The Waiting Game

You've emailed your query to several agents and now you’re sitting in front of your computer hitting refresh every ten seconds. First off, you need to relax. Agents can take as long as three months to respond, that’s why you don’t want to send out one query at a time.

The least amount of time it’s taken an agent to respond to me is three hours (with a rejection to my query) the most is three months (with a partial request after I’d already signed with an agent). For my current manuscript, it took me exactly one month to go through the whole process, from querying to agent. I’m not bragging, that was just my experience on this go around…I’ve queried before and received nothing but rejections, which I’ll talk about tomorrow.

If you thought writing a novel was hard, you’ll see it was a cake walk compared to what comes next. Believe me, I know how difficult it is to send your idea off and hope that someone is interested. The truth is, a lot of agents won’t even reply. That means that they’re are not interested. It’s common to ask for status on a partial or a full after a couple of months, but if they don’t respond to your query, don’t hound them.

My advice? Keep writing. Begin another book. Distract yourself until the replies come in.

Finding an Agent - Method to the Madness

How do you keep track of all your queries going out?

You can do a couple of things. You can send a query to every agent ever and hope that one of them likes your manuscript…or you can save yourself time and postage.

Pick a top ten to query. Email / snail mail these ten agents. Wait a day (or week) depending on your schedule and your ambition level, then query ten more.

Just like you don’t want to send out a thousand queries at once that are impossible to keep track of, you don’t want to send out one at a time. If you send out one, and wait for a reply before you send out another, you’ll be a hundred years old and still not published.

I stayed organized by setting up special email folders to keep track of my queries, rejections, and partial/full manuscript requests. I was able to access information about a certain agent in seconds because I did a little pre-query planning.

If you’re super organized you can make a spreadsheet with the agents name and query status (sent, rejected, requests). That may be helpful for later on if this manuscript isn’t quite up to par, but your next one is. You can look at your spreadsheet and remember that so and so requested a partial, but ultimately passed. Include that info in your new query letter. Remember, getting published is a marathon, not a sprint. Save yourself wasted time and effort by planning ahead.

Finding an Agent - Which Agents to Query

So you have your kick-ass query…now where do you send it? Do some research. If you write historical fiction, check out the acknowledgements in your favorite books, they’re bound to be agents listed. You want to make sure that you are contacting real agents though, and not scam artists. A real agent will never charge you a reading fee.

This website is great, http://www.aaronline.org/ . You can search by name or genre and each agent lists contact info and preferences. Start by querying agents that represent your genre.

Make sure you read individual guidelines. Some agents want only a query, while some want sample chapters. Some prefer email queries while others like snail mail. The first step to finding an agent is making that agent happy by following their guidelines.

Know who you’re querying. Even though my query wasn’t your standard, “Dear So and So,” I made sure that each letter I sent out had the agent’s name and contact info in the upper left corner, even the ones I emailed. That way, agents could tell that I knew who I was sending the letter to and that I put some thought into who I want my agent to be.

One more thing: Never ever ever send out a mass emailed query. This is a good way to offend a lot of people. Agents want to make sure that you’ve done the research and are querying them for a reason. It’s rude to lump all of them in together and comes off as lazy. This is your career…take the time!

First Query Critique Ever!

The following is a query posted by Brandi of Blkosiner's Book Blog. Brandi has three versions of her query. I think that #3 is the strongest, so that’s the one I’ve used. Thanks for letting me critique your query Brandi! Here's the original:

When love hurts more than it helps, Meredith must give up the man she fell in love with as well as the man who hurts her.

Spiraling from the loss of her beloved father, seventeen year old Meredith meets alluring charmer Kaden. At first, he breaks down her isolation and depression, allowing her to open up to him and others outside her family for the first time.

But Kaden soon changes - and their relationship changes with it. He begins to hurt her physically and emotionally, closing out family and friends she's just let in. Controlled and desperate, Meredith knows not to fight back. If she does, he’ll hit her again- and this time he might hurt the baby.

Until she finds out she is pregnant. Forced to think about the life of her unborn baby as well as her own, Meredith knows she has to let Kaden go if any of them are going to have a chance at a happy future. Meredith must make the most difficult decisions of her life to come out stronger, and to learn who she really is.

Here it is again. I’ve gone over it line by line. My comments are italicized.

When love hurts more than it helps, Meredith must give up the man she fell in love with as well as the man who hurts her. (This has the potential to be a very good hook. I think it has to be a bit more powerful to convey the emotion of being in an abusive relationship. You use love twice as well as hurts twice. What are these characters really feeling? Does she adore him? Does she worship him? What damage does he do to her? I love the phrasing of the first part…When love hurts more than it helps…it’s very good as a hook lead in.)

Spiraling (Needs more, such as spiraling into depression or spiraling out of control) from the loss of her beloved father, seventeen year old Meredith meets (the, an) alluring charmer (,) Kaden. At first, he breaks down her (barriers of, wall of) isolation and depression, allowing her to open up to him and others outside her family (probably don’t need outside her family) for the first time. (ever, or since her father’s death? It’s unclear.)

But Kaden soon changes - and their relationship changes (uses changes twice; maybe transforms) with it (him…this is referring to Kaden?). He begins to hurt (word choice…abuse, mistreat) her physically and emotionally, closing out family and friends she's just let in. (How? This might be made more vivid with an example) Controlled (not sure if this is the right word to use here…maybe bullied, terrorized, tormented, frightened, oppressed)  and desperate, Meredith knows not to fight back. If she does, he’ll hit her again- and this time he might hurt the baby. (This sentence is out of place here…we’ve not discovered she is pregnant until the next paragraph. Maybe make it clear that the baby is unborn…here it sounds like the baby is already around. Also, saying “the baby” makes it impersonal…how about her baby or their unborn child. Using “her” will makes Meredith connected to her child, while using “their” will highlight the dependency she feels for Kaden.)

(What does Meredith do until she finds out she is pregnant? Does she live in fear, live day to day, accept her fate, pray?)Until she finds out she is pregnant. Forced to think about the life of her unborn baby as well as her own, Meredith knows she has to let Kaden go if any of them are going to have a chance at a happy future. Meredith must make the most difficult decisions (decision – although there may be more than one in the book, you’ve only highlighted one in the query) of her life to come out (come out is not horribly descriptive) stronger, and to learn who she really is. This last sentence is awkward, and there is no reason to tell the agent what she chooses. I assume she leaves him, but you could very well have taken the depressing route and had her stay. The agent needs to know, even though your potential reader does not. Maybe put more emphasis on her internal struggle, the decision she must make.

What is the name of your book? It needs to be apparent to an agent, along with the genre and word count.

One final comment…I absolutely love the name Kaden for your bad boyfriend character. It’s sweet and harsh at the same time.

Thanks again Brandi. I hope my critique is helpful and best luck finding an agent!

Tomorrow – Which agents to query

My Query – In the After

So you can get a feel for a completed query, I’ve used mine as an example. The following is a query for my YA sci-fi novel tentatively titled, In the After. I have removed the spoiler bits.

           
            Katherine Boyle

Veritas Literary Agency
            601 Van Ness Avenue

San Francisco, CA 94102

In the After

Amy has not spoken in three years. Not since They arrived; creatures with incredible hearing, amazing swiftness, and a taste for human flesh. They hunt by sound and Amy has learned to survive in a world of silence.

In the After is a Young Adult novel that addresses issues teens face everyday, but places them in the context of a post-apocalyptic scenario. Amy struggles as her normal teenage life collapses around her, only to be replaced with a world full of danger and fear. Amy has to choose between doing what is easy and doing what is right. She must ask herself, is safety more important than freedom?

In the After, Amy’s parents are gone. All of her friends are dead. The life she knew Before is over. Along with Baby, a child she saved from the creatures, she survives day to day, focused on staying alive, and most importantly, being quiet. When they are forced from their home, their only sanctuary from the flesh hungry creatures, Amy is determined to keep Baby alive and safe. <Sentence Removed>

<Paragraph Removed> With her new found knowledge, Amy is forced to choose between the safety she so desperately seeks and the freedom that she craves.

In the After is completed at 96,000 words. I would be happy to supply sample chapters upon request. Thank you for your time.

I hope this is helpful! I’d be happy to critique any query…as long as you don’t mind me putting it on my blog.

Next week…a query critique and what comes after you’ve completed your query.

Writing a Query – The Big Finish

So you have your hook, your synopsis, and now you need your bio. List any published works that relate. If you’ve published a short story, super awesome. If you won a school poetry contest in fifth grade, not so much.

If you don’t have any writing credits, don’t write anything. An agent does not need to know your marital status unless your book is on a healthy marriage or living single. You don’t have to say where you’re from unless it’s relevant. Believe me; it’s better to write nothing than bog your query down with useless info.

If you don’t have a relevant bio, just thank the agent for their time. Make sure you reiterate the name of your book and the word count. Keep it professional. My ending was simple.

In the After is completed at 96,000 words. I would be happy to supply sample chapters upon request. Thank you for your time.

Just remember; agents want to know the title of your book, the word count, and the genre. Make sure you have these three things somewhere in your query.

Writing a Query – The Synopsis

Some writers find this part insanely difficult; taking the book they spent so much time writing and breaking it down into a synopsis that is only a paragraph or two. This is extremely important, though. Don’t worry about hitting on every detail or plot point, keep it simple. Stick to the main character and major events. I actually took two paragraphs for my synopsis, but I wouldn’t recommend doing more than that.

Believe it or not, put in the ending of your book, even if it’s a shocker. Agents need to know what happens. You may think, “I’ll leave it out and they’ll be so interested they’ll request my manuscript at once!” but that’s just not how it works.

The following is my intro paragraph and the first part of my synopsis. (These come after the hook I mentioned in my earlier post.) I’ve left off the second paragraph of my synopsis because it gives too much away…wouldn’t want to ruin the end for anyone.

In the After is a Young Adult novel that addresses issues teens face everyday, but places them in the context of a post-apocalyptic scenario. Amy struggles as her normal teenage life collapses around her, only to be replaced with a world full of danger and fear. Amy has to choose between doing what is easy and doing what is right. She must ask herself, is safety more important than freedom?

In the After, Amy’s parents are gone. All of her friends are dead. The life she knew Before is over. Along with Baby, a child she saved from the creatures, she survives day to day, focused on staying alive, and most importantly, being quiet.

Notice how I state the name of the book and explain that it is YA sci-fi, both things an agent will want to know right away. My synopsis highlights the main plot points without getting into to much detail, but keeps the reader interested. (Well, hopefully anyway.)

Tomorrow: How to end your query.