Juliet Mushens
Literary Agent
Mushens Entertainment
Literary agent at @MushensEnt , sartorialist and cat wrangler. Wartime consigliere. Pollyanna-ish. Generally heard before I'm seen. Bend and SNAP.
Literary Agent
New Decade New Jess @JessSteel7
#AskAgentHow do you feel about new technology? I'm trained in multiple arts and want to eventually create transmedia works but I'm not sure how easy that would be to pitch + sell. Essentially I want to create pocket universes for people to explore with SFF stories.
it's not necessarily a challenge my end but can be a challenge with publishers - illustrations, colour, moving images, all can be difficult to replicate across all media, and expensive to produce #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Ruthie Mack @ItsRuthieMack
@mushenska @julietpickering #askagent what is the process of taking on a new author given current situations?we have a zoom call or phone call to discuss edits first and representation, then a docusign agreement #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Ben Summers-McKay @BenSumMc
#AskAgent Is it seen as impolite/pushy to follow up on a submission if they don't acknowledge receipt or reply? How do you know your email arrived? Or should you assume rejection? Thanks!It depends on their guidelines - if they say they always reply to submissions within X weeks then fine to chase at X weeks #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Jenny Ireland @IdreamofNarnia
#askagent If an agent expressed interest in a MS and suggested edits which at the time ( due to illness) were not as good as they could have been. Would you be willing to look at an entirely re-edited version 6 months down the line?I tend not to look at re-edited versions of works I have turned down unless I specifically asked - probably no harm in asking this specific agent, but maybe time to send the edited version to others #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Jo Unwin @jounwin
@mushenska @Sime0nStylites @julietpickering how have they managed to write them so quickly???#askagentmy own theory is lots of them are old MSS pulled from a drawer and given a polish as they seem timely! #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Clo Carey @clocareywriter
#AskAgent Do you think there will ever be a Boomer genre - older authors writing for older audiences with an older cast of characters? twitter.com/mushenska/stat…I think these books definitely exist already - I also think as writers grow older they tend to want to write more of their own age range characters #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Lisa Orchard @lisaorchard1
#askagent I've got a crossover YA novel but it's on the long side, about 160000 words. Is this going to be an obstacle for agents to even look at?160k is a long word count for an adult novel, let alone YA. My concerns would be about plotting and pacing over a novel of that length, and especially sustaining a teenage reader's interest #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Literary Agent
Alexandrina Brant is looking for betas @Caelestia_Flora
@mushenska @ashley1espinoza Seeing as this is similar to my question, can I ask a follow up:Is it better to have no comps than to comp to bestsellers or big names in the genre?
hmm, tough one, I guess depends just how big the names are? e.g. THE HUNGER GAMES meets HARRY POTTER isn't that helpful, but there are certainly well known authors to reference who are helpful. It's basically just giving me a shorthand of what to expect from the book #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Rebecca E Roberts @BeckyERoberts
#AskAgent I recently read that 1st person narratives are seen as inferior to those in the 3rd person; a bit 'lowbrow '. In your experience, is this true? Do you have a personal preference?not true at all - I am fine with the perspective as long as it fits the story and tone #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Beatrice Anobah @anobah_beatrice
#askagent Hello...Does it really take 12 weeks etc. for agents to make offer of rep/ request a full MS if they really like the work? Thank u!it can do! It totally depends what else I have on, and how many client manuscripts I have to read and edit #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Jade M. Loren 🔮 @jadewritesbooks
#askagent is SFF strong in the UK market rn? (Apart from me buying all the sff books I can)it's a small but passionate market - definitely dominated by big brands so slower to break out new voices, but definitely possible to do so #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Lucy Grace 🐝🖍️🏳️🌈 @lgracewriter
@mushenska @julietpickering Thank you for your replies. It's so daunting looking in from the outside, even if you've had some success in competitions etc, it seems like submission and agents is another country.I would say that most agents are always looking for new talent - it's why we do things like #AskAgent !
Literary Agent
The Columnist @Sime0nStylites
@jounwin @mushenska @julietpickering Thanks very much to you all. The work you’ve seen over the last couple of months of this terrible crisis...thematically has there been anything that you’ve thought is much more or less relevant?I am seeing a lot of pandemic novels! which for me are a little too close to home right now #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Varsha Seshan @VarshaSeshan
@mushenska @julietpickering Hello! Would you say that agents typically prefer to represent authors from their own countries/geographical locations?#AskAgent
Most of my authors are based in the UK but some are in e.g. America, Germany, Nigeria. Depends on the individual book but I def think there are some cultural differences - e.g. short story collections and campus novels have a clear US market but struggle in the UK #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Lucy Grace 🐝🖍️🏳️🌈 @lgracewriter
@mushenska @julietpickering Can you explain a bit more about that please? About how people get it wrong? #askagentit can be that it's very confusing, or not something I represent, or exactly the same plot as an already published and v successful book #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Christopher Byford @Morningstaruk
@mushenska @julietpickering Hi Juliet. What are you thoughts on the New Adult market please? I've been told that it's a tough sell and that material should always be aged down for YA or up to adult. Is there any truth to this in your option?yes, new adult never really took off in the UK as a genre - the books which broke out started as YA and migrated up organically, and publishing specifically for that narrow market didn't work here #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Lucy Grace 🐝🖍️🏳️🌈 @lgracewriter
@mushenska @julietpickering Thanks - I wondered, if the query letter says 'women's fiction', the agent groans and paper aeroplanes it directly into the bin as they're inundated with that genre. Do you take a look at first couple of pages of writing everytime? Even for a nano-second? #askagentIt's never genre which turns me off - it might be pitch though #AskAgent
Literary Agent
Wendy Dalrymple @wendy_dalrymple
@mushenska #askagent Hi Juliet and thank you! I have a few romance and horror publications under my belt, and am looking to venture into writing MG/YA under a pen name.As an agent, do you shy away from authors looking to venture into new genres? Thanks!
No, several of my authors write in multiple genres! some use pen names to differentiate #AskAgent