The problem with querying every book at once (either in the same query or three or four queries in a row) is that after reading and rejecting one I tend to feel I'm not the right agent for your work and automatically reject the others. If you query different books over time I will assume your writing has evolved and you've moved on from the books I've previously rejected.
Jessica
Friday, August 12, 2011
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Real-Life Advice
I'm trying to figure out how to write this blog without offending a whole lot of people, which is ridiculous really because if I've leaned anything from this blog it's that I have no idea what's really going to offend a whole lot of people.
We've talked a lot about how there's bad advice everywhere, and while I'm talking publishing I think we can all agree this is true of everything. We blogging agents work hard to try to dispel the bad advice as much as possible, even going so far as to politely correct other agents on Twitter and even their blogs when we feel they are giving bad advice, or advice that's not quite in agreement with what we're doing. It might not be bad, but we have a very different opinion from our very different experiences. Our hope is that if you hear enough good advice it won't be long before you're able to make your own conclusions based on all the knowledge you now have.
There's one group of people though who I hear incorrect advice from regularly and, granted, not all of them give incorrect advice (it would be ridiculous to even think that), and certainly not everything they say is wrong. However, it's come up on Twitter and in the comments on the blog and, more important, it's come across my desk. When it comes to giving real-world advice on publishing I find that professors and college-level academic employees, namely those teaching publishing programs who have never themselves worked in publishing, often give advice that is so far afield or worse, so old-fashioned, I just cringe.
Let me stress, it's not the writing advice I'm talking about, it's the how-to-get-published advice and, frankly, even the career guidance. Many times I've been asked to look at the resumes of my interns and I'm always more than happy to do so. Every single time I advise them to make changes, primarily to place the focus on their work (i.e., intern) experience, I'm told that's not the way their career departments told them to do that. Well, who's doing the hiring here? Do you want to work in publishing or in the career placement office? I'm actually shocked by this. It feels so old school. In a time when we have so many struggling to find jobs, why would you place the focus, your education, on top of the resume unless you're seeking a job in education? For the most part, everyone you're competing with has a similar level of education, so it doesn't make you stand out, not when a potential employer is looking at hundreds of resumes.
It's not just resumes though. I've been amazed at the how-to-get-published advice people come up with, advice they learned in classes at school. Again, typically the query letters will stress academic background over the book and conflict with a lot of the networking, query advice many of us give on our blogs.
I don't think anyone is doing this on purpose. In fact I know they're not. I also don't think any of the advice they're giving is going to kill a career or ruin someone's chances of getting published, but when a professor or someone with an academic background gives us advice we tend to really listen to it. I know I did. When I was in school I had a lot of amazing teachers. I looked to them for advice on everything, and if they said it I believed it must be true.
The academic world is very different from the professional world. I know this from discussions with friends working for colleges and universities. I respect everyone who works as a professor or teacher. I tried it. It's a really difficult job and not something that just anyone can do. It's not something I feel I can do, or do well anyway. I only wish that when giving advice on how to work in the professional world more people in the academic world would take the time to consult with those of us in the trenches to ask our advice. I know that if someone asked me how to successfully apply for a grad program or as a professor I would refer them to someone in those trenches because, frankly, I've never been there and don't have a clue.
Jessica
We've talked a lot about how there's bad advice everywhere, and while I'm talking publishing I think we can all agree this is true of everything. We blogging agents work hard to try to dispel the bad advice as much as possible, even going so far as to politely correct other agents on Twitter and even their blogs when we feel they are giving bad advice, or advice that's not quite in agreement with what we're doing. It might not be bad, but we have a very different opinion from our very different experiences. Our hope is that if you hear enough good advice it won't be long before you're able to make your own conclusions based on all the knowledge you now have.
There's one group of people though who I hear incorrect advice from regularly and, granted, not all of them give incorrect advice (it would be ridiculous to even think that), and certainly not everything they say is wrong. However, it's come up on Twitter and in the comments on the blog and, more important, it's come across my desk. When it comes to giving real-world advice on publishing I find that professors and college-level academic employees, namely those teaching publishing programs who have never themselves worked in publishing, often give advice that is so far afield or worse, so old-fashioned, I just cringe.
Let me stress, it's not the writing advice I'm talking about, it's the how-to-get-published advice and, frankly, even the career guidance. Many times I've been asked to look at the resumes of my interns and I'm always more than happy to do so. Every single time I advise them to make changes, primarily to place the focus on their work (i.e., intern) experience, I'm told that's not the way their career departments told them to do that. Well, who's doing the hiring here? Do you want to work in publishing or in the career placement office? I'm actually shocked by this. It feels so old school. In a time when we have so many struggling to find jobs, why would you place the focus, your education, on top of the resume unless you're seeking a job in education? For the most part, everyone you're competing with has a similar level of education, so it doesn't make you stand out, not when a potential employer is looking at hundreds of resumes.
It's not just resumes though. I've been amazed at the how-to-get-published advice people come up with, advice they learned in classes at school. Again, typically the query letters will stress academic background over the book and conflict with a lot of the networking, query advice many of us give on our blogs.
I don't think anyone is doing this on purpose. In fact I know they're not. I also don't think any of the advice they're giving is going to kill a career or ruin someone's chances of getting published, but when a professor or someone with an academic background gives us advice we tend to really listen to it. I know I did. When I was in school I had a lot of amazing teachers. I looked to them for advice on everything, and if they said it I believed it must be true.
The academic world is very different from the professional world. I know this from discussions with friends working for colleges and universities. I respect everyone who works as a professor or teacher. I tried it. It's a really difficult job and not something that just anyone can do. It's not something I feel I can do, or do well anyway. I only wish that when giving advice on how to work in the professional world more people in the academic world would take the time to consult with those of us in the trenches to ask our advice. I know that if someone asked me how to successfully apply for a grad program or as a professor I would refer them to someone in those trenches because, frankly, I've never been there and don't have a clue.
Jessica
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Workshop Wednesday
By repeated request we've started Workshop Wednesday. It will definitely play out through 2011, and beyond that we'll just have to see. We've received well over 200 queries at this point, but we are choosing at random, so don't be afraid to participate as per the guidelines in our original post.
For anyone wanting to comment, we ask that you comment in a polite and respectful manner, and we ask that you be as constructive as possible. If you can be useful to the brave souls who submitted their query and comment on the query, that's great. Please keep any anonymous tirades on publishing or other snarky comments to yourself. This is and should remain an open and safe forum for people to put themselves and their queries out there so that everyone can learn. I'm leaving comments open and open to anonymous posters, as I always have; don't make me feel the need to change that policy.
And for those who have never "met" Query Shark, get over there and do that. She's the originator of the query critique, the queen, if you will.
Dear Ms. Faust,
I respectfully request your review of my query for the Bookends Workshop Wednesday. I hope that my writing does not get in the way of this story. I appreciate your efforts on my behalf.
If you think your writing isn't strong enough I'm unlikely to think it's strong enough. Never start a query, never start a pitch of any kind (for a job, for a book, for a marriage proposal) by telling your flaws. The truth is that your writing will get in the way. A great story is necessary for publication, yes, so is good writing. You really do need the total package.
It will never be the same. Jesse was looking for adventure, but this is too much. Ordinarily ordinary, she is a fifteen year-old girl from Boiling Springs. She did all of the right things to collect friends, please her teachers and make summer plans. Being nice and doing what she was told is no longer enough. Who knew that signing up for an exchange student program would put her in a trajectory for a collision smack dab with everything she knew about herself. She came up short. The wreck changed her life in a moment’s decision. She did not offer help when someone needed her, then she lied about it. A priority of fitting in with friends jeopardized everything she knew about human decency and being truthful.
This doesn't feel like a paragraph to me, it feels like a collection of thoughts, like a rough draft, and yes, based on this, your writing will get in the way. It's important to remember that your query is a representation of how your book is written, and based on this it feels like your book is going to be choppy and without much connection. In all honesty, there's something interesting about this idea, about the fact that someone on a foreign exchange program makes one decision that will change her life forever, but why be so vague? Why won't you simply tell me exactly what's going to happen and what that decision is.
I'm not sure if this is entirely about poor writing or just an author trying to be too clever. Based on the last sentence in your first paragraph I'm apt to think poor writing, which is too bad because the idea is somewhat intriguing, but I can't represent poor writing.
This is Jesse’s story. She was a nice person. She became a bad person. LEFT SIDE OF THE TRUTH, a Young Adult novel complete at 52,000 words, is the account of what she did about it.
This feels like you're going to tell me the story instead of show me the story. I also have a problem with "became a bad person." I'm not sure anyone wants to read the story where the character's growth, the protagonist's growth, actually makes them less desirable.
This is a debut novel. The right side of a lie is not to tell one. The left side is what I will tell you now.
I have no idea what you're saying here, and that pretty much clinches a rejection for me.
Sincerely,
Jessica
For anyone wanting to comment, we ask that you comment in a polite and respectful manner, and we ask that you be as constructive as possible. If you can be useful to the brave souls who submitted their query and comment on the query, that's great. Please keep any anonymous tirades on publishing or other snarky comments to yourself. This is and should remain an open and safe forum for people to put themselves and their queries out there so that everyone can learn. I'm leaving comments open and open to anonymous posters, as I always have; don't make me feel the need to change that policy.
And for those who have never "met" Query Shark, get over there and do that. She's the originator of the query critique, the queen, if you will.
Dear Ms. Faust,
I respectfully request your review of my query for the Bookends Workshop Wednesday. I hope that my writing does not get in the way of this story. I appreciate your efforts on my behalf.
If you think your writing isn't strong enough I'm unlikely to think it's strong enough. Never start a query, never start a pitch of any kind (for a job, for a book, for a marriage proposal) by telling your flaws. The truth is that your writing will get in the way. A great story is necessary for publication, yes, so is good writing. You really do need the total package.
It will never be the same. Jesse was looking for adventure, but this is too much. Ordinarily ordinary, she is a fifteen year-old girl from Boiling Springs. She did all of the right things to collect friends, please her teachers and make summer plans. Being nice and doing what she was told is no longer enough. Who knew that signing up for an exchange student program would put her in a trajectory for a collision smack dab with everything she knew about herself. She came up short. The wreck changed her life in a moment’s decision. She did not offer help when someone needed her, then she lied about it. A priority of fitting in with friends jeopardized everything she knew about human decency and being truthful.
This doesn't feel like a paragraph to me, it feels like a collection of thoughts, like a rough draft, and yes, based on this, your writing will get in the way. It's important to remember that your query is a representation of how your book is written, and based on this it feels like your book is going to be choppy and without much connection. In all honesty, there's something interesting about this idea, about the fact that someone on a foreign exchange program makes one decision that will change her life forever, but why be so vague? Why won't you simply tell me exactly what's going to happen and what that decision is.
I'm not sure if this is entirely about poor writing or just an author trying to be too clever. Based on the last sentence in your first paragraph I'm apt to think poor writing, which is too bad because the idea is somewhat intriguing, but I can't represent poor writing.
This is Jesse’s story. She was a nice person. She became a bad person. LEFT SIDE OF THE TRUTH, a Young Adult novel complete at 52,000 words, is the account of what she did about it.
This feels like you're going to tell me the story instead of show me the story. I also have a problem with "became a bad person." I'm not sure anyone wants to read the story where the character's growth, the protagonist's growth, actually makes them less desirable.
This is a debut novel. The right side of a lie is not to tell one. The left side is what I will tell you now.
I have no idea what you're saying here, and that pretty much clinches a rejection for me.
Sincerely,
Jessica
Tuesday, August 09, 2011
Building a Career
As an entrepreneur I'm frequently asked for advice about starting a new business, and there's one thing I always say, "Give it five years." A new business is a tough thing to start. It takes time, commitment, energy, and frequently lots of work for little to no pay. Guess what? Starting up a writing career is no different. In fact, starting a writing career is the same thing. It's starting a new business, and to truly succeed you need to give it time.
Before I go any further I want to clarify that this post is for the contracted writer. In other words, while you technically start your career with your first query letter, I believe the five-year mark starts with that first publishing contract.
When I first started BookEnds we did really well for a new agency, but we worked hard and did a lot of work outside of what we wanted to be doing. In other words, while our goal was to agent for a living, we weren't yet making a living at agenting so we needed to find other ways to pay the bills. In addition to reading submissions, networking with authors, editors, and other agents, and trying to sell books, I was freelance editing for publishers. Freelancing a couple of manuscripts a week just to keep some sort of regular income.
Within three years (thank goodness, because I couldn't have made it another two) I was doing well enough as an agent that I could give up the freelancing. Truthfully, I had to give up the freelancing. Spending time freelancing might have brought me fairly quick money, but it wasn't going to bring me as much as agenting and it was cutting into the time I needed to spend working with my clients. It meant another small pay cut until I could build up more clients, but that's what business is, it's constantly reworking and rebuilding in an effort to grow. When they say, "You need to spend money to make money," they don't always mean "spend" in the literal sense, especially if you truly believe time is money.
So why do I say five years? Because in five years' time I believe you have some sense of whether or not you've made it. You might not be able to buy that house in the Hamptons yet, but you can see that your business is solid and growing and that you've come a long way from where you started. You might even be able to pay the bills regularly and put some away for that house in the Hamptons. You have enough experience at five years to know that this career is not going to be easy, but nothing you really desire ever is. You do know, however, that you can do this, that you can make a living out of it, or almost a living.
While I think many of you dream of a career writing novels, you also need to be realistic about what it takes to start this career. You need to know that that first publishing contract is not likely to put you on easy street and that in addition to those novels you might need to find other things to do to keep you afloat while you build this business of yours. But give it five years. If you're still selling books and writing and getting published you're going to start to see some real growth in that business and you'll know at that point whether or not this is a career for you.
Jessica
Before I go any further I want to clarify that this post is for the contracted writer. In other words, while you technically start your career with your first query letter, I believe the five-year mark starts with that first publishing contract.
When I first started BookEnds we did really well for a new agency, but we worked hard and did a lot of work outside of what we wanted to be doing. In other words, while our goal was to agent for a living, we weren't yet making a living at agenting so we needed to find other ways to pay the bills. In addition to reading submissions, networking with authors, editors, and other agents, and trying to sell books, I was freelance editing for publishers. Freelancing a couple of manuscripts a week just to keep some sort of regular income.
Within three years (thank goodness, because I couldn't have made it another two) I was doing well enough as an agent that I could give up the freelancing. Truthfully, I had to give up the freelancing. Spending time freelancing might have brought me fairly quick money, but it wasn't going to bring me as much as agenting and it was cutting into the time I needed to spend working with my clients. It meant another small pay cut until I could build up more clients, but that's what business is, it's constantly reworking and rebuilding in an effort to grow. When they say, "You need to spend money to make money," they don't always mean "spend" in the literal sense, especially if you truly believe time is money.
So why do I say five years? Because in five years' time I believe you have some sense of whether or not you've made it. You might not be able to buy that house in the Hamptons yet, but you can see that your business is solid and growing and that you've come a long way from where you started. You might even be able to pay the bills regularly and put some away for that house in the Hamptons. You have enough experience at five years to know that this career is not going to be easy, but nothing you really desire ever is. You do know, however, that you can do this, that you can make a living out of it, or almost a living.
While I think many of you dream of a career writing novels, you also need to be realistic about what it takes to start this career. You need to know that that first publishing contract is not likely to put you on easy street and that in addition to those novels you might need to find other things to do to keep you afloat while you build this business of yours. But give it five years. If you're still selling books and writing and getting published you're going to start to see some real growth in that business and you'll know at that point whether or not this is a career for you.
Jessica
Monday, August 08, 2011
Publishing Logic 101
You say in your query, "all published books today are crap."
I represent a number of published books.
Therefore you are telling me that I only represent crap.
So, if you want me to represent your book for publication, your book must be crap.
Jessica
I represent a number of published books.
Therefore you are telling me that I only represent crap.
So, if you want me to represent your book for publication, your book must be crap.
Jessica
Friday, August 05, 2011
Rita Henuber's Publishing Path
Rita HenuberUnder Fire
Publisher: Carina Press
Pub date: August 2011
Agent: Jessica Faust
Author Web/Blog links: http://ritahenuber.com;
www.rubyslipperedsisterhood.com
Recently Jessica negotiated the sale of my first book, Under Fire, to Carina Press. I'm asked how long I've been writing. What my path to being published was. What advice do I have. Here's my story.
To get over a series of shattering events, I lost myself in reading. Two and three books a week, sometimes more. In one of those flash-bang-aha moments, I thought I'd just sit down and write a book. It can't be that hard. After all, those people living in my head in that parallel world will certainly have a lot to say.
By chance, I saw a Beginning Romance Writing online class. Fate for sure, so I enrolled. The class instructor strongly suggested I join RWA. I did and went to work writing my first manuscript. In my obnoxious enthusiasm, I made a plan:
- Finish book.
- Enter contests for feedback.
- Enter RWA's Golden Heart.
- Get an agent to represent me.
- Sign a contract in two years.
- Snap. Snap. Easy. Easy.
I finished the manuscript.
Eight months after starting the book I began entering contests. My budget allowed me to enter six chapter contests and RWA's Golden Heart. My goal was to final in two of the contests and the Golden Heart. Under Fire finaled in three chapter contests with mixed feedback.
For two months I researched agents. In February 2009 the great agent quest began. March 25, 2009, I was notified my entry was a Golden Heart finalist. Feet didn't touch the floor for three days.
Four months and thirty-nine "No thanks, not for me" letters (more commonly called rejections) later, I signed with Jessica. Insert big smile and happy face here. This is when publishing started to shift and I was forced to change the time line for signing a contract to three years.
Three years and eleven days after I started that romance writing class and writing my book, Jessica called to say Carina Press made an offer.
I'm happy to say I'm very pleased and impressed with the professionalism and support of the Carina family.
Advice? Set your goals and be realistic. Face it, if you are a single parent of five children and the only caregiver of infirmed grandparents, saying you will write five thousand words a day is not going to work, unless you're a superhero.
Surround yourself with people who are supportive of your goals. The very best part of being a Golden Heart finalist is meeting and making friends with other authors who are on the same path. We've formed a close supportive bond and blog together on the Ruby-Slippered Sisterhood to assist other writers.
Be mindful of getting stuck in one place of your process. I understand it's comfortable. But if you have entered a gazillion contests and finaled and/or won in each of them and have half a gazillion requests from agents and editors and haven't sent a single one out, you are stuck. Get the courage to move to that next level.
"Learn to embrace rejection," says the deep voice from beyond the curtain. It will come at every level of this business. No one escapes it. Not saying you shouldn't get upset, but don't let it wipe the floor with you. Find a way to deal. Pity party, my personal favorite. Champagne. Wait, that may be my favorite. Chocolate, oh, what the heck, they're all my favorite and all at once is even better.
No one can teach you to be a storyteller. That's already inside you, in your heart and mind.
If, like me, you had no idea what the romance genre required, learn the writing basics. Look to your favorite authors for advice. Many successful authors offer free writing tips on their web pages. If your dream is to write like them, study every book they've written. What works, what doesn't.
Listen to industry professionals. Follow agents and editors on their blogs, Facebook, and Twitter to stay current. Don't rely on how it was done last year or even last month. Things in this business seem to change at light speed. Keep an eye on the future.
If you don't want to blog, don't. If you don't want a web page until you've sold, don't have one. Work on marketing when your book is finished. Don't worry about what is selling and what isn't.
The absolute, single most important thing is write a good book.
Writing is journey. You learn who you are and who you want to be. There is no one way to do this. Seek and find your own path. If you see me on the way, wave.
Happy writing.
Rita
Thursday, August 04, 2011
Life Doesn't Just Happen to Us
When writing your book and later your query, it's important to remember that a successful book, and therefore a successful query, isn't just about life happening to the character. To make a book, and query, work, you need to have your character be an active participant in life.
Therefore, if you're telling me that your character's house burned down, her husband left her, her best friend died, and then her dog ran away, I'm frankly feeling your book is a little ho-hum. Clearly your book is happening around your character, to your character, but your character isn't doing anything. Maybe if her husband left her and then she shot him I might be more interested.
Jessica
Therefore, if you're telling me that your character's house burned down, her husband left her, her best friend died, and then her dog ran away, I'm frankly feeling your book is a little ho-hum. Clearly your book is happening around your character, to your character, but your character isn't doing anything. Maybe if her husband left her and then she shot him I might be more interested.
Jessica
Wednesday, August 03, 2011
Workshop Wednesday
By repeated request we've started Workshop Wednesday. It will definitely play out through 2011, and beyond that we'll just have to see. We've received well over 200 queries at this point, but we are choosing at random, so don't be afraid to participate as per the guidelines in our original post.
For anyone wanting to comment, we ask that you comment in a polite and respectful manner, and we ask that you be as constructive as possible. If you can be useful to the brave souls who submitted their query and comment on the query, that's great. Please keep any anonymous tirades on publishing or other snarky comments to yourself. This is and should remain an open and safe forum for people to put themselves and their queries out there so that everyone can learn. I'm leaving comments open and open to anonymous posters, as I always have; don't make me feel the need to change that policy.
And for those who have never "met" Query Shark, get over there and do that. She's the originator of the query critique, the queen, if you will.
"Murder in Montana" is a cozy, with just enough edge to remain modern. It is complete at just over 80,000 words. Followers of Laura Child's Tea Shop Mysteries will enjoy this novel.
I wish you had more of a "dear agent" opening. Personally, I like being eased into my letters and introductions with a little bit of "small talk." Your first sentence, title included, makes me worry that you might not fully understand what a cozy is. You mention Laura Childs, which makes it sound like you know cozies, but after reading your query I question whether you've actually read Laura Childs's tea shop books or if they just happen to be a name you know.
The title is definitely not cozy and has nothing to do with your hook. In the grand scheme that's not a problem, but because you describe your book as having "just enough edge to remain modern" I worry that this isn't a cozy at all, but something you're trying to squeeze into the market. Cozies tend not to have edge, and plenty these days are modern without it.
Murder is always ugly, and it doesn't matter how much lipstick the victim is wearing.
I'm usually not a fan of taglines, but this is cute. I like it.
Pageant coach, Anne Thomas lives in a world of high heels and manufactured smiles. Corpses are not an everyday occurrence. When the state pageant director is murdered, and Anne's protégé is implicated, Anne knows that she must find the truth or forfeit her clients chances at the Miss America Pageant.
I like the first sentence in this paragraph, but the rest feels incomplete, like a collection of taglines rather than a true summary. I'd rather have you spend a little more time setting up the story, a few sentences or so that help us understand the setting and who exactly Anne is and maybe what a pageant coach is. One question, isn't Miss America copyrighted? I think, but I could be wrong, that you need to get permission to use it.
Adding to Anne's problem is the presence of Detective Andrew Cartwright. A transplant from the Los Angeles police department, Andrew is a savvy homicide detective who knows that a pageant should be Anne's last priority. Anne's biggest problem is staying alive.
This paragraph doesn't connect with me at all. Why should a pageant be her last priority if she's a pageant coach? It seems that would be her first priority.
******** has been involved in the Miss America Pageant system both as a contestant and as an executive director for seventeen years. She spent over seven of those years as a legal librarian for a private law firm. This is her first novel and she is working on her second.
This bio aside bugs me, especially with the long line of asterisks. It really feels like this query was sent as a rough draft and not a lot of thought was put into it. And, honestly, since the query is so rough and you've told me this is your first novel, I'd probably pass. My feeling is that your book is probably equally rough, if not more so, and needs a lot more work before it's ready to be seen.
Jessica
For anyone wanting to comment, we ask that you comment in a polite and respectful manner, and we ask that you be as constructive as possible. If you can be useful to the brave souls who submitted their query and comment on the query, that's great. Please keep any anonymous tirades on publishing or other snarky comments to yourself. This is and should remain an open and safe forum for people to put themselves and their queries out there so that everyone can learn. I'm leaving comments open and open to anonymous posters, as I always have; don't make me feel the need to change that policy.
And for those who have never "met" Query Shark, get over there and do that. She's the originator of the query critique, the queen, if you will.
"Murder in Montana" is a cozy, with just enough edge to remain modern. It is complete at just over 80,000 words. Followers of Laura Child's Tea Shop Mysteries will enjoy this novel.
I wish you had more of a "dear agent" opening. Personally, I like being eased into my letters and introductions with a little bit of "small talk." Your first sentence, title included, makes me worry that you might not fully understand what a cozy is. You mention Laura Childs, which makes it sound like you know cozies, but after reading your query I question whether you've actually read Laura Childs's tea shop books or if they just happen to be a name you know.
The title is definitely not cozy and has nothing to do with your hook. In the grand scheme that's not a problem, but because you describe your book as having "just enough edge to remain modern" I worry that this isn't a cozy at all, but something you're trying to squeeze into the market. Cozies tend not to have edge, and plenty these days are modern without it.
Murder is always ugly, and it doesn't matter how much lipstick the victim is wearing.
I'm usually not a fan of taglines, but this is cute. I like it.
Pageant coach, Anne Thomas lives in a world of high heels and manufactured smiles. Corpses are not an everyday occurrence. When the state pageant director is murdered, and Anne's protégé is implicated, Anne knows that she must find the truth or forfeit her clients chances at the Miss America Pageant.
I like the first sentence in this paragraph, but the rest feels incomplete, like a collection of taglines rather than a true summary. I'd rather have you spend a little more time setting up the story, a few sentences or so that help us understand the setting and who exactly Anne is and maybe what a pageant coach is. One question, isn't Miss America copyrighted? I think, but I could be wrong, that you need to get permission to use it.
Adding to Anne's problem is the presence of Detective Andrew Cartwright. A transplant from the Los Angeles police department, Andrew is a savvy homicide detective who knows that a pageant should be Anne's last priority. Anne's biggest problem is staying alive.
This paragraph doesn't connect with me at all. Why should a pageant be her last priority if she's a pageant coach? It seems that would be her first priority.
******** has been involved in the Miss America Pageant system both as a contestant and as an executive director for seventeen years. She spent over seven of those years as a legal librarian for a private law firm. This is her first novel and she is working on her second.
This bio aside bugs me, especially with the long line of asterisks. It really feels like this query was sent as a rough draft and not a lot of thought was put into it. And, honestly, since the query is so rough and you've told me this is your first novel, I'd probably pass. My feeling is that your book is probably equally rough, if not more so, and needs a lot more work before it's ready to be seen.
Jessica
Tuesday, August 02, 2011
Murphy's Law of Agenting
#1: Your rejection letter is sent the day the author's email either requesting an update or letting you know of an offer arrives in your inbox (this was more common with snail mail queries).
#2: The phone call you've been waiting for all day comes when you're on the phone with the only other call you've gotten all day.
#3: The editor is so interested in the submission you sent that she just bought something similar the week before and now can't buy yours.
#4: The blog you wrote and scheduled a month ago about a touchy situation between agent and client posts the day after you had a very similar touchy situation with a client, leading her to believe the blog was about her.
#5: The dog sleeps peacefully all day at your feet until the exact moment an editor calls with an offer, at which point he decides to start barking maniacally at a random leaf floating by the window.
Jessica
#2: The phone call you've been waiting for all day comes when you're on the phone with the only other call you've gotten all day.
#3: The editor is so interested in the submission you sent that she just bought something similar the week before and now can't buy yours.
#4: The blog you wrote and scheduled a month ago about a touchy situation between agent and client posts the day after you had a very similar touchy situation with a client, leading her to believe the blog was about her.
#5: The dog sleeps peacefully all day at your feet until the exact moment an editor calls with an offer, at which point he decides to start barking maniacally at a random leaf floating by the window.
Jessica
Monday, August 01, 2011
Perception v. Reality
I have a friend who runs a retail store, and in the course of a conversation I asked what her bestselling items were. She laughed and said that until recently she would have been convinced it was the red bracelet, but after running reports just the night before she was shocked to learn that not only was she wrong, but so wrong that the biggest seller wasn't even on her radar.
The only thing she could attribute her mistake to was perception v. reality. Because she had recently sold two red bracelets and heard many other customers comment on how lovely it was, she was convinced it had to be a hot item. Thanks to inventory tracking software, however, she's always able to keep on top of the truth about her business, something that makes the difference, a big difference, in success versus failure. If she had ordered based on perception she would have a backlog of red bracelets and hardly enough yellow necklaces, her true bestseller, to meet demand.
Understanding the importance of reality is important for any business owner to be successful, and that means you too, authors. It's so easy to get caught up in the letters we receive from readers and the good reviews for our books. Those are the things that keep you writing and excited about your work, but five people writing to tell you that your series is amazing and asking for more books does not mean your series is a bona fide success. It's simply your perception of how successful the series is, or should be. The reality can only be seen in your numbers. Five people aren't going to make a book a bestseller. Heck, they aren't even going to make it worthwhile to self-publish. However, it is quite possible that five people could write to you, begging for more, and 50,000 more buy your book. Now you have numbers and numbers are reality.
Let's face it, reality is often one of the hardest things to face, but facing it head-on is what will help you achieve the success you want. Facing reality means you know what your career looks like, and knowing the truth can help you make decisions, the right decisions, about your future.
Jessica
The only thing she could attribute her mistake to was perception v. reality. Because she had recently sold two red bracelets and heard many other customers comment on how lovely it was, she was convinced it had to be a hot item. Thanks to inventory tracking software, however, she's always able to keep on top of the truth about her business, something that makes the difference, a big difference, in success versus failure. If she had ordered based on perception she would have a backlog of red bracelets and hardly enough yellow necklaces, her true bestseller, to meet demand.
Understanding the importance of reality is important for any business owner to be successful, and that means you too, authors. It's so easy to get caught up in the letters we receive from readers and the good reviews for our books. Those are the things that keep you writing and excited about your work, but five people writing to tell you that your series is amazing and asking for more books does not mean your series is a bona fide success. It's simply your perception of how successful the series is, or should be. The reality can only be seen in your numbers. Five people aren't going to make a book a bestseller. Heck, they aren't even going to make it worthwhile to self-publish. However, it is quite possible that five people could write to you, begging for more, and 50,000 more buy your book. Now you have numbers and numbers are reality.
Let's face it, reality is often one of the hardest things to face, but facing it head-on is what will help you achieve the success you want. Facing reality means you know what your career looks like, and knowing the truth can help you make decisions, the right decisions, about your future.
Jessica
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