So, if you haven’t read parts I and part II in this series, please click the links to start. At the end of this post there is a Halloween giveaway. Why? We are talking about terror, aren’t we? And what’s spookier than changing agents? Boo! CONTEST RULES: 1. YOU MUST BE A SUBSCRIBER TO THIS BLOG 2. YOU MUST COMMENT BELOW WITH SOME INDICATION YOU HAVE ACTUALLY READ THE POST 3. YOU MUST BE FOLLOWING @Georgia_McBride and @ghostgirlbooks on twitter! Lots of rules, but we’ve got a HUGE goodie bag of ghostgirl stuff!
So, I don’t know what happens to our heroine, Betty. I am sitting here thinking about a happy ending that I can write for her, but I think she has to write her own happy ending. She’s a writer! As promised, however, let me briefly share my own agent story. Admittedly, it is not nearly as exiting. I queried exactly 124 agents beginning in November 2008. Anyone want to take a gander at how many requests I received? Well. I received twelve. The rest were REJECTIONS. I revised and re-queried in May 2009 (oh yeah, I revised the crap out of that manuscript) and received even MORE REJECTIONS and requests—I think twenty-four (requests). The rejections were very nicely written, and super kind. Like, “I’m truly sorry, but I just don’t like your book. I really hope you find an agent.”
You know what? I put the book UNDER THE BED. I refused to look at it. I came up with an idea for a middle grade and another YA but only wrote their titles and a line or two about them and focused on writing this dystopian paranormal MG and my paranormal sci-fi YA. Then after about 6 months, I queried again, with my same YA after revising for 2 more months and this time got about thirty requests. The good
part of that was I queried exactly thirty eight agents. AND, some of them were some I’d queried before. I know, you’re not supposed to do that. This is 2010 for those of you not keeping up. And then summer happened and I found myself with two manuscripts still out and nothing cooking.
So, I called up an agent colleague and asked if he would take a look at my book. He’d rejected it back in February but hey, this was end of August so what they heck?
Now, I DO NOT RECOMMEND ANYONE DOING WHAT I DID. DO NOT DO WHAT I DID. SUPER DISCLAIMER. THIS IS NOT THE WAY TO GET AN AGENT. DO NOT DO WHAT I DID. And I have to say, I would not have done it at all had I not been encouraged to do so by some wonderful writer friends. Fast forward to nine months later (that is, after I signed with said awesome agent) and things weren’t popping like I had expected. I didn’t have my awesome deal (a question I got TIRED OF ANSWERING) and I was kind of like trying to wrap my head around my lack of creativity and why I was feeling stagnant in my writing life.
So I had a loooong talk with awesome agent, and then another loooong talk with awesome agent about two weeks after that. It was during those conversations (not for lack of previous looooooong conversations over the course of our engagement) that I realized I needed to move on. Another friend of mine (one of the eight) talks about this and does a great job of it so click here to read her experience http://faeriality.blogspot.com/2011/09/im-back-but-not-same-and-bookanista.html.
I made the decision the Friday of Memorial Day weekend. It was a very hard decision to make. I LOVE my first super awesome agent. He is a great friend and I had high hopes for the awesomeness we were going to achieve together. To be honest, there was NO drama, no BIG story to tell, no on pulled anyone’s hair out, I didn’t go on sub and not get a deal, no one talked poorly about anyone. Nothing like that. It was simply time to explore my career options and find an agent who would push me, challenge me creatively and force me to be what I am capable of. I was lazy with my first agent. Complacent. Because we are friends, I accepted this of myself and he didn’t push me.
So, that Friday, I emailed him (yep, I took the coward’s way out) knowing that if we talked I would break down into the ugly cry, and that would be the end of me and my entire weekend would be ruined. He was very kind and that was that. I emailed five agents I admire greatly. I didn’t have the energy to do the whole two thousand agent query thing. Everyone got back to my right away, except ironically the agent I ended up with. I was such a wreck and filled with such dread that, against my better judgment, I sought council from editor colleagues I may soon be on submission to. But, I felt if they can’t tell me what to do, then no one can. I thought surely I was doomed. Again, DON’T DO WHAT I DID. DO NOT DO THIS. THIS IS NOT THE WAY TO FIND AN AGENT. YOU MAY WELL REGRET DOING THIS IF YOU ATTEMPT IT.
With great advice to ponder from some really wonderful editors and requests from all but 1 of the agents I emailed, I felt good about my chances. For me, it wasn’t about casting a wide net. It was about casting the right net into the right pond.
I was offered representation on Monday, a mere 2 days after sending my novel out. It was impossibly true. After speaking with the agent who was very, very nice and I still admire her quite a bit, I didn’t think we’d make a good team. I hope she doesn’t mind me saying this, but I don’t think she would have challenged me. I know myself. I need to be kicked in the pants, slapped on the wrist and at times, told NO!
Tamar Rydzinksi of The Laura Dail Literary Agency responded I believe on Tuesday with a super cute apology for not responding sooner. Asked for the book with a warning that she was probably not going to like it. WTF? My heart sank immediately. In preparation for not loving the YA she asked what else I had. I told her about the WIPs. Of course, she wanted to see the ONE that was just an idea. I hadn’t written a single line of it. So, in three weeks, I feverishly hammered out 50k words of OLIVIA GRIMLY’S PARANORMAL EXPERIMENT and sent it to her. Then I threw up. Yep. Came down with the flu or whatever. I was so sure she would hate it, I hid in bed for like a week. During that time, she wrote me to say, she enjoyed PRAEFATIO, like actually surprised herself. Hot dog! And, a few weeks later, she wrote to say she liked OGPE too!
I was in heaven. We talked on the phone like three times, and I knew she was exactly what I needed. She didn’t tell me what I wanted to hear. I wish she had. But she didn’t and when I met her in person two weeks ago, I knew I had made a great decision for my career. And you know what else? The day I delivered the revision on OGPE, a new YA idea came to me, like that night. Guess what?. She loved that too. I am so darn excited I cannot tell you.
So to all of you who are having issues with your agents or thinking about leaving your agents. I say this. Sometimes doing the things you most fear can be the most freeing. Like, skydiving, or bungee jumping or telling your mother in law to, “go jump in the lake!” Ooops. Did I say that?
HOWEVER, no one ever jumps out of an airplane without first having taken lessons, secured the proper equipment, and taken care to get great insurance! Look before you leap, ask questions and make sure you are making the right decision. Agents are people too. And to my first super awesome agent, thank you for being my training wheels. I will forever appreciate and love you.
Thanks for reading and good luck. Feel free to leave your comments below and be entered to win a ghostgirl tote bag stuffed with a ghostgirl pillow case, stickers and hardcover copy of each book in the 3-bk ghostgirl series. CONTEST RULES: 1. YOU MUST BE A SUBSCRIBER TO THIS BLOG 2. YOU MUST COMMENT BELOW WITH SOME INDICATION YOU HAVE ACTUALLY READ THE POST 3. YOU MUST BE FOLLOWING @Georgia_McBride and @ghostgirlbooks on twitter! Lots of rules, but we’ve got a HUGE goodie bag of ghostgirl stuff! Thanks to author, Tonya Hurley for the generous donation and HAPPY HALLOWEEN! Contest ends Nov 1 at midnight! Random winners drawn from entrants!
Congratulations on finding your agent. I’m thankful for your time to write 3 posts to encourage hope, (and discourage us) when hope isn’t good enough. This is a business, and it takes a lot of hard work. And, it doesn’t hurt to be as involved as you are with agents and editors and many writers (YALITCHAT). That site has been the salvation we all need. So thank you.
Anyway, have a great autumn,
Jennifer
Posted by Jennifer M. Hartsock | October 27, 2011, 6:08 PMThank you, Jennifer. It was my pleasure and I hope it helps to inspire and encourage. A 3+ year journey is a long time. I know there are many others experiencing similar ups and downs. Sending good vibes out into the universe.
Posted by georgiamcbridebooks | October 28, 2011, 12:21 PMCongrats on winning ghostgirl pack. Please send your mailing address and titles youve won in email via my contact form and I will get them out to you by end of next week! xx
Posted by Georgia McBride | November 18, 2011, 11:13 AMMy gram always said we can’t appreciate things so easily acquired. I wish she were here today to watch me twist in the wind while I search for that compatible agent person. You’ve done the hard work (breaking up is always miserable) and success is yours to enjoy. Good luck on the rest of this journey whether it’s uphill or down, I have the sense there’s no giving up in your mind.
Posted by C. Lee McKenzie | October 27, 2011, 7:22 PMOh no!! Uphill or down?? I feel jinxed. Just kidding. Thanks for the kind words and much luck and love to you!
Posted by georgiamcbridebooks | October 28, 2011, 12:19 PMGeorgia! I found this series not only entertaining but enlightening. The end of this post made me tear up for you because of your bravery, your determination, and your willingness to put yourself out there! I can’t wait to go to a bookstore and buy your book. I’ll dance happily in the isles proclaiming that EVERYONE really must read it. I will! I will!
Posted by nicóle | October 27, 2011, 10:49 PMThank you so much. That is very kind.
Posted by georgiamcbridebooks | October 28, 2011, 12:18 PMGeorgia, although I knew parts of this story already, I was totally captivated by this post. I literally couldn’t read it fast enough. Thank you for sharing your struggles of getting an agent the first time and that you edited that first manuscript to death. I know–’cause I’ve been told many times–sometimes a writer writes a ms and it’s really for practice, growth, even if the writer doesn’t know it. And I do believe that. But sometimes the writer knows, deep down, that they have something and just can’t let it go.
I will continue to forge ahead with new projects, but won’t give up on my first. She’ll find a home with the agent that’s right for her. I’ve received enough praise for it that it’s worth the extra effort to get it out there.
(Question though: did you revamp your query each time you queried agents with P?)
Now as for you, WHOOT!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot jump, leap, and do cartwheels enough! So happy for you. You’ve worked immensely hard to get where you are–50k in three weeks, and 50k that actually made sense. Amazing. Examples like you are what keep me going, believing that it will eventually be me, too. Thx. <3
Posted by Sheri Larsen | October 28, 2011, 8:50 AMHi Sheri!
Thanks so much. My query was horrible when I first queried 3 years ago. I think the book was rejected for that alone back then. I revised the query many times up until summer 2009, changing a bit with each batch of submissions. I knew it was the query because each improvement garnered more requests. I had help however. Colleen Lindsay (former agent) took pity on my sad query and made suggestions on how I could improve further. She didn’t have to do this and for that I will always appreciate her. In early 2010 I had a brand new query, synopsis and über edited novel and it was my best response yet. There were a lot of agents who simply didn’t respond to the subject matter but enjoyed the writing and storytelling. Concern re market conditions and over-saturation continued. However, I pressed on because as you say, I couldn’t let it go.
Good luck with your journey. We are all forever on one. Just at different stages.
XO
Posted by georgiamcbridebooks | October 28, 2011, 9:24 AM“So to all of you who are having issues with your agents or thinking about leaving your agents. I say this. Sometimes doing the things you most fear can be the most freeing.”
I just left a super mega huge NY agent. Am I insane? Maybe–after all, I had on-bended-knee fantasies about just how I should beg her to take me back. But, that said, I was the kind of author who only checked in about every 3 months so as not to bug her, and she still wouldn’t speak to me. She only ever emailed me when, after a year of this, I said maybe we should go our seperate ways. Then she raved about how great my work is, but yeah, she didn’t know what to do with it.
I think, sometimes, as painful as it is, we’re better off without such people. Now I am writing another book and getting excited about it.
Posted by Savvy Thorne | October 28, 2011, 11:33 AMGood luck on your journey and thanks for reading!
Posted by georgiamcbridebooks | October 28, 2011, 12:17 PMI suck at queries. ghostgirl giveaway!!! YAY!!!
Posted by Harlow | October 28, 2011, 11:36 AMAfter a long series of rejections (not as many as yours though, I would have been bald) I chose to submit to a new independent publisher myself and am struggling through the marketing and writing and pushing myself alone. I often wonder whether an agent would help or just be an expense (if they sold my ms). Fascinating journey, CK. Congratulations and good sales.
Posted by Rebecca RyalsRussell (@Vigorio) | October 28, 2011, 5:21 PMI think we all have a different road to get to where we want to be. None is easier, harder or more satisfying based on years waiting or number of rejections. I truly believe the path we take chooses us rather than the other way arond. If we are smart, we learn from those choices and allow the path to lead us forward as smarter and more capable human beings. Good luck to you and thank you for reading.
Posted by georgiamcbridebooks | October 28, 2011, 7:49 PMHi!
I’m just like O_O
When I was younger I used to write a lot stories,poems etc… about different genres
but When I started to search for options to get publish I wanted to start with small things like poems and such but It was difficult and they ask for lots of thing and being a minor didn’t help xD so I gave up the idea of being published after reading all u went through well maybe I start searching again for an agent or try to contact an agency I’ll see want I wanna do ’cause w/ college I don’t have a lot of time & patience to do what u did (WOW 124 queries)
I admire ur patience & all the time u took to write the posts even thought I’m new here I read them adn well it’s a long journey & u’ve to keep thinking positive and keep hope that u r going to find the ideal person ’cause u’ve to b comfortable w/ him or her to talk about ir work have respect but at the same time honest it takes a lot of time so the only thing I can say at the end is
Good luck & Don’t give up now !!!
Posted by monsetwilighter | October 31, 2011, 9:35 PMWow!:D Your story is very inspiring! My name’s Shakila, I’m 15 and aspiring to write a successful book like yours! And I had no idea it would be such an emotional roller coaster. That makes me want to become an author even more! Your post clearly shows your message of not giving up and not being afraid to do what it takes to get there. I love how you handle the rejections – your very strong! And with that attitude you will definitely get you far, and i wish you all the best!
Posted by Shakila Cullen | November 2, 2011, 1:48 PMHi, Georgia! I don’t know how it is that I’m only now stumbling across your post almost a month after it went up. (I blame report card/parent conference season. Yeah, that works.)
I’m so glad you found an agent that excites, challenges, and inspires you! I remember watching your PRAEFATIO trailer when it first came out and wanting to lay my hands on your book. You deserve an agent who believes in it and pushes you to produce more of the same. Yay! Best of luck to you!
Posted by Dianne Salerni | November 27, 2011, 2:08 AMThank you do much, D. Your support means the world to me. Xx
Posted by Georgia McBride | November 27, 2011, 12:27 PM