Taking the Summer Off

In your opinion, is it better for an agent to wait till after the summer to send a novel out on submission? Is it a myth that the publishing industry basically shuts down in August? Are there any advantages in NOT waiting?


I don't think there's a universally correct answer to this. I think it depends what your agent knows about the editors she wants to submit to and your agent's own schedule. If your agent has plans to be out of town maybe it is best she hold off on submitting. I don't know that publishing "shuts down" in August. Truthfully, I had a crazy two weeks between RWA and the July 4th weekend when I had offers on the table and it was taking weeks to finalize them because of RWA, editor vacations, and the holiday. It happens. It's summer. All of that being said, we've had many years where August resulted in our largest sales month of the year, primarily because it is so quiet and so many do vacation that editors have more time to actually catch up on their reading and hopefully find something they can get excited about.

When it comes to August, like many things, there's no right or wrong. A book could easily be read quickly by an editor who finds a relaxed schedule in August or sit and fall to the bottom of big piles because an editor happens to be away for two weeks and your material arrived during that time.

Jessica

Finding Agents and Publishers

I have written a book about [insert either fiction or nonfiction subject here] and would like to know where I can find publishers or agents who handle these types of books.

I get questions like this all the time emailed to the blog, in lieu of a query, or even via phone, so while it might seem basic, let’s discuss it anyway.

There are a number of terrific books and Web sites available to get you started on the road to publication. I’m going to ask my readers to comment on some of their favorites as well, so don’t forget to read through the comments section. However, the first place I suggest writers start is The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Getting Published, and they do have a variety of different titles targeted to specific genres. This book will give you a basic understanding of publishing and what it takes to get published. From there you can begin your search for agents and publishers.

I also recommend Jeff Herman’s Guide to Book Publishers, Editors, and Literary Agents or Literary Marketplace as a place to begin researching which agents might be right for you. Keep in mind I say "begin" because books are written nearly a year before publication, so you can’t guarantee the information you find there is the most up-to-date. Therefore, I would use these books to write your preliminary list and then work to further perfect your list by using the various Web sites and blogs that tend to have more updated information. Sites I recommend are Preditors & Editors, Absolute Write, Backspace, or Agent Query.

I also strongly recommend that you become involved in a local or online writers group; there are many around the world, including local chapters of Romance Writers of America, Mystery Writers of America and Science Fiction Writers of America. Whether you write in genre fiction or not these organizations all provide an amazing resource for authors.

And of course, before submitting to any agent be sure to read the submission guidelines and review the information on that agent’s Web site. This will ensure that you follow proper submission procedure and that your material fits the genres the agent represents.

Jessica

Who Does This?

***Warning to all reading this: It’s full of sarcasm and nothing but a rant, but I had a really good time writing it.

Not too long ago somebody (I’m not sure if it was a man or woman, or even using her real name, so we’ll go with “she”) thought it would be a good idea to send an angry diatribe of an email to roughly 400 publishing professionals. How do I know 400? Because all of our email addresses were there for the world, or at least 400 publishing professionals, to see.

The email was entitled “confidential memo.” I mean, really, how confidential can anything be when it’s from a stranger and blindly sent to 400 people, many, or most, at generic submission addresses? But if that’s what you think, I’ll respect that. Okay, no I won’t.

The email started by telling us all how much writers disregard the publishing industry and hold us all in contempt. My first thought was that you must not disregard us all that much if you’ve gone to the effort to collect 400+ email addresses and send this email, but I’ll keep reading. Apparently, according to this writer, bestseller lists only promote shallow and marketable books and there’s nothing being published that’s written by anyone with any lasting talent. Interesting, the same was said of William Shakespeare and Jane Austen, but what do I know? Maybe they’re just hacks.

The funny thing about bestseller lists is that publishers don’t actually place the books on the lists themselves. They are there because readers love those books, buy them in mass quantities and, lo and behold, they become bestsellers. I guess it would be better if we only published books readers didn’t want to read or buy? Ah, so many things I’ll have to consider.

And then of course there were the usual complaints about expecting writers to “sell” their books to agents and how writers aren’t salespeople and that the system needs to change. Blah, blah, blah. How do you think we’re going to find authors if you in some way can’t at least tell me about your book in a way that’s enticing? Because if people are getting published daily, new authors, it’s somehow the system’s fault that you’re not?

Okay, so this was my favorite part. The part about how it was a crime that hardworking people spend years writing a manuscript only to get it rejected. Newsflash! I never asked you to write that manuscript. If it’s a crime, it’s a crime you perpetrated on yourself. Don’t blame me, or should I say the 400 of us, because what you wrote isn’t publishable (or at least that’s why I’m assuming I got this email).

And then of course there was a lot of misinformation about how unethical agents are, how writers who are successful are whores, how publishers only want books by actors and politicians and then something about if I liked Vanilla Ice or MC Hammer then I’m nothing but a sheep.

I really only have one thing to say to this person: insult me all you want, but insult my authors and you are a complete fool. Don’t ever assume any of the clients I represent are thieves, whores, or hacks. They are talented writers who have worked hard to get to where they are. I’m not representing them because I’m looking for easy money or to fill bestseller lists (although we’re hoping to do that too), I’m representing them because I like the books they write. No, I love what they write, and this might surprise you, so do thousands of other people.

Don’t worry, it’s people like this who only give other idiots a bad name. Oh, and give me something to rant about. I mean, seriously?!

Jessica

Before You Sign

Publishing is a small and confusing world and because of that there’s no doubt that I frequently get questions from friends, family, friends of family, family of friends or anyone else even remotely related or not related, but with an interest in learning more about publishing. Often I can direct them in much the same way I direct all of you to websites or other sources (this blog) that might help them make the right decisions.

Well, recently I had an experience that really made me wonder if all of this is really making any difference. Never fear, I’m not that discouraged, it was more of a bang my head against the wall moment. I’m reminded daily by the community here on the BookEnds blog how much you all are learning and have learned from this blog and other agent blogs and how open you are to learning more. However, I’m also reminded that there’s just as many people who need to be taught and re-taught and might just not want to learn.

This instance though. Uff, I really wanted to scream. I was emailed a question from someone I once worked with, someone I once presumably trained, about a contract she had received from a perspective publisher. This is someone who has been encouraged to read my blog daily and, from working inside the publishing industry, should know enough to at least read such websites as Preditors & Editors and Absolute Write, my two personal go-to sites. “Jane” admitted she didn’t have a great deal of knowledge about publishing contracts and wanted some input. The contract was with a smaller publisher and one I had never heard of. While I don’t claim to have complete information on all publishers, I tend to have some name recognition when it comes to both small presses and epublishers. This one didn’t ring a bell. So before wasting my time and even opening the contract I did a quick click over to both my favorite sites and in the speed of the Internet (yes, less than a couple of minutes) I learned that this house was not only a fee-charging vanity press, but not recommended by Preditors & Editors.

I’m rubbing my head just thinking about this because here’s the deal: if someone doesn’t want to make the effort to really learn about this business and understand that you don’t pay publishers, they pay you, someone will not learn. Frankly, I don’t get how someone who has enough interest in publishing to work for a short time in the business wouldn’t know this one simple thing.

So here’s the deal. For those of you who do want to learn and are listening, please, please do not sign anything with either an agent or a publisher without double-checking both Preditors & Editors and Absolute Write.

I know this business can seem complicated and certainly there’s a learning curve, but let’s face it, for those of you who want to learn and are making an effort to do so, it just isn’t that hard.

Jessica

Getting a Job in Publishing

Spring is in the air and so is college graduation, and with impending graduations I’m getting a lot of questions from students with dreams of working in publishing. Typically what they want to know is how I got into publishing and what they can do if they are interested in publishing. Since I’m on the career alumni board or something like that at Marquette University, most of my queries are coming from the Midwest.

But for anyone interested in a job in publishing, here are a few tips.

While there are a number of smaller publishing houses throughout the country, my first bit of advice is to really consider what you want from a publishing career. For me it was go big or don’t go at all. In other words, I wanted to work with one of the major houses and, as you might know, all, or most, of those houses are based in New York City. And by those houses I mean Random House, Penguin, Simon & Schuster, Harper, etc.

I also recommend that college graduates consider literary agencies. When I first considered publishing it never dawned on me to consider agencies because, ultimately, I didn’t know such a thing existed. A publishing house and an agency are two different but very similar businesses and either will get your foot in the publishing door. From there you will be able to make a switch if you feel that you are better suited to one over the other and, really, there’s no way to know that until you’ve tried it out.

Since most of the nation’s literary agencies and publishers are located in NYC you will probably have to consider moving this way and, yes, you’ll probably have to start by joining forces with the actors, models, and comedians of the world and find a job bartending or waiting tables until that dream job comes along (or pays a livable wage).

My best advice is that a few weeks before graduation (I wouldn’t bother job hunting before then) become vigilant about checking the Publishers Marketplace job board and applying for every entry-level position. I also suggest that you semi-blindly send resumes to every literary agency and publishing house with a job opening. You might have to consider a work-for-free internship because, let’s face it, without something to make you stand out your resume probably looks like 100 others.

Just like getting published, there are no secrets to working in publishing. You just need to get out there and do it.

Good luck!

Jessica

Publishing Jobs

I have a growing readership among students considering a career in publishing, which is really cool for me. It’s obvious that writers would want to read the blog, but when I started it up I never imagined that students, future editors and agents, would read as well.

Recently one of those students got in touch asking how the economic crisis and those still too recent cutbacks would affect entry-level positions with publishing houses and agencies. I think that no matter what career path you’re taking right now, it’s a difficult time for recent graduates or soon-to-be graduates. Many companies and industries are cutting back and that means fewer, if any, new hires. While you certainly have the advantage of being at the bottom of the pay scale, there is the possibility that companies will lose a person working in an entry-level position for some reason and simply decide not to rehire. So while I don’t know for a fact what companies are doing right now, my suggestion is to make sure that you are the best qualified candidate they have. Get yourself internships at a publishing company or a literary agency, at magazines or newspapers. Any sort of publishing internship helps, it shows that you are driven and distinguishes you from a candidate who has nothing more than a college degree. By the same token, make your resume stand out. Put related job experience at the top of the resume. While most resume books will tell you to put education first, you want to distinguish yourself, so put your internships and other related experiences at the top. Everyone is going to assume you have a degree and that’s less likely to excite them.

And like everything else, don’t get discouraged. If you can’t get a job right away in the field you were dreaming of, find other jobs that can help build the skills you need. Can’t find a job in book publishing? Look into magazines, newspapers, or internships while you’re waiting tables. Building the resume is the most important thing for you right now. And don’t forget, BookEnds does hire interns, so don’t be afraid to send your resume our way. We’ve definitely had more than one success story.

Jessica

Can You Do Better?

With the economic downturn and mass changes in publishing as well as many other industries, I’ve been hearing a lot of grumbling about how publishing models are outdated and need change. What I haven’t heard though are a lot of ideas for how those changes should be made.

Let’s face it, publishing is in trouble. Fewer people read books and publishing companies are running on outdated models. That being said, I also think there are a lot of things that publishers are still doing right, and some of what I am seeing others complain about are not things I necessarily think need to be changed. But I’m interested in hearing from you.

Some think the answer is buying fewer books. For some that means only buying premier literature (which sounds to me like the end of commercial fiction). But what does that mean and what about the millions of People magazine readers out there who are willing to plunk down $30 to buy Jenny McCarthy’s book on autism or the autobiography of Kenny Loggins? And what about all of the amazing books that have wowed American and international reading audiences because someone was willing and able to take a chance? Sure, there are a lot of books that fail every year, but how do we know ahead of time that they won’t succeed. Some will argue that the writing is crap, but those same people will say the writing is crap about a multitude of bestsellers. I guess what I’m trying to say is that there is one thing that will never truly change about publishing and that is that its audience is fickle and unpredictable. Reading is a personal thing, and while we can look at similar books to try and judge how a book will do, in the end we’ll never know until the readers have their say, and I for one like the opportunity to give the readers many chances to judge.

Some think we should stop paying huge advances to authors, and, frankly, I don’t have any complaints about that. As I say to my authors all the time, if you were meant to make the money you think you should be making on a book, you will. If you feel a publisher is underpaying you, prove them wrong by earning huge royalties. The problem is you won’t make it now, you’ll make it a year, two years, or three years from now. Can authors make that switch and are they comfortable continuing to write with little to no up-front reward?

Some think we should eliminate the return system in publishing, and here’s where you’ll hear a resounding “yes” from me. I just don’t get it. I just do not understand why any business thinks the producer needs to be responsible for the ordering of the bookstores, especially in this day and age. Publishing is the only business that takes the hit for over-orders made by bookstores that seem to intentionally over-order, instead of printing just what consumers demand. What is interesting about this one proposed change is that by making it you will automatically make the changes asked for above. Fewer books will be printed because bookstores will be less willing to take risks on some titles, and advances are going to be lower because unless we know 60,000 copies of a book is going to get ordered, publishers are going to become more cautious. Economically it makes a lot of sense, but environmentally it makes sense too. Why are we printing thousands of books only so that they can be ripped up later? It makes me cringe.

But what about you? What do you think the publishing industry needs to do to enter this new century and save themselves?

Jessica

Already Have Publisher Interest

If you’re a regular blog reader you know by now that I strongly advocate choosing an agent rather than letting an agent choose you. In other words, when you get that offer of representation you should definitely talk to as many agents as possible so that ideally you can choose the agent you would like to hire rather than just going with the one who was fastest on the draw.

But what about if you have publisher interest too? Of course I’ve talked about how to handle a publisher offer of representation and leverage it to get an agent, but if you have a publisher reviewing your work, how should you query agents so when the time comes you can leverage that offer?

In much the same way you query any agency at any point in the process. The difference is that you open your letter by telling agents which publishing house is already reviewing your book and how they came to receive it. Did you query blindly or did the publisher approach you in some way? If you queried them you might want to mention whether or not they are the only house you queried. The risk of course is that there is no guarantee this house will offer, and if they don’t your future agent is going to want room to submit on her own. Honestly, if they do offer, your future agent is going to want to know that she can get your proposal out to other places and hopefully turn it into a bigger offer.

Most agents will jump on the opportunity to consider a proposal that is currently under consideration with a major house. Be wary though because there are a lot of agents who will jump only because it is under consideration. The agent you want sees the possibilities even if this particular house passes and knows that nothing is an easy sale.

All of that being said, I’m sure many others can tell you that interest from a publisher in no way guarantees representation from an agent and I would never advocate going out and submitting wildly under the assumption that interest or an offer from a publisher is the only way you’ll get an agent. Not at all.

Jessica

An Interesting Thought on "Rules"

A lot of comments lately have blasted agents and editors for all of our rules. We stifle authors, we cause nothing but problems, and we’re rude to boot. I debated a discussion on rules because I have a feeling I’m going to get blasted for it, but a client of mine pointed out that what makes my blog work are my honest answers and the honest comments I get from my readers. So here goes . . .

There are seemingly a lot of rules in publishing, but if you’ve ever heard me speak or read enough of my blog posts I think you’ll know that I’ve repeated again and again that those rules are not rules and should not be seen as such, but should be looked upon as guidelines. One of the most frustrating things for me about being blasted for all of our rules is that so many of them are created because authors ask for them, and so many more are not rules I’ve put out but rules authors impose themselves.

I am constantly asked for more clarification, for more rules. Authors want to know a secret to getting in the door. How do you write the perfect query letter, how do you write the perfect synopsis, and how do you write the perfect book? I cannot tell you that. I can give you hints, clues, examples, and critiques. I can do my best to help you along the way, but there are absolutely no rules. You’ve said it yourself, agents impose rules but then sell books that break them. When asked how to write a query letter or a pitch I can give you tips on what I’ve seen that’s worked for me. Does that mean it will work in the same way for another agent? Not necessarily, because it’s all subjective. This is the same for resumes and resume cover letters. You can read a resume book and see hundreds of examples. They might all work for you or they might not. Ultimately, when reading the advice of agents you need to pick and choose what resonates with you.

Reading our blogs should be done in the same manner you read revision letters from critique partners, agents, or your own editor. You need to see what worked and didn’t work for other people and see how it resonates with you. Then you need to make your own decisions. Making smart, professional, and personal decisions are in the end what the only rule should be.

Part of this entire rules thing is that authors often take what we say as an absolute. My comment last year on saying thank you in a query letter is a perfect example. In trying to help one particular reader tighten her thank-you (and granted, I should have used a different tone) I was barraged with criticism and read all over the Internet that if you thank me in a query it is an automatic rejection. What?!? Come on. Do you really think I’m that narrow-minded and obtuse? I will take the blame for the tone I used and I guess I should have explained myself in a kinder, gentler manner, but to have it so blown out of proportion is crazy. I’ve learned as the blog goes on what voice works best for me and my readers and tend not to be snarky anymore (or not much). However, that was certainly not a rule. It was a piece of advice relating to one particular query letter.

So my advice to you . . . take what you read on all agent, editor, and publishing blogs with a grain of salt. We give the best advice we can from our own knowledge base. We have few rules and only guidelines. And while we’d prefer you email a query letter, there are plenty of you who include a page or two of your work, and, you know what, I do read them.

This business is hard enough. Coming up with amazing ideas and writing them with near perfection is not easy, and I know that, I really do know that, so to let these so-called rules get you down is crazy. There are plenty of other things about publishing to get us all down.

Jessica

The Sophomore Slump

In the comments section to one of my blog posts there was a reference to the sophomore slump, when an author has spent years writing and perfecting her first novel and now only has nine months to a year at most to write the second novel and just can’t get it there. This resulted in the following question off the comment board:

Does it really have to be that way? Can't I say to a publisher, "No, I'm only dealing with you for this book, but you'll have the first option to see the next one"? Or is it always a package deal and they buy the next two books in the series or trilogy? Because honestly, it's almost enough to make me put my foot down and say, "No, I'm not going to make any deal on books I haven't written, because if a book is not ready, I WILL NOT put it on the market, deal or no deal."

Honestly, you can do almost anything you want. If a publisher comes to you and offers a three-book deal and you’d rather make it a one-book deal, you can certainly try to do that. I will tell you, though, that there have been times when part of the negotiation did involve the number of books and the publisher wouldn’t budge. You can also set your own delivery dates. If the publisher wants books number two and three at nine-month intervals, but you would be more comfortable with eighteen months, you can try to schedule accordingly.

The problem with waiting so long to deliver the follow-up book and subsequently publish it is that if you are writing genre fiction it’s going to be nearly impossible to build a career on this kind of schedule. More and more publishers are finding that authors who really have success and break out do so based on a quick publishing schedule, especially with the release of their first few books. Once an audience is established with two or three books, it’s possible to stretch things out again to give the author time to catch her breath; and the readers, they’re already fans, so they will happily wait.

By coming out with one book and waiting two years for the next it’s very likely readers will have forgotten you and might not even think to come back. Now, I do believe that writers of literary fiction can be a huge exception to this rule. If the book is truly mind-blowing you will probably get the reviews (NYT, etc.) on the second book to bring the readers back. Of course, you’re hinging your career on reviews.

Now what some publishers are doing to accommodate authors who can’t write a book every three months is to hold the first book or two so that they can schedule the books three months or six months apart, or even back to back in subsequent months. The problem with this, based on your question, is that if I sold a two-book deal for you today and you wanted to wait eighteen months to deliver book two, your first publication date wouldn’t likely be until sometime in 2010.

Ultimately, what I tell my clients is first things first: you need to write a good book, and if the publisher wants it in six months, but you’re more comfortable with nine, you need to go with what makes you comfortable. Reasonably, though, I think you need to learn to write a really knock-out book in nine to twelve months at the outset if you want to build a career. Yes, there are exceptions, but don’t look at authors who first published ten, twenty, or even three years ago and use them as an example. The market has changed.

Jessica

Signing Contracts Without an Agent

I'm about to sign a book contract with a mid-size nonfiction publisher. The book could easily sell to a larger publisher b/c of its mainstream appeal and large target audiences (and my platform). However, I am confident that this publisher knows how to sell in this area, and I'd rather have long-term sales and see my book stay in print than a big advance.

My question is: the publisher approached me and asked me to put together the proposal. I don't have an agent. Am I making a mistake doing this by myself? I would like to write other books, and do foresee having an agent in the long-run.

You have to realize that for some very obvious reasons I’m pro-agent, so it’s going to be difficult for me to ever say that you should go ahead with a book contract without an agent, and, in this case, yes, I do think you are making a mistake. Do I think you’re going to ruin your career? No, the contract is probably fine and probably won’t hamper the possibility of future book projects with other publishers. Of course, I wouldn’t know that for sure without seeing it. That being said, I have seen nonfiction authors ruin any potential career by signing contracts that basically tied them in to small or mid-sized publishers for life. Having an agent would have prevented that.

Since the publisher came to you it would be tricky to sell the book to another house; while not illegal, it is unethical. Of course, it’s also done all the time, especially if an agent feels the publisher is trying to low-ball the author. My concern here isn’t so much the fact that you are going ahead without an agent, although that is a concern, it’s what I feel are your misconceptions. There is no guarantee that a larger publisher equals a larger advance and no guarantee that a mid-sized publisher means long-term sales.

You also mentioned wanting to build a career. If that’s the case, why aren’t you getting an agent now? In other words, what are you waiting for? Building a career can happen at any time, not necessarily when you thought it would. If you are getting a book offer it sounds like you are already building that career. Do you want an agent or not? Use this offer as a way to prove your viability in the market and find an agent who will help guide your publishing career from day one rather than one who has to come in and tidy things up and then build it, possibly from scratch.

Whatever you decide, congratulations and good luck!

Jessica

Now the Good Stuff

Thank you everyone who participated in my venting blog post. It was fascinating, disheartening, frustrating, and just sad to read what many of you had to say. And it’s given me a lot of material to write for future posts. Points to address, topics to discuss, and hopefully inspiration to dole out.

I’ve also learned a lot about what frustrates you and I think I would be lying to you and to myself if I said that everything you complained about was what other agents had done and not me. I suspect there were more than a couple in there that fit me. The difficulty of listening to anyone vent—whether it’s you listening to agents or me listening to you—is that none of us are perfect, and when listening to a rant we feel that we should be. I don’t think any of us expects perfection from the other. Sure we preach it because it’s easier to say we want things perfect than that we want things nearly perfect (since the definition of perfect differs from person to person), but in truth I think what we can all agree that we really want is respect, consideration, and professionalism. Unfortunately we don’t always get it. We don’t always get it in publishing, at the doctor’s office, the grocery store, or even our own homes.

However, when all is said and done, I do know that 99% of you work really hard at what you’re doing and your query letters do show that. They are professional and submitted carefully. I hope you know that I too work very hard at professionalism, but because I’m not perfect there are times when things slip through the cracks.

Okay. Now that I’ve let you rant and you’ve listened to my rants on a daily basis, I’d like to cheer us all up a bit and spend some time looking at the good things. The things that make us smile in this business and remind us why we keep plugging away at it. Because while I might complain about the unprofessional query letter or the author who calls just to yell at me after receiving a rejection, the truth is that I really, really love what I do and to love what I do I have to love authors.

So I’m going to start. I’m going to start by sharing some of my favorite things about this business.

I love this blog. I love that it’s become a community unto itself, and one of my favorite things is when the comment boards take on a life of their own. I love meeting my readers at conferences and I love that you are all so willing to honestly share your thoughts and feelings with me (even when I might not want to hear it).

I love going to conferences and interacting with authors. One of my all-time favorite stories was during the Reno RWA conference in 2005. I was sitting in the coffee shop when another author came up to me and asked if I had talked to, we’ll call her Mary Author. Mary had been looking for me because, on the advice of one of my rejection letters, she had sent her book to Harlequin and sold her first novel. It still gives me chills telling that story. I love success and I love to see any author have success—by the way, two years later Mary did officially become a client.

I love receiving queries and submissions. Because let’s face it, they are the lifeblood of this office, and the minute they stop coming in is the minute I need to really start worrying. On a selfish level, your queries boost my confidence. They remind me of how far I’ve come (from those days when we first opened and ten submissions a week was a big deal) and how many wonderful books there are yet to take on. Sometimes the submissions become overwhelming, when I’ve been too busy to really sit down and give them the attention they deserve, but when I’m in the mood to take on a new client, and have the time to do so, there are few things more fun than sitting with a pile of possibilities (submissions) and a hot cup of cocoa.

There is only one “call” in this business and that’s “the call” when your book has sold. However, for an agent there are two calls (which is why it’s more fun to be an agent). I get to make that call to offer representation, that breathless, nerve-wracking call (breathless and nerve-wracking for me, by the way). What if you say no? What if you say yes?

And then there’s “the call” when I get to tell any author, first time or otherwise, that I’ve sold their book. Please, feel free to scream, holler, and rejoice in excitement. I LOVE it.

I have another story that makes me smile and it just happened. I was queried by an author who had an offer from a publisher in hand. We had met a couple of years prior and I knew she was a reader of the blog. While I had rejected her book before, I was happy to take a second look. I did and I still really liked her writing, but I just wasn’t in love with it, and as much as I liked her and wanted to work with her and wanted to love it, it’s not fair to her to have an agent who doesn’t feel breathless with excitement. I turned it down. She was extremely disappointed and asked a second time if I was sure. I explained that I thought she deserved better. Well, the next day she emailed again to say she had found that agent who was breathless with excitement and now she knew what I meant. I was thrilled for her.

Beyond all of that, though, I just love that on a daily basis I get to make books happen. One of my best friends is a fan of a client of mine. She came to this client’s books on her own and reads them the minute they hit the shelves. It’s really, really cool to know that I’m a part of making those books happen and that when I walk into her house I see them on her bookshelves.

So now it’s your turn. Tell us the good of this business, the stories about agents, editors, and publishing that make you smile or give you a warm fuzzy feeling. Because I think right now we could all use a smile.


Jessica

Publishing: A Leap of Faith

My first novel was published in July of last year and I've almost completed a second manuscript, with a third and a fourth already planned. Now, my dilemma: previous publisher has basically given the green light to send this new ms. their way, but I'm looking to both (a) improve marketability by going with a more "popular" publisher and (b) begin a more professional phase as a writer, producing at least two works a year, etc. I think this new novel, a period-piece crime drama, is the perfect vehicle with which to make this transition.

Any advice?

Writing is a wonderful expression of your creativity, thoughts, and feelings, but getting published is truly a leap of faith. The minute an author decides to enter the publishing world—by seeking an agent or a publisher—she takes a leap of faith that her work is good enough to compete not only with everyone else looking for an agent, but also with the thousands of published authors already on shelves. You’ve already taken that leap to find and retain a publisher, and now it’s up to you to decide if you’re ready for a next, bigger step.

My advice would be to put your previous publisher on hold and start querying agents the minute you have a partial of your next work (even if you are published by a small publisher you won’t necessarily need a full to grab an agent at this point). Include reviews of your published work with your package, and of course everything about your book should knock their socks off.

The only time I would solidly advise that you stay with the previous publisher, no matter how small, is if you are trying to continue a series. It’s extremely difficult, almost impossible, to move a series midstream to another publisher (unless you’re a bestselling author, of course).

It sounds to me like you’re ready to take that jump, you’re just afraid it will be a mistake. Trying, no matter whether you achieve the results you thought you wanted, is never a mistake. What’s the absolute worst thing that could happen? You end up going back and selling the work to your original publisher. It sounds like you’d be more disappointed if you didn’t try than if you tried and failed.

Jessica

Shop 'til You Drop

When I was in junior high school a friend gave me an atrocious T-shirt (I thought it was very cool at the time) that said “shop 'til you drop” and I loved it. Why wouldn’t I? I loved to shop. And I still do, but not in the way many of you are thinking. Now my shopping is almost purely for business (and shoes of course).

When I say I’m shopping something these days it’s usually a book that I’m shopping around to publishers. And hopefully they’re the ones spending the money and not me. When I'm asked how agents shop books, the question that most frequently comes up is how many publishers should an author expect her agent to submit to. The answer is that there is no answer.

Every agent works differently and every book should be treated differently. Recently I had two very unique experiences. One book was shopped extensively to nine different publishers, some within the same conglomerates—Bantam and Ballantine for example (both divisions/houses of Random House). For the other book I narrowed my list to just five publishers and did not shop it to any houses within the same conglomerate. Why? I felt the second book had a very distinct market and feel and that it needed to be seen by only a few elite editors. Places that I felt really wanted this kind of book would pay a lot for it, and had a knack for publishing similar titles successfully.

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, Houses Divided, often when you submit to two houses in the same conglomerate only one will be able to join in the auction. And often this does play into how I submit to those houses. If I think one is better suited for an author or book I will often submit to that house first, leaving the other out. This way I can have a little bit of a say in who might be publishing the book and how it might be published.

I can’t say definitively how a book should be shopped or how I shop a book. What I can tell you is that I will shop 'til I drop, and sometimes that means five houses, sometimes ten, and sometimes twenty or more. It depends on the project, it depends on the kind of feedback we’re getting, and it depends on what I know the houses are looking for and what they are actively not buying at that moment.

Jessica

Houses Divided

I’ve been asked more than once lately how imprints function within publishing houses. Are they independent publishers or one entity within a house, and how should writers know at which houses and at which imprints you can submit to simultaneously?

Last things first: Luckily writers don’t need to know because it’s damn confusing and there are days when I need to call Jacky and Kim and ask for a refresher. If I submit to Crown, can I still submit to Ballantine? What about NAL Heat and Berkley Heat or Pocket and Atria? Well, it is my job to keep it all straight, and while I’m not going to give you the entire breakdown of every publishing house, I am going to explain it a little.

Before we begin, what is an imprint? An imprint is essentially the line under which a book is published. Imprints are usually formed as a way for a publishing house to distinguish the types of books published under that line. Let’s use Berkley (my first job in publishing) as an example. Berkley is a publishing house under the Penguin USA umbrella. Berkley has several imprints—Berkley, Jove, Berkley Prime Crime, Sensation, Heat, Jam, Caliber, and others that I can’t remember. Berkley and Jove are essentially top-name authors and books that will garner special attention—bestsellers or books that might not fall under the other imprints. Prime Crime is the mystery imprint, primarily cozy mysteries in Berkley’s case. Sensation is romance, Heat is erotic romance, Jam is YA, and Caliber is military oriented. If you submit to one Berkley imprint you have submitted to them all. Berkley is one house with many imprints. Penguin is the overall corporation.

However, it is possible to submit to Berkley Heat and NAL Heat at the same time. While both are houses within the Penguin conglomerate and both are under similar sounding imprints, they work separately. The trick here is that if you have submitted to two houses within the same conglomerate (whether it is Penguin, Random House, Simon & Schuster, etc.) and get an offer from one, you need to let the other house know that the offer is from a house within their own system. It’s unlikely they will compete against each other. In other words, if Berkley Heat offers first, often NAL Heat will drop out of the auction. Not always, but usually. After all, it doesn’t make sense for the publishing conglomerate to spend money competing against itself. If they are all really excited about the book, they might actually have a discussion about which house within the conglomerate the book would be better for and allow that house to take the lead in bidding.

To summarize (and confuse you further), you cannot usually submit to multiple imprints within a publishing house, but you can submit to multiple houses within the master publishing conglomerate.

Jessica