Literary Agent
Jessica K. Foster @JessicaKFoster
@UweStenderPhD @david_neuner Hi! If you've been represented before, should you include that in your query for a new book, or doesn't it matter?I think you should mention it for full disclosure.
Literary Agent
Carrie @carriemegan14
@UweStenderPhD Is YA historical a tough sell right now?If it's great,no.
Literary Agent
Elisabeth S. Gay @ElisabethSGay
@UweStenderPhD How important is it for a debut author to have a website for agent consideration?Not important for me. You should have one for book PR once it sells, but otherwise I don't care.
Literary Agent
Jenna Hammond @JMHTweet
@UweStenderPhD Thank you for this! How important is it for a querying author to have a blog?I personally don't care. So not important for me personally, but others may feel differently.
Literary Agent
Literary Agent
Dalton Valette @daltonvalette
@UweStenderPhD What are some of the most common mistakes you’ve seen in queries which can lead to a rejection?Querying with a genre the agent does not represent.
Spelling errors.
Grandiosity.
Literary Agent
30 minutes until the video #askagent session! I hope to see you there!
youtube.com/watch?v=aOzimz…
Literary Agent
Judie Offerdahl is tapping away @judieofferdahl
@dawilliamsbooks Wow! Speedy responses! It was a picture book. Aside from being my best work, when sending the additional requests, would you recommend sending diversified samples or ones with the same tone/within the same genre?Send your best, submission-ready work regardless of tone/genre.
#AskECLA #AskAgent
Literary Agent
MeiLin Chan @meilin418
For the PB market, do you find grandparents-themed stories difficult to sell right now? What would be more considered more sought after?#askagent & #askECLA
I wouldn't say they're necessarily more difficult, it depends on the story you're telling. An "I went to my grandparent's house" is different than "my grandparent passed away" is different than "my grandparent is teaching me something about my culture."
#AskECLA #AskAgent
Literary Agent
MeiLin Chan @meilin418
For the PB market, do you find grandparents-themed stories difficult to sell right now? What would be more considered more sought after?#askagent & #askECLA
I think many adults think PBs are "easy" because they are short, and many parents/grandparents decide to write them and center themselves in the story too much. Those same parents/grandparents still buy books, so if it's well done, there's room for it. #AskECLA
Literary Agent
M. Miller @m_mwriter
Are you open to 80s-90s historical fiction or is that market dead and/or over saturated? Thanks! #AskECLAI wouldn’t say any category is dead. IMHO, I’m wary of that time period because I worry it’s the writer telling a thinly veiled story of teenagerdom THEY know, instead of trying to speak with teens today. But as with everything, done well and differently is never dead! #askECLA
Literary Agent
Christina Ferko 💗💜💙 @ChristinaFerko
@MandyHubbard Do you know how long (estimate) you will be staying open for at all? I'd love to query you w/my creepy thriller but still doing revisions on it.Hoping to stay open for quite awhile! I am 100% caught up on queries and have two fulls (from January) I need to finish. I think my vice is staying open TOO long and developing a backlog because I don't want to miss out on awesome stuff! #AskECLA
Literary Agent
Lauren Simonis-Hunter @SimonisLauren
How about any horror elements you're not a fan of? #AskECLAMy nos for horror:
Gore for the sake of gore/shock value. long, drawn-out on-page assaults
ableism (this is a hard one because horror is FULL/based on ableism)
-isms
#AskECLA #AskAgent
Literary Agent
E.M. Wright | SEDITION OUT NOW @EMWrightWrites
#AskECLA I know YA fantasy is a bit oversaturated right now, but are there any particular elements that you’re looking for? Things that might stand out in the current market?I try to say "competitive" rather than "oversaturated" because I think there is always room for brilliance. I actually signed a new YA fantasy this week. For me it's just about feeling fresh/interesting and not super derivative. #AskECLA
Literary Agent
Caitlin White @caitforestell
@meganthebookwrm Oooooh the prologue. Very controversial! :) I think they *can* work if you're honest with yourself as a writer and not just starting the manuscript in the wrong place. This is more for "action prologues" than anything. #AskECLAWhat I mean by that is when your Chapter One is less ~exciting~ so you tack on an eventful moment first thing as a prologue. That doesn't usually work. But sometimes, they are appropriate ways to tell the story you want to tell, so it's up to the prologue! #AskECLA #askagent
Literary Agent
Megan Lind Persinger @meganthebookwrm
How do you all feel about the dreaded prologue?#AskECLA
Not 100% against it but many times they are not necessary. It also depends on how many pages you are to submit. I take 20 pages (which should get me, at least, the first chapter) but some people only want the first 3-5 pgs.
#AskECLA #MSWL
Literary Agent
Megan Lind Persinger @meganthebookwrm
How do you all feel about the dreaded prologue?#AskECLA
Oooooh the prologue. Very controversial! :) I think they *can* work if you're honest with yourself as a writer and not just starting the manuscript in the wrong place. This is more for "action prologues" than anything. #AskECLA
Literary Agent
Caitlin White @caitforestell
@judieofferdahl I, and the rest of @EmeraldCityLit , really want to work wtih writers for their careers -- not for one manuscript. So it's important we align on what that career looks like in the writer's mind #AskECLAThis! Short of PB, we just want to see what other things you might be thinking of. We're not a one-and-done agency!
#AskECLA #AskAgent
Literary Agent
D. Ann Williams 🏳️🌈 @dawilliamsbooks
@judieofferdahl #AskECLA #AskAgentThis generally only applies to PB because of the shorter word count. It's also to see what other stories/ideas the author has and what type of work will be needed.
Yes, agree with D.Ann, it's not AT ALL uncommon in the PB world, but for novels usually it's more "what direction are you going next?" Even editors ask US this when they are about to offer on a project! It's usually good--they're looking ahead. #AskECLA
Literary Agent
Mandy Hubbard (she/her) @MandyHubbard
@caitforestell @SimonisLauren Agree with Caitlin, that CREEPY, but sometimes you don't know WHY is so cool, but I also don't mind more overt horror (I've signed one with blood and guts and more overt stuff despite the fact that I cannot WATCH that in a movie.) #AskECLADitto the other two! Give me the atmosphere, give me the psychological, give it all. I do overt blood as well. Also, if the horror is mixed with another genre I'd love to see it.
#AskECLA #AskAgent