More 'What Do You Want?'

[onyxhawke]

chipaatsua asked several questions that I'll attempt to answer.

First was: 1. what goes into making the decision on whether to offer representation,
First I have to like, really, like a book. Then i have to know where it's going to go first and what I'm going to emphasize in the cover letter to those first editors. Those two go hand in hand. After these, I have to be convinced that the writer will not be a pain in the ass to work with. Yes, that is in bold, in red, and underlined. This point, at least to me, is coequal with quality of writing. If i wanted to deal with crazy people all day long and have them suck the soul out of me I'd buy a big house and track down the people i went to high school with and move them all in.

2) how do you go about offering your authors' work to editors (how do you pick which editor the material goes to first, etc.),

This is actually easier. Than part 1. The type of story and the way the description is executed, the plot, and of course the politics (if any) of the story will make 95% of the choice of where it goes.

3. the average length of time between offering representation and selling the material, and lastly,

Dog only knows. And that's about the same answer any agent is going to give. I've seen agents post to their blogs that it took four years to sell something. I've sold something in four months.

4. when/how do you decide that the material isn't going to sell in its present form.
Admittedly I've only had the business a while, but I haven't run across anything I've decided not to pursue further yet. I have told a client or two that it would not be in their best interest for me to shop a project other than the one that got me to sign them, but that's different.

Comments

[laurahcory1.livejournal.com]

If i wanted to deal with crazy people all day long and have them suck the soul out of me I'd buy a big house and track down the people i went to high school with and move them all in.

Heh. Replace "high school" with "junior high," and that's me. ;)

[chipaatsua.livejournal.com]

Thank you--very informative.

Thanks

[kennycelican.livejournal.com]

Stopped by to see where you were in terms of submissions. Thanks for the insights.