That certainty is especially evident when we consider that rejection includes the usual rejections from
agents or editors who don't love our work, the potential buyers who decide against clicking the buy button, and the negative reviews that will accumulate.
And, at the same time, you just might attract the attention of
an agent or an editor who loves that you already have a built - in audience for your message.
I just don't think it HAS to be a New York
agent or editor who does it.
Author background: (1 to 2 pages) In this section, you tell
the agent or editor who you are and why you are the best person to write this book.
Hardly, just ask
any agent or editor who reads unpublished manuscripts for a living and they'll tell you nothing is original.
If you were lucky, you had
an agent or an editor who nurtured that along for you.
Not exact matches
Posted by Victoria Strauss for Writer Beware I often receive questions from writers
who are looking to hire an independent
editor to polish their manuscripts, either for self - publication
or for submission to
agents and publishers, and want to know w... -LSB-...]
Depending on what your publisher has planned for your book (which an
editor often shares with you and your
agent 6 months to a year before your book launches), and depending on your budget, a freelance publicist (
who usually works on fewer books at any time than an in - house publicist) can supplement
or enhance what your in - house publicist will be doing.
Or that I sold Superman stories — to Julius Schwartz, the
editor who was Ray Bradbury's
agent — when I was in college?)
The term first came from fan fiction, and it means a person
who reads your work - in - progress (
or «WIP») when you, the writer
or «alpha,» are ready for feedback — before it goes into final draft to be sent to your fanfic page,
editor,
or agent.
Profiles of small publishers
or agents who are interested in your genre (take them from websites — you don't have to bother the
agents and
editors)
So do
agents,
editors, publishers, book reviewers, book sales people — and those all - important people
who decide whether to carry your book
or not: bookstore buyers.
We have to find the
agent and /
or the
editor who loves our work enough to champion it.
Getting a publishing contract means finding an
agent and /
or pitching your book directly to
editors who accept unsolicited manuscript submissions.
Each year, hundreds of veteran authors and those just learning the craft of Christian fiction gather in a setting like this to hear skilled instructors, inspiring keynoters... to gain from the insights of industry professionals... to interact with other writers... and to present their ideas to
agents and
editors looking for stories like theirs,
or to mentors
who can help them move forward in their writing career.If you write Christian fiction —
or want to learn how — the ACFW conference is an investment worth making.
But many times, when you send your query, that
agent (
or editor or publisher) has just stopped accepting queries,
or has just signed a client
who writes the type of books you write,
or has just seen the debut of a book just like yours — only with a different title.
If a title changes, is it the
agent,
editor,
or someone in house
who suggests the new one?
In this process over the next five to ten years, the slush pile will almost vanish as we know it now and
editors will go mostly to solicited novels, either from
agents who have published their clients work
or from indie publishers.
Sometimes it's enough to make you pull out your hair, especially when you find an
agent (
or publisher
or editor)
who represents what you write and is looking to build his
or her list.
I also heard stories from authors
who self - published their cookbooks and didn't have an
agent or acquisitions
editor to answer their questions.
And finally, there were stories from aspiring authors
who were at the beginning stages of their writing project and had yet to develop a relationship with either an
agent or an
editor.
Otherwise the response time on the project will be longer; the book might be submitted to the wrong person (often someone
who doesn't even work there anymore); the
editor will wonder what's wrong with the literary
agent or the author since no one cared enough to make a real pitch; and, if you do get an offer, it will be smaller because it will probably be the only offer.
Prior to the internet the only writers
who could connect with readers were those
who met the tests of various gatekeepers (
editors, publishers,
agents)
or who were wealthy enough to self - publish and auto - distribute their works.
If you're relatively new at writing fiction for publication, whether you plan to publish your novel yourself
or query
agents, it's a good idea (essential, really) to get your manuscript edited by a respected freelance fiction
editor, preferably one
who reads and edits your genre.
However,
agents and
editors who seek authors with a platform do sometimes say quite pointedly, and even arbitrarily, «Well, we need to see at least 10,000 Facebook likes and 100,000 blog visits every month,
or it's not worth us considering.»
You'll probably have your work read by a publishing professional (many contests have an
agent or editor to judge the final round),
who can give you invaluable feedback.
They've heard from readers —
or in some cases, even
agents and
editors —
who don't believe the character's situation because of their personal beliefs about what a black, gay, autistic, etc. experience would be like.
Use literary agency websites and social sites like LinkedIn will help you research the
agents and
editors who are most likely to respond to your work for when you send out that brilliant query
or bulletproof proposal.
The plus for entering is, in nearly all the contests held today, your work has a chance of getting into the hands of an
editor and /
or agent — once it passes the hurdle of the published writers
who are judging most of these competitions.
Getting into traditional publishing now takes either guts to send a package to
editors directly
or the writer has to find an
agent who loves a book and knows what they are doing.
The hordes of
agents and
editors who used to scour slushpiles and sift through query letters were all trained to know what the marketing departments were looking for, to the point that if your manuscript didn't fit a market niche
or pigeon hole it had little
or no chance of attracting attention.
I began to think about all the writers in other places
who didn't have access to other writers (nevermind
agents or editors),
or to the critical feedback they needed to improve their book.
A writer
who doesn't have an up - to - date online presence won't be able to connect with readers,
editors,
or literary
agents as easily and effectively as one
who has an active author platform.
Agents and
editors are more likely to work with a writer
who shows commitment to promoting his
or her work.
Once the final meeting is over, I recommend author's try to look at their query letter and synopsis from the point of view of an
editor or agent who doesn't know anything about the piece.
Even with access to an
agent or editor, the greatest assets a writer can have are often fellow - writers
who understand the intricacies of the craft.
So when you encounter the NDA as an
editor,
agent,
or publisher, you know you're dealing with someone
who isn't familiar with the standards of the industry.
Those
who still condemn indies are either parroting what their
agents and
editors tell them
or they scared to give up that upfront advance and strike out on their own.
It's as stupid as imagining wasting money that could be paid to authors and make the business flourish being wasted on NYC rental,
or expense account dinners for the fellow
who used have the corner office,
or editors publicly engaging in political debate,
or replacing slush - readers with
agents.
«Look at it from the viewpoint of a publishing consultant,» Ioannou says, «
or freelance
editor or designer
or agent who has an author with a great project.
Each October, the world's largest annual trade fair for books draws thousands of publishers,
editors and
agents from around the world,
who are all attempting to buy
or sell rights in books that have sold strongly in their respective home territories.
This makes it a good way to create a personal connection with your readers,
agents,
editors or anyone
who reads it.
Is it the
agent,
editor and /
or publisher
who pitched and brokered the deal?
I began to think about all the writers in other places
who didn't have access to other writers (never mind
agents or editors),
or to the critical feedback they needed to improve their book.
It could be their
editor,
agent,
or publicist; other writers and peers
who helped provide guidance
or make introductions; bookstore owners, librarians, and reviewers
who spread the word;
or the readers themselves
who didn't just buy the book, but connected with the author, each other, and helped turn the book into a conversation.
Unprofessional practices (
agents who «blitz» submit
or use their clients» own query letters, publishers that make writers responsible for getting their own books into bookstores, independent
editors who claim that manuscripts have to be «professionally» edited in order to be competitive)
Contributing
editor Michael Bourne talks with a group of
agents who do not have offices in the Big Apple and discovers that there are many other more important considerations than whether your
agent is in New York
or even California.
Whether you're a newbie looking for advice
or an established pro
who'd like to pay it forward, this community is a great place to support and learn from other writers, as well as
editors, publishers,
agents and more.
You don't have a support team (like an
editor from the publishing house
or an
agent)
who is determined to make your book go big.
Writers
who harass
agents because they didn't get a response to their query,
or berate
editors for rejecting them
or leave other writers nasty reviews, should not be surprised that they have to resort to dubious means to get noticed.