Alec Shane

Q5: This query is like so many others I get; decent writing, not a bad story, and I have nothing critical to say about it. But I wasn't blown away by these pages, and I have to be blown away, or at least very intrigued, to request more. Just the way it works sometimes #tenqueries

Q4: Book of short horror stories. Think the writing is good, but short stories are all but impossible to sell as a debut. I'll likely write the author, pass, but ask if she has a novel that she's working on; would love to see that. #tenqueries

Q3: Memoir about time spent as an MLB umpire. I get these every once in a while; I just don't think the audience is there. Pass. #tenqueries

Q2: Russian spy thriller. I think I've ever heard the word 'Russia' more times over the past 10 months than my entire life combined. I'm very Russia-ed out. Pass #tenqueries

Q1: Military fiction. Super hard to sell, so unless I'm completely wild about it, I have to err on the side of passing. #tenqueries

Q10: Adult mystery. I'm on the fence about this one, which usually means I err on the side of requesting more. I can always pass at a later date. No harm in taking a shot. #tenqueries

Q9: Sports NF. Seems very encyclopedia/almanacky. Tough to place these with major publishers, and most of these kinds of books have been replaced with online databases and internet archives. Pass. #tenqueries

Q8: MG Horror. Author seems to be struggling with believable dialogue. Writing dialogue is hard enough as it is; that goes double for adults trying to capture realistic children's voices. #tenqueries

Q7: Author asking permission to resubmit; she has done revisions and altered the MS significantly based on feedback I gave her last year. Polite, professional, and respectful, with no assumptions. Will for sure take a 2nd look. #tenqueries

Q6: MG adventure. Sounds really cool, but a bit similar to something I'm already working on right now. Plenty of room for both books, but it might get tricky having them both on my list. Tough pass. #tenqueries

Q5: Self-published, 250K words. Absolutely nothing I can do with this one. Pass. #tenqueries

Q4: Middle Eastern espionage thriller, terrorist plot. I'm exhausted by these novels, and it's just too saturated a market. Pass. #tenqueries

Q3: Opened with an "Are You Afraid of the Dark?" reference, which is a great way to get my attention - personalized queries go a long way. Writing isn't there, though. Pass. #tenqueries

Q2: Psychological thriller, 1st person present. This has become a very popular POV as of late, and it's great if done right, but it doesn't quite work here. Pass. #tenqueries

Q1: Military NF. Every military story is important and meaningful, but not all of them are salable in a very crowded market. That's the case here. Pass. #tenqueries

Q10: This author has won a ton of awards and I haven't heard of a single one of them. This author also apparently emailed every agent in publishing at once, because there must be at least 100 email addresses in the recipients bar, including several of my WH colleagues #tenqueries

Q9: DAMMIT! Was really, really excited about this premise (MG suspense/survival thriller), but the writing and delivery didn't work. These are the worst. #tenqueries

Q8: Very obscure sports biography. Sports books are a hard enough sell as it is, and I don't think enough people will care about this particular figure to take a flyer on it. Pass. #tenqueries

Q7: MG where the narrator is addressing the reader directly, complete with dialogue between narrator and reader in which we only know what the narrator is saying. I've never been a fan of this motif personally. Pass. #tenqueries

Q6: Horror about an ancient demon. Been there, done that. Pass. #tenqueries