I was once at a book conference where an agent-turned-author was pitching her book on how to pitch a novel by giving out bad advice. One of the bad things she said was, "Subscribe to Publisher's Weekly." At this point everyone began furiously scribbling on their notepads like she was Moses on Har Sinai, but either that didn't result in one extra subscription or someone in the room had a lot of money to blow.
Publisher's Weekly is a trade publication for the book publishing industry. Being a "trade magazine" means it's mainly - or entirely, really - for people who work in the book publishing industry. With a small readership circle and little or no news stand sales, it makes its money back by advertising and by a $240/year subscription fee. Newsweek, another weekly of about the same length, costs me about $50 a year. On the other hand, Newsweek is not a trade publication, it's timely, and it has high sales from news stands.
I am very fortunate that my boss was having a good enough year last year that she finally broke down and subscribed. Some agents don't. Most editors rely on their office subscription. I once saw it in a magazine shop at Times Square for $14.00, which was $10.00 more than I was willing to pay. I don't get to read it every week, but if I'm in the day it comes in, I do get the privilege.
My G-d! There's an entire magazine out there of industry secrets?!? And it's hidden behind a huge price tag? Those bastards! Trying to keep the small author down.
In actuality, PW is what it is - a trade magazine. That means it discusses industry trends (read: not what kind of book you should be writing), produces more in-depth bestseller lists than the NY Times with some sales numbers, provides some information on comings-and-goings within the industry (so you can see who moved to what house, important if you know that editor), and generally provides a calender of major upcoming releases, book fairs, and other things of note. The opening pages are the articles, which are short but discuss topics relevant to the industry (Amazon's new policy of only dealing with Booksurge and no other POD publisher was this week's topic). Most of the rest of the magazine is just capsule reviews of every book that came out that week, most of which are available for free online and are generally favorable. The last page is something interesting (this week: the day in the life of a publicist) which is meant to get a few chuckles. Again, insider stuff, and we say that because, well, some associate editor taking a new position at Doubleday after leaving Scribner's is not all that important to your writing career. Focus on your writing, polish your query, and you should be fine.
Tuesday, April 08, 2008
Thursday, April 03, 2008
More on Editors vs. Agents
Many editors are not fans of agents.
Most editors will not accept unagented manuscripts.
Please help me understand how this makes sense.
I'll respond to this as a post because I think this is an important request.
With the sheer volume of submissions for publication today, agents have become an additional buffer for the overworked (and trust me, they are overworked) editor. If a novel arrives from an agent, it generally means that at the very least, the novel is going to be the correct genre the editor is interested in, is going to be professional and free of spelling and grammatical errors, and have some literary value. For this reason, editors increasingly rely on agents to provide them with quality material as opposed to looking in the slush pile, and major publishing houses have taken on company wide "no unsolicited submissions" policies (meaning, you need an agent) to prevent the mail room from collapsing under the sheer weight of paper. Editors are subject to the policies of their higher-ups, so that means that not every editor may agree with the policy, but they have to follow it.
When I've spoken to editors outside of my work, they've had mixed feelings about agents. Some like them for the reasons above. Some like them because agents are publishing professionals - they get things done quickly and efficiently, and they understand the ins and outs, and they keep the author from calling every week to see how copy-editing is going. A few don't like them because they know the agent will drive up the price of the book, and the more the advance is, the more copies the book must sell to break even or make a profit (most books barely break even). Some authors, on the other hand, are so eager to be published that they'll sign on the dotted line to any amount, whereas the agent needs the advance as a major source of income and wants it to be as high as possible.
The truth is no one knows how much a book is worth until it goes on bookshelves and starts selling, and that's long after the publishing company has invested at least tens of thousands of dollars in it. Some of those costs are non-negotiable - the book is going to cost money to edit and print and ship. The flexible number is the advance, which can range from $250 to several million. The publishing company, perhaps rightly so, feels that the author wins whether the advance is low or high, because if the book is good, it will sell and the author will make money from royalties. The agent and the author know that the book might not sell, and want all the money they can get up front (which is why it's called "an advance" - it's an advance on future royalties) because the advance isn't returned if the book doesn't sell.
Like any business (and publishing is a business), it all comes down to money. That may sound self-serving, but editors and agents and full-time authors have to pay their rent and their bills and their health insurance just like anyone else. Publishing is already an extremely low-paying industry, so everyone fights for what they can get. Oh, and they also want the book to succeed. You have to be fairly altruistic to be in publishing anyway, because the hours are so long and the pay is so low most of the time.
My first book (here's hoping on the next 3 we're currently pitching to different companies) basically sold at a loss. The advance was so ridiculously low that the hours my agent put into contract negotiations means she lost money with her time, as did I in writing it. Even though it will undoubtedly recoup its advance and I'll see royalties, the royalty rate is an industry bottom (7.5%) so the book would have to be a bestseller for me to see any money and for my agent to see her 15% of that money. We agreed to the contract anyway because it was my first book, and other books will hopefully follow it, and the money will slowly increase until it's substantial. It takes a lot of faith, both in the part of my editor and my agent, to maintain me as a client/author. In other words, I'm lucky for every last penny.
Most editors will not accept unagented manuscripts.
Please help me understand how this makes sense.
I'll respond to this as a post because I think this is an important request.
With the sheer volume of submissions for publication today, agents have become an additional buffer for the overworked (and trust me, they are overworked) editor. If a novel arrives from an agent, it generally means that at the very least, the novel is going to be the correct genre the editor is interested in, is going to be professional and free of spelling and grammatical errors, and have some literary value. For this reason, editors increasingly rely on agents to provide them with quality material as opposed to looking in the slush pile, and major publishing houses have taken on company wide "no unsolicited submissions" policies (meaning, you need an agent) to prevent the mail room from collapsing under the sheer weight of paper. Editors are subject to the policies of their higher-ups, so that means that not every editor may agree with the policy, but they have to follow it.
When I've spoken to editors outside of my work, they've had mixed feelings about agents. Some like them for the reasons above. Some like them because agents are publishing professionals - they get things done quickly and efficiently, and they understand the ins and outs, and they keep the author from calling every week to see how copy-editing is going. A few don't like them because they know the agent will drive up the price of the book, and the more the advance is, the more copies the book must sell to break even or make a profit (most books barely break even). Some authors, on the other hand, are so eager to be published that they'll sign on the dotted line to any amount, whereas the agent needs the advance as a major source of income and wants it to be as high as possible.
The truth is no one knows how much a book is worth until it goes on bookshelves and starts selling, and that's long after the publishing company has invested at least tens of thousands of dollars in it. Some of those costs are non-negotiable - the book is going to cost money to edit and print and ship. The flexible number is the advance, which can range from $250 to several million. The publishing company, perhaps rightly so, feels that the author wins whether the advance is low or high, because if the book is good, it will sell and the author will make money from royalties. The agent and the author know that the book might not sell, and want all the money they can get up front (which is why it's called "an advance" - it's an advance on future royalties) because the advance isn't returned if the book doesn't sell.
Like any business (and publishing is a business), it all comes down to money. That may sound self-serving, but editors and agents and full-time authors have to pay their rent and their bills and their health insurance just like anyone else. Publishing is already an extremely low-paying industry, so everyone fights for what they can get. Oh, and they also want the book to succeed. You have to be fairly altruistic to be in publishing anyway, because the hours are so long and the pay is so low most of the time.
My first book (here's hoping on the next 3 we're currently pitching to different companies) basically sold at a loss. The advance was so ridiculously low that the hours my agent put into contract negotiations means she lost money with her time, as did I in writing it. Even though it will undoubtedly recoup its advance and I'll see royalties, the royalty rate is an industry bottom (7.5%) so the book would have to be a bestseller for me to see any money and for my agent to see her 15% of that money. We agreed to the contract anyway because it was my first book, and other books will hopefully follow it, and the money will slowly increase until it's substantial. It takes a lot of faith, both in the part of my editor and my agent, to maintain me as a client/author. In other words, I'm lucky for every last penny.
The Agent/Author Relationship
I have a question regarding protocol and approaching a publisher directly. I currently have an agent who represents specific projects -- as opposed to representing ME -- and we were recently within a fraction of an inch of a book deal (my first). The publishing team decided to go in a different direction with the book, and assured us it was not an "author issue." Whatever.
I truly enjoy working with this agent, and feel she has my best interest in mind...most of the time. While I do understand this is a business first and that I'm lucky to have an agent at all, my only complaint is that she is not as proactive as I'd like. She runs a small agency, has mountains of work to do for her published clients, and I, therefore, tend to get less time and, in my mind, opportunities.
Can I help? Can I contact publishers on my own after making sure my proposal matches what they publish? If so, can I tell them to contact my agent if there is any interest? Does having an agent make me a stronger candidate or will I simply look foolish?
I don't wish to burn any bridges -- with my agent or a potential publisher -- and I hope to continue working together, but I do get tired of the waiting game and feel I can at least gain exposure and possibly establish a relationship with an editor.
As any agent will tell you, some of them have a more "hand-holding" approach - meaning they spend more time communicating with the author - and others do not, and spend the vast majority of their time working with the editor and publicist to make sure the book is successful after it sells to a publishing house. It's almost entirely dependent on the agent's personality, which is very hard to get a grasp of at first.
A good rule of thumb is to never go over the head of your agent (who is there to protect YOUR interests) without his/her permission. This is a good question to ask: "Should I call the editor about a concern I have?" Another good rule is that if you do have a strong working relationship with your editor and the agent isn't involved in that part of the manuscript, never mention money. As soon as money, deals, contracts come up, direct the editor to your agent.
I do talk to my editor and I do talk to my agent, and the first question I ask is, "Am I interrupting something? I know you're very busy." To my editor my questions are entirely editorial with a few notable exceptions. It just so happens that my editor is not a fan of agents (as many editors are not, viewing them as people who just drive up the price of the novel) and I only got an agent because I got an offer from her first (she accepts unsolicited submissions). So, I'm fairly sure she likes me better than she likes my agent. On occasion I've said to my agent, "Do you think I should go bug ___ about this?" (it being a contractual question) and she usually says to go ahead. This is a matter of the personalities of the three of us - writer, agent, and editor - and the balance between them. We all want the book to be successful, but we all have slightly different views of how that should come to be.
If you're wondering whether it's appropriate to "bug" your agent or editor about some issue that you have, it's perfectly fair to outright ask them if they mind the interruption. Be as brief as possible, and thank them for their time. Eventually you will get a feel for their personalities and when you can call them and when you should put it off until the next time you speak.
To answer your question, which is "Can I help?" the answer is generally that they will tell you if you can. I asked that question once and didn't really get a response, which meant "no." When the time DOES come for your input, show your dedication and respect, and you might be asked for more.
To answer your second, implied question, I can't tell you if your agent is doing a good job or not, but there are long waits in publishing. A "what's going on?" call is acceptable as a client after a few months, and you can ask where she submitted, but this is something that will take its own course. Worse comes to worse, she can't sell the manuscript anywhere, which either means she's not a good agent or she was wrong and the manuscript isn't strong enough to be sold. It's in her interest to sell every manuscript she accepts, and for as much money as possible, so she's not working against you. When she exhausts every possible option (if it comes to that), she'll tell you.
Last point: If you have an agent, do not approach publishers on your own. She will be insulted and it's the wrong thing to do.
I truly enjoy working with this agent, and feel she has my best interest in mind...most of the time. While I do understand this is a business first and that I'm lucky to have an agent at all, my only complaint is that she is not as proactive as I'd like. She runs a small agency, has mountains of work to do for her published clients, and I, therefore, tend to get less time and, in my mind, opportunities.
Can I help? Can I contact publishers on my own after making sure my proposal matches what they publish? If so, can I tell them to contact my agent if there is any interest? Does having an agent make me a stronger candidate or will I simply look foolish?
I don't wish to burn any bridges -- with my agent or a potential publisher -- and I hope to continue working together, but I do get tired of the waiting game and feel I can at least gain exposure and possibly establish a relationship with an editor.
As any agent will tell you, some of them have a more "hand-holding" approach - meaning they spend more time communicating with the author - and others do not, and spend the vast majority of their time working with the editor and publicist to make sure the book is successful after it sells to a publishing house. It's almost entirely dependent on the agent's personality, which is very hard to get a grasp of at first.
A good rule of thumb is to never go over the head of your agent (who is there to protect YOUR interests) without his/her permission. This is a good question to ask: "Should I call the editor about a concern I have?" Another good rule is that if you do have a strong working relationship with your editor and the agent isn't involved in that part of the manuscript, never mention money. As soon as money, deals, contracts come up, direct the editor to your agent.
I do talk to my editor and I do talk to my agent, and the first question I ask is, "Am I interrupting something? I know you're very busy." To my editor my questions are entirely editorial with a few notable exceptions. It just so happens that my editor is not a fan of agents (as many editors are not, viewing them as people who just drive up the price of the novel) and I only got an agent because I got an offer from her first (she accepts unsolicited submissions). So, I'm fairly sure she likes me better than she likes my agent. On occasion I've said to my agent, "Do you think I should go bug ___ about this?" (it being a contractual question) and she usually says to go ahead. This is a matter of the personalities of the three of us - writer, agent, and editor - and the balance between them. We all want the book to be successful, but we all have slightly different views of how that should come to be.
If you're wondering whether it's appropriate to "bug" your agent or editor about some issue that you have, it's perfectly fair to outright ask them if they mind the interruption. Be as brief as possible, and thank them for their time. Eventually you will get a feel for their personalities and when you can call them and when you should put it off until the next time you speak.
To answer your question, which is "Can I help?" the answer is generally that they will tell you if you can. I asked that question once and didn't really get a response, which meant "no." When the time DOES come for your input, show your dedication and respect, and you might be asked for more.
To answer your second, implied question, I can't tell you if your agent is doing a good job or not, but there are long waits in publishing. A "what's going on?" call is acceptable as a client after a few months, and you can ask where she submitted, but this is something that will take its own course. Worse comes to worse, she can't sell the manuscript anywhere, which either means she's not a good agent or she was wrong and the manuscript isn't strong enough to be sold. It's in her interest to sell every manuscript she accepts, and for as much money as possible, so she's not working against you. When she exhausts every possible option (if it comes to that), she'll tell you.
Last point: If you have an agent, do not approach publishers on your own. She will be insulted and it's the wrong thing to do.
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
My hazy return
I'm back from England, which was fun and informative (I'm a big British history fan), but probably would have been a lot better if I wasn't sick with a bad cold and fever the whole time. Well, some things you can't control. Comments are back on.
A couple observations about the English book market:
(1) I saw my first-ever book vending machine in the airport. Awesome.
(2) With everything outrageously expensive in London against the dollar, I was surprised at how reasonably books seemed to be priced. While other products just seemed to have the same price as in America (1.00 for water) only it was in pounds so it was doubled (really $2.00 for water), books generally had lower retail prices than they do here, to reflect that the pound is worth more than the dollar and always has, even though the rates were much better when I was in Oxford in 1998. One novel that cost about $13.95 here cost 7.95 quid there, which was astoundingly fair.
(3) From the bookstores I was in (and believe me, I made the time for it, especially the used ones), it seems that the British are more into trade paperbacks than we are, an important cost-saving measure that I'm surprised we haven't done here. I saw new books that are only available in hardcover here in the States on sale as gigantic trade paperbacks on the front shelves. The downside, of course, is that you'll kill the spine with a huge book like that, but the book is lighter and costs a bit less.
(4) I saw a lot of books that had a glossy plastic cover over them. When I saw people reading them in the underground I thought it was just a library thing, but in a used bookstore, there was a giant pile of donations and most of them had the same plastic cover. Maybe British readers can tell me if this is something that's done regularly. It seems a nice way to protect the book.
A couple observations about the English book market:
(1) I saw my first-ever book vending machine in the airport. Awesome.
(2) With everything outrageously expensive in London against the dollar, I was surprised at how reasonably books seemed to be priced. While other products just seemed to have the same price as in America (1.00 for water) only it was in pounds so it was doubled (really $2.00 for water), books generally had lower retail prices than they do here, to reflect that the pound is worth more than the dollar and always has, even though the rates were much better when I was in Oxford in 1998. One novel that cost about $13.95 here cost 7.95 quid there, which was astoundingly fair.
(3) From the bookstores I was in (and believe me, I made the time for it, especially the used ones), it seems that the British are more into trade paperbacks than we are, an important cost-saving measure that I'm surprised we haven't done here. I saw new books that are only available in hardcover here in the States on sale as gigantic trade paperbacks on the front shelves. The downside, of course, is that you'll kill the spine with a huge book like that, but the book is lighter and costs a bit less.
(4) I saw a lot of books that had a glossy plastic cover over them. When I saw people reading them in the underground I thought it was just a library thing, but in a used bookstore, there was a giant pile of donations and most of them had the same plastic cover. Maybe British readers can tell me if this is something that's done regularly. It seems a nice way to protect the book.
Monday, March 24, 2008
On Hold
I'll be in England for the next week, so I'm disabling the comment feature because I won't be here to approve them.
New readers can take the time to look up older posts, which will probably answer a lot of your questions.
New readers can take the time to look up older posts, which will probably answer a lot of your questions.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
The Job Market and My Boss
Dear Rejecter:
Is your publishing house aware that you are selling your services outside of work?
While I'm sure what you're offering is high-quality, my gentle suggestion is that you check with your senior editor first, before you find a conflict of interest shadowing your career.
Sincerely,
U.S. Writer
Well, yeah, of course she does. She knows about the blog and she knows that I'm looking for other work, even work that would replace the job I have. We've talked about it from time to time.
What I have is a pretty bottom-level job within a two person company, and one of the people is me. It would only get lower if I was an unpaid intern. It's not expected that I'm going to stay working at the literary agency forever. In fact, most people only stay at my position for a year or two, and then the agent (or agents, as many people have multiple jobs and multiple agencies because they need the hours to pay the bills) helps them find a job at a publishing house. It's in the agent's best interest that a former assistant become, hopefully, an editor at a major house, because the agent is thinking that down the line, in 10 years or so, their former assistant may be the person they're pitching a novel to.
I've stayed with the job so long because (1) I was in school full-time until January, (2) I genuinely like my boss and I enjoy my work, (3) until recently I've been too ill for full-time work, (4) I'm a working writer with one book coming out in the fall that's the first in a series and another we're about to try to sell to another company, (5) the job market is completely dead right now.
It may seem a little weird to people who have more traditional jobs that involve getting a job at a company and hoping to get a raise or a promotion that I talk to my employer about job prospects, but people move around a lot in publishing, and it's in everyone's best interest to keep a network of people they know in other agencies/companies. I think when it gets to the corporate level (VP or above) they get extremely secretive about job offers elsewhere, because there actual living wage is involved, but that's at a very high level that most people don't achieve or don't want to achieve.
Is your publishing house aware that you are selling your services outside of work?
While I'm sure what you're offering is high-quality, my gentle suggestion is that you check with your senior editor first, before you find a conflict of interest shadowing your career.
Sincerely,
U.S. Writer
Well, yeah, of course she does. She knows about the blog and she knows that I'm looking for other work, even work that would replace the job I have. We've talked about it from time to time.
What I have is a pretty bottom-level job within a two person company, and one of the people is me. It would only get lower if I was an unpaid intern. It's not expected that I'm going to stay working at the literary agency forever. In fact, most people only stay at my position for a year or two, and then the agent (or agents, as many people have multiple jobs and multiple agencies because they need the hours to pay the bills) helps them find a job at a publishing house. It's in the agent's best interest that a former assistant become, hopefully, an editor at a major house, because the agent is thinking that down the line, in 10 years or so, their former assistant may be the person they're pitching a novel to.
I've stayed with the job so long because (1) I was in school full-time until January, (2) I genuinely like my boss and I enjoy my work, (3) until recently I've been too ill for full-time work, (4) I'm a working writer with one book coming out in the fall that's the first in a series and another we're about to try to sell to another company, (5) the job market is completely dead right now.
It may seem a little weird to people who have more traditional jobs that involve getting a job at a company and hoping to get a raise or a promotion that I talk to my employer about job prospects, but people move around a lot in publishing, and it's in everyone's best interest to keep a network of people they know in other agencies/companies. I think when it gets to the corporate level (VP or above) they get extremely secretive about job offers elsewhere, because there actual living wage is involved, but that's at a very high level that most people don't achieve or don't want to achieve.
Friday, March 21, 2008
Queries Go Into Repeats
Normally I wouldn't post about a specific query, but I honestly think this guy does not own a computer. If he did, maybe the query wouldn't be made on a typewriter.
About every 3 months or so - sometimes more, sometimes less - we get the same query from this crazy ex-army guy. After the "Dear ____" line, he launches into a 3 page, single-spaced, type-written discussion of his theory about how every single president since Roosevelt has been a Communist. All of their policies are "pro-Red," some of them gave information to the KGB, and basically we're totally screwed and we've been screwed for a while because our government is run by a shadow government in Moscow. He ends with a photocopy of his honorary discharge papers, for reasons that remain unexplained.
The second time we got it, we wrote a note saying it was the second time and we still weren't interested. Today, I wrote a little PS saying that it was the third time and we still weren't interested.
There are a class of people who buy a Writer's Digest, make a lot of photocopies, and just mail a query out blindly to every agency on the list. Then when they get rejected, they wait a little bit and send it out again. If the query hasn't changed at all we notice it. If the query is distinctive (like this guy's) we make it a point to, you know, tell him we aren't interested. The fact that he's a conspiracy nut makes it all the better, or at least more interesting.
If you work at a literary agency, have you gotten a letter from this guy?
About every 3 months or so - sometimes more, sometimes less - we get the same query from this crazy ex-army guy. After the "Dear ____" line, he launches into a 3 page, single-spaced, type-written discussion of his theory about how every single president since Roosevelt has been a Communist. All of their policies are "pro-Red," some of them gave information to the KGB, and basically we're totally screwed and we've been screwed for a while because our government is run by a shadow government in Moscow. He ends with a photocopy of his honorary discharge papers, for reasons that remain unexplained.
The second time we got it, we wrote a note saying it was the second time and we still weren't interested. Today, I wrote a little PS saying that it was the third time and we still weren't interested.
There are a class of people who buy a Writer's Digest, make a lot of photocopies, and just mail a query out blindly to every agency on the list. Then when they get rejected, they wait a little bit and send it out again. If the query hasn't changed at all we notice it. If the query is distinctive (like this guy's) we make it a point to, you know, tell him we aren't interested. The fact that he's a conspiracy nut makes it all the better, or at least more interesting.
If you work at a literary agency, have you gotten a letter from this guy?
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Autobiographical
Just have to ask: do you write, send in submissions, and get rejected, too?
Just curious about what you want to be/do besides be "the rejecter."
In 5 years, what would you like to be? A published fiction writer? A screenwriter? In PR? A venture capitalist? Living in Alaska?
I did the whole submission/rejection business for years, finally got an offer on the third novel I tried to submit last summer. It's coming out in September. I've got two more in the pipeline that we're (me and my agent, not related to my boss) hoping to sell for actual money, instead of the tiny advance for the first one.
In five years I'd like to have all 10 of my historical fiction novels (9 written) bought, along with possibly some of my other work, and be living off my writing. That's my dream.
Just curious about what you want to be/do besides be "the rejecter."
In 5 years, what would you like to be? A published fiction writer? A screenwriter? In PR? A venture capitalist? Living in Alaska?
I did the whole submission/rejection business for years, finally got an offer on the third novel I tried to submit last summer. It's coming out in September. I've got two more in the pipeline that we're (me and my agent, not related to my boss) hoping to sell for actual money, instead of the tiny advance for the first one.
In five years I'd like to have all 10 of my historical fiction novels (9 written) bought, along with possibly some of my other work, and be living off my writing. That's my dream.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Impromptu Translation Market Discussion
I found this funny.
Novelist Strike Fails to Affect Nation Whatsover
Hi,
I'm an aspiring writer from Europe. Although it's not my first language, I do all my fiction writing in English. When submitting queries to agents, I was wondering how relevant my job is: I translate non-fiction texts to English, specifically websites and flyers for relatively small companies. It's not fiction, and it's not my own writing, but I do get paid for something that relates to my knowledge of the English language and ability to string sentences together in a vaguely coherent fashion (which is always a plus in writing). Since I have no other writing credentials, this was all I could think of that *might* be relevant in a query letter. What do you think/recommend? Would you see it as positive, neutral, or as grasping at straws?
And while we're on that subject, do you recommend mentioning that I'm a foreign author in the query letter, or to not bring it up until later (on the off chance that the agent is interested in my work)?
To answer your questions in random order:
(1) If your first language is English or you are very, very good at it and primarily write in it (as you seem to), there is no harm in saying you are a foreign writer. Some agents actually find it exotic, and there is an increasing interest in foreign markets (especially with the strength of the euro), so so ahead. Some people who do not know enough English to write in English do query us, but it's always very obvious from their query that they cannot write in English and would require a translator to help them.
(2) By all means, mention any translation work in or out of English, as that is a serious writing credit. Translation, as you know, is very difficult, and if you've done it professionally, it shows how you understand the importance of selecting words and phrases to convey meaning.
To discuss the topic at large, and not your questions specifically, there is a translation market in the US that is always seeking translators, small though it may be. The US market is notoriously xenophobic, and we export far more literature (translated and untranslated) than we import, so generally people who do work in translating foreign works into English are very proud and occasionally a little self-righteous about it.
The English language market is the biggest market for the written word in the world except perhaps for China (in Mandarin). There are a number of historical, political, and economic reasons for this. Thanks to British and American colonialism, English is spoken at least as a second language in - I want to say a majority of countries, but I can't back it up. America and Britain also have strong economies that can support massive book production and have high literacy rates, meaning we are an atmosphere to produce more readers and more people who have enough of a separate income to become writers. While China is approaching us on this, China also has massive state suppression of the press, which includes Chinese novels and the importation and translation of foreign novelists. My convocation speaker at Brown was some Chinese exile poet we'd never heard of.
The biggest translation market in the US, in both directions, is Spanish. English works are constantly translated into Spanish for Spanish-speaking Americans, while Spanish works are particularly hot items on the literary fiction market (especially if the writers are from South America). When I took a translation course for my MFA program to pass my second language competency requirement, almost everyone in the room did Spanish except for a few people who did French because they took it in high school, and three others. I did ancient Hebrew, one woman did Yiddish, and one girl was from Taiwan and did Chinese.
I'm forgetting a lot of growing markets, and leaving out religious markets (which aside from the Christian ones, are almost entirely separate from mainstream publishing) because this is off the top of my head. For all of the Arabic speakers in the world, I've seen very few translations of text that aren't the Qur'an (for which, I recommend Ahmed Ali's translation). Some famous Russian literature of course comes to mind, though most of it dates to pre-Communist or early Communist Russia. And then there's French literature, a lot of dating from when French was a second language to everyone who spoke English (i.e. the 1200s to the 1900s). So excuse me for leaving out major contributions here, but I think you get the gist of what I'm saying.
Novelist Strike Fails to Affect Nation Whatsover
Hi,
I'm an aspiring writer from Europe. Although it's not my first language, I do all my fiction writing in English. When submitting queries to agents, I was wondering how relevant my job is: I translate non-fiction texts to English, specifically websites and flyers for relatively small companies. It's not fiction, and it's not my own writing, but I do get paid for something that relates to my knowledge of the English language and ability to string sentences together in a vaguely coherent fashion (which is always a plus in writing). Since I have no other writing credentials, this was all I could think of that *might* be relevant in a query letter. What do you think/recommend? Would you see it as positive, neutral, or as grasping at straws?
And while we're on that subject, do you recommend mentioning that I'm a foreign author in the query letter, or to not bring it up until later (on the off chance that the agent is interested in my work)?
To answer your questions in random order:
(1) If your first language is English or you are very, very good at it and primarily write in it (as you seem to), there is no harm in saying you are a foreign writer. Some agents actually find it exotic, and there is an increasing interest in foreign markets (especially with the strength of the euro), so so ahead. Some people who do not know enough English to write in English do query us, but it's always very obvious from their query that they cannot write in English and would require a translator to help them.
(2) By all means, mention any translation work in or out of English, as that is a serious writing credit. Translation, as you know, is very difficult, and if you've done it professionally, it shows how you understand the importance of selecting words and phrases to convey meaning.
To discuss the topic at large, and not your questions specifically, there is a translation market in the US that is always seeking translators, small though it may be. The US market is notoriously xenophobic, and we export far more literature (translated and untranslated) than we import, so generally people who do work in translating foreign works into English are very proud and occasionally a little self-righteous about it.
The English language market is the biggest market for the written word in the world except perhaps for China (in Mandarin). There are a number of historical, political, and economic reasons for this. Thanks to British and American colonialism, English is spoken at least as a second language in - I want to say a majority of countries, but I can't back it up. America and Britain also have strong economies that can support massive book production and have high literacy rates, meaning we are an atmosphere to produce more readers and more people who have enough of a separate income to become writers. While China is approaching us on this, China also has massive state suppression of the press, which includes Chinese novels and the importation and translation of foreign novelists. My convocation speaker at Brown was some Chinese exile poet we'd never heard of.
The biggest translation market in the US, in both directions, is Spanish. English works are constantly translated into Spanish for Spanish-speaking Americans, while Spanish works are particularly hot items on the literary fiction market (especially if the writers are from South America). When I took a translation course for my MFA program to pass my second language competency requirement, almost everyone in the room did Spanish except for a few people who did French because they took it in high school, and three others. I did ancient Hebrew, one woman did Yiddish, and one girl was from Taiwan and did Chinese.
I'm forgetting a lot of growing markets, and leaving out religious markets (which aside from the Christian ones, are almost entirely separate from mainstream publishing) because this is off the top of my head. For all of the Arabic speakers in the world, I've seen very few translations of text that aren't the Qur'an (for which, I recommend Ahmed Ali's translation). Some famous Russian literature of course comes to mind, though most of it dates to pre-Communist or early Communist Russia. And then there's French literature, a lot of dating from when French was a second language to everyone who spoke English (i.e. the 1200s to the 1900s). So excuse me for leaving out major contributions here, but I think you get the gist of what I'm saying.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Successful Queries
Dear Rejector,
What I always wished I could see would be query letter examples of books that 'made it' - you know, show me Stephen King's query letter for 'Carrie,' show me Alcott's query letter for 'Little Women,' show me a query letter for any of Oprah's books (which may or may not have deserved to make it, but that's neither here nor there). It's instructive because of what the authors leave out, much more than what they put in, you know? For all I know there's a website that does this, or a book of published ones, but I've never heard of any. If you have, would love to see it! Thanks!
and
Dear Rejecter,
I like your blog--thanks for sharing your insights. Here's my question: you say you put aside 5% in the "maybe" stack. There's so much info out there to warn the clueless, but very little for those people who are almost there, but not quite. I'm thinking of the ones getting full requests, getting comments back, yet ultimately end up with a pass. Could you explain a little about the line between YES! and We-e-e-ll, not quite?
Signed,
Curious
I get a lot of emails asking me to present a query that worked, and I've never done it. A couple of reasons:
(1) We generally do not keep them around.
(2) That would be a violation of copyright, as the author of the letter has a copyright on the letter.
(3) It's not very polite to do to the author.
(4) It wouldn't help you.
Once again, the basic query format is 2-3 paragraphs telling us what your book is about in a way that makes it sound awesome, and the last paragraph contains some technical information about the book and any writing credentials you may have. It isn't any more complicated than that.
I put a query in the maybe pile because it does just that: It makes the book idea seem interesting, or at least, would seem interesting to my boss (she has different tastes than I do, but for the purposes of my job, only her tastes are relevant). Me posting a query that got her attention because the author had a good idea would not help you very much because it doesn't help you with your idea, which I presume is different. Only you have the power to write a great book and then summarize it so well it sounds like we have to read it, and no amount of reading other people's book ideas is going to help you do that.
What I always wished I could see would be query letter examples of books that 'made it' - you know, show me Stephen King's query letter for 'Carrie,' show me Alcott's query letter for 'Little Women,' show me a query letter for any of Oprah's books (which may or may not have deserved to make it, but that's neither here nor there). It's instructive because of what the authors leave out, much more than what they put in, you know? For all I know there's a website that does this, or a book of published ones, but I've never heard of any. If you have, would love to see it! Thanks!
and
Dear Rejecter,
I like your blog--thanks for sharing your insights. Here's my question: you say you put aside 5% in the "maybe" stack. There's so much info out there to warn the clueless, but very little for those people who are almost there, but not quite. I'm thinking of the ones getting full requests, getting comments back, yet ultimately end up with a pass. Could you explain a little about the line between YES! and We-e-e-ll, not quite?
Signed,
Curious
I get a lot of emails asking me to present a query that worked, and I've never done it. A couple of reasons:
(1) We generally do not keep them around.
(2) That would be a violation of copyright, as the author of the letter has a copyright on the letter.
(3) It's not very polite to do to the author.
(4) It wouldn't help you.
Once again, the basic query format is 2-3 paragraphs telling us what your book is about in a way that makes it sound awesome, and the last paragraph contains some technical information about the book and any writing credentials you may have. It isn't any more complicated than that.
I put a query in the maybe pile because it does just that: It makes the book idea seem interesting, or at least, would seem interesting to my boss (she has different tastes than I do, but for the purposes of my job, only her tastes are relevant). Me posting a query that got her attention because the author had a good idea would not help you very much because it doesn't help you with your idea, which I presume is different. Only you have the power to write a great book and then summarize it so well it sounds like we have to read it, and no amount of reading other people's book ideas is going to help you do that.
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Reviewers as Writers
Amazon Affiliates thing is up. I do solemnly promise to only post links to books I have read and enjoyed and/or think are valuable. This will severely narrow down the list of things in the store, but what can you do?
Dear Rejecter,
I'm a writer who MAY be ready to send things to agents soon- after three drafts, it's with members of the writing group I belong to. I'm writing- and trashing draft after draft of- a query letter. I'm trying to figure out if the book reviews I'm doing count as a writing credit- I'm not getting paid and I only got the job because my cousin works there. But none of that is what's bothering me.
I keep getting the feeling I've missed something. So I was wondering if you could tell me the mistakes most people querying make- not necessarily the ones the nitwits would make, but the mistakes or stylistic errors people who clearly put time and effort into something tend to miss. Care to enlighten me before I start my rejection pile?
I don't really think it counts as a "writing" credit, but it's a publishing credit (provided it's a legitimate review group) and therefore worth mentioning.
As for the second question, I have to say I get this a lot, and I answered it pretty early in the blog: Two paragraphs describing your novel, one paragraph listing word count, title, genre, and any credits, and don't do anything gimmicky or stupid. It's not harder than that, though that is pretty hard.
Sadly, mistakes generally fall into two categories: querying an agency that doesn't handle that genre (which would account for about half of my rejection pile), and not having a good novel in the first place, which admittedly is pretty hard to tell if you're the writer.
Dear Rejecter,
I'm a writer who MAY be ready to send things to agents soon- after three drafts, it's with members of the writing group I belong to. I'm writing- and trashing draft after draft of- a query letter. I'm trying to figure out if the book reviews I'm doing count as a writing credit- I'm not getting paid and I only got the job because my cousin works there. But none of that is what's bothering me.
I keep getting the feeling I've missed something. So I was wondering if you could tell me the mistakes most people querying make- not necessarily the ones the nitwits would make, but the mistakes or stylistic errors people who clearly put time and effort into something tend to miss. Care to enlighten me before I start my rejection pile?
I don't really think it counts as a "writing" credit, but it's a publishing credit (provided it's a legitimate review group) and therefore worth mentioning.
As for the second question, I have to say I get this a lot, and I answered it pretty early in the blog: Two paragraphs describing your novel, one paragraph listing word count, title, genre, and any credits, and don't do anything gimmicky or stupid. It's not harder than that, though that is pretty hard.
Sadly, mistakes generally fall into two categories: querying an agency that doesn't handle that genre (which would account for about half of my rejection pile), and not having a good novel in the first place, which admittedly is pretty hard to tell if you're the writer.
I Am Speechless (Metaphorically)
So apparently writing "Websites by Scam Agents and Fake Contests" was not obvious enough for some people, who have emailed me under the impression that I either (a) endorse the agencies Google Adsense chooses to put in my ad space or (b) work for them. I honestly don't know how much more obvious I could be, short of writing a paragraph saying HI GOOGLE SELECTS ADS BASED ON PAGE CONTENT AND THE ADS ARE FOR SCAM AGENCIES DO NOT USE THOSE AGENCIES AND IF YOU CANNOT READ THESE WORDS YOU PROBABLY CAN'T READ AND SO WHY HAVE YOU BOTHERED TO WRITE A NOVEL IF YOU'RE NOT LITERATE?
Seriously people. As far as I can tell, I cannot ask Google to eliminate certain sites as much as I can specify which ones I want to use (thereby eliminating everything else) but I can't think of anything I want to use, much less dozens of sites that are advertising. So I'm torn between the money (which has been $40 so far) and worrying about sheer idiocy.
I could try an affiliate program with Amazon, but honestly I would only endorse books I've both read and liked, so that narrows it down a lot.
Seriously people. As far as I can tell, I cannot ask Google to eliminate certain sites as much as I can specify which ones I want to use (thereby eliminating everything else) but I can't think of anything I want to use, much less dozens of sites that are advertising. So I'm torn between the money (which has been $40 so far) and worrying about sheer idiocy.
I could try an affiliate program with Amazon, but honestly I would only endorse books I've both read and liked, so that narrows it down a lot.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Rejections Are A Hint
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Dear Rejecter:
My first novel has received several detailed, flattering rejections from some of New York's top agents. They say the story is well-plotted, deftly written, poignant, a hell of a read, has memorable characters and I'm evidently enormously talented as well as gifted. However — and there's always a however or a but or a sorry — none of these agents has offered representation, citing the crowded and difficult fiction market. I sympathize with their plight, but what am I to do? My query letter works, my novel works, yet I can't get an agent. Help!
Signed,
Frustrated
I think everyone who's spent any time reading this blog knows what I'm going to say here, which is that clearly this person's novel doesn't work. If it did, the many, many people who are paid by their ability to valuate novels for their potential quality would have replied positively. The query letter might be bad and the novel is probably bad too. Write another one.
Dear Rejecter:
My first novel has received several detailed, flattering rejections from some of New York's top agents. They say the story is well-plotted, deftly written, poignant, a hell of a read, has memorable characters and I'm evidently enormously talented as well as gifted. However — and there's always a however or a but or a sorry — none of these agents has offered representation, citing the crowded and difficult fiction market. I sympathize with their plight, but what am I to do? My query letter works, my novel works, yet I can't get an agent. Help!
Signed,
Frustrated
I think everyone who's spent any time reading this blog knows what I'm going to say here, which is that clearly this person's novel doesn't work. If it did, the many, many people who are paid by their ability to valuate novels for their potential quality would have replied positively. The query letter might be bad and the novel is probably bad too. Write another one.
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
The Job Market
Well, the job market is just terrible right now in publishing, and though I am still employed, I seek more employment. Until that happens, does anyone mind if I put up some banner ads? I'm not trying to become an internet millionaire here, but I'd like to pay the electricity bill.
Or if you want to employ The Rejector for your publishing-related purposes, you probably grasp from this blog that I have some sense of the industry and experience in it, can do some editing (I'm better at other people's work than my own words), and have an MFA in Fiction. Email me. I will not grant interviews that involve the words "abandoned" or "alley."
Or if you want to employ The Rejector for your publishing-related purposes, you probably grasp from this blog that I have some sense of the industry and experience in it, can do some editing (I'm better at other people's work than my own words), and have an MFA in Fiction. Email me. I will not grant interviews that involve the words "abandoned" or "alley."
Submitting Again
Dear Rejecter,
I'm in a bit of a quandary and a little confused. I started submitting my first novel about five years ago and received several requests for partials/fulls and even managed to option the film rights (alas a no go.) Everybody passed, so back to the old drawing board to rewrite with the help of a writing coach since I had no idea how to write a novel. Resubmitted to some of the agents who had requested additional material and again all passes. (I still had a lot to learn about characterization and I may still have a lot to learn. Hope not.)
Fast forward three years, a partially completed second novel and a complete reworking of first novel and I learn that an agent who is a partner to one of the aforementioned agents (who was kind enough to take a look at my first rewrite and then passed again) is looking for material in a category that might encompass my first novel. She requests a partial after getting my query and then . . . silence. Three months later, after a polite inquiry. More silence.
Apparently I have violated some unwritten code of ethics. (Their agency website does not address this issue nor state outright that a "No" from one agent means a "No" from all agents. Because so much time had passed -- almost three years -- and the material was so different and re-titled, I assumed it would be viewed as something new. It appears I was wrong. But I'm not sure.) I've never read anything on a writer's blog about the appropriateness of submitting to a different agent in an agency after requested material is declined.
I am getting ready to send out queries on my second novel which is in an entirely different genre from the first and which is best suited to the first agent from the agency in question and now I don't know what to do. They would have been on the top of my list. Now I'm wondering if I should cross them off all together. I would have liked to work with them, assuming, of course, my second novel is publishable. Yes, I know. Lots of fish in the sea. But . . .Any advice?
So I'm a bit confused myself, as to why you think you violated a code of ethics because you didn't get a response. Sometimes agents don't respond. It's not very professional but agents are busy. It's nothing to take personally.
Here are some handy rules that other agent blogs will surely disagree with me on:
(1) It is generally considered OK to query other agents in the same group. Just don't do them all at once and have the letters arrive on the same day, as it looks sort of tacky.
(2) If you're resubmitting a manuscript, chances are the agent will recognize if they read the whole thing both times. We have long memories for plotlines and writing styles. And there was probably a valid reason we rejected you the first time, so don't be surprised if we do it a second time. Sometimes the reason is "well, I just don't like the story" or "I'm just bored by the writing" and not "I had a problem with this scene and some of the grammar."
Every once in a while we have to go through the "Have we seen this query letter/manuscript?" game, and we don't like the game very much. Mention that it's a re-submission. Emphasize your revisions. It's worth a shot. Then try some other agencies.
(3) If it is a totally new manuscript that you are submitting to an agent who rejected a manuscript like 5 years ago, you can resubmit with no mention of a former submission. We don't care.
I'm in a bit of a quandary and a little confused. I started submitting my first novel about five years ago and received several requests for partials/fulls and even managed to option the film rights (alas a no go.) Everybody passed, so back to the old drawing board to rewrite with the help of a writing coach since I had no idea how to write a novel. Resubmitted to some of the agents who had requested additional material and again all passes. (I still had a lot to learn about characterization and I may still have a lot to learn. Hope not.)
Fast forward three years, a partially completed second novel and a complete reworking of first novel and I learn that an agent who is a partner to one of the aforementioned agents (who was kind enough to take a look at my first rewrite and then passed again) is looking for material in a category that might encompass my first novel. She requests a partial after getting my query and then . . . silence. Three months later, after a polite inquiry. More silence.
Apparently I have violated some unwritten code of ethics. (Their agency website does not address this issue nor state outright that a "No" from one agent means a "No" from all agents. Because so much time had passed -- almost three years -- and the material was so different and re-titled, I assumed it would be viewed as something new. It appears I was wrong. But I'm not sure.) I've never read anything on a writer's blog about the appropriateness of submitting to a different agent in an agency after requested material is declined.
I am getting ready to send out queries on my second novel which is in an entirely different genre from the first and which is best suited to the first agent from the agency in question and now I don't know what to do. They would have been on the top of my list. Now I'm wondering if I should cross them off all together. I would have liked to work with them, assuming, of course, my second novel is publishable. Yes, I know. Lots of fish in the sea. But . . .Any advice?
So I'm a bit confused myself, as to why you think you violated a code of ethics because you didn't get a response. Sometimes agents don't respond. It's not very professional but agents are busy. It's nothing to take personally.
Here are some handy rules that other agent blogs will surely disagree with me on:
(1) It is generally considered OK to query other agents in the same group. Just don't do them all at once and have the letters arrive on the same day, as it looks sort of tacky.
(2) If you're resubmitting a manuscript, chances are the agent will recognize if they read the whole thing both times. We have long memories for plotlines and writing styles. And there was probably a valid reason we rejected you the first time, so don't be surprised if we do it a second time. Sometimes the reason is "well, I just don't like the story" or "I'm just bored by the writing" and not "I had a problem with this scene and some of the grammar."
Every once in a while we have to go through the "Have we seen this query letter/manuscript?" game, and we don't like the game very much. Mention that it's a re-submission. Emphasize your revisions. It's worth a shot. Then try some other agencies.
(3) If it is a totally new manuscript that you are submitting to an agent who rejected a manuscript like 5 years ago, you can resubmit with no mention of a former submission. We don't care.
Thursday, March 06, 2008
A Question of Style
Rejecter,
The topic of using italics came up in my writer's group last meeting. Specifically, we were discussing the merits of using italics to indicate the thoughts of the character. A typical passage:
"Peter turned to face the monster. Unbelievable, that thing has enormous fangs! He gulped and picked up his sword."
Some writers, such as Terry Pratchett, use this method selectively and with some success, while others, such as David Payne, use it extensively and not with great success.
I started to use italics as thoughts in writing, but after I read Payne's Back to Wando Passo, his excessive use of italics felt cumbersome and I never bothered to finish the story. It even encouraged me to go back and rewrite my novel to remove the italics.
I have noticed that the usage of italics for thoughts is slowly becoming more common in fiction, which leads me to ask this question: how do agents/editors view italics as thoughts? Is it discouraged, encouraged, or do different people have different views?
This is really more of a stylistic question than a publishing question, but as a writer myself currently entrenched in editing my second novel for publication, I'd be happy to give my opinion.
As writers practice their craft, they experiment with different techniques with language. Most people who write constantly experience fads, where they like a concept (such as using a lot of italics to indicate inner thought) and use it to the point of overusing it, at which point they might realize what they're doing and stop. This usually comes from some recent external influence. From ages 13 to about 15 I was really into ...s everywhere to indicate the pacing of the sentences because I was reading a lot of fanfic writers who were doing it. It was an embarassing phase for me, but I learned from my mistakes. Also, not all of my experiments have been mistakes. Some legitimately entered my style as a common technique.
If you find something new and you like it, have fun with it, but be aware that you shouldn't overuse it, especially if it's grammatically incorrect.
The topic of using italics came up in my writer's group last meeting. Specifically, we were discussing the merits of using italics to indicate the thoughts of the character. A typical passage:
"Peter turned to face the monster. Unbelievable, that thing has enormous fangs! He gulped and picked up his sword."
Some writers, such as Terry Pratchett, use this method selectively and with some success, while others, such as David Payne, use it extensively and not with great success.
I started to use italics as thoughts in writing, but after I read Payne's Back to Wando Passo, his excessive use of italics felt cumbersome and I never bothered to finish the story. It even encouraged me to go back and rewrite my novel to remove the italics.
I have noticed that the usage of italics for thoughts is slowly becoming more common in fiction, which leads me to ask this question: how do agents/editors view italics as thoughts? Is it discouraged, encouraged, or do different people have different views?
This is really more of a stylistic question than a publishing question, but as a writer myself currently entrenched in editing my second novel for publication, I'd be happy to give my opinion.
As writers practice their craft, they experiment with different techniques with language. Most people who write constantly experience fads, where they like a concept (such as using a lot of italics to indicate inner thought) and use it to the point of overusing it, at which point they might realize what they're doing and stop. This usually comes from some recent external influence. From ages 13 to about 15 I was really into ...s everywhere to indicate the pacing of the sentences because I was reading a lot of fanfic writers who were doing it. It was an embarassing phase for me, but I learned from my mistakes. Also, not all of my experiments have been mistakes. Some legitimately entered my style as a common technique.
If you find something new and you like it, have fun with it, but be aware that you shouldn't overuse it, especially if it's grammatically incorrect.
Monday, March 03, 2008
Waiting and Choosing Agents
Dear Rejecter,
While new to the "The Rejecter" as such, I thought I was familiar with rejection until I received a request for a full from a repudiable NY agency last July and have yet to hear a word. Could that be considered a rejection by omission rather than rejection by commission? What's the protocal regarding an e-mail to the agency and asking "What's up?"
Three months is the average wait for a partial or full. A good way to put it is, "I just wanted to contact you and make sure the manuscript was safely received." That's a good way of not stepping on any toes.
Dear Rejecter,
Let's say that you finally get that phone call from an agent offering representation. Are there any questions that you think writers should ask before making their decision to work with that agent? Is there any way to tell if that agent is the right fit for you?
It's very difficult. A good thing to do is ask them questions about where they would submit your novel and what they could do for its publicity. Try to get a feel for how excited they are about it and how committed they would be to the project.
If you have multiple books in multiple genres, try to get an agent who works in all of those genres. That's what I did when I was selecting between agents, and now my agent is helping me revise my second novel, which is sci-fi, for publication.
While new to the "The Rejecter" as such, I thought I was familiar with rejection until I received a request for a full from a repudiable NY agency last July and have yet to hear a word. Could that be considered a rejection by omission rather than rejection by commission? What's the protocal regarding an e-mail to the agency and asking "What's up?"
Three months is the average wait for a partial or full. A good way to put it is, "I just wanted to contact you and make sure the manuscript was safely received." That's a good way of not stepping on any toes.
Dear Rejecter,
Let's say that you finally get that phone call from an agent offering representation. Are there any questions that you think writers should ask before making their decision to work with that agent? Is there any way to tell if that agent is the right fit for you?
It's very difficult. A good thing to do is ask them questions about where they would submit your novel and what they could do for its publicity. Try to get a feel for how excited they are about it and how committed they would be to the project.
If you have multiple books in multiple genres, try to get an agent who works in all of those genres. That's what I did when I was selecting between agents, and now my agent is helping me revise my second novel, which is sci-fi, for publication.
Thursday, February 28, 2008
The Oscars Post
For those of you interested in the literary vs. commercial fiction argument, you can look for another example of it in the Academy Awards, which I painfully got through most of on Sunday night. Nobody in Hollywood should really be stumped as to why they have such low ratings. Without the glamor, the celebrities, and the jokes, it would be nothing but an expensive graduation ceremony for the honors students.
I'm going to make a wild guess that most people who tuned in had not seen most of the nominees in most categories (except perhaps the sound and technical categories). I see a lot of movies over the course of the year - I'm going to say 20+ - and I had only seen two of the five nominated for Best Picture, and the second one (Juno) was because I was dragged by my mother and grandmother. Michael Clayton was great, though not Best Picture great. No Country for Old Men I consistently put off in favor of movies that were more fun because everyone I know who saw it said it was long, slow, and had a confusing ending. There Will Be Blood had an extremely limited release and came out at a time when I was especially busy with other things. Atonement I just plain didn't want to see; I can't properly explain it but some movies just put me off.
If not for a lot of publicity and the nominations themselves, the main winners of the evening are easily in reverse proportion to box office proceeds, which means most people didn't see them in favor of "crap." Spider-man 3 was the highest grossing movie of the year. It was followed by other action-adventure movies, only a few of which were nominated for anything other than freebies like costume and sound mixing. I don't even know what sound mixing is, but it gave Bourne Ultimatum the most awards it in a tie with No Country for Old Men.
As we get to know the awards process better, we learn that maybe it's in Hollywood's best interest that we don't. The voters, it seems, are industry insiders and experts (that means retirees with experience and a lot of time on their hands). It also includes actors, who can even vote for themselves and their friends with a clear conscience. In other words, they live in the fantasy world they created and they award accordingly, with little concern to which movies the public seemed to be willing to part with hard-earned money for. Now I'm not saying the tons of bad J-horror remakes I see should win anything, but man do I love them and I'll see them over a long, pretentious movie any day.
The Academy is what it is: a group of expert voters who have the qualifications to discern what is quality and the time to see every movie to make sure that they have what to compare to. In other words, yes, they should be the decision makers, but I increasingly don't like that they ask me to care. I can tell what's a quality movie or not - it's just my choice whether to devote the time to see it. I went out of my way to see Persepolis, which got robbed despite being an uneven movie that was not as good as the two books it was based on.
In short, if you haven't guessed the metaphor, Winners = Mostly Literary Fiction, and Ignored Movies = Commercial Fiction. It would be a better comparison if the Pulitzers had many categories, a flashy show to promote itself, and months and months of hype. Fortunately it remains what it is: a bunch of professionals sitting in a room, discussing it down to the last few books and then a vote. I think that's about all of the process we could stand, though a nominee list would be nice for those of us who do seek out quality literary fiction.
Also, 300 got fucking robbed in every technical category there was.
I'm going to make a wild guess that most people who tuned in had not seen most of the nominees in most categories (except perhaps the sound and technical categories). I see a lot of movies over the course of the year - I'm going to say 20+ - and I had only seen two of the five nominated for Best Picture, and the second one (Juno) was because I was dragged by my mother and grandmother. Michael Clayton was great, though not Best Picture great. No Country for Old Men I consistently put off in favor of movies that were more fun because everyone I know who saw it said it was long, slow, and had a confusing ending. There Will Be Blood had an extremely limited release and came out at a time when I was especially busy with other things. Atonement I just plain didn't want to see; I can't properly explain it but some movies just put me off.
If not for a lot of publicity and the nominations themselves, the main winners of the evening are easily in reverse proportion to box office proceeds, which means most people didn't see them in favor of "crap." Spider-man 3 was the highest grossing movie of the year. It was followed by other action-adventure movies, only a few of which were nominated for anything other than freebies like costume and sound mixing. I don't even know what sound mixing is, but it gave Bourne Ultimatum the most awards it in a tie with No Country for Old Men.
As we get to know the awards process better, we learn that maybe it's in Hollywood's best interest that we don't. The voters, it seems, are industry insiders and experts (that means retirees with experience and a lot of time on their hands). It also includes actors, who can even vote for themselves and their friends with a clear conscience. In other words, they live in the fantasy world they created and they award accordingly, with little concern to which movies the public seemed to be willing to part with hard-earned money for. Now I'm not saying the tons of bad J-horror remakes I see should win anything, but man do I love them and I'll see them over a long, pretentious movie any day.
The Academy is what it is: a group of expert voters who have the qualifications to discern what is quality and the time to see every movie to make sure that they have what to compare to. In other words, yes, they should be the decision makers, but I increasingly don't like that they ask me to care. I can tell what's a quality movie or not - it's just my choice whether to devote the time to see it. I went out of my way to see Persepolis, which got robbed despite being an uneven movie that was not as good as the two books it was based on.
In short, if you haven't guessed the metaphor, Winners = Mostly Literary Fiction, and Ignored Movies = Commercial Fiction. It would be a better comparison if the Pulitzers had many categories, a flashy show to promote itself, and months and months of hype. Fortunately it remains what it is: a bunch of professionals sitting in a room, discussing it down to the last few books and then a vote. I think that's about all of the process we could stand, though a nominee list would be nice for those of us who do seek out quality literary fiction.
Also, 300 got fucking robbed in every technical category there was.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Comic Book Writers
Hello Rejecter,
Have you ever worked with someone who wrote for comics before turning to novels? Seeing how I write what could be called "fantasy thrillers" I've had little success in getting a short story published; most magazines and journals seem to favor literary fiction.
Not that I think that comics will be any easier to break into, but at least there are plenty of opportunities for writers like me who favor a more commercial kind of story.
I remember a case where we thought about representing someone who was really more of an artist than a writer. His prose was terrible, but the drawings were awesome. We told him to go write a graphic novel instead of trying to write a novel with illustrations.
If you've been published as a comic book writer, that's a legitimate previous publication and you should list it in your query letter in the credentials section. That said, you still have to write a great novel.
Have you ever worked with someone who wrote for comics before turning to novels? Seeing how I write what could be called "fantasy thrillers" I've had little success in getting a short story published; most magazines and journals seem to favor literary fiction.
Not that I think that comics will be any easier to break into, but at least there are plenty of opportunities for writers like me who favor a more commercial kind of story.
I remember a case where we thought about representing someone who was really more of an artist than a writer. His prose was terrible, but the drawings were awesome. We told him to go write a graphic novel instead of trying to write a novel with illustrations.
If you've been published as a comic book writer, that's a legitimate previous publication and you should list it in your query letter in the credentials section. That said, you still have to write a great novel.
Friday, February 22, 2008
Save Money, But Not Too Much
Encountered a bunch of these today:
(1) Do not send a post card query with your novel's website, unless it has a postcard SASE, and those don't exist. We will not check your website. We will not even like you very much for your total lack of effort. If you invest postcard SASEs and they move into general circulation as a product, we can talk.
(2) That said, there is no need to spend more than 82 cents on a query unless you live out of the US or this is an old post and the price of stamps has gone up. 41 cents for the original, 41 for the return. If you want to include a synopsis or the first 5 pages, you can get them into a regular envelope. There is no need to waste money sending the query a special speed, through a courier service (it's been done), or sending it in a nice presentation folder that cost you $5.00 to send. We only care about your manuscript and how you describe it in the query. It will go into the pile like everyone else's when it arrives, so save yourself some money and don't bother. For a letter envelope, the rates are:
Ounces and Cents Above 1 Ounce/.41c
Really, if you're going to be submitting, query widely, and don't spend a lot of money doing it if you don't have to. The rejections will not sting so badly if you're not down a hundred bucks.
(1) Do not send a post card query with your novel's website, unless it has a postcard SASE, and those don't exist. We will not check your website. We will not even like you very much for your total lack of effort. If you invest postcard SASEs and they move into general circulation as a product, we can talk.
(2) That said, there is no need to spend more than 82 cents on a query unless you live out of the US or this is an old post and the price of stamps has gone up. 41 cents for the original, 41 for the return. If you want to include a synopsis or the first 5 pages, you can get them into a regular envelope. There is no need to waste money sending the query a special speed, through a courier service (it's been done), or sending it in a nice presentation folder that cost you $5.00 to send. We only care about your manuscript and how you describe it in the query. It will go into the pile like everyone else's when it arrives, so save yourself some money and don't bother. For a letter envelope, the rates are:
Ounces and Cents Above 1 Ounce/.41c
2 | 0.58 |
3 | 0.75 |
3.5 | 0.92 |
Really, if you're going to be submitting, query widely, and don't spend a lot of money doing it if you don't have to. The rejections will not sting so badly if you're not down a hundred bucks.
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