Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Joseph Sprenger @JosephSprenger7
@LitAgentKelly Hi, Kelly! I've had wildly varying response times on Queries. My quickest was forty-five minutes, my longest was four months. I was just wondering if that meant anything significant or if its just a coincidence.It’s mostly just depending on how agents run their boxes, how much help they have, and what their current life is like. We read queries during our free time mostly, and our clients have to take up that time first and be priority!
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Michael L. Ross @MichaelLRoss7
@LitAgentKelly @SarahWerbach What draws you to represent particular genres?Agents represent what they know and enjoy. If we don’t know and enjoy a genre, we won’t be a good option to work on it or know what it needs in order to sell!
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Amber Meredith @AmberMeredith14
@LitAgentKelly What do you look for in a query?Voice and commercial hooks!
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Caitlin Cross @caitlincross
@LitAgentKelly @CortneyRadocaj This is so random, but do authors have any say in who narrates the audiobook of their book?Usually not. 🤷🏼♀️ Authors don’t have a lot of say in many things publishers do, including cover designs and such!
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Chris Gerlacher @GerlacherC
@LitAgentKelly If I end up with representation, should I just be working on a second book while my agent is shopping my manuscript around?YES. You will need something to keep your nerves and patience in check! It’s TOUGH being on submission and having more work to do helps to keep the nerves at bay.
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Dylan Armstrong @astrongwriter
@LitAgentKelly How often do you get terrible query letters? What do you do when you get one?Everyday. 😂 Did you see the mass email that went out to agents the other day asking for bidders for each word in the query?! And usually if the first page is no good, and the query is no good, it’s an automatic rejection. :(
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
DL Timmerman🐲 @dltauthor
@LitAgentKelly About how long do you read a manuscript before deciding it’s for you or not?Usually agents can and will know if it’s not for us within the first 25-ish pages. But there’s also the manuscripts that are amazing until about the 100 page mark and then start falling apart. Those are the toughest. :(
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Kelly 📚 @LitAgentKelly
@75thandYeadon Is it fiction or nonfiction? The best way is to really dig deep into what your manuscript is and what type of person you work well with. Be honest about your strengths and weaknesses and what you would want in a working partnership! Then go and honestly google the crap out ofAgents and agencies. Find ones you get a good vibe from. Read their websites, their #MSWL pages and tweets, their “about me” and what they stand for. Write all the ones down that appeal to you and who rep manuscripts and books similar to yours. :)
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Bria Thompson @75thandYeadon
@LitAgentKelly How do you find a agent that’s best for you and your book? What I’m working on is a collection of essays with corresponding photographs and not only am I unsure how to format it in a manuscript but I’m unsure if there’s an agent who would even want it when it’s doneIs it fiction or nonfiction? The best way is to really dig deep into what your manuscript is and what type of person you work well with. Be honest about your strengths and weaknesses and what you would want in a working partnership! Then go and honestly google the crap out of
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Bethany Simonsen is querying again @Bethanyrambles
@LitAgentKelly @DMandzz Follow up question, if that's okay. How do you see sales for upper MG going lately? I know I've seen a lot of kids who want it, and authors who want to write it, but are publishers starting to invest in it?Trending UP! YA is super saturated right now and a lot of publishers have been asking for more MG projects. Positive side for MG authors. :)
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
ZeZe @0zezezz
@LitAgentKelly Hi! Should I query to multiple agents simultaneously? What happens if multiple agents give an offer? Do you turn some down?Yes, query simultaneously! Usually authors query in rounds (some 10-15 agents at a time, I’d assume?) and when they get enough rejections, move on to another round. If multiple agents offer, then yes, you will have to turn some down by the deadline given!
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Bethany Simonsen is querying again @Bethanyrambles
@LitAgentKelly I know agents talk about MSs they like but don't love enough to rep. Do agents sign writers for a project they DO love, and then reconsider those other MSs?Meaning from the same person? Yes. @briston_brooks is my perfect example of this! She sent me 3 manuscripts before being signed, and we’re now going back over the other two and talking about revisions and how to best sell them in the market. :)
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
M.D. Parker is not really here @MDParkerwrites
@LitAgentKelly When querying how would you want it explained if a book has a "hidden" (but obvious) biblical element as a major piece of the story & characters but IS NOT a "christian" or "religious" book? The book is Sci-fi horror.I’d say don’t mention it, in all honesty. 🤷🏼♀️ Let the reader figure it out for themselves!
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
R.H. Berry 🏳️🌈 @AuthorRHBerry
@LitAgentKelly @Michelle4Laughs When (if ever) is it okay to resend a query to an agent who has previously rejected it?Usually if the manuscript has undergone large revisions, it can be requeried after a longer period of time with the statement that it has gone through major revisions. :)
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Saimira Tola-Khouw @tolasaimira
@LitAgentKelly Any tips / advice for a new writer from outside the US?Join online writing groups and find friends, and build a community physically near you, too! You’ll need the friends in this industry!
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Sahar Rahimi @Dawnfulness
@LitAgentKelly Hi!! Thanks for this! Would you recommend writing and trying to get your "best book" represented first? Or to focus on other books to build skill and a platform before you work on the book you think will be most successful? #askagentWork on the books you want to work on. There is something to be said about practicing and getting skill behind you first, but many people can’t force themselves to write something they’re not feeling then and there. Plus, you could always go back and revise!
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Nancy Lumgair @NancyLumgair
@LitAgentKelly Should someone working towards their debut novel work on a standalone novel vs a series that they're unsure they could make the 1st work as a standalone?Work on what you want to work on, and the rest will fall into place. :) Both cycle in and out of popularity, so there’s a time for both and people differ on these decisions, too!
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
✨ Elayna Mae Darcy 🍂 @elaynamae
@LitAgentKelly I see a lot of agents say they specifically don't rep poetry, but my YA SFF novel has poetry as an element (one at the start of each chapter) Should I let that deter me from querying those agents, or give it a try anyway since poetry is not the bulk of the book? #AskAgentIf it’s just a short poem at the beginning of each chapter, I don’t think it will necessarily deter an agent from repping you if they like your story otherwise. When they say they don’t rep poetry (most don’t) we’re saying full books of poems/poetry.
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Emily Beecher @The_EmilyB
@LitAgentKelly @CooksUpAStory What's the best way to not awkwardly nudge an agent to get back to you (when their submissions say you'll hear back within xx)?You can just respond to the email and say that their submissions say to check back within this time and you were wondering if they had gotten to it yet. But you understand they’re busy and if they haven’t gotten to it yet, no biggie. Just checking in. It’s pretty normal!
Kelly is using Query Manager now! @LitAgentKelly · 24 Aug 2019
Kiana Harris @Kiana_Tamarie
@LitAgentKelly Hi Kelly! Thank you so much for doing this! 😊How do you feel about softer-hearted and quieter heroines in an MS? Do you find them more difficult to connect to or does it really just depend on the voice and overall story?
It depends on the voice and overall story! It also depends on the stakes and agency, because if it’s quieter in voice as well as stakes and agency, it will be a tough sell to most publishers.