Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips
Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

Janna Wong Healy @JannaWongHealy

@AnneTibbets Do you have any words to authors who are having trouble finding an agent and feel like they don’t want to keep querying?
Replying to @JannaWongHealy

Harsh truth, maybe the book you're querying isn't hitting the market at the right time, or your writing just isn't quite there yet.
Write the next thing. Keep striving. Keep working to improve.
Most successful writers aren't necessarily the most gifted, but the most determined.

Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

A.Sage Inglis (Ing-als) @ASageInglis

@AnneTibbets @BeatriceMavro Is it helpful? Do you see a difference in sales for authors who use social media to promote their work/connect with readers?
Replying to @ASageInglis

It's helpful, if used properly. It's great for networking with other writers which helps when asking for blurbs. Can't say if it helps with sales, really. Sometimes?
I've also seen it backfire. You've got to be careful.
Tread carefully & treat your tweets like mini-press releases

Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

Katherine Macdonald @KateMacAuthor

@AnneTibbets If you're querying a new MS after self-publishing, what, if anything, is relevant to mention in a query?

Thank you!
Replying to @KateMacAuthor

Mention your self published work by title and how many copies it has sold. Especially if it's sold over 5k copies. (The 1st thing I'm gonna do is go check it out on Amazon).
If you don't mention sales I'm going to assume it was around 500 copies or so, which is the SP average.

Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

DawsonEmerich @DawsonEmerich

@AnneTibbets What are the odds someone whose written a more adult humored book could still write a children's book and have a publisher accept their manuscript? Would they just use a pseudonym?
Replying to @DawsonEmerich

Hmm...Adult humored as in sexy time humor? Then probably a pen name is a good idea.
Use your real name in the query, and put "writing as [pen name]" next to your signature.
You can have a convo w/ your agent about if it's necessary when submission time comes

Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

Amber @Pihkamarja

@AnneTibbets @minerrale I'm not a native English speaker. If I wanted to query to an English publisher, would it cause problems or be more complicated?
Replying to @Pihkamarja

I've not had first hand experience with this, so I don't know. I don't THINK so?
As long as the book is in English, and reads grammatically correct, then it should be fine.

Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

Diane Byington, Ph.D. @dianebyington

@AnneTibbets Is it typical to get a two-book contract from a publisher? How long does the author have to come up with the second book?
Replying to @dianebyington

Depends on the publisher. Fairly typical but not universal.
They usually want book 2 w/n 6 months, which is TIIIIIIIIIGHT. If you need more time, have your agent ask for it. I'd say 12 months is the most they're going to give you, though. Tops.

Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips
Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips
Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

Beatrice Mavroleon @BeatriceMavro

@AnneTibbets How important is it to have a social media presence/following? Would you sign someone who didn’t have much of that just because you liked the book? What proportion of your new clients over recent years would you say fell into this category?
Replying to @BeatriceMavro

I don't require social media from my clients & I have signed some who don't participate, but many publishers like to have authors who have one.
I'd say MOST of my clients are on social media. It's not a deal breaker for me & I think the pubs who require it are outdated.

Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

Susan Wheelwright @S_Wheelwright

@AnneTibbets What would you say are the most common mistakes when writing a synopsis?
Replying to @S_Wheelwright

That the writer doesn't send a synopsis, but another pitch paragraph.
I want beginning, middle, and END, spoilers and all.

Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips
Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

Susan Wheelwright @S_Wheelwright

@AnneTibbets Which do you read first, the query letter or the pages?
Replying to @S_Wheelwright

First pass = read query letter. Reject or goes to 'Maybe' pile.
Second pass = read synopsis. Reject or goes to 'To Read' pile.
Third pass = read sample pages. Rejected or requested.

Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

JK Young @jkyoung_poems

@AnneTibbets Is there a legitimate market for sports fiction, and would you represent a novel in that genre?
Replying to @jkyoung_poems

I'm very non-sporty, so I'm not the agent for that manuscript. However, I've seen editors specifically request sporty manuscripts, so there's a market for it.

Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips
Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips
Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

The Scribbling Dragon 🐉 @ScribblingDrake

@AnneTibbets Do you think that pitch events as a whole are getting less attention from agents or perhaps only focusing on the more popular ones?
Replying to @ScribblingDrake

I can't speak to this, b/c I legit have no idea.
There are A LOT of pitch events and agents can and do burn out on them, but I also know some agents who close to queries and ONLY look for stuff via pitch events, so I say, DO BOTH = query and pitch events

Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips
Anne Tibbets
@AnneTibbets
Literary Agent
Literary Agent @MaassLitAgency . Author. SCREAMS FROM THE VOID out now. Opinions & sarcasm my own.
43 MSWL
127 AskAgent
5 Tips

Jean M. Levasseur @JeanMLevasseur

@AnneTibbets What are some of the common issues in queries that make you say no on the spot?
Replying to @JeanMLevasseur

Bashing other books is a big no no.
Flirting, also a no no.
Categorizing a book incorrectly b/c my QM doesn't have it listed - there's a reason why. That's a no no.