Submissions - Page 7

Are Three Pens Better Than One?

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Dear Editor…

Two writer friends and I have collaborated on a mg novel. Are editors leery of taking on collaborations and working with three authors and three agents? Is there a preferable way to package our talents so that we can be marketed as a team versus individuals?

Sincerely,

Natasha

Dear Natasha…

If your material is The Goods, editors won’t balk at a 3-person writing team. But be ready for extra scrutiny from them and reviewers: Three authors? Must be three times as good! Your voices must be seamless if they’re meant to blend. Or, if there are three different parts, each voice must be distinct, and changing from one to another must offer insight you could only get from that voice.

For insight into packaging a threesome, I tapped my favorite publicity collaborators, the duo at Blue Slip Media. They do point out possible marketing challenges: 3 author names on promo materials is tricky design-wise, and it’d be 3 times more expensive to bring all of you to conferences or go on tour, and having 3 agents pushing for top billing for their authors could be a headache for the Marketing Director. These might be arguments for packaging the group under a pen name—one that hints at or directly declares your team-up. You can brainstorm it with the Marketing Department when the times comes; you needn’t have it completely finalized when you submit. Despite these challenges, Blue Slips says that Marketing would welcome the unique possibilities your threesome offers: 3 sets of networks to tap into, 3 locales where you can push for local publicity, and potential for some great trade coverage (like Publishers Weekly and general newspapers/magazines) for the unusual approach to writing fiction. Having 3 authors makes the book stand out from the pack, a key in publicity. Just be sure you work together seamlessly (that word again!) so you can agree on things quickly and move forward.

I also checked with a publishing law attorney, Lisa Lucas at Lucas LLP. After all, a collaboration is a business partnership, and many authors forget that in the excitement of creating and submitting. Turns out Lisa blogged about this very issue earlier this summer. Her main message: Brainstorm the entire process, consider all the things that may come up, then assign responsibility and memorialize that on paper. For instance, when one author is at a conference doing the selling, should she get a bigger cut of those sales? Your agents, too, must work things out among themselves before bringing in the outside pressure of a publisher. Of course, you can’t predict everything (Lisa cites a case where one author in a collaboration commits murder—yikes!), but do take to heart her message about proactively discussing touchy things.

Happy writing!

The Editor

Query Quandary

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Dear Editor…

I have written a few query letters for my picture books, and sent them off to many editors, with no
success. I decided to write a Middle grade novel and try to get it published first… Question is: Can I query it before I finish? And is it bad to query the editors I have already queried for my picture book?

Sincerely,

Christina

Dear Christina…

It’s not unheard of to query before you finish your manuscript. This is one way to lessen your waiting time between query and response. You’re not really waiting if you’re still writing, right? However, while the logic is there, there’s risk in this maneuver. Should you get a speedy reply asking for materials, you wouldn’t have anything to send and would have to hem and haw or make up excuses for your delay. Or worse, you’d rush out with something before it’s thoroughly cooked. Leaving a request for more dangling is always a little hinky. The agent may wonder if you’re flaky or not as serious about him/her as you claimed to be in the query, and the last thing you want to do is give agents a reason to narrow their eyes suspiciously. Most writers send in their material within hours or days of the request for more.  If you’re going to query before your manuscript is done, make sure the ms is really really darned close to being done.

If the editors you queried for your picture book also handle MG fiction, then yes, query them for your novel. They didn’t reject you, just that particular picture book.

Happy writing!

The Editor

I Wrote It . . . Now What?

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Dear Editor…

I have written several childrens stories and am seeking publication. Most are picture book style, two for YA. Some rhyme, giving an opportunity for interaction. My manuscripts are ready. I’m unsure of how to proceed. Any suggestions?

Sincerely,

Claudia

Dear Claudia…

You’ve done the work, now it’s time to do the homework. Study the Literary Market Place to figure out which publishers handle your kind of material—your themes, storytelling styles, and genres. Study books in stores to see which houses published the ones most like yours. Do the same for agents, if you decide to go that route, as agents are in the LMP and are often mentioned in a book’s acknowledgments. Then join the Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators: www.scbwi.org. This national organization’s resources, forums, chapter speakers, and national conference presentations will educate you about the biz, the rules, and the players as you move into this next phase. Attend their chapter meetings and conferences to network with other writers and, potentially, agent and editor guest speakers. Your submission path will become clear as you immerse yourself in the children’s book community.

Happy writing!
The Editor

Telling the New Agent about the Old Agent

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Dear Editor…

When I query agents for possible representation, should I inform them that I had an agent for 3 years
but I chose to leave due to creative differences?

Sincerely,

Merrily

Dear Merrily…

Tell them. Knowing you had an agent before can give weight to your query—it means you’ve caught someone’s eye once before. My agent, Erin Murphy of the Erin Murphy Literary Agency, says that while agent reactions can vary, she isn’t put off to learn someone had a previous agent. But she doesn’t dig the term “creative differences.” Erin says, “Much as I know agents and writers part ways for many reasons having nothing to do with either of them being troublemakers, of course there is always a tiny voice wondering why things didn’t work out with that agent, and that phrase sounds more of an alarm than many explanations; I immediately begin to suspect that this writer doesn’t like to listen to guidance. Something like ‘differing opinions about which direction to take my writing next’ sounds less ominous to my ear—it essentially means the same thing but can be taken as ‘that agent wanted me to write to a particular market and my muse wouldn’t cooperate,’ which I’m sympathetic to.” In the initial query, though, something like this will do you just fine: “In November 2009 I amicably parted ways with my agent of three years and I am now seeking new representation.” There are other factors, of course. Did the other agent sell anything? How widely circulated were the manuscripts? Is there any new material that the agent had not sent out, which would give a new agent space to build from? But you can get into that later, after this new agent has nibbled.

Happy writing!

The Editor

10 Rejections and Losing Hope Fast

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Dear Editor…

Ten agents have requested to read my full YA ms. One has rejected it but said, “I loved the voice. I think it’s fantastic. Obviously you are an incredibly talented writer. However, I actually have a client who writes YA with very similar themes.” Wouldn’t she know that from reading my query?

Sincerely,

Losing Hope

Dear Losing Hope…

Back up a step. 10 requests for the full ms? You’ve obviously got an effective query letter and an intriguing concept. Huge! Already, two reasons to hang onto Hope. A third reason: Even if an agent is being nice while rejecting, “loved” and “fantastic” are strong words that are easily avoided, so I’m willing to bet that your narrative voice is, indeed, well crafted. Those are reasons enough to get that chin of yours back up and keep at this. 10 rejections suggest something could be stronger in the ms; you’d do well to get it professionally critiqued or join a critique group to try to identify areas of weakness. But it may just be that you haven’t found the right “chemistry” yet between agent and manuscript. Agents hope for that inexplicable attraction every day, which could be why the agent in question asked to see your full ms despite hints of similarity with a client’s work. If she’s repping something similar, clearly she likes that type of material and you picked your submission target well. Hey, reason-to-be-hopeful #4! You’re on a roll. Don’t stop now.

Happy writing!

The Editor

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