if there aren't many, then I have overlooked mistakes in the past.

Do you look at sample pages without fail or only if the query is strong?

As long as the query is decent, I will look at the sample pages included. 

Do you prefer a little personalized chit-chat in a query letter, or would you rather hear about the manuscript?

I don't mind chit-chat, so long as it's applicable. Like, I read ____ that you represent and loved it and think my manuscript is similar in these ways ______. That works for me. 

Writing, I see you live in New York so you'll definitely like my query. That doesn't work because it's super general and you're not telling me why the place I live relates in any way to your manuscript.

Is there a bias against querying authors who have self-published other books?

Nope. But don't bash self-publishing or traditional publishing! Authors make choices for specific reasons. If you chose to self-publish because you believed in the quality of your work but it's a paranormal YA and you knew it would be difficult to find a traditional publisher, that's a valid, smart decision. And perhaps it helped you build an audience. Don't knock that decision. 

Have you form rejected great projects you think could be accepted elsewhere or do you try to give some feedback?

I do form reject great projects that someone else might love but aren't right for me. 

What themes are you sick of seeing?

I get a ton of queries for Holocaust books. I've yet to request one.

What three things are at the top of your submission wish list?

Sci-fi. Either YA or adult.
Contemporary women's fiction--a big, sweeping story.
Middle grade adventure.

What are some of your favorite movies or books to give us an idea of your tastes?

I'll give you three of my favorite books I've read this year (my clients not included, of course): 

Defiance by CJ Redwine. I love dual perspectives. I love strong women and men who respect strong women. 

Out With It by Katherine Preston. I love books that make me see the world in a way I have never seen it before, and this memoir did that for me.

Defending Jacob by William Landay. I'm only half way through, but am totally obsessed. I love the way this book is structured and Andy is an incredibly strong narrator.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tamar Rydzinski worked at Sanford J. Greenburger Associates prior to joining the Laura Dail Literary Agency. She graduated from Yeshiva University in 2003 with a major in literature and a minor in business.

Tamar is not interested in prescriptive or practical non-fiction, humor, coffee table books or children’s books (meaning anything younger than middle grade). She is interested in everything else that is well-written and has great characters, including graphic novels. A fantastic query letter is essential – “you need to make me want to read your book, and be excited to read it,” she says, “with those first couple of paragraphs.”

Follow her on twitter @trydzinski

Saturday, July 27, 2013

Agent Greeting Contest

Dear Sweetie-pie Agent:


Announcing my teeny-tiny contest. I know very well that writers love to experiment on their queries, tweaking words and sentences, creating version after version. Obsessing over whether it is good enough. The only area where you can have fun and relax is the greeting, which no one will ever see because it is doomed to be replaced with your dream agent's name.

On August 5th, I will launch a post in which you can comment with your best and most imaginative Dear Agent greeting. One entry per customer, but no limit to the creativity. Well, one limit. Keep it clean. Obscene comments will be deleted.  


Dear Hearts-forever Agent:

In return, please be a follower of this blog. If you feel like shouting about your greeting, which I'd appreciate, use the hash #agentgreeting. Querying can be a depressing business. I want this to be fun and twitter makes everything fun.

Dear Smarticus Agent:

I'm sure you are wondering about the prize. I will randomly draw one winner on August 7th, who will receive an email query critique from a generous real-life dream agent. A runner-up winner will receive a copy of Summer's Double Edge, featuring my short story Frost and Fog. Runner-up winner must live in the United States or Canada. First place winner can live anywhere.

Winners must get in touch with me to claim their prizes. Runner-up winner must provide their address. 

If--that's right if--other agents volunteer their critique skills, I will draw more than one winner.  UPDATE #2: I now have THREE FOUR (moving on up) FIVE agents! We'll see if I can find some more! Volunteers are welcome.

So that's it. I will give more details about the agent next week. Stay tuned.

Friday, July 26, 2013

Summer Query Extravaganza 17

You know the drill. Contact me on twitter if you want your query showcased. Comment on the query before and after yours. All query critiques are subjective. And rabbits don't come out of my hat, but I'll do my best. Objects in mirror may be closer than they appear. Buy one and I'll throw in a set of free steak knives, just pay separate shipping and handling fees.

The announcement about my baby contest called Agent Greetings will be up tomorrow. Stay tuned. Now here's number 17:

As sent to me:

Dear Agent of Unfathomable Wisdom and Impeccable Taste,

Ian Jonas was a rock star. He was a Super Bowl winning quarterback, a secret agent, a soldier, and a consort to the stars. Ian has been all of those things and many more, because Ian Jonas is awesome at dreaming. Doctors call him a habitual lucid dreamer, but what it means to Ian is that the best part of every day is the time he spends asleep, in a world that’s been all his for as long as he can remember.

In the real world, Ian is a tech reporter in the suburbs of D.C., living with his wife and young daughter. His hum-drum picket-fence life is upended, though, when one of his many Hollywood dream romances, Alyssa May, calls him in the waking world. Ian finds out that he and Alyssa can be in other people’s dreams, and they are not the only ones. Only a handful of people around the world can do what Ian and Alyssa can, including those who abuse that talent in a way that Alyssa is all too familiar with. When Alyssa begs for Ian’s help, the monsters from her past follow her to Ian and into the dreams of his wife and daughter, where a maestro of nightmares gives Ian a choice: give him Alyssa, or he will destroy the minds of Ian’s family.

If Ian can’t figure out how to stop a practiced dream terrorist, he’ll have to sacrifice his sanity, his family, and his promise to protect an innocent starlet whose connection to him goes back farther than either of them know. With Alyssa’s help, Ian has to master a world he never knew was real or lose everything.

NIGHTLIVES is an adult modern fantasy novel complete at 55,000 words which will appeal to fans of Jim Butcher and Kelly Armstrong.

Thank you for your time,


[Name redacted for national security reasons]



Now with some nutty girl's comments:

Dear Agent of Unfathomable Wisdom and Impeccable Taste, Now that's a greeting! But use a colon for a business letter after the greeting. Dear Kissy agent:

Ian Jonas was a rock star. He was a Super Bowl winning quarterback, a secret agent, a soldier, and a consort to the stars. Ian has been all of those things and many more, because Ian Jonas is awesome at dreaming. I'm a little worried about the originality factor because I guessed this conclusion. Why not skip the sentence telling us he is a dreamer and let the reader figure it out.  Try it this way: Rock star. Super bowl winning quarterback. Secret Agent. Soldier. Lover of the famous. Ian Jonas has been all these and more. Doctors call him a habitual lucid dreamer, but what it means to Ian is that the best part of every day is the time he spends the best part of every day asleep, in a pretend world that’s been all his for as long as he can remember.

In the real world, Ian is a tech reporter in the suburbs of D.C., living with his wife and young daughter. His hum-drumcomma picket-fence life is upended, though, when one of his many Hollywood dream romances, Alyssa May, calls him in the waking world. Which makes me wonder about Ian's likeability if he's been cheating on his wife in his 'real' dreams. Ian finds out that filtering He and Alyssa can be stronger verb- invade in other people’s dreams, and they are not the only ones. Only a handful of people around the world can do what Ian and Alyssa can, including those who Dark terrorists abuse that talent in a way that Alyssa is all too familiar with be specific--by taking off the head of anyone who threatens them/influencing the powerful. When Alyssa begs for Ian’s help, The monsters from her Alyssa's past follow her to Ian and into the dreams of his wife and daughter. where A maestro of nightmares gives Ian a choice: give him surrender Alyssa, or he will destroy the minds of Ian’s family. I like maestro of nightmares. That's a nice phrase!

If Ian can’t figure out how to stop a practiced maestro? dream terrorist, he’ll have to sacrifice his sanity, his family, and his promise to protect an innocent starlet whose connection to him goes back farther than either of them know. I'm not sure I'd dwell on the relationship with the starlet if they cheated together. But that's my old-fashioned taste.  With Alyssa’s help, Ian has to master a world he never knew was real or lose everything.

NIGHTLIVES is an adult modern fantasy novel complete at 55,000 words which will appeal to fans of Jim Butcher and Kelly Armstrong. Oh, this is a very low word count for adult fantasy. It worries me and will probably be a red flag for agents. Big fan of Jim Butcher! Reading his Dresden series now.

Thank you for your time,

[Name redacted for national security reasons] Hello, redacted!


Wordy, but I think everything needed is here for this query. Plot, stakes. I would like a little more about the MC's personality. We don't know much about him. Does he feel guilt for what he's done to his family, getting them involved? Guilt should be a big part of him. Maybe use some adjectives to give a taste of him.

I'm also a little worried about word count and that this is a concept that has been done often. You really need to play up with is unique with your story. Best of luck and I hope this helps.   

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Query Questions with Jennifer Laughran

As well as the interview with Jennifer Laughran, I want to announce I'm having a baby contest. No, not an actual baby. It's a tiny contest called Agent Greetings which will start August 5th, and the prize will involve something from an agent(s?). All the details will be on the blog Saturday. Now on to the interview:

Writers have copious amounts of imagination. It's what makes their stories so fantastic. But there's a darker side to so much out of the box thinking. When a writer is in the query trenches, their worries go into overdrive. They start pulling out their hair and imagine every possible disaster.




Here to relieve some of that endless worrying is a new series of posts called Query Questions. I'll ask the questions which prey on every writer's mind, and hopefully take some of the pain out of querying. These are questions that I've seen tossed around on twitter and writing sites like Agent Query Connect. They are the type of questions that you need answers for the real expert--agents!

If you have your own specific query question, please leave it in the comments and it might show up in future editions of Query Questions as I plan to rotate the questions.

Jennifer Laughran of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency shares her answers to common query questions. Thank you so much Ms. Laughran for taking the time to respond and ease some fears about the query process.


Is there a particular time of year that is better to query?

No. Major holidays like the week between Christmas and New Year, Passover/Easter, July 4 and sometimes the last couple of weeks of August, lots of people are on vacation... sort of like in every other business. Lots of other people, however, use that "downtime" to catch up on queries. So it doesn't really matter - you're just  getting in line, and queries get read when the agent has time to read them.

Does one typo or misplaced comma shoot down the entire query?

Make it as clean as you can, obviously -- since it's less than a page long, if you can't proofread THAT, chances are your manuscript will be a hot mess. But an honest mistake is not enough to stop me reading if the premise and everything else looks good.

Do you look at sample pages without fail or only if the query is strong?

I always glance. The strength of the query may play a part in whether I am looking interestedly or reluctantly.

Do crazy fonts caused by email gremlins make for an automatic rejection?

I have not noticed email programs that change things into crazy fonts. If you have such a program, I suggest that you change programs. I don't care what the font is as long as it is legible and normal. Whatever the default font is, is fine -- or Times, or similar.

Do you prefer a little personalized chit-chat in a query letter, or would you rather hear about the manuscript?

If you want to give me a line about why you're querying me, that is fine - but you have a very short window. I REALLY want to know about the manuscript. And at the end, yes, a short bio is fine, but I have no interest in digging deep into your personal life.

Does it matter whether the word count/genre information is first or last in a query?

No.


Is there a bias against querying authors who have self-published other books?

No.

Do you go through a large group of queries at a time or hold yourself to a few?

I do as many as I have time to do in a given time. If I only have 15 minutes, I do that many. If I have hours, I will do it until I get tired of doing it. 

How many queries do you receive in a week? How many requests might you make out of those?

I probably get 60-80 queries in a week. Of those I might request.... 4 or 5 fulls. 

In a year, I might take on 4 or 5 new clients.

Have you form rejected great projects you think could be accepted elsewhere or do you try to give some feedback?

Many things could be accepted elsewhere. I hardly take anything on. My rejecting it does not mean it is BAD -- it just means it's not for *me.*  

I give form rejections to pretty much all queries unless I know the person. I give somewhat personalized rejections to pretty much all fulls. 

Many agents say they don’t care if writers are active online. Could an active/known online presence by an author tip the scales in getting a request or offer?

If it is an EXTREMELY well known web presence, sure, that could translate into more interest -- but ultimately the strength of the work is the most important thing.

What does ‘just didn’t connect enough’ mean to you?

It means I didn't like it enough to want to read it dozens of more times and spend the next couple of years of my life thinking about it. 

What themes are you sick of seeing?

I am not the person to query for depressing "issue" books about abuse and the like.

What’s the strangest/funniest thing you’ve seen in a query?

Perhaps the most memorable was the book of Hillary Clinton erotic fanfiction. Needless to say, I kept the email.

What three things are at the top of your submission wish list?

An exciting middle grade adventure. Really heartfelt, beautiful middle grade that will make me cry. A sweeping, epically romantic and awesome YA.

What are some of your favorite movies or books to give us an idea of your tastes?

Classics: MIXED-UP FILES by EL Konigsberg.  LITTLE PRINCESS by Frances Hodgson Burnett. BALLET SHOES by Noel Streatfeild. FIVE CHILDREN AND IT by E Nesbit. Anything by Bill Peet, William Steig. 

Modern: BETTER NATE THAN EVER, Tim Federle. SEE YOU AT HARRY'S, Jo Knowles. CROOKED KIND OF PERFECT, Linda Urban. SKY IS EVERYWHERE, Jandy Nelson. ANNA and LOLA by Stephanie Perkins. HOW TO SAY GOODBYE IN ROBOT by Natalie Standiford. I could seriously go on for years.
Adult: THE THURBER CARNIVAL by James Thurber. FINGERSMITH, and pretty much anything else by Sarah Waters. Also I love regency romances, particularly by Tessa Dare and Courtney Milan.

Movies/TV: THE APARTMENT, and pretty much anything by Billy Wilder. Gilmore Girls.


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Jennifer began her career in agenting after working as a long-time children's bookseller and buyer. She is also the founder of the extremely popular YA event series "Not Your Mother's Book Club". She joined Andrea Brown Literary Agency in 2007. Always on the lookout for sparkling YA and middle grade fiction with unusual and unforgettable characters and vivid settings, she is drawn to all kinds of books, whether realistic comedies or richly imagined magical adventures. However, the common thread in her favorite stories is an offbeat world-view. Jennifer adores simplicity, but she is not interested in the conventional, predictable, mechanical, gimmicky or ordinary. Jennifer loves funny books, thrilling books, romantic books, books that make her cry, and all-around un-put-downable books... and her true favorites are all of the above.