Rebecca Matte
Literary Agent
Bradford Literary Agency
Literary Agent & Contract Manager at @Bradford_Agents. NYC DOE Lawyer. Author in Progress. Always a nerd. She/her.
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Courtney Collins @CCollinsWriter
@RebeccaLMatte Do agents vet a potential client to see if you both would get along before making an offer? I feel like writers get to do that before accepting an agent, but what about on the agent’s end? Or do you make an offer based solely on the material & hope you vibe?Absolutely! Not the way that authors do, because our skills are different. Writers vet business skills and advocacy, while agents vet writing. Calls with authors are a good gauge of that — I talk about my editing and feedback style, priorities, how I envision the relationship.
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AJ @AJMMmidnight
@RebeccaLMatte What makes a literary Agent choose a work? (specifically for young unheard authors with their first book)#amquerying #WIPs
This is *very* individual. But here are some thoughts:
I think across the board, it has to be a book an agent wants to read again and again and again. Books go through lots of rounds of edits, and if you don’t want to keep reading it, that won’t work. But what does that mean?
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J.M. Raymond (14.7k/90k) @JMRaymondWrites
@RebeccaLMatte How much input do authors/agents have on book cover designs?I haven’t gone through this yet! But as a contract manager, my impression is many authors have a “right of consultation” — meaning pubs get to decide, but the author gets to give input and see options before the decision is made. Anything more specific has to be built in
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Jake Stollman, Space Cadet @jake_stollman
@RebeccaLMatte I dabble in art (not AI). How would the average agent respond if, in an email query, I submitted an illustration of my MC or a book cover with her on it? I think it would definitely add to the intrigue/appeal, but it could come off as not kosher for a query.I’d say it wouldn’t change much for me, tbh. The query & writing have to stand on their own. if your cover provides something more intriguing, consider why it doesn’t come through in your query. But feel free to share that you do illustration, esp for agents seeking illustrators
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Katie @_katra26
@RebeccaLMatte I got another one. I have heard a lot of agents don't want to work with hybrid authors. Is this true jn your experience?Hybrid meaning self published and seeking to be trad published? I think it depends on the agent! A lot of authors are self publishing to massive success and as agents we never discourage that. If you have good numbers from self pub share in your query-proof of concept can’t hurt
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Amber Hamilton is QUERYING @AmHamWrites
@RebeccaLMatte How much should trad pub authors expect to do their own marketing, and what sorts of things would that involve?Sigh. This is a tough one. As the PRH trial showed, publishers often don’t have marketing plans for most authors with standard advances. A lot of author marketing is social media and online: networking with authors, sharing bits on your website, online giveaways. ½
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Claudia Armann - Latinx in Pub. mentee @ClaudiaArmann
@RebeccaLMatte Are all publishing deals posted on Publishers Marketplace? Most deals? Some deals?Being new, please take with a grain of salt. But my understanding is that the site has all the ones submitted to it (which can be all), while the emails do not. When I do my research, I go into Pub Marketplace with the understanding that it’s all the editors’ deals
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Katie @_katra26
@RebeccaLMatte How much do you consider (if at all) social media presence for a debut author?Personally? Not at all! I’ll certainly share my tips for social media if you want them because I find that it can be an amazing resource. But lots of people don’t use social media for their own reasons.
The only thing I care about is writing and our ability to work together.