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It seems that we’ve all had an extremely busy Fall – publishing and writer types alike. It’s hard to believe that even a few years ago there would be quiet lulls (in publishing) during any year. Yet as social media has evolved into an everyday part our lives – the pace is always hectic, with infrequent moments to escape the grid. Sometimes it almost seems that social media is driving the figurative bus vs. the folks it represents, but that’s another topic altogether.
Thus, I’m sending a gentle nudge (to everyone) to take the time in stepping away from this mad dash. For writers, their books will benefit. For agents and editors, our ability to think clearly and make sound decisions will continue. This is precisely why writers’ conferences exist. They exist to educate and inspire authors – and to remind those of us who love the publishing industry why we’re involved to begin with.
If anyone reading this blog has followed my agency for any period of time, it’s not required (on my part) that I confirm my belief that we all support and help grow our local writing communities. The process is easily accomplished by buying books locally, attending book events, creating new book events and writing opportunities, and forming a strong alliance & network for anyone who loves books & writing.
This Fall I was extremely honored to participate with the Women of Words Conference and the MN Society of Children’s Book Writers & Illustrators. Both were wonderful experiences – and ones that I’ll never forget. So much that I was reminded again of the strength and vitality of Minnesota’s writing community. Plus, I got to learn a few new things myself!
After the fact, here are several things that come to mind:
1. As a writer it’s 110% essential one builds a strong network of fellow writers and publishing types to collaborate and interact with.
Any writer’s conference or writing organization can provide that needed opportunity. Especially since choosing any book publishing route can be a long, drawn-out process. Attempting to get published without a network is never a good idea; as there will be hurdles to overcome, which can be discouraging for any aspiring author.
If you need an additional reason, you should remember that editors and agents have always tried to support and communicate with one another – as we too know that the overall publishing world can come across as overwhelming. I’d hope everyone would follow our example.
2. Constantly educate yourself.
For anyone who has played a sport – or was involved in the creation of something – there is always a need to stay abreast of the newest information, newest ideas, and methods of perfecting one’s performance.
The same goes for writing. Any of us would hope that we improve in the craft of writing over a noticeable period of time. The best way to go about accomplishing this goal is participating (and even contributing) to writer’s conferences and organizations. Every student needs a teacher. And every teacher needs a refresher course – to which joining a strong writing organization or conference allows that opportunity.
3. Celebrate the small successes.
We all know that Rome wasn’t built in a day. If one compares his/her writing life to the growth of a large city, the overall general process takes time. . . and requires lots of patience.
Develop reasonable timelines for the goals you want to accomplish; whether it’s in regard to writing, building an author platform, and/or finding an agent. Try to not panic during the process – and most importantly take a moment to celebrate even the smallest accomplishments. I’d personally suggest a cupcake for each moment – but that’s me. 
What has your experience been regarding writer’s conferences and being involved in local writing organizations? What have you learned from the overall process? And most importantly, how are you sharing your experience with others?
I can’t wait to hear what you have to say!
I always get excited when there’s a chance to share new and exciting updates for Red Sofa Literary. Please take a moment to congratulate Jennie Goloboy on her recent promotion! Having worked as the solo agent at my agency for the last three years, it’s a treat to see Jennie evolve (and quickly no less) into the role of Associate Literary Agent. I know without a doubt that she’ll bring her own sense of ownership and strong knowledge of books to this new role.
There are many reasons why I’m excited:
- Jennie is an aspiring writer herself. So much that she penned a zombie romance with lots of spunk and her own brand of quirkiness (which we know I like in spades). Anyone who works with her will appreciate Jennie’s empathy for the overall writing process.
- Jennie knows what she wants, and will communicate it accordingly. This ability to be decisive will bring her far as an agent.
- Jennie loves fiction. If anyone has followed me or my agency, fiction is not one of my representative categories – but Jennie is specifically
looking for writers of paranormal and science fiction/fantasy. Her knowledge of those categories is incredible. - She’s a positive, smart, and extremely knowledgeable person. And very resourceful. On more than one occasion, Jennie has shown
these traits. Once again, I’m a lucky gal to have her on board!
This means that Jennie will now be building her own client list. She is looking for YA and adult speculative fiction with a literary edge; especially books with well-developed characters, a sense of humor and perspective, and happy endings. Plus she is a sucker for good romance, as well as noir-influenced narration and attitude. In regard to nonfiction, Jennie is looking for books in the biography and history categories. Jennie brings a special love for American history, but will consider other projects as well. (Please note that she won’t be representing memoirs). She is available via email should there be any questions, or if you’d like to send a query her direction. Her email: jennie@redsofaliterary.com Her Twitter: @JennieGoloboy
Congratulations Jennie!
One of the many benefits of the MN Publishing Tweet Up is a chance for bookish, publishing, and writerly types to interact in the most casual of settings – over a happy hour. During our newest installment of the Tweet Up, Dara, Art, and Jen started up a conversation on the general feelings of stress and self-doubt that many writers face during the writing process. The next day, Art wrote a blog on this, titled “The Three Blogging Hurdles Writers Face” – I highly recommend you read it.
If it’s okay with Art, I’d like to take this another step.
It’s time for your book to be pitched to editors. You’ve already found an agent who’s enthusiastic about it, and enjoyed the collaboration process of getting all the necessary materials fine-tuned in advance. Of course, some rejections will arrive, that is normal in the industry. Remember how many rejections received before meeting your agent? Eventually that agent read your book (and/or book proposal) and liked it. Liked it enough to add you to his/her client list. Trust me, this is a big deal. We don’t do this every day.
If the idea was good enough to survive the agent query process, you can survive the editor query portion of your book’s “journey.” My suggestions:
- Look at the rejections. What are they saying? Did the editors take the time state exactly why they turned it down? Look for a common theme(s). If there seems to be repetition in the reasons for the rejection, it’s worth considering the best ways to strengthen your book
based on those themes. Editors are just like agents, it’s rare they give loads of advice and/or reasons for rejections. Consider it a compliment if they go that extra mile. - Communicate with your agent – brainstorm about the book. If it’s not necessarily the writing or the idea, but maybe something as basic as building a platform that’s resulting in the rejections, then it’s time to get strategic. Taking the time to overcome those figurative hurdles can be used to your advantage. My advice? Don’t rush the process. But do be persistent. And of course read “Get Known Before the Book Deal” by Christina Katz. Read the book. Implement the ideas. Repeat the process.
- Never take rejections personally. What one editor likes, another may not like. That’s par for the course. Should everyone like all the same books? No. The fact that we all bring personal reading tastes to the table = rejections during the query process. Do I need to remind you how many rejections were received before finally meeting your agent? If every editor had the same taste in books, publishing would suffer. Readers would suffer too. So when you do receive that rejection, don’t beat yourself up over it. That was never the intention of the person who sent it.
To be frank, it breaks my heart when I see a writer overly stressed about the writing experience or the publisher query process. It’s one thing to be able to learn from the rejections, it’s another problem altogether when an author begins to doubt his/her ability to write. When this happens, I think back to my early days with Sebastian Literary Agency. Laurie taught me that an agent is the author’s champion & advocate. I took it to heart, because she was very correct; if we love our clients’ books, we’re here to make the overall publishing process a valuable (and hopefully positive learning) experience. That’s the most important thing to remember, no matter what happens.
This leads into too many other topics, so I’m going to stop here (for the moment).
Questions? Comments? What has your experience been thus far?
In the last month or so, I’ve heard references to individuals building their “brand” in regard to their career & work experience. As with any other industry, that’s to be expected in today’s workplace. Especially with the prevalence of Twitter, Facebook, Yelp, and more influencing the general public’s decisions.
Please note this is not a new concept. Anyone in publishing would immediately see this reflective of “building a platform” or a “writing platform.” This may not apply as much those writing a novel, but right now, anyone who wants to break out in the nonfiction market needs to have a personal “brand” to match their book idea.
Think about it. Would you take a nonfiction writer seriously if s/he didn’t bring the necessary expertise to the book you’re reading?
ex: If someone is writing a book on being a Cat Whisperer, wouldn’t that person need to bring years of experience and knowledge on how one does it? What if that person only has experience buiding canoes, but thought it would be great idea to write a book on cat whispering? Would you take this person seriously? I doubt it. As the background of the writer doesn’t equal the expertise needed for that book.
The next step beyond showing that expertise is one’s reach to have an established readership, as well as potential future readers. It’s absolutely essential one has strong roots wherever s/he is writing a book (reflecting this expertise). Still, the “branding” concept would otherwise indicate that the reach needs to go beyond one’s comfort zone. Are there readers/followers outside of your state? In multiple states? In multiple countries? Can you prove to me, or any other publishing person, that MANY people will purchase your book?
ex: This book on cat whispering – your only readers are located within 100 miles of you. You have no website. No social media presence. No extensive network with other cat whisperers. No writing experience with the general public regarding your knowledge of cat whispering. Before approaching publishers/editors/agents, make sure that you find even more readers/followers in other cites, states, possibly countries. This will improve the overall writing platform, “your brand.”
How long does this take? Sadly there’s no shortcut to the process. It can take 6 months, it take a year, it can take longer. My opinion is that I’d rather a writer take the necessary time to build the necessary “buzz” around his/her self, so that the expertise will stand out, vs. attempting to rush the process. Rushing the process will not result in a strong brand.
Just like Jim Tyrell-Smith states that one needs to be strategic with a brand for the job market, getting prepared before approaching publishers is not a choice. I promise that building your own personal brand is very possible, with some planning and some figurative elbow grease, it’ll make a significant difference in establishing your writing platform.
Required reading:
Building yourself through social media – interview with Tim Tyrell-Smith by host Tess Vigeland (APM Marketplace)
Get Known Before the Book Deal - by Christina Katz
I’ll start by saying this post relates to Nonfiction (vs. Fiction).
As our publishing industry has evolved and as social media has become a major influence how books get published, I have found myself often weighing in on new book ideas as either “blog-worthy” or “book-ready.” Upon starting my life as an agent, it wasn’t necesary to look at potential book projects in this manner. Yet it’s necessary in today’s publishing climate.
Why, you ask?
1. Because it can take anywhere from 1-2 years for a book to get published AFTER the book contract is signed. This doesn’t even include the time required to find an agent, to develop one’s writing platform, and/or to even start writing the book. Sometimes a book idea that appears “book-ready” today may not after 6 months have passed.
Ex: Books about 2012. Would an agent consider representing a book that would have an expiration date before it’s even published? No.
2. Some ideas aren’t necessary suited to be published in “book-ready” format. Maybe the topic has a limited scope, a limited audience, and/or there are already too many books (published along the same lines). Yes, there are a few writers who have broken this mold; but also remember they are a small percentage of the overall # of books published annually.
Ex: Eat Pray Love. I’ve mentioned this example multiple times on Twitter. Since Elizabeth Gilbert’s book shot to the top of the NY Times bestseller list and into a movie adaptation, it seems many aspiring writers want to write the “next” Eat Pray Love. (Btw, I read the book too and liked it very much.)
As a result, many queries have claimed to be the next Eat Pray Love. I’m sorry, but it seems Elizabeth Gilbert already covered this terrain quite well. The possibility of reaching the same level of success with a book JUST like hers doesn’t seem very viable. Hence, a book idea (along the same lines) may be better suited as a blog, at least for a short while.
3. Presenting a writing platform that still needs to be grown and/or expanded upon. When it comes to nonfiction, a strong writing platform is required of most authors. With any nonfiction idea, I’m studying not only the idea, but also if the writer is fully qualified to write this book. Are you an expert on the topic? Do you bring a large reading audience with the book idea? Do you have any previous publishing experience (online and/or in print)? If not, there’s a good chance that until the writing platform has grown, the idea is more “blog-worthy.”
Ex: Food and cooking ideas. Sometimes the best queries arrive in regard to food and cooking. I’ve seen a large # of cupcake, vegan, vegetarian, and and other superb ideas over the years. Unfortunately the writers usually have no public platform, no experience in online or print media, and more. Ultimately the ideas are great, but the writing platform is almost nonexistent. This would make the possible book idea(s) more blog-worthy. At least until these barriers are overcome.
Does your idea have any of these challenges? What do you do? My suggestion: Be strategic! Take a moment and look at the bigger picture of publishing – in regard to your book idea. Take the time to develop and execute ideas that will help move your book from “blog-worthy” to “book-ready,” before getting overly worried about approaching agents or editors.
What are your thoughts? Do you agree? Disagree? Let’s chat!
It’s normal to feel like one is sometimes on a figurative soapbox with whatever topic s/he is passionate about. My love will always be books. Doesn’t matter what format they’re in, when they were published, or what they’re about. Books are quiet little treasures, opportunitities & gateways to solitary moments (something we rarely experience).
Upon becoming an agent, one of the early requirements was being able to say “no.” Since no agent can give the necessary time and energy for every single project that comes his/her way. Plus there are only 24 hours in a day, it’s likelier that an agent will make better decisions if some of those hours are spent resting (vs. working all the time). As I’ve stated before, we can only take on a limited number of clients, as each of our authors deserve quality time and attention from us.
With the many book ideas I’ve turned down over the years, I’ve come to accept the occasional hate mail. People who take my rejections too personally, some who refuse to “accept” my response, name calling, accusations that I “don’t know anything about publishing,” and simply angry words. I’ve even gotten used to the people who’ve reminded me of how much they disagree with the rejection by requerying me again, hoping I won’t notice I’ve turned down the book idea before (btw, I will recognize it). Sadly several newer rejections have added a new “twist” to this conundrum, with a few authors sending MORE materials — stating that maybe I’ll change my mind after seeing them. I’m sorry that doesn’t work either.
However, there is a silver lining to this. There are the authors who take a moment to think about rejections – why it happened, and what they can do in the future.
These writers will study my representative categories again, and usually realize my agency isn’t a good fit for their books. Some will take a moment to peruse my website, and rework their ideas, as well as the method in which queries are sent out. In the rare cases where I was able to offer advice, some authors will write back and give an update on their query process. I like these updates, it gives me hope that at least my advice was considered, even for a few moments.
Here are three that stand out:
1. Approximately 5 or 6 years ago, I turned down an idea by a writer who was very much in the early stages of developing a writing platform. He had a great idea, but alas it wasn’t a good fit for my list, especially with him needing to develop a readership. I’ve now heard back from him two times since then. He has embraced the process of building his platform, and loving it. If anything, he seems happier. And getting an update from him is always a treat.
2. Through Google Alerts (yes those of us in publishing use these), I learned that an author did a posting about the rejections he has received thus far. Going to his site, I immediately remembered him, as we met through Twitter and I made a point of giving some extra advice, once again something I don’t do very often. On his blog, he stated appreciation for that advice, that it was one of the more detailed rejection letters received. That he is now tweaking his idea and moving forward. What a nice surprise to discover my inbox!
3. In November, a book arrived at my doorstep, from a fellow ‘Southern Belle,” whose idea I declined in 2008. I had suggested she go the route of an indie publisher, in addition to taking the time to develop a larger writing platform. It turns out her book WAS eventually published by an indie publisher, and that she has sold a nice quantity of books so far. She’s loving the process of promoting her book, of meeting readers, and that she appreciated the advice and encouragement received in 2008. Her positive energy about the query process was infectious, and I value the letter she attached with her book. It goes in the folder of “letters worth saving.”
These three individuals took their rejections and used them proactively. They looked at the reasons for rejection, as well as the bigger picture of publishing, and have worked on developing larger writing platforms.
Always remember:
1. Rejections should never be taken personally.
2. Consider why your book was rejected – Does the agency work with your book’s category? Is your platform still needing growth? Are there other reasons? Take the time to mull over these things, ultimately it can be used to one’s advantage.
3. Embrace the process. If you are going to query agents, who all have limited time and can only take a limited # of new clients, and this is already time consuming – also embrace the learning process when rejections come in. This process can have a positive outcome, even if this means one writes an entirely new book that does in fact gain the attention of an editor or agent.
Thoughts, comments? Let me know what you think.
Now that it’s January, there’s always one clear distinction within the queries received – that it’s a new season and the necessary homework (before querying agents) isn’t necessarily completed by everyone. Sadly it makes me feel like a broken record when it’s necessary I reiterate what “not” to do.
Just some kind reminders of things to avoid during the query process:
1. Emailing unrequested attachments – Being that any agent would like his/her computer to be sans computer viruses, we will request the proposal/mss/synopsis if we’re interested in a person’s book AFTER reading an initial query letter.
2. Addressing your queries as “Dear Agent,” “Agent,” “Sir,” “Madam,” and more - I’m fully confident that if you found an agent’s email address, the name of the agent is known too. Taking the extra 5 seconds to type in the name is a general standard in any type of written or online correspondence.
3. Ignoring agent representative categories – Despite my own personal categories being easily found online and in print, I’m still getting numerous memoir, religous, and general/genre fiction queries. I’m not alone, this happens to many agents. Please, please, please take the time to make sure a full understanding of your book’s tentative category is known before contacting agents. It’ll save time and frustration during the query process.
My goal is to help any writer have a positive experience during the agent query process. Please try to remember that we do our best to state our submission guidelines, as well as what type of books we’re looking for; so that any writer will have an easier experience overall.
We’re all in this together, so please remember to do your “agent” homework before sending off that 1st query.
One of my favorite things to do every December and early January is restocking my resource guides for the agency. Not only is it a good idea to have the print versions of these books on-hand, it’s essential that such guides continue to be available for any aspiring authors.
I’ve mentioned many times of the need to do the necessary “homework” before querying agents and editors. By consulting the newest print guides AND the online guides (i.e. Publishers Marketplace), you’ll save time, money and hopefully frustration by reading and following the agent/publisher submission standards in these directories.
So enjoy! Trust me, you’ll be happy of the investment.
1. Jeff Herman’s Guide to Book Publishers, Editors and Literary Agents – 2011 - This is one of my favorite resources, and one that I believe everyone should at least purchase before querying agents and editors.
2. Get Known Before the Book Deal by Christina Katz – This is required reading as far as I’m concerned.
3. 2011 Writer’s Market - Another good directory to consult before querying agents.
4. Children’s Writers and Illustrator’s Market 2011 – A great companion to the other directories, especially due to the children’s publishing-related information that’s provided.
