tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post116528960079969685..comments2023-07-03T07:26:04.780-04:00Comments on The Rejecter: More Bad Query Advice: You Are Not Dan BrownThe Rejecterhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09087643296072075641noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1167846161353898002007-01-03T12:42:00.000-05:002007-01-03T12:42:00.000-05:00CMonster @12.11 --If I ever publish a book that re...CMonster @12.11 --<BR/><BR/><I>If I ever publish a book that reads like Dan Brown, I'm going to jump off a cliff.<BR/><BR/>Of course, if it sells like Dan Brown, maybe I'll put a huge of money at the bottom to break my fall and later console myself with expensive wines.</I><BR/><BR/>My example would be LaHaye & Jenkins (the <I>Left Behind</I> hacks -- 50 MILLION copies sold). Other than that, total agreement.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1166090703022818922006-12-14T05:05:00.000-05:002006-12-14T05:05:00.000-05:00Honestly tho, what's wrong with people? is it real...Honestly tho, what's wrong with people? is it really true that common sense is completely dead? Gone? Abolished? Expired? Extinct?<BR/><BR/>This is one person's blog. One person's opinion. Deal with it. Take it into consideration. Then move on. There are no magic keys to the kingdom. There is no mathematical formula that you apply correctly and will deliver the correct result every time if you just don't fudge it up. It's an imprecise messy business. But it is a business. It's profit driven. DEAL with it.<BR/><BR/>This is precisely why I never "hang out" with "writers." If there's one thing symptomatic of writers, it's not their mindblowing grasp of language or their precious insights into the human condition, it's their weaselridden anxiety. GAAAAAAAAAWD almighty the pain of it all. When people ask what I do, I tell 'em I'm in real estate. Makes for better conversation too.<BR/><BR/>Gawd.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1165982564209946882006-12-12T23:02:00.000-05:002006-12-12T23:02:00.000-05:00paradoxicalblame the aleparadoxical<BR/><BR/>blame the aleJohn A. Karrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06025618833236625514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1165982515109632872006-12-12T23:01:00.000-05:002006-12-12T23:01:00.000-05:00Nice to see conflicting advice abounds in the pard...Nice to see conflicting advice abounds in the pardoxical oxymoronic publishing world that my fellow unknowns and I keep trying to break into (for some damn reason).John A. Karrhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06025618833236625514noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1165415331065207092006-12-06T09:28:00.000-05:002006-12-06T09:28:00.000-05:00I'm with you, Anon #2. I can list at least five we...I'm with you, Anon #2. I can list at least five well-known agents ( including Andy Zack) who advise writers to compare their works to those of other authors. Recently, after reading this advice, I changed my query to include such comparisons, even though it was against my gut instinct to do so. Why did I do it? Because two of the agents I was really gunning for recommended it.<BR/><BR/>I'm also not sure I understand the concept of an "over-edited query". I admit to having researched the hell out of how to write a query letter -- apparently to some success, since I have about a 40% partial request rate so far. (Admittedly, this may be attributable to other factors.) If you don't research how to write a query, how will you know what agents consider a "good" hook?<BR/><BR/>While I'm sure it's true that, broadly speaking, "the only thing [agents] care about is your writing", in fact there is very little of an author's writing on display in a standard query letter. What is on display is proof of whether (a) you are enough of a pro to have researched the industry and (b) you know how to write an interesting hook, which offers HINTS of whether you can tell a story, but is hardly conclusive.<BR/><BR/>Just my two cents.Ehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17551251102277461893noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1165366193420952962006-12-05T19:49:00.000-05:002006-12-05T19:49:00.000-05:00I recently heard from a cyber-buddy who was reques...I recently heard from a cyber-buddy who was requested to do a marketing plan by her would-be agent. Now, this is at the query-letter stage. How is she supposed to know how to do this? How is she supposed to "read" a market in which she hasn't yet been a player? What has she to do but suggest that "readers of Famous Author X may like my book"?<BR/><BR/>I don't wanna sound like I'm ranting, here. I'd rather hear suggestions I can share with her about how to do part of the future-agent's job for her.<BR/><BR/>T2Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1165356404812708132006-12-05T17:06:00.000-05:002006-12-05T17:06:00.000-05:00Of course, if it sells like Dan Brown, maybe I'll ...<I>Of course, if it sells like Dan Brown, maybe I'll put a huge of money at the bottom to break my fall and later console myself with expensive wines.</I><BR/><BR/>*snerk*<BR/><BR/>Back to the topic, there is a lot of conflicting advice out there. For example, this article linked on Agent Query implies that it's good to reference other novels:<BR/><BR/>http://www.zackcompany.com/submissions/perfectpitch.pdf<BR/><BR/>And Jenny Bent says on her website that whenever she's on an agent panel they disagree on how to write a query letter:<BR/><BR/>http://www.jennybent.com/letter/index.html<BR/><BR/>But I agree with Rejecter's bottom line: it's the writing that counts.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1165338710587821392006-12-05T12:11:00.000-05:002006-12-05T12:11:00.000-05:00If I ever publish a book that reads like Dan Brown...If I ever publish a book that reads like Dan Brown, I'm going to jump off a cliff.<BR/><BR/>Of course, if it sells like Dan Brown, maybe I'll put a huge of money at the bottom to break my fall and later console myself with expensive wines.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1165338552804074632006-12-05T12:09:00.000-05:002006-12-05T12:09:00.000-05:00That old "shows you know the market" bit really ca...That old "shows you know the market" bit really can be confusing. I am glad for the clarification.<BR/><BR/>But when I query an agent who I know reps authors who write similar genre novels, I'll just keep that knowledge to myself, unless one of their stable of authors referred me. (One can hope,lol.)writtenwyrddhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02280711822302493122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1165331091904404512006-12-05T10:04:00.000-05:002006-12-05T10:04:00.000-05:00There are pages and pages and pages of heartfelt a...There are pages and pages and pages of heartfelt advice out there, about "how to write a winning query letter," and nearly all of them contradict each other. I was told time and again to <I>always</I> mention other books in your genre -- yeah, because it "shows you know the market."<BR/><BR/>62 rejections later, my first book didn't get a damn thing except a request for partial from an agent who died several months later.<BR/><BR/>Unfortunately, what seems the common-sense advice of "all you need is a good hook" doesn't get us very far, either, since what constitutes "good" is so highly subjective. You don't know whether your hook was considered "good" or not until you get the form rejection in the mail, and by then it's too late.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1165330250760280642006-12-05T09:50:00.000-05:002006-12-05T09:50:00.000-05:00Always cringed at that sort of editorial descripti...Always cringed at that sort of editorial description.<BR/>Makes sense to me.<BR/>Thank you.Bernitahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05264585685253812090noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-35623128.post-1165290829297316532006-12-04T22:53:00.000-05:002006-12-04T22:53:00.000-05:00The only thing we care about is your writing.I'm a...<I>The only thing we care about is your writing.</I><BR/><BR/>I'm always so glad when I read this. As an editor at an ezine, I don't care how long you've been at it or if your cat is your inspiration or what your dayjob is. Can you WRITE? That's what we pay for.ssashttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15527483283426518167noreply@blogger.com