Category: Agents

Posted in Agents, Getting Organized, Picture Books, Progress, querying, Research, The Writing Path

Query Prep: Researching Agents

Posted on by beckylevine

Luckily for me, I enjoy research. I like doing a quick search and seeing if I hit anything interesting on the first try. I like going down rabbit holes. And I like pulling my discoveries together into some kind of recognizable order.

All of which is a good thing. Because, as I started getting serious about agent research this month, I remembered that it is a particularly twisty-turny rabbit hole.

It’s pretty easy to find a list of picture book agents. It’s pretty easy to find an interview or a quote that tells you a tiny bit about the agent, what they like, and if/where you might connect. It’s pretty easy to start popping their names into a spreadsheet.

And it’s pretty easy to find a reason why you won’t be querying them.

I took a bit of time to set up a spreadsheet, with a tab for research and another tab to actually track queries. I know lots of people like QueryTracker, and I may go back to it when I actually start sending out queries. But I’m not very visual, so it helps me to see all the info in one place. If you decide to use a spreadsheet, obviously, you’ll set it up for the info you want to track. But I did this a little differently than the last time I was querying, so I thought I’d highlight some of the columns that I added this time around.

  • I have two columns for Publishers Marketplace rankings. One is for the agent’s ranking, and the other is for the agency ranking. This will let me watch for newer agents who may not have a lot of sales yet, but who are working at an established agency and who may have support from the more experienced agents there. I want to sort by this column, so for any agent/agency I can’t find a PM ranking for, I’m just entering 1,000, so those rows will filter down to the bottom of the list.
  • I have a column for whether or not an agent represents picture book, and I’m making sure to separate out those agents who are looking for authors and not just author/illustrators. Because I can barely draw a stick figure!
  • I have another column for whether or the agent is currently open to queries. This column was really frustrating me. I felt like I just kept bumping up against agent after agent who are not open to querying. I knew QueryTracker information included this info for each agent, so I posted in the 12X12 Facebook group and found out that the QT info is almost always accurate and up-to-date. So I did a filtered search there and came up with a list that only includes open agents. It was a decent length and has me feeling much less discouraged.
  • I added a column for the most recent date on which I’ve added research info for each agent. I remember, last time, not doing this and finding out that I was definitely not carrying that factor around in my memory.
  • I put in one more column for my own ranking of agents on a scale of 1-5, 1 being the agents that go to the top of my query list (and get added to the tab for actual querying and tracking). 4 is for the agents I would love to query, but who aren’t open right now or aren’t taking any more picture book authors. 5 is for the agents I don’t see myself ever being a fit with; again, if I delete them, I won’t remember that I’ve already researched; this keeps them on the spreadsheet, but out of sight. 2 and 3 are kind of nebulous, more a gut feel where I think the agent falls after my #1-ranked agents.

This is really getting into the weeds, and you may be reading it and saying, “Duh!” But I remember when I was first starting to do this, years ago, I felt like there was a lot of info floating around out there, and I wasn’t sure how to best organize it, and I kept finding info that didn’t fit into my spreadsheet. I’m feeling better about this one, even though I’m sure I’ll keep modifying it as I go.

So if you’re already set, my best wishes to you for a successful query path. If you find this helpful, I’m glad to have tossed it up here!

Posted in Agents, Picture Books, querying

Querying: What It’s All About (At Least for Me)

Posted on by beckylevine

Even before January, I knew what my word for 2022 would be. In the midst of all the chaos, anxiety, and uncertainty of the past two years, writing has been the eye of my personal hurricane. I know, for many writers, the pandemic and their own experiences with it have made writing hard, if not impossible. As in so many other ways, I’ve been lucky. My ideas, my stories, have stayed with me, and I’ve been able to make steady progress toward my goal: to get enough picture book manuscripts to the place where I feel ready to query them. To be honest, this has been my goal for 2 or 3 years, but this is the first year I’ve felt certain enough to name it.

My word for 2022 is Query.

I’ve been musing on this for the past couple of weeks, and I’ve decided that–as part of this querying year–I would come back to my blog. Primarily for my own accountability, I want to use this space to set out the process I’m following, including some of the specific steps I’m taking, to get my work out there for agents to see. I’ll be using tags so that anyone specifically looking for this kind of conversation can find the posts, but I’m going to hold off on linking to them on social media. If I start to feel like I’m writing anything truly useful for others (and if I stick to posting at all!) then I’ll revisit that plan.

Anyway, if you’ve found your way here…

Photo by Henri Mathieu-Saint-Laurent on Pexels.com

I hope you discover something to help you or, at least, to make you feel less alone on this stage of your writing journey.

To get started, here’s a summary of where I am, followed up by the next big steps I’ll be taking.

I have three picture book manuscripts “this close” to ready. I have sent them all through my excellent critique group multiple times, and I have workshopped them with other writers & a few agents. (One agent ended our conversation with “keep me posted” and agreed that, assuming I could revise the manuscript as we discussed, I should query her. Guess who I’m sending it to first!)

I will be sending these three manuscripts through my critique group one more time. I am hopeful that, even if they don’t shout, “OMG, SEND THIS OUT NOW!,” the changes I will want to make from their feedback will be minimal. I am not going to restart any of these three or make any changes that mean an entirely new revision pass. I truly believe that it is time for me to get these stories out into the query world.

What do I base that belief on? Well, all the things I’ve noted above, but there’s one other big factor: the feedback I have gotten, and my own sense of the stories, tell me that I will not be burning any bridges by send them out. They may not resonate with everyone who reads them; some agents may feel like they need more work than they’re willing to contribute. I may get no requests for more; I may get no response at all. But nobody will be putting my name onto a list of Never Read Anything from this Writer Again.

My critique group meets monthly. One of the manuscripts is in their hands for January, and I’ll send the other two to them in February and March. As I get feedback, I’ll do a pass to integrate their comments, and then each manuscript will go into the Ready pile. (Oh, yes, you can bet I’ll proofread each again before I send it out!)

While all this is going on (and I’m trying not to be buried by my day job!), I need to also be working on these steps:

  • Set up a spreadsheet to track my queries. I’ve done this before–I queried a middle grade manuscript YEARS ago, and I sent out a couple of picture book manuscripts when I first made the shift to this genre. Still, it’s fun to start fresh & someone on Facebook posted about how they code their lists with idea for different colors of hearts. I may steal that!
  • Start populating that spreadsheet. I have been playing around in query tracker, and while it’s a good place to see a list of agents, to see who’s open and who wants what, it’s a little clunkier than I want to use for actually tracking things. I’ll start my list off with the agent who said to query her, of course, and in second place is an agent I took a fantastic workshop from, who also represents one of my critique partners. I’ve also done research on both of these that confirms I want to query them. Hmm…maybe I’ll do a post on research. 🙂
  • Work on my pitches for all three manuscripts. Honestly, I hate this part, but I’m going to make myself do it. Different agents say different things about pitches & query letters in general – some read them and weigh them, some seem to skip them completely. But I’m not going to put out a sloppy pitch and risk having the agent stop reading before they even get to the manuscript. I just signed up for my second year in 12 X 12, and I will be posting my pitches in the forum for feedback (and giving feedback to others, of course). I may also post some on the Sub It Club Facebook page.
  • Keep revising. Keep writing. I have a fourth manuscript that everyone has “liked,” but it has a major darling that has to be killed before I do the next revision. After final revisions on the other three stories, revising this manuscript is the next writing work on my list. Last year, in 12 X 12, I managed to writer or revise a draft in 10/12 months, and I will be keeping up with that as best I can. I’m halfway through Storystorm, and I already have a few ideas that are actually calling to me.

Okay, so that turned into a long post, but I’ve laid out where I’m at and where I want to be going. If you’re new to my blog and want to know who I actually am, you can read a bit about me here. If you think this post or upcoming posts would help someone you know, feel free to share.

Happy New Year and Happy Querying!

Posted in Agents

Interview with Karen Grencik of Red Fox Literary Agency

Posted on by beckylevine

I’ve been following Karen Grencik’s return to the world of agenting, from seeing that she had reopened her own agency, then reading the news about her forming Red Fox Literary with Abigail Samoun. I think it must be pretty amazing to come back to being an agent in the midst of all the big changes going on in publishing, and I had a few questions simmering in my mind.

So I was really happy when Karen agreed to answer those questions here. And even more grateful when I saw the honesty and detail she put into her answers.

And here are those answers.

BL: You stepped out of agenting in 2006. Can you tell us a little bit about what you were doing for the past few years?

KG: I stepped out of agenting in order to retire with my husband part-time in Costa Rica. At that time submissions were made through regular mail, and the little town of Tamarindo, Costa Rica did not have a post office. After several years of going back and forth between Tamarindo and Shell Beach, my husband and I parted ways. I am quite happy to be back living full time on the lovely central coast of California, and he is very happy to be spending the majority of his time on the beach in Tamarindo.

BL: What brought you back to agenting?

KG: At the time of our separation, I had several interests I was pursuing. I was court reporting again, had been hired to accompany wealthy people on vacations to video their adventures, had tried my hand at making book trailers, and thought about going back into agenting. When I joined Sarah Wilson at the 2010 SCBWI summer conference to test the waters of the children’s book business, I felt like a war hero who’d just returned home. It was a perfect fit. From August through the end of the year I studied all I could about the current market trends, then relaunched the Karen Grencik Literary Agency on Jan 3, 2010. Little did I know that just six months later I’d be partnering with Abigail Samoun and launching Red Fox Literary!

BL: Publishing has gone through some dramatic changes in the past five years. What is the biggest difference you see in children’s publishing, now that you’re back and digging in again?

KG: The biggest difference, obviously, is the e-book component and the new publishing platforms that are available. But for me as an agent, I’d say the biggest change is the increase in the number of high quality manuscripts I see compared to the decrease in slots available for publication through traditional means. Authors are working so hard to improve their craft, and it really shows. Unfortunately, it’s harder to make a sale today because everyone at an imprint needs to be on board, along with the marketing people, and it’s tough to win over so many people no matter how good something is.

BL: Do you think the agent’s role in publishing has changed? How? Are you approaching the business differently than you did before?

KG: I think it has changed in that we have to wear even more hats today than we did before and it takes a lot more time just to keep current with the daily changes in the industry.   So much more time is spent at the computer with social networking, and I have a really hard time doing that. I just want to read submissions, make submissions, be in touch with my authors and editors, and live my life. I don’t want to live at the computer or be on my Blackberry 24/7. I have dogs to hike with, yoga to do, and friends and family I want to spend time with. You won’t see me tweeting, and I’m rarely on Facebook, but I will be working hard for my authors!

My approach really isn’t much different. I agent because I love it. I love my authors. I love their books. I love the editors with whom I work. I love everything about the industry. It’s the most exciting thing I’ve ever been involved with. I never know when it’s going to be Christmas morning and I’m going to open an email that makes my whole body quiver. That is the BEST part of the business for me! I just love people and I enjoy being their cheerleader.

BL: When would you recommend that a writer seek representation? What do you look for in considering whether to sign an author?

KG: I think a writer should seek representation when the majority of their critiques are very positive and supportive. Agents and editors in the children’s book world are very kind and encouraging. We want to see authors and illustrators succeed. Unfortunately, with so many people seeking representation before they’re ready, it plugs up the pipeline and makes the waiting time insanely long for everyone. And although it costs money to attend conferences and to get critiques, it really is necessary in order to have a barometer against which to check your skill level.

As for who I’d like to represent, first and foremost, of course, I look for talent. My second requirement is a good attitude. I don’t have a minute to waste, so complaining and pity parties are lost on me. I just want to keep moving forward, and I want authors who can pick themselves up, shake off the dust, and get back in the game. I’m kind of tough that way. We have work to do!

BL: Do you have a current wish list of the kinds of books you’d like to see?

KG: I want to see beautifully written books that will make me grow as a human being and increase my understanding of the world in which I live. Dystopia, paranormal, high fantasy and science fiction aren’t for me. I prefer reality-based stories that will show me a world I would not otherwise have the opportunity to know or a picture book that will literally take my breath away or make me laugh out loud.

Posted in Agents, The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide, The Writing Path

Agent or No Agent: My Two Cents

Posted on by beckylevine

A few weeks ago, Shawna at Just Another Day in the Life gave me the Honest Scrap reward for my blog. I still need to pass this award on to seven other bloggers, which I am going to do soon, with pleasure. But I thought of the reward today, as I was coming up with an idea for a post. I’m still in recovery mode from the plague that has hit my house (which is why I was pretty much absent from here the second half of last week), so I was planning to just point you all to some other blogger’s links.

Then I thought of the reward, and I realized I’d better live up to it. Which is why I’m going to tell you, today, that–yes, I think writers should try to get an agent to represent their work. I know this isn’t always the most popular opinion, and that you can find an unlimited number of horror stories about agents on the blog and just by talking to other writers. My thoughts assume we’re talking about a good agent. And self-publishing is another conversation, with pluses and minuses, but obviously the agent question doesn’t come up there.

Here are the thoughts & ideas that have led me to look for and in one case, find an agent; in another case, not yet find an agent.

  • I want experts to do their work for me. I don’t do my own taxes, because I am lousy at math and legalese. I ask my critique partners to read my manuscripts thoroughly, because they’re better reviewers of my writing than I am. My husband trims our small trees, but we hire a wonderful tree-cutting company to climb around in and take out the really big ones. I now ask my taller-than-me son to get the dishes down from the high shelves.
  • I want to write. I don’t want to negotiate contracts. I want to be able to ask my contract questions to someone who isn’t creating that contract, but who is looking at it to get me (and them) the best deal possible.
  • I want my manuscript submitted to the right editors. I have NO way of knowing who those are. I can read their websites and submission guidelines, sure, but–what does “funny” mean? Humor, like so many qualities, is subjective. An agent will have worked with editors and know their senses of humor–and their senses of tragedy, suspense, edginess. I won’t have a clue.
  • I think that having an agent ask to represent me or my project means that my manuscript has reached a certain point. I know, what about my own self-confidence and my own sense of my strength as a writer? Well, let’s just say I’m open to a little extra reinforcement of that sense–especially from a professional who knows this business.

As I said above, one of my hunts–for a nonfiction agent–has been successful. And the experience of working with Jessica Faust on the contract for The Writing & Critique Group Survival Guide gave me everything I’d hoped for. Jessica is professional and efficient. She answered all my questions clearly (and without making me feel stupid or naive once!). And–for those who worry about that 15%–I’m not going into details, but the negotiating she did .

The other hunt hasn’t had the same success rate, but I’m not ready to give up. My first novel, a middle-grade mystery, went the rounds to agents for about a year. I got lots of compliments, but no takers. I was struggling to decide what to do–whether to go on to submit to editors and hope for the best, whether to find a new revision path, or whether to put it aside and work on the YA historical that had been calling to me. And guess what–I got the best, most clear-sighted advice I’d had yet…from an agent. One of my last queries returned me a wonderful letter from an agent who explained why she thought my book wasn’t being picked up…and it was a market reason. I don’t think I was just grasping at happy straws (because she wasn’tsaying the problem lay in my writing!), but the reason made perfect sense with what I know about the kidlit market. The lightbulb went off brightly, and I was able to pick which direction to take on my writing path.

Agents know what they’re talking about.

I really believe this. Some agents make a lot of money, sure. So do some writers. Overall, though, nobody takes any job in this industry for the high salary; they take it because they love books, they want to work with words, and they want to help add to the pile of reading choices in the bookstores and libraries.

So what do I think this means for writers? I think it means that, along with writing our manuscripts, we need to be doing research about agents. We need to be reading up on who represents our kind of project, on who has a trustworthy record in the industry and with other writers, and on the standard of work we need to be ready to present when we make that initial connection.

Obviously, if I had a direct, clean path to an editor, and I had a project that I thought was ready, I’d be emailing them and asking if I could submit. And if they said yes and if they wanted the book, guess what I’d do? I’d go back to all the research I’ve done, and I’d contact my “top” agent choices and ask them to represent me in negotations. Like I said, I want those experts around who will make my life easier.

What about you? I’d love to hear your thoughts on this conversation.

Posted in Agents, Query Letters, The Pitch Paragraph

Go Pitch Your Pitch

Posted on by beckylevine

I’ll be a little less present from the blog in the next couple of weeks, for obvious festive, celebratory, fudge-laden reasons. I’ll try to check in once a week at least, but even if you don’t hear from me for a while, know I’m out here and wishing everybody a wonderful break and a happy holiday.

As a special treat, I wanted to link you over to a very special Christmas gift to which you can treat yourself.

I got incredibly lucky this year. Not only did I get a chance to write The Critiquer’s Survival Guide for Writer’s Digest, but Jessica Faust of Bookends Literary agency agreed to represent the book for me. Jessica is also the agent for my friend (and great mystery writer) Terri Thayer, so I knew Jessica was trustworthy, direct, and very sharp–all the things I want in an agent.

She’s also incredibly hard-working. As evidence, see her offer to do pitch critiques over the holidays.  I’ve watched her do this before, and I can tell you that when Jessica says she’ll do “anywhere from three to three hundred” pitches, well…it won’t be three.

This is a great opportunity. Jessica doesn’t pull punches, thank goodness, and if she critiques your pitch you will know both what DOES and what DOESN’T work in it. You’ll be able to take her feedback and do some serious revision work, in preparation for submitting that paragraph to your list of agents, whether Jessica’s on that list or not.

This is the hardest part of the query to write. You have to SELL your book, in a way that totally hooks the agent and convinces them they MUST read pages from it. You  have to tell the story of a 200+-page project, in a few short, concise, evocative paragraphs.

Go. Write. Copy the paragraph into the Comments section at Jessica’s blog. Then, as Radar on M*A*S*H always said, “Wait for it.”