Literary Agent
R.B. Shifman @rshifman
@UweStenderPhD Is there currently any interest in YA set in the 1970s, 1980s, and/or 1990s? (Not SFF, but drama)Not for me, but I can't speak for other agents.
Literary Agent
Laura Bower @LauraMB2
@UweStenderPhD What is on your wish list right this minute?YA friendship stories, YA thrillers, YA rom coms.
Adult thrillers.
Non-fiction from authors with a strong platform.
Literary Agent
identities, one identity might inform your lived experience more so than others (example: being a brown woman always exerted greater influence over my life than my sexuality did, or my neurodivergence).
So, consider this if...
Literary Agent
As a POC it is more likely that I relate to stories by other POC, which is something to consider before querying me, though I wouldn't decline a story solely because it's not written by BIPOC.
That said, not all marginalizations are equal and when you have intersecting...
Literary Agent
From the DMs (msg cut for length): Does marginalized backgrounds include white LGBT folks?
Short answer: yes. White folks from marginalized backgrounds are welcome to query me.
Long answer: LGBTQ, DIS, ND & other such voices are still marginalized even when also white. BUT...
Literary Agent
William Michael (writer) @OhlidalWilliam
@KeirAlekseii 2 questions if I may...How long after your initial rejections can you submit a rewritten version of a story that got rejected?
Are shorter stories more cost-effective?
I've reduced my novel from 112,000 to 82,000 making a harder-hitting faster-paced book. Does it help?
As for shorter stories, this one is incredibly subjective. Both 112k and 82k seem like good lengths to me, depending on what the age category & genre are.
Whether a faster paced novel helps or harms you in the query trenches depends entirely on the individual agents. I...
Literary Agent
Keir Alekseii is OPEN TO QUERIES @KeirAlekseii
FAQ🧵:Q: ALA's rules say that I can only query 2 agents per MS. If you ❤️ my pitch but I've already queried 2 agents at ALA with this MS, can I still query you?
A: Unfortunately, you should not query me if you've already queried 2 other ALA agents. HOWEVER...
To start, some common questions are answered here: twitter.com/KeirAlekseii/s…
Literary Agent
Sophie Bradley @5235Bradleys
@annmrose Thank you for doing this! When is it okay to requery? Ex. It’s been a year since first query, but I nudged a month ago (twitter said all queries from my query time would be read) mentioning I made changes in the last year. Is it okay to requery, or should I count this as a no?So you never got a response from a year ago?
My rule of thumb is that if you’ve made substantial changes you can try again, just mention it in the query. #AskAnAgent
Literary Agent
steph thoughts secretly working on ~projects~ @her_singularity
@annmrose I’ve noticed that the YA market has gotten more competitive (w/presses closing), and that many of the editors I follow are looking for darker adult books. But as an author looking at MSWL tags, I feel like there’s a disconnect. Many agents are still hunting for YA. Thoughts?Yes we are. Because we still need books for teens ❤️
Literary Agent
(Definitley not mystic) Meg 🔮 @MeganAmyParsons
@annmrose I live in Wales in the UK. Do you advise to only ever query agents from the same country as you, or for example could I query American literary agents? I’ve stayed clear of it so far!You absolutely can query American agents if you’d like. Especially if you want to break out in the US market they will have a good handle if its pulse #AskAnAgent
Literary Agent
Abigail @AbigailLissit
@annmrose Is there actionable advice you can give for someone who has workshopped their query and first pages with multiple CPs and beta readers and is still getting form rejections? :)If you are just getting form I would make sure you are really showing what the hook is (query) and that you are starting in the right place (pages)
How many rejections are we talking about though because if it’s not a lot it could be fine and you just have to keep going
Literary Agent
Verna James @VJameswrites
@ginapanettieri If the query in not stellar will you read at least the first page? TyIf the concept hooked me, yes. Many agents/editors look at the pages first.
Literary Agent
Shelly Mack @Shellymackbooks
@ginapanettieri My characters in my Scottish horror are 20. I'm struggling with genre. Some agents don't agree NA is a genre but YA is not quite right either for my book audience. I was thinking commercial horror. Could that work? Thanks in advance. 😊20 can be a challenging age for protagonists. It is a little old for YA and NA really isn’t a thing. Do they need to be 20? Why did you choose that age?
Literary Agent
blan©️k. @sonyablanck
@ginapanettieri who's publishing under 50k nowadays? (also please tell me about shoulder cryotherapy, mine subluxes dozens of times a day)Actually, novella and short novel length works are really kind of having a moment. If I were you I would read publishersmarketplace.com and look over the deal lists. You are going to find a lot of listings for deals for shorter fiction.
Literary Agent
F.X. Regan @FXRegan
@ginapanettieri I know it varies by client, but on average, what it the success rate shopping an author/book you think has “it” to a publisher?You said it in saying it depends. It depends on the knowledge of the agent, it depends on how outside the box the book is, it depends on how many subs the agent does. There’s no hard and fast stat. I know agents who sell almost 100%, I know new or untrained agents who hardly sell
Literary Agent
Art Geis @artgeis
@ginapanettieri What are your keys for a successful synopsis?Synopses are hard, I will grant you that. A lot of people want a one pager, I think three gives enough room to tell your story. Think of it as a pitch tool. We don’t need every lot detail. Think conflict, stakes, and motivation. I want to know why I should care what is happening.
Literary Agent
ANOVELIDEA @ANOVELIDEA7
@ginapanettieri Why does publishing do NOTHING to bring in new readers? ie sure you can promote a book but I had a chance encounter with a novel The Last Time They Met by Anita Shreve 2007 it changed my life PUBLISHING "men don't read chicklit?" hmm guess i should check my pronouns?I think publishing right now is making inroads in serving more diverse readers. And we need to get over the idea that books are gender-specific. Anyone who knows my author list knows gender specificity is bullshit.
Literary Agent
patrick hopkins (he/him)🏳️🌈 supports ukraine @AuthorHopkins
@ginapanettieri questions based on things i've seen recently:1) on a scale of 1 to throw it in an active volcano as a warning, how much do you hate prologues?
2) at what point does a writer withdrawing a sub package to fix something get irritating?
tia.
<3
I don’t hate prologues except when they’re basically lazy writing, which a lot of them are. A lot of them are the authors saying I’m gonna bore you for two chapters so I’m gonna give you this prologue that’s really a flash forward to show that there’s something good later on.
Literary Agent
M.A. Guglielmo @Aphemia66
@ginapanettieri What are some strategies for selecting comps when writing a query?1/2 Comps are super important. You want a book that’s gotten a lot of buzz, has sold well, it is not by a superstar known author, but a new author who’s getting a lot of attention. Read publishers weekly, even the free newsletters are great.
Literary Agent
n30hybr1d @n30hybr1d
@ginapanettieri How likely is a query to get rejected based off the first page of a manuscript? Thanks.If the writing on the first page is not engaging the reader at all, it’s almost a guaranteed rejection. If it’s a little rough or something intrigued us, we’ll keep reading. It doesn’t have to be perfect, but it does have to hook us.