Hot Off the Press!

I promised to take you along on my agenting journey, so here we go! Buckle up for story time.

I have to keep names and details a secret for now. If all goes well, I can share them later.

Back in September, I sent a query to an agent at an agency that I really admire. Publishing timelines are at least triple that of any other business, so I didn’t expect to hear back anytime soon. After three months, however, I sent a little nudge. A polite nudge, because it was over the holidays, and agents get hundreds of queries a month (if not a week).

I received a response back almost immediately from his assistant. She apologized for the delay, said they’d read and loved my sample and would like me to send the full manuscript along. So, I did.

And then I waited again. The weeks of waiting really are a unique flavor of sanctification. The assistant updated me a few times throughout the process saying they were very much enjoying it. And then, she sent an email asking if she could pass it along to another agent in the agency who might be a better fit.

This, by the way, is a rare but very kind gesture. An agent can love your story and concept, but if they don’t think they have the connections to sell it or know how to best champion it, they will still pass. So I was thrilled that they thought of someone else, and I said yes.

You’ll be surprised to hear what I did next.

I waited.

Several more weeks passed. I was starting to wonder whether anything would come of this whole venture. Then, last week, smack dab in the middle of one of my MFA lectures, I got an email from the agent that they’d passed it along to. She loved the story. She would love to work with me on it. She had some suggestions for revisions. Would I be up for hopping on a phone call?

I, beset with bronchitis, croaked my way through a delightful hour-long conversation with her last Friday. We seemed to share the same vision for how best to revise the manuscript before it went to editors. She suggested I take a week to think over her ideas, and then we’d get on the phone again.

Now, one thing you need to do when you’re considering an offer of representation from an agent is let the other agents you’ve queried know. So, on Monday I sent off emails to the other agents that went something like:

Or, if they’d already requested the manuscript, I changed up the wording a bit. It’s polite to give them a good bit of time to read and decide whether they’d like to offer representation. So now, can you guess what I’m doing?

I’m waiting.

Five other agents responded wanting to read the full manuscript. They might decide to offer representation as well, or they might step aside. Once the two weeks is up, I’ll have all the information I need to make an informed decision on which agent is the right fit for this story and my career.

And I’m so excited to let you all know who it is once I’ve officially signed!