#querytip

[janefriedman]

Key Book Publishing Paths

One of the biggest questions I receive from authors today: Should I traditionally publish or self-publish? In response, I've been sharing this chart on key publishing paths since 2013. Here is the latest iteration.

[literallycait]

Reopening to Queries July 29th

As you may have already seen on Twitter, I will be opening up my query inbox again on Monday, July 29th! In the next few days I’ll also be posted an updated MSWL and overview of what I am and am not interested in seeing at the moment. (You can also always keep on eye on my Twitter for updates like this!) I’m looking forward to seeing your submissions, so polish up those first pages and get those letters ready! 

And if you’d like to get a head-start, be sure to participate in #SFFPit on Twitter on Wednesday, July 24th! Like #PitMad, #SFFPit is a pitch fest where authors can tweet their book pitches and agents can request the manuscripts by liking the tweets. #SFFPit is, as the name suggests, exclusively for science fiction/fantasy and associated subgenres--you can read the full rules here. I will be requesting queries at #SFFPit and will respond to all of them before I officially reopen on the 29th! 

[tornepages-blog]

5 MYTHS ABOUT HAVING AN AGENT

There are a lot of myths about what happens to writers once they get literary agents, and these are the 5 I hear most frequently. My point for dispelling them isn’t to depress authors aspiring to have literary agents but to prepare them.

One of the things I see go wrong most frequently between a writer and agent’s relationships is when a writer is expecting too much, too quickly and becomes hopelessly disappointed when it doesn’t happen. I don’t want that to happen to you. And I’m sure you don’t want that to happen to you either.

MYTH #1: MY BOOK WILL SELL RIGHT AWAY!

Truth: Nope. I mean, it could sell right away. This does happen. I’ve had friends who get an agent and within three months (yes, three months is fast in the pub industry) they are signing a book contract. But this isn’t the norm. I would say 50% of first novels don’t sell (the first novel your agent tries to sell, at least) and 50% of them do. This is not a hard and fast statistic, I haven’t polled every writer ever of course. But this is based on what I’ve seen as an intern, my friend’s experiences, and from my own.

Be prepared for the long haul. Just like you were when you were in the query trenches, be prepared for it to take a while. I’ve known people who have been on submission for a whole year still sell their books. Others had to wait until book 2 or 3 before they got their deal.

MYTH #2: I HAVE AN AGENT—MY BOOK MUST SELL.

Truth: This is interconnected with the first myth but different. Some people are under the false assumption that just because you have an agent, it means your book will for sure sell. The truth is: nope. There is no guarantee it will sell. If an agent promises you that, there’s something sketchy about the situation. Any good agent will prepare you for the possibility that the book won’t sell.

Be prepared for this possibility. And be working on the next book, the best way to keep your mind of submission (or querying) is to be writing your next book.

MYTH #3: MY AGENT IS GOING TO BE MY NEW BFF.

Truth: Not really. I know some people who are BFFs with their agents. I know a lot of us aren’t. It’s a working relationship, and I like it that way. I really like my agent, she’s easy to talk to and super sweet. We’re going to meet for drinks later this month and everything. But it’s really more a colleague like relationship rather than a BFF one.

I don’t think you need to be BFFs. I think you need to be comfortable with each other, and feel like you can email them whenever you need to and visa-verse, but don’t go into it thinking that you have to be BFFs or that you’ve failed if you aren’t your agent’s new BFF.

MYTH #4: IF MY FIRST BOOK DOESN’T SELL, MY AGENT WILL DROP ME. *INSERT PANIC*

Truth: I would love to say this is a totally false assumption, but it’s not. I’ve known some people who sign contracts for one book and then if it doesn’t sell, they will discuss whether to go forward with the author/agent relationship for the next book. However, this is not the norm. Most agents sign you on for the long haul. They recognize that selling a book is hard, and selling that book is really on them, not you. 

If the book doesn’t sell, that’s not your fault. You aren’t the one with the publishing connections. I’ve had friends who are all panicky over their first book not selling and thinking their agents are so disappointed in them—only for them to talk to their agent about this, and it turns out the agent also feels bad and is worried that their client is disappointed in them.

This is why communication is important. Generally, whether a book sells or not has a lot to do with timing and luck. So if it doesn’t sell, that’s not on you. That’s not even on the agent (most of the time).

To avoid this anxiety, talk with your agent. Make sure you are the same page about your next project and know what the game plan for subbing that one will be.

MYTH #5: MY BOOK WILL SELL AND I WILL BE RICH *MWHAHAHA*

Truth: Haha, no. Just no. So much no here.

Writing is not something to do to make money, trust me. Most advances are on the small scale. If you are debuting and lucky, you’ll get a 20,000 advance (broken up over the span of two years). Most get less. A few (very few) get more. It depends on the situation. But don’t go into it thinking you will get a huge advance, or else you’ll be disappointed.

Go into it wanting the best editor and imprint for your book. Being an author is about the long-term career path, which is another thing to talk to your agent about. Make sure you both are in agreement what you want out of your career. Let’s say, for example, you had your heart set on a physical book deal but you ended up with a Bloomsbury Sparks (digital first) deal. There are so many advantages to ending up with Sparks—you get to form connections at Bloomsbury. That’s a house an author can stay at for their entire career. So even though you don’t get the big money or the physical book, you have a great first step and a house that will support you and your book.

———

There are a lot of myths out there about what it’s like to get an agent (or a book deal) but try not to go into any of it with unrealistic notions. Talk with your agent, before you sign with them and after, so you can have solid, realistic expectations.

[literaticat]

I can't seem to find a definitive answer on this: Should the comps/metadata paragraph go at the beginning or end of the query? Thanks for your time!

Oh, that's easy: You can't find a definitive answer because there isn't one. :-) It truly doesn't matter. I see it both ways, and I do it both ways myself when I am writing pitch letters to editors.

SOME agents might care. (I doubt it, but they might!) Personally, I just want the information somewhere, and I'd suggest that you put it wherever feels right to YOU for that particular project / letter.

You could even split the difference a bit, like:

Dear [Agent],

[greeting, personalization, etc], I'm delighted to share my Middle Grade speculative comedy, SECRETARIWHAT??! that I think of as Groundhog's Day meets The Black Stallion, in which a horse gets stuck in a time loop and, with a little help from the friends he meets along the way, must win the Kentucky Derby to get back to the paddock where he belongs. [here you've put the age category, genre, tonal comparison and logline]

[Longer pitch]

SECRETARIWHAT??! is an engaging mix of humor, mystery, and adventure with a speculative equine twist, complete at 50,000 words. It will appeal to fans of fun commercial middle grade authors like Stuart Gibbs and Carl Hiaasen, as well as kids who love horse stories like those of Terri Farley. [here you've expanded on the tone, and put the wordcount and book/author comps].

[Bio]

[Closing/Sig]

[atruebloodwrites]

In today’s Quite the Query, I’m sharing a successful query from MG writer @cliffburkeauthor. Many thanks to Cliff for letting me share! I saw on your MSWL that you’re looking for a funny, heartfelt middle grade novel and I’d like to offer my completed 45,000-word upper MG novel, AN OCCASIONALLY HAPPY FAMILY, for your consideration. Thirteen-year-old Theo Ripley isn’t looking forward to his family’s summer vacation. Ever since his mom died two years ago, family trips have become a painful reminder of her absence. Not that he can tell his dad, who has kept all his feelings to himself since the funeral. Too bad his dad can’t keep his love of camping bottled up, too. Instead, he forces Theo and his bookish fifteen-year-old sister Laura to spend a week at Big Bend National Park, the least popular and most boring park in the country. As if the wild bears, fanatical bird-watchers, and zealous vloggers of the Texas wilderness aren’t bad enough, Theo’s dad hits him with a whopper of a surprise once they arrive: turns out the whole trip was just a trick to introduce his secret new girlfriend.   With Dad and Laura pretending like moving on is no big deal, Theo tries to squash down the prickly pain in his chest. But when it becomes clear that this isn’t just any girlfriend, but a pretty serious, auditioning-to-be-his-stepmom girlfriend, Theo must find a way to face his grief and talk to his dad before his family is forever changed. At once a comic odyssey and sensitive portrayal of grieving, AN OCCASIONALLY HAPPY FAMILY will appeal to fans of John Green, Ryan Gebhart’s There Will Be Bears, and Ali Benjamin’s The Thing About Jellyfish. This book will be in stores in May 18, 2021! #middlegradequery #querytip #mglit #writingcraft #middlegradebooks #quitethequery https://www.instagram.com/p/CLe75Fzgfn5/?igshid=11u6c0zgaze5a

[atruebloodwrites]

. . Quite The Query is coming back! . A lot of people have reached out to me & requested I bring back this series on my blog. . This post is a call out to all newly-minted agented writers. If you’re open to sharing your successful PB, MG, YA, or Adult query with the writing community, please reach out via the website link in my bio or via DM! I’ll send along more details then as to how to participate!😊 . . . #writergram #query #queryletter #querytip #querytrenches #successfulquery #pathtopublication #writingabook #writinganovel #writingaquery #writingcommunity #writershelpingwriters #picturebooks #mglit #yalit #writersoninstagram #yawritersoninstagram #mgwritersofinstagram https://www.instagram.com/p/CKeycYWAFc9/?igshid=1tykp02lg8l78

[atruebloodwrites]

Querying is such a hard thing. It has its highs and lows. I’ve been in the trenches many times and know how difficult it can be. My one big thing I always tell people when they ask how I got through it is this - play the long game. Don’t think about getting an agent as a stepping stone but as merely a piece in one larger puzzle. You have to think long term in the publishing business. Not about who will lead you to the next step, but who will be a partner for your entire career. . It can be very exciting to get that “call”, but you must temper your joy with reality. Think long and hard about who will stick with you through the good and bad. Will stand by your side if you don’t sell a book in those first years. The right agent for you should be someone who recognizes the ups and down of the business. Who is willing to stand by you in good times and bad, because if you have a long career there will definitely be both. . . . #litagent #querytip #querying #publishing #publishingworld #pathtopublication #querytrenches #writinglife #writingcommunity #writingcommunityofinstagram #writingcommunityofig #writerlife #igauthor #igauthorlife https://www.instagram.com/p/CFAQ1yZgGBB/?igshid=l6pkl12xm832

[atruebloodwrites]

First Five Frenzy is back tomorrow on my blog. Literary Agent, Ann Rose of the @prospectagency answers five questions about what makes her request more materials during the query process. 📇 • • • #query #querytip #amquerying #amwriting #literaryagent #publishing #pubtip #writer #storyteller #storytelling #blog #blogger #bloggerlife #bloggersofinstagram #booknerd #bookgeek #bibliophile #writingcommunity https://www.instagram.com/p/BtTa8dQHKCU/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=n0otme643ey5