Piper Shelly's Blog, page 259

A trailer for PLAY WITH ME

Hey guys!

I promised you a very special Christmas present, and it got finished just in time.

Created by Red 14 Films, I proudly present the amazing cinematic book trailer for Play With Me & Ryan Hunter!

If you read the books already, I hope the teaser can pull you back into the story for a while and make you relive all the sweet moments. If you haven’t read the books yet…well, maybe you’ll get hooked by watching this. ;)

Whichever it is, I wish you a very happy Christmas with this video!

Love,

Anna

Because Sara asked me for another snippet!

Hey folks,

You know how hard it is for me to say no when a fan asks me something. And even though I can’t always give in, today I can.

Here’s another snippet from DATING TROUBLE. Just for you, Sara! Oh, and for Sara’s friend, of course. ;)

My cell phone dinged next to me and made me jerk up my head. Why I even got my hopes high was unaccountable. Ethan wouldn’t send me a text after ten in the evening. But Chris would and I pushed out a sigh through my nose when I read it.

Fancy another chat after dark? ^^

Not tonight, I texted back. Really, I wasn’t in the mood to talk to him right now.

But of course, another text came in. Why not? I thought yester-night was nice with you. ;)

Because you’re trouble of the kind I just don’t want to deal with right now. Gee, why did I even bother to send that back to him? Chris should be so easy to ignore. And yet I couldn’t. He was a dick, goddammit!

My phone beeped again. Aw, every girl loves a little trouble. And you shouldn’t despise what you haven’t sampled yet. You have no idea what you’re missing out on, sweetness.

The memory of Lauren coming out of his room and Chris lacing his fingers with hers resurfaced. In a way, it angered me. It was an odd sort of anger… then I realized what it was. A hint of hurt resonated inside me. That was too weird to analyze, so I just typed away the first thing that came to my mind and replied to him. Seriously, you’re like a sample-bottle of perfume placed outside a drug store.

My phone rang.

I sucked in a deep breath through my teeth and let it out in a long exhale. Finally I rolled my eyes and answered but didn’t even get a word out.

“I’m what?” Chris snapped at me, half amused and half confused.

Since he didn’t really greet me, I didn’t bother either. “You know these cheap perfume bottles they place in front of shops for promotion? Every woman walking by sprays a little of that bland scent on her skin and in the end, they all smell alike. But not me. I’m very selective, Chris. I don’t have to sample everything that’s offered to me for free. And most of all, I don’t like bland.” I said what I’d wanted to and didn’t give him time for a comeback. “Goodnight.”

He didn’t ring again, like he had done last night. Hopefully, this time he might have gotten the message. I turned off the light and snuggled deeper under the covers. Three minutes later, my cell beeped and the flashing screen illuminated my room with a shade of blue.

Wrapping my pillow tightly around my head, I screamed.

Why couldn’t he leave me alone? Just one night! Was that asking too much? I reached for the phone and took it with me under the cover, reading in my personal cave.

You think I’m boring? Ouch. That hurt, Miss Miller.

Was he boring? I didn’t think I used that word, and to be honest, Chris was anything but. He kept me on tenterhooks most of the time I was in a room with him and his stupid texts stirred me enough to answer every freaking time. So no, he was definitely not boring.

I said bland, not boring. There’s a difference. One means, you make me fall asleep. The other means, each time you open your mouth I want to go on an exploration and delve deeper to find out if there’s more inside that hallow shell.

His answer to that made me swallow and turned my body to a warm tingle. You want to explore my mouth? Go ahead.

Chris, do you even once hear what I actually say?

Of course. Your last text said you wanted to kiss me.

Stupid as it was, his last SMS made me laugh. I came out of my cave, fluffed up my pillow, settled back and typed: Excuse me, I need to go bang my head on a wall now and get that image out of my mind.

That’s what they all say…before they beg me to date them… :)

Hah! I’m not going to beg you to take me on a date.

*cough* I remember a certain someone begging me to cook for her on Saturday *cough*

That was— Holy crap, it was true. I deleted the SMS I’d started to write and bit my lip. How did he always manage to change my words to his benefit? Let’s see, what he made of that: You’re delusional.

A long pause. I thought it was over. Then another message beeped.

Yes, one of us is definitely. Sleep tight, little Sue.

***

So, are you all hooked now? Just a little longer, my friends. Valentine’s day 2015!

But you can already preorder the book on Amazon, you know. ;)

 

Why Neverland?

I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Or maybe it’s all right, and I just don’t know how to deal with this, but it’s been concerning me for over half a year now, and today I just need to write things down.

What’s troubling me? Neverland. Hook just doesn’t let me go.

No idea if this should be a diary entry rather than a post for my blog, but since I’ve never been good with writing diaries, I’ll just do what I always do. I share things with you.

So the most recent moment of “down” came up today after a reader nailed a post on my wall on Facebook. It was an AAAWWWW…SQUEEEE…post, and yes, it was all in caps, ha ha.

Sometimes, when readers engage me into chats about Neverland and Hook, I really get sentimental. Or maybe nostalgic is a better word for it. When I finished writing Neverland, I was sad like never before when I finished a book. Why? Because the adventure was over. And it was the greatest adventure in my life so far.

I’ve never really been a fantasy writer, but this story just flew to me. The characters spoke to me in a way that I only had to close my eyes and I’d hear every word they said. I could type this book blind. Something was very weird about that.

True, the story had been a backburner for a long time. I came up with the idea—or rather the wish—to write about Neverland and an adorable Captain Hook when I was in hospital with my son in October 2008. We watched Peter Pan, and I fell asleep before the film had ended. I started dreaming… And when I woke up, I grabbed my notebook and a pen and wrote a 20-page scene from the middle of the novel.

It was a scene that never appeared in the book later, but it gave me an idea of how this story should go.

With so many other projects to work on, I really didn’t have time to start writing this book. Until the beginning of 2014. When I mentioned it to my agent back then, she told me I should write a different book first. In fact, she wanted me to write Susan Miller’s book, GBT 5. Why? Because contemporary sells better than fantasy right now.

I was torn. I tried to write Dating Trouble, but it wouldn’t flow. There was always this small voice in my mind telling me that I had a date with a pirate, and now was the time to meet him…not in six months or another couple of years. NOW. And so I put everything else aside and started writing Angel’s story.

From the very first scene in her house, the big mansion in London at night, with the kids playing, I knew exactly what kind of mood this book was going to be in. Everything felt so right. So comfortable. And safe. I knew, this was going to be my greatest adventure ever…

And that is exactly why I’m so sad right now. Nothing in my future life or writing career will ever be as big as Neverland. Nothing can ever top that. In a way it’s a good feeling, because I know I created something great. But it’s also heart-wrenching, because I’ve been on the mountaintop. There’s nothing higher to climb than that.

And returning from that peak hurts. When, for weeks, you’ve been living in a world full of wonder—full of pirates, pixies, and romance—the real world seems so colorless. You don’t want to go back. You’re trying to stay there…

I’ve read my own book several times. I normally don’t do that, but with this one it’s different. I can’t get away from this fantastic world with all its wonders. Can’t get away from Hook. I’m thinking up ways to get back. To stay there. A movie made of the book seemed like the only chance for a while. But now I’m thinking not even that would be enough for me anymore. Nothing about it would be real, and someday…one day…I’d have to return to the here and now. And it would hurt again.

It does right now.

I’m listening to the playlist I put together for the book. All the songs—each single one—ignites a memory. I don’t even have to read the actual book, because it’s all there, still warm and sizzling in my mind. Some songs just make me want to cry. Is that awkward? I think it is. And I don’t know what to do about it. Do you?

Yeah, I know I’m sounding a little depressed today, and that’s just how I feel. The only thing that could pull me out of it right now, I think, is a little note slipped into my hand from a stranger passing by. What he should have written on it? Only one thing, of course…

Meet me on your balcony.

Interview with literary agent Jill Marsal

Welcome to round 3 of the interview series: THE TRUTH ABOUT SLUSH PILES!

So far, literary agent Jenny Bent from the The Bent Agency and Jessica Faust from BookEnds, LLC answered a ton of questions for us. If you missed their interviews, you can read them by clicking their names. Today, my guest is the wonderful and lovely Jill Marsal from the Marsal Lyon Literary Agency! Hear what she says about her job, pitching to publishers, and what you can expect from her, once she offers you a contract. ;-)

Welcome, Jill!

 

Anna: What is your daily routine in your job? How much time do you spend for what?

Jill: In the morning, I start by going through my emails and catching up on what has come in during the night. I also make a list of the reading I would like to get through during the day – which will include full manuscripts, partials, and query letters, though often incoming phone calls and emails and issues that come up during the day end up pushing some of the list to a later time. I also spend time going over edits with authors, talking with editors, and negotiating contracts.

 

Anna: In most submission guidelines, you find the sentence: We get hundreds of queries each week. I believe this is for the entire agency. How many queries do you personally get each day?

Jill: This can range from five to twenty.

 

Anna: Do you prefer people to use your first name or last name when sending you a query letter?

Jill: Either is fine.

 

Anna: How should a writer structure his query? Begin with a cheesy line to break the ice, tell you about the book like word count, POV, and genre, or rather get straight to the point with a tagline and the blurb of the book?

Jill: I like query letters where the first two paragraphs describe the project and then the next paragraph is about the author and any author bio that is relevant to the book/project.

 

Anna: How high is your slush pile right now? How many unread queries?

Jill: I try to stay on top of my slush pile. Generally, I try and keep it under 50 and if it starts growing beyond that then I often will set aside a specific reading time to go through slush, but I like to get back to people in a timely manner.

 

Anna: How many queries can you process in one day?

Jill: It varies from day to day. Some days I read them as they come in and other days I might go through a big batch in several hours.

 

Anna: Many agents have a “no reply means no” policy. Does it really take that much time to send a rejection letter? Rejections are hard enough to stomach for authors, but no reply at all is just frustrating.

Jill: We try and respond to every query that comes in because I do think it is important to give an answer to authors who have taken the time to send a query. And I personally read every query that is sent to me.

 

Anna: With so much conflicting query advice out there… what really catches your attention and leaves you wanting pages?

Jill: A strong story hook or good story concept, interesting characters, strong emotional appeal, and, of course, strong writing that often comes through even in the query letter.

 

Anna: How much control does the writer give up when they have an agent?

Jill: A writer shouldn’t have to give up control. You want to find an agent who shares your vision for your book and partners with you to help you make it as strong as possible. Ultimately, though, it is the writer’s decision where their story goes.

 

Anna: What’s your submission process to publishers?

Jill: I typically will put together a list of the editors who I think are most likely to be interested and then contact those editors and pitch the project to them. Often, I will go on multiple submission.

 

Anna: How soon after you sign a contract do you start pitching to publishers?

Jill: As soon as the project is ready. If it is all set when we sign, then I start pitching the next business day. Otherwise, if we need to do some editorial work, I start pitching as soon as it is ready to go.

 

Anna: Do you expect significant edits with manuscripts before you start submitting?

Jill: It really depends on the author. Some authors come in with manuscripts in very strong shape and might need just light edits whereas others may need more editorial feedback.

 

Anna: Do you keep your clients in the loop about all the steps you take?

Jill: Yes, I let them know who I have pitched the project to and which publishers are reading it and then forward all the responses as they come in from the various editors.

 

Anna: How often do you communicate with your clients?

Jill: I am available by email or phone and will contact them whenever something comes up. There isn’t a set time table- it may be some days we speak several times that day and then not for a while depending on what stage in the writing process we are at.

 

Anna: Do you believe traditionally published books are better than self-published ones – not for bad editing but because the publishers are so very selective?

Jill: I think there is a place in the market for both. And we have many authors who are taking a “hybrid” path and are publishing both with traditional houses and also self-pubbing. It creates additional opportunities and often lets authors publish books that traditional houses might not have been willing to try but that end up doing very well.

 

Anna: Most agents’ average response time is about 2 to 4 weeks, sometimes 8 to 12. Why so long? What happens with a query in that time? Do they just sit in your inbox, waiting to be read, or do you sort through them once and later get back to them a second and maybe even third time before you make a decision?

Jill: I think it really depends on all the other things going on in the agent’s schedule. I like to try and get to queries each day, but sometimes there are a lot of urgent matters that come up or manuscripts that have to be read that have pressing delivery schedules or p.r. issues that might come up or any of a number of things, and so sometimes they do end up sitting in the query folder until there is time to go through them.

 

Anna: When you read a query, are you foremost interested in publishing that book, or do you consider its potential for movies straight away, too?

Jill: Our film agent works with “book to film” people so they do like to have the book deal in place before shopping it to the film producers (and that also makes it easier to sell to film/tv).

 

Anna: Is it possible to sell already self-published books to big publishing houses for a re-release? Did you ever do that?

Jill: Yes, we have a number of self-published authors who have sold their books to publishers and rereleased them. We also have a number of self-published authors who have released new series with a trade publisher and continue to self-publish their other works.

 

Anna: When agents ask writers for material and give a turnaround time, they very often don’t make it. Are you likely to miss deadlines, too? If so, what are the reasons?

Jill: No, I think it is important for everyone to meet their deadlines. Typically, I ask my writers to set their own deadlines rather than giving them turnaround times for revisions. And I generally try and give reasonable estimates of when I can get things done so I don’t miss deadlines (and so far so good J).

 

Anna: With all the reading you have to do for your job, is it still fun for you? Do you still have time to read and enjoy a book that hasn’t been submitted to you?

Jill: I love reading and absolutely enjoy reading for fun. Most of my time is spent reading work from my authors, but I do think it is also important to stay on top of the market and know what is selling and being published.

 

Anna: How many book pages can you read in an hour?

Jill: It varies depending on what type of book, how much dialogue there is, whether the pacing is fast, etc. But I am definitely faster than I was back in college when I had to read just academic books and homework seemed to take so long!

 

Anna: What do you advise your clients – to go for a big advance payment or rather for higher royalties?

Jill: This really depends on the author’s situation and is their decision. Personally, I think the higher royalties is better because they will make more in the long run if the book sells well, but sometimes, authors’ financial needs make it important to have a big advance up front. Also, you do want to make sure the advance is big enough that publishers will pay attention to the book and give it the full press in marketing and sales.

 

Anna: Once you land a great book deal, what happens with the book? How long until it’s being released and how does the payment work? Advance payment in little bits?

Jill: It depends on when the book can be delivered and which publisher is working with it. It used to be about 12 months to publication from delivery, but these days there is more flexibility with that and depending on the publisher’s schedule, they are often trying to release books closer together. The payment is usually divided – either into 1/2s at signing and delivery or 1/3s (signing, delivery pub) or some publishers 1/4s.

 

Anna: Did J.K.Rowling pitch to you? ;-)

Jill: I wish!

 

Thank you, Jill, for granting us a glimpse into your daily routine. It was a pleasure to get in touch with you!

***

Find out more about Jill on her Website

Check out her Submission guidelines

or follow her on Twitter

******

Have you read an Anna-book today?

Voted to book of the year, 2012! ~Midnight Reads

Unsurpassed mastery of imagery! ~My Secret Book Spot

2014′s most anticipated sequel! ~Splendid Books

RONE Awards finalist, 2013! ~InD’Tale Magazin

Book 5 of the most wanted teen series 2014! Preorder now!

 

Watch it like a movie! BOOK TRAILER! ;)

*

Tagged: Agent interview

DATING TROUBLE is up for preorder!!

Hey there everyone!

I know it’s been a long wait and it will take another few months until DATING TROUBLE will release. But to shorten your wait, you can now preorder the book on Amazon! How’s that? :)

Up for preorder!

 

The Tease:

My path led me past the soccer field. The guys didn’t practice today, but the empty ground called to me. Once again, I found myself reveling in the days that I was playing with the team. At the entrance, I stopped, leaning against the pole of the fence. A few soccer balls lay scattered in the grass, left and forgotten after the training yesterday. One sat right in front of me and downright begged for me to kick it.

No hard sports for ten weeks and barely three had passed. Hopefully, Dr. Trooper had some sleepless nights because of that sentence! But one soft pass wouldn’t hurt, right? I could just dribble it over to the goal and then do a spot kick. The doc never had to find out.

“Having a chat with the ball here?”

I jumped at Ethan’s voice and jerked around, but when I saw the beaten face of the guy leaning against the other pole of the open gate, I knew my mind had played a trick on me. Wearing his black leather jacket, Chris shoved his hands into his jeans pockets, feet crossed at the ankles.

“What are you doing here?” There was a bigger chance that I might have sounded a bit friendlier if Ethan was standing in Chris’s place.

“Tuesday is basketball practice. I was about to head home but then I saw you. Which brings on my counter question: What are you doing here?” The corners of his mouth tilted up in a warm smile that had nothing in common with his usual mischievous smirks. “Other than trying to move the ball with a telekinetic stare, that is.”

Shrugging one shoulder, I let go of a sigh. “I don’t know why I actually came here. Probably because I miss playing soccer.”

“Which you can’t do because of your hurt knee.”

He remembered that? And I almost thought nothing about this guy could surprise me anymore.

It must have been my severe frown that gave me away, because Chris added, “Yeah, I do listen sometimes, you know.” Then he pushed away from the pole and shuffled the few steps toward me but took a turn for the ball. “Hey, want to play some soccer now?” He picked it up and tried to bounce it like this was a basketball and the soccer field was a gym. “Rubbish,” he complained, when the grass reduced the rebound, and spun it on his finger instead. “Which is your bad leg? You can kick with the other. And I’ll stand in the goal.”

“I’m a righty and that’s also my bad knee, so that would hardly be fair on me,” I argued.

“Ah, don’t be shy.” Clasping the ball under one arm, he wrapped the other around my waist and made me walk with him. “I’ve never played soccer in my life, so that should even out your chances pretty much.”

“As far as I know, you’re grounded.” I lifted my brows at him. “Doesn’t that imply you should go home right after practice?”

“This is practice,” he replied. “If I get in trouble for it later, I’ll totally blame it on your sad puppy eyes when I found you at the gate.”

I hadn’t realized I was looking sad when I stood there, but he made me laugh with that visual. Since he seemed determined not to give me a choice, I tied my hair into a ponytail with a rubber band from my pocket and said, “Fine. Let’s play then.”

Chris tossed the ball at me, then shrugged out of his jacket and threw it onto the grass. Only in a white muscle shirt now, he inspected the goal. Standing in the middle, his face paled a little. “Whoa, who’s defending that? A baby elephant and its mama?”

A giggle escaped me. “Nick Frederickson is our goalie, and he does a darn good job.”

Chris rubbed his hands together, then he slapped them on his knees. His body posed for action, his eyes pinned on me. “Okay, bring it on, sweetness.”

Unsure if this really was a good idea, I set the ball on the mark for a penalty kick. The distance seemed too long for a left side kick, though, so I tipped the ball with my toe and moved it another couple meters closer to the goal.

With a scrunchy face, Chris straightened and asked, “Is that the right spot to put it?”

“Absolutely,” I assured him, snickering to myself.

My first shot bounced off the crossbar. Chris didn’t have to move at all, other than tilting his head and watch where the soccer ball made impact. For my second shoot, I tried to aim a little better. Zeroing in on the left upper corner, I kicked with a little more power. Chris dived headlong for the ball but missed it by miles.

“Beginner’s luck!” he called out when I did a victory dance on the spot.

“Why? You’re the beginner,” I shot back, then caught the ball he kicked back and set it on the ground in front of me once more. This time, I pretended to kick his way but went for the opposite corner and scored again.

Chris gave me a mocking grin. “I totally let that slip through for you.”

“Yea, yea, keep on dreaming.” Laughing, I shot a fourth time, because one, my bad knee didn’t trouble me at all, and two, it was fun.

He shot up into the air and missed that ball again—but darn that move did give me a good glimpse of his flat stomach when his tee rode up. He picked up the ball and came forward, mumbling something about elephant goals and trampolines.

“Give up?” I teased him.

“You wish.” He kneed the ball a few times then let it drop to the ground. “We play against each other now.”

“Not a good idea.” With a duh-face, I boogied in front of him. “Knee, remember? I can’t run.”

“But you can jog slowly, right? And I’ll clasp my hands at my back.”

“You play soccer without your hand, smart ass.”

“Fine. Then I’ll do it and run backward. Is that better?”

He’d already clasped his hands at his back and started to attack the ball. I was closer and easily maneuvered it out of his reach, not yet convinced by his altered rules. The way he engaged me in a battle, though, left me no choice. I slid it away from him a few times, then I jogged toward the goal, lightly dribbling the ball in front of me.

Amazing, how speedy and agile Chris was, even when he moved backward. He cut in front of me, successfully stealing the ball, then he kicked it with his heel, trying to glance over his shoulder. We fought another battle for the ball right in front of the goal. This was more fun than I would admit to him, but my happy grin probably gave me away.

Because Chris didn’t see what was behind him, he didn’t realize just how close we were to the left goal post. “Watch out!” I warned him, but it was too late, and with his attempt to get away with the ball, he knocked into the pole. A groan whooshed out from his lungs as he dropped theatrically to the ground.

A fit of laughter erupted from my chest, and I could barely hold myself upright. My tummy hurt. Yep, I was sure to pay for that with a sore stomach later, but it was worth it. Chris lay motionless on the ground. Still clutching my belly, I strolled over to him. “What’s up? Did the post knock the speech out of you?”

He didn’t answer. With my toe I poked his ribs, my laugh fading into a chuckle. “Come on, I’m sure this little bump didn’t hurt as much as the punch to your face probably did.”

Chris didn’t grin or move. His face was totally expressionless. I frowned. “Are you okay?” With still no answer, I lowered to his side and leaned over him, a little worried now. “Chris?”

His hand shot up so fast that I had no chance to evade. I shrieked as he grabbed my neck and pulled me down until mere inches separated our faces. Blue eyes bored into mine. “You laughed at me,” he growled.

Shocked, I panted like a dog after a sprint, which made him smile.

“That will cost you,” he promised.

Suddenly, I became all too aware that my hands were braced on his bare biceps and that his breath smelled of mint gum. The skin on his arms was smooth and warm, the muscles hard beneath my palms.

Struggling to anchor myself in the present and leaving a dream behind in which I was trapped above a guy that looked every bit as stunning as Ethan, I managed a croak. “Let me guess. You want a date?”

“Sounds like a good idea to me.”

With annoyance that I had to fake more than I wished, I replied, “Seriously, when are you going to lay off of me?”

A determined glint warmed his eyes as his gaze trapped mine. “When I got what I want, sweetness. Or to put it in your words…” he taunted. “When hell freezes over.”

“That’s not gonna happen, dude.”

The next instant he moved so fast, switching positions, that he startled me when he trapped me beneath him. He was way too heavy on me and I hardly got air into my lungs. The little I managed to suck in, I used for another outburst of laughter—from surprise, I told myself, not because this was anyhow funny. “Get off, Chris! You’re smushing me!” I wrestled my arms free from under him and flicked him in the eye.

He froze for a split second. “Oh, you shouldn’t have done that, little Sue.” Faster than I could blink, he grabbed my wrists and pinned them above my head. His voice and look adopted a sinister edge. “Remember what I told you last time, if you did that again?”

My mouth fell open. ‘A hickey the size of Ohio’ rang in my ears. “No, you wouldn’t…”

His brows lifted. “You bet.”

 

***

Release: Valentine’s day, 2015

Preorder DATING TROUBLE on Amazon now!

Did you like Ryan?

All right, here I am with a question… or a topic to discuss? ;-)

RYAN HUNTER…the character.

What exactly did you like about him, and what didn’t you?

I’m asking, because with the hero for my new book, DATING TROUBLE, I think I created the ultimate lover-boy, a guy to sa-wooooooon over. Well, I do anyway.

However, there are always certain aspects each girl or woman likes in a guy, and because I try to create the new characters even better than the ones in the books before, I’d just like to know what workes for you.

Gush or rant away about Ryan in the comments. I’m curious. :)

******

Have you read and Anna-book today?

Book of the year, 2012   ~Midnight Reads

RONE Awards finalist, 2013 ~InD’Tale Magazine

Unsurpassed mastery of imagery! ~Secret Book Spot

2014′s most anticipated sequel! ~Splendid Books

Watch it like a movie! BOOK TRAILER! ;)

Interview with literary agent Jessica Faust

Hello everyone and welcome back to round two of THE TRUTH ABOUT SLUSH PILES!

Last time, literary agent Jenny Bent from the The Bent Agency let me grill her about her job. Today I have another lovely lady from the business on the roast. She will tell you all about her job, about good and bad queries, and why it sometimes takes her a bit longer to get back at a possible client when she requested a full.

I’m happy to introduce you to

the lovely Jessica Faust from BookEnds, LLC

Anna: What is your daily routine in your job? How much time do you spend for what?

Jessica: Unfortunately it’s not much of a routine, or at least it doesn’t feel like one. The first part of my day is checking email and that often dictates how the rest of my day will be spent. Clients, of course, come first. So my day might be spent reviewing royalty statements, making sure checks are processed or answering questions or concerns they might have. If it’s a big client submission week (clients have delivered proposals or manuscripts to me) those will take precedence and I will spend time reviewing those materials, sending feedback as necessary or preparing the material for submission.

Two to three times a week my to-do list sends me a reminder to read submissions. At a minimum I will read 2-3 submissions a week. Queries tend to get read daily as long as there are no fires that I need to put out.

And interviews like this take me longer than one would think ;) Although I’m very happy to do them.

 

Anna: In most submission guidelines, you find the sentence: We get hundreds of queries each week. I believe this is for the entire agency. How many queries do you personally get each day?

Jessica: Per day? I would say 20 give or take is probably a fair number. My personal submission guidelines have narrowed of late and for that reason I’ve definitely seen a decrease in submissions.

 

Anna: What are keywords in a query letter that get you interested in reading the manuscript (not the genre or book length, please), and what are turnoffs?

Jessica: I can’t resist anything with a magical realism element that is reminiscent of Sarah Addison Allen. I also love dark, edgy suspense, especially serial killers, but it has to be something different and new.

I’m not a fan of anything that has to do with the mob or mafia related. I’m also pretty burned out on vampires or werewolves and it’s tough to convince me of rockstar or Hollywood heroes or heroines.

 

Anna: Do you prefer people to use your first name or last name when sending you a query letter?

Jessica: I don’t think I really care. I think most people use some form of Ms. Faust, but certainly as we build a relationship I only go by Jessica. Or sometimes “hey you.”

 

Anna: How should a writer structure his query? Begin with a cheesy line to break the ice, tell you about the book like word count, POV, and genre, or rather get straight to the point with a tagline and the blurb of the book?

Jessica: I don’t think there should be any rules. I think the query should be somewhat representative of the author’s voice. If you’re writing comedy, don’t be afraid to show the funny in your book. The same goes with dark and serious. In the book’s description I should get a sense of the tone of the book.

How you start the query is really up to you. Honestly, I sort of skim and skip around and just get to the highlights, to find what’s going to grab me.

 

Anna: How high is your slush pile right now? How many unread queries?

Jessica: Actually none. I’m all caught up on queries. Of course that depends on what’s come in while I was doing the interview.

 

Anna: How many queries can you process in one day?

Jessica: Probably 10-15 easily. After that it can get overwhelming. But of course that depends on the queries. If every single one is for something I don’t represent that’s an easy rejection.

 

Anna: Many agents have a “no reply means no” policy. Does it really take that much time to send a rejection letter? Rejections are hard enough to stomach for authors, but no reply at all is just frustrating.

Jessica: I’ve been pretty vocal about my feelings on that policy. I don’t like it. I don’t think it’s fair to the author. In much the same way that I think it’s disrespectful for companies to have a “no reply means no” policy for job interviews. You’re right, it isn’t that hard to reply.

Years ago I set up signatures in my email and each signature is for a different kind of rejection. I’ll often personalize it for various reasons, but the signature is there so I don’t have to if I don’t have the time or if I don’t have anything personal to say. Adding the signature maybe takes an extra two seconds.

 

Anna: With so much conflicting query advice out there… what really catches your attention and leaves you wanting pages?

Jessica: The author’s voice and a really great idea. It’s that simple (ha, ha—if only). I don’t think it’s really any different from an author shopping in a bookstore for something new to read. What grabs you (besides a great cover) and makes you want to flip open the book to read?

In fact, that’s good practice for developing your next idea. Go to the bookstore and just randomly grab books in your genre off the shelf. Read just the cover copy and really take a look at why the books that are grabbing you are grabbing you. What elements do they have that hold your attention? Maybe that’s the type of book you’re seeking to write.

 

Anna: How much control does the writer give up when they have an agent?

Jessica: Ideally none. Ideally getting an agent will give the writer even more power because she’s adding more people to her team. An author/agent relationship should never be one where someone is “working for” the other. Although technically the agent is working for the author. A good relationship is where the two see themselves in a partnership. Together they are working to make this product the best it can be and get it off the ground in the best way possible.

 

Anna: What’s your submission process to publishers?

Jessica: My first step is to put together a list of which houses and which editors at those houses would be best fit for the project and for the author. Sometimes that’s pretty quick and sometimes it takes a little more time. It depends on the project. This is something we’ll often discuss within the agency. When submitting we don’t just want to send it to the editor who acquires in the genre, but we want to send to the one who might have a specific interest as related to the book.

I never call, but always email editors an initial query. There are a number of reasons for this, but the primary reason is that it seems nearly impossible to be able to actually connect with people over the phone so by doing it via email I’m not wrapping myself up in a 5 -day game of phone tag. I also find that by emailing a query first I might find out from an editor that she’s no longer looking for that kind of book or is too busy right now, but she’ll suggest someone else who might be a better fit.

Then I send the material to publishers. And then we wait. Obviously I’ll bug and cajole, but mostly we wait.

 

Anna: How soon after you sign a contract do you start pitching to publishers?

Jessica: That really depends on how ready the book is. If the book is ready and perfect I’ll start submitting the day I get the contract back (sometimes even before). If however the book needs some work submissions will hold off until the author and I both feel the book is the best it can be.

 

Anna: Do you expect significant edits with manuscripts before you start submitting?

Jessica: Not necessarily. It depends on the book and the author. Sometimes there are significant edits, sometimes we even go a number of rounds. Other times the material needs almost nothing and, sadly, sometimes there are times when we just start over with something new. Obviously I always hope for no edits.

 

Anna: Do you keep your clients in the loop about all the steps you take?

Jessica: I do. Definitely. I think it’s important to keep the lines of communication as open as possible. The only time I don’t keep them in the loop is when I forget, but I also always encourage my clients to check in whenever they feel like they haven’t heard anything in a while.

 

Anna: How often do you communicate with your clients?

Jessica: It really depends what’s going on. At some point each month I go through a binder I have that keeps track of every client. The binder includes due dates, pub dates, information from recent phone calls with editors and the client, etc. When checking that binder I’ll often follow-up with a client or at least know if I have to. Sometimes I’ll go through periods where I’ll talk to one particular client daily and at other times we don’t talk for months.

 

Anna: Do you believe traditionally published books are better than self-published ones – not for bad editing but because the publishers are so very selective?

Jessica: Not necessarily. I think both can have their brilliant books and both can have clunkers.

 

Anna: Do you prefer submissions by referral?

Jessica: I love referrals, but I don’t necessarily need them or prefer them.

 

Anna: Have you ever turned down a book that later turned into a bestseller?

Jessica: Yes. But one thing to note is that if I had repped that book maybe it wouldn’t have been a bestseller. It’s possible that author’s agent was instrumental in helping her create a bestselling book and had a vision I didn’t have.

 

Anna: Most agents’ average response time is about 2 to 4 weeks, sometimes 8 to 12. Why so long? What happens with a query in that time? Do they just sit in your inbox, waiting to be read, or do you sort through them once and later get back to them a second and maybe even third time before you make a decision?

Jessica: It gives us a buffer. Typically, if nothing else is going on, we can reply a lot faster. However, if your query comes in on a week when five of my clients sent proposals or manuscripts for me to review and three publishers sent contracts for me to review and royalty statements come in I’m not going to get to any queries for a couple of weeks. By giving a long time frame we can hope that authors won’t anticipate a response during a time when we just might not be able to give one.

 

Anna: When you read a query, are you foremost interested in publishing that book, or do you consider its potential for movies straight away, too?

Jessica: Book first and only actually. A movie would be a great bonus, but I’m not in the movie business (in fact I rarely even see movies) so it’s not my focus.

 

Anna: Do you sometimes check the market for epic self-published books and reach out to the writers with an offer?

Jessica: Sadly I don’t have the time to do that like I used to, but when I was first building a client list I used to do that all the time and actually teamed up with some really great clients that way.

 

Anna: Is it possible to sell already self-published books to big publishing houses for a re-release? Did you ever do that?

Jessica: It is and we have. It’s not easy and doesn’t happen nearly as often as authors would like you to believe, but it has definitely happened on more than one occasion in our office.

 

Anna: When agents ask writers for material and give a turnaround time, they very often don’t make it. Are you likely to miss deadlines, too? If so, what are the reasons?

Jessica: I do. Absolutely. Of course there are times when I respond well before the given deadline. I think it depends entirely, as I stated earlier, what’s going on with the agent. If I’ve only requested one proposal in three weeks it probably won’t take me long to get to it. If however I’ve requested three a day and am getting material in from clients it’s going to take me a lot longer to get to it.

Also, there are times when I’m just not actively looking for someone new. In those cases the best thing I can do is sit on the submissions and wait for a time when I can really focus on finding something exciting and give the submissions the attention they deserve. Of course I always hope that if an author gets an offer during that time they will still give me a chance.

 

Anna: With all the reading you have to do for your job, is it still fun for you? Do you still have time to read and enjoy a book that hasn’t been submitted to you?

Jessica: I don’t have as much time to read as I’d like, but I blame the rest of my life for that not my job. Reading is actually still really fun for me. Maybe more fun in some ways because it’s a true release. When I read “for pleasure” I get to just read the book. I don’t have to give anyone my opinion or pay attention to potential problems. That being said, because of my job I think I give a book less time. I won’t continue reading a book if its not holding my interest. I’d rather get rid of it and move on to the next one.

 

Anna: How many book pages can you read in an hour?

Jessica: I think I read about a page a minute. At least that’s what I guestimate when I’m on a plane and trying to figure out if I’ll finish the book before we land or not.

There’s nothing worse than landing and speeding through the last 25 pages while the other passengers are getting off.

 

Anna: What do you advise your clients – to go for a big advance payment or rather for higher royalties?

Jessica: Higher royalties almost always and sometimes even a lower advance if the editor or house that seems more enthusiastic and excited to put a lot behind the book. Because in the long run that will amount to more money.

 

Anna: Which of the above happens more often?

Jessica: Most royalties are still pretty standard so I would say in most cases we’re choosing the bigger advance.

 

Anna: Once you land a great book deal, what happens with the book? How long until it’s being released and how does the payment work? Advance payment in little bits?

Jessica: I’ll ignore the contract negotiations which are the first step and focus on the book. Typically a book is scheduled for publication one year after the delivery of the manuscript (as per your contract). This should allow for plenty of time to edit and market the book as well as design the cover, write cover copy, and sell it into the marketplace.

The first step the book goes through will be revisions with your new editor. Typically this will be a round or two in which you strengthen your book. Once you and your editor agree that the book is good and tight and ready to go it will be passed on to the copyeditor. From there the book goes back to you for yet another read through. Once you’ve returned the book it will be made into page proofs (for yet another read by you) and hopefully advance reading copies for reviewers.

Payments are broken down typically in thirds or fourths. How much of a breakdown will depend on how much you’re getting paid. The more you get paid the more the publisher will want payments to be broken down.

The first payment should be paid on the signing and finalization of the contract, the next on the delivery and acceptance (this is the key word) of the manuscript. Acceptance means you will not be paid until about the time the book is turned into the copyeditor and the final payment is often on publication. This can, of course, vary by publisher.

 

Anna: Did you ever take on a client that you later wished you hadn’t?

Jessica: I’m pretty sure I have, but I’m never going to fully admit that ;)

 

Anna: Did J.K.Rowling pitch to you? ;-)

Jessica: No. At least I’m pretty sure not.

 

Anna: What if a complete dork writes to you, being arrogant and awkward, but delivers a brilliant manuscript? Are you more likely to take him on or pass?

Jessica: I love that you used the words “complete dork.” Totally made me laugh. If the manuscript is absolutely brilliant, takes my breath away and I can’t stop thinking about it I’ll put up with almost anyone. If I’m on the fence or I like it, but it needs work or I like it, but don’t love it, I will pass if I sense the author might be a nightmare to work with.

 

Anna: The funniest thing that ever landed on your desk?

Jenny: The funniest are usually actually the creepiest or scariest at the time.

The one that comes to mind first is the writer who, I guess, “landed on my desk”. This writer thought it would be a good idea to hand deliver his manuscript. As blog readers know we have an office dog, at the time it was Pitbull mix Riggins. A sweet, sweet dog, but not necessarily sweet looking. Riggins was outside and this man had no qualms about entering Riggins’s gated area to make his way to the office door. I heard Riggins barking and looked out to see him jumping all over the man with his muddy paws. I never answered the door and I never called Riggins off.

No writers or animals were hurt in the making of this story.

 

Anna: Would you share one epic query letter with us?

Jenny: It’s rarely the queries that are epic. It’s usually the responses or exchanges with authors after the rejection. One of my favorite stories is back in the days of snail mail queries. These days it’s easier to send off an angry response, but in those days you actually had to go to the effort of typing something up, printing it out, folding it up, putting it in the envelope, addressing the envelope, adding a stamp and mailing it out. That’s a lot of anger if you get through all of that and still think you should send it.

My favorite story was the writer who accused us of steaming stamps off SASEs (self addressed stamped envelopes) and using them for ourselves. According to this writer the rejection he received was in the same envelope he originally sent the query in. I’m doubtful, but I suppose it could easily happen if we’re in a rush. I guess the post office delivered it based on the return address.

His response was a diatribe about how we were scamming writers and the post office in an effort to keep all of the stamps for ourselves. Seems like a bad business plan to me, but whatever.

 

Anna: Agents intimidate authors. What intimidates you?

Jessica: English teachers and The Grammar Police

 

Anna: And finally, what’s your favorite TV show?

Jessica: I think it depends on my mood. Modern Family for guaranteed laughs, but The Good Wife always blows me away. The writing is amazing. Of course you can’t beat Downton Abbey and Walking Dead, although I have to be in the right mood for Walking Dead and have enough time to watch something mindless after so I don’t have nightmares.

 

Thank you, Jessica, for these awesome insights into your work. It was a pleasure to get in touch with you!

***

Find out more about Jenny on her Website

Check out her Submission guidelines

or follow her on Twitter

******

Have you read and Anna-book today?

Book of the year, 2012   ~Midnight Reads

RONE Awards finalist, 2013 ~InD’Tale Magazine

Unsurpassed mastery of imagery! ~Secret Book Spot

2014’s most anticipated sequel! ~Splendid Books

Don’t watch this BOOK TRAILER! ;)

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Let’s brew a romance together

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

When I woke up this morning, I was in the mood to cook. No, not really, but some returning complaints about my style of writing the Grover Beach Team series or about my totally epic plot ideas (LOL) made me think of a way to explain to you why I write what I write and why I can’t write what you want from me.

For better understanding, let’s cook a book. Better yet, let’s cook a romance! :-)

I’d like to break the process down to you with a simple recipe. What do you like? A pumpkin soup? Okay, let’s roll with that because it’s just the perfect day for it and find some basic ingredients first:

 

2 pumpkins

Some spice

Vegetable stock

1 onion

Olive oil

A toad for good measure

And a pot of double cream

 

Now, how to put all that together and create an edible and actually interestng dish of it? I’ll tell you.

First, we need to find a name for our two pumpkins.

For my book soup, which carries the byname Grover Beach Team, I picked average pumpkins that could be you and me. I’m not a big fan of exotic names like Aaliyah, Bayard, or Caleb, where you sometimes don’t even know how to pronounce them right. I like my pumpkins bland, like Ryan, Lisa, Susan, and yes, Chris.

Okay, what’s next? Right, the vegetable stock.

This is basic. And so is the stock for a romance. Boy falls in love with girl. Boy loses girl. Boy gets girl back. You cannot brew a soup or cook a romance without that basic stock.

A vegetable stock alone wouldn’t make our soup taste delicious though. We need spice. Here you can go down various different ways. Eastern, Italian, French, American, Texan, Asian… I like to compare these to the different genres in reading and writing: Contemporary, Historical, Western, Fantasy, Horror (okay, horror in romance would be like Thai curry thrown into an apple strudel, but still). You see, you cannot really throw them all in one pot, so you have to choose one flavor. I chose YA contemporary, which is the alleviated version of Italian spice.

Since I picked this particular spice and also want to add a pinch of humor, I have to go by certain rules with my writing. I cannot bring in a werewolf, a leprechaun, or a mass murderer. For the lightness, neither can I bring in a death, nor too much trouble like severe illness or handicaps. And certainly can’t I make my pumpkins slide down a rainbow. All these things limit the outcome of my soup pretty much, but I must never forget that I have already added the vegetable stock. So how can I make one pumpkin fall for another, make him do something that will result in losing the other at one point, and still have a happy end?

Oh, I know. Let’s add the onion now.

This will be the one ingredient that makes the whole soup flavor go in a certain direction, so pick your onion well. There are white ones, red ones, sharp ones, small ones… For a contemporary YA romance that should be light and fun to read and still go with the veggie stock, I can think of only a few things that would work:

The hero is a jerk and it takes some time for him to change and get the lady pumpkin.
The pumpkin girl is in love with some other veggie and the hero has to fight to get her. We call this a food triangle.
Our pumpkins live in different gardens and have to deal with a long-distance relationship.
Social difference has to be overcome, as in the hero is a cucumber and not a pumpkin at all, but this will lead us right back to option 1, where either the hero or heroine is a jerk for even letting these differences be an issue.
Both hero and heroine are together with other pumpkins. Guess what? It’s an altered version of option 2, only called a food quartette.
A holiday flirtation. We have that covered with option 3.
The Fault In Our Stars. That book has been done and it’s way too heavy and angsty for one of my light pumpkin romances.
The hero sees his heroine, falls in love, wins her heart the very same day and they live happily ever after in pumpkin paradise. Eeeeh. Mayor fail. It’s not a romance. Remember the veggie stock? Yeah, you have to have that—all the ups and downs. Otherwise the soup tastes boring.

I dare those of you who keep telling me they get bored by my choice of onions to find a plot line that isn’t somehow covered by options 1, 2, or 3 and post them as a comment. But beware, you have to go with the veggie stock and keep the tone light. ;)

Now, that we chose the onion, we need something to fry it with. Oil.

Whichever type you pick, remember that it gives the onion “character”. I like frying my things in olive oil. Basically, that means, I like brewing a certain brand of hero. The bad boy. I can’t help it, I just like the taste. And since I’m the cook, I can pick whichever I want. Yeah, ha ha, chew on that one. ;) So admittedly, not all of them but most of my male leads smack of bad boys, playboys, arrogant dicks, or simple jerks. I like it because when those guys fall for someone, it has so much more impact to me.

 

Of course, no one has to eat my soup in the end. It’s all up to you since you also have to pay a certain price for your meal.

But if you come to this particular restaurant and order my soup, you cannot go to the cook in advance and complain about the flavor. Sale as seen. That’s it. If it doesn’t look tasty to you, there are a thousand other chefs out there who may or may not cook you a better soup. ;)

 

What else has to be added in every good Halloween dish? Exactly. The toad.

We also call it a twist. There’s one in pretty much all books, but if you don’t have a trained eye for it, aren’t a writer, or not familiar with the term in the first place, you might not even recognize a toad as such. It may just jump out of the pot at some point and surprise you with a croak.

All right, enough about onions and toads, let’s get to the cream part.

This is my favorite in a romance. It’s when you smooth things out in the end, find a lovely solution, and yes, there’s even a happy ending for a love triangle, as I think I successfully showed you in one or two of my books. I might pick up that theme in alternated versions again in future books, but they will always be different enough to make you not even care while reading.

If you don’t believe me, however, that’s okay. You’re always welcome in my restaurant, and I won’t lock the doors once you’re inside. You can easily walk away at any given time. Promise! Like I said… Thousand other restaurants, thousand other pumpkin soups, so go ahead and take your pick. But, by all means, don’t ask me to change my recipe for my very own book soup, just because you’re looking for something else.

That won’t happen.

For one, because countless other guest in my restaurant like my soup. And two, I’m not going to tell you how to cook your spaghetti either. ;)

 

Bon appetite and happy Halloween.

Interview with literary agent Jenny Bent

Hello everyone!

Since you’ve come to my blog today, you’re either a fan of my books (YAY) or you’ve heard who’s going to be my special guest this week. For once, I’m tempted to believe it’s the latter. ;)

Like I’ve promised you some time ago, I’m planning a series of blog posts that will give you deeper insights into the life and work of a literary agent. In fact, not just one but five of them, and then not just any, but you’ll meet some of the leading agents in the industry. I’m super happy these lovely ladies let me grill them, and you’ll be amazed about their answers.

We’re starting with the amazing Jenny Bent, from The Bent Agency!

Now lean back, everyone, and learn

THE TRUTH ABOUT SLUSH PILES!

Welcome, Jenny!

 

Anna: What is your daily routine in your job? How much time do you spend for what?

Jenny: I don’t really have it broken down in any concrete way. It’s a lot of answering emails, putting out fires, submitting projects, negotiating various deals for domestic and foreign contracts, helping out the other agents in the agency with different things, talking through edits with an author, etc. The day is dictated by what is happening at any given moment for my clients. I will also tackle chores on my to-do list and if there is time (which is rare) I will do a little reading. But most of my reading/editing is done at night, not during office hours. This is why agents are usually so behind!

 

Anna: In most submission guidelines, you find the sentence: We get hundreds of queries each week. I believe this is for the entire agency. How many queries do you personally get each day?

Jenny: I get 50 to 100 per day.

 

Anna: What are keywords in a query letter that get you interested in reading the manuscript (not the genre or book length, please), and what are turnoffs?

Jenny: The only thing I don’t like is when they criticize other genres or define the book by subtly dissing other books, like telling me the book doesn’t contain vampires. Keywords that get me interested are generally comparisons to other books I really loved.

 

Anna: Do you prefer people to use your first name or last name when sending you a query letter?

Jenny: First name is just fine.

 

Anna: How should a writer structure his query? Begin with a cheesy line to break the ice, tell you about the book like word count, POV, and genre, or rather get straight to the point with a tagline and the blurb of the book?

Jenny: Queries, like books, are not one size fits all.   The best query letters communicate the essence of the book in some way and they can do that in a variety of ways.  You can search our agency blog for some examples of query letters I really liked—just enter “query letter” in the search bar.

 

Anna: How high is your slush pile right now? How many unread queries?

Jenny: I’m closed to queries right now, so can’t answer the second question.   My requested manuscript pile is very high, I’m sorry to say, but I’m trying to get caught up!

 

Anna: How many queries can you process in one day?

Jenny: Depends on my mood and level of exhaustion.

 

Anna: Many agents have a “no reply means no” policy. Does it really take that much time to send a rejection letter? Rejections are hard enough to stomach for authors, but no reply at all is just frustrating.

Jenny: I don’t have that policy myself, but I will say that some very, very successful agents have that policy.   They make money based on what they sell, not because they take the time to answer every query they receive.   They are running a business, after all, not a non-profit, and if you are someone like me who gets up to 100 queries a day, it actually does take a long time to answer all of them.

 

Anna: With so much conflicting query advice out there… what really catches your attention and leaves you wanting pages?

Jenny: This is a hard one to answer in any kind of concrete way, but again, on my blog there are some great examples of query letters that caught my attention.

 

Anna: How much control does the writer give up when they have an agent?

Jenny: You shouldn’t be giving up any control or at least not thinking about it that way. An agent isn’t your boss, an agent is someone who offers advice and guidance about your career. I have parted ways with clients who didn’t agree with the advice I was giving them and I think that’s for the best and there were no hard feelings—you have to be on the same page and not feel that there are control issues happening.

Having said all of this, you give up a great deal of control when you move from self-publishing to traditional publishing and sign a contract with a publisher.

 

Anna: What’s your submission process to publishers?

Jenny: I usually call the editors that I think would like the book and pitch the project—then I send them the project via email. I almost always do multiple submissions.

 

Anna: How soon after you sign a contract do you start pitching to publishers?

Jenny: This depends on how much editing I do with the author and what is happening in the publishing industry at the time (for instance, I don’t like to submit in August or December as a general rule).

 

Anna: Do you expect significant edits with manuscripts before you start submitting?

Jenny: It depends on the manuscript. Some need more work, others less. I do like the material to be very polished when it goes out the door, I find it maximizes the level of advance I can get for it.

 

Anna: Do you keep your clients in the loop about all the steps you take?

Jenny: Yes.

 

Anna: How often do you communicate with your clients?

Jenny: This depends on how much is happening with them at any given time.

 

Anna: Do you believe traditionally published books are better than self-published ones – not for bad editing but because the publishers are so very selective?

Jenny: No, I don’t believe in objective criteria or blanket statements like this. A book is “better” than another book because someone likes it better, not for any other reason that has to do with some supposed objective level of quality. It’s a matter of taste and everyone’s tastes are different.

 

Anna: Do you prefer submissions by referral?

Jenny: No. Many of my clients queried me without any kind of referral at all.

 

Anna: Have you ever turned down a book that later turned into a bestseller?

Jenny: Yes, of course. Probably everyone who has been in the industry any length of time has, in fact. It’s practically a badge of honor.

 

Anna: Most agents’ average response time is about 2 to 4 weeks, sometimes 8 to 12. Why so long? What happens with a query in that time? Do they just sit in your inbox, waiting to be read, or do you sort through them once and later get back to them a second and maybe even third time before you make a decision?

Jenny: For queries? That’s not my response time so I can’t speak to why it would take so long for others.

 

Anna: When you read a query, are you foremost interested in publishing that book, or do you consider its potential for movies straight away, too?

Jenny: Well, I’m not a publisher, so I don’t read it that way. Instead, I read it with an agent’s eye, thinking about all the different ways I could market it—to book publishers, audio publishers, for translation and for film.

 

Anna: Do you sometimes check the market for epic self-published books and reach out to the writers with an offer?

Jenny: There’s become such an industry of people who do this that I don’t feel entirely comfortable with the process myself, anymore. I represent a book because I love the author’s writing, not because it’s sold X number of copies already. That’s the process I feel most comfortable with. So if I come across a self-published book where I absolutely love it, as was the case with Ingrid Ricks’ HIPPIE BOY, then I do offer rep, but I don’t do that blanket thing where I just email everyone who has hit a list.

 

Anna: Is it possible to sell already self-published books to big publishing houses for a re-release? Did you ever do that?

Jenny: I have done this yes, but in the days before electronic publishing. My author Laurie Notaro self-published her book via print on demand after trying for seven years to find a publisher. I saw it on Amazon, read it, fell in love, and sold it to Random House. When they re-released it, it debuted on the New York Times bestseller list. This was back in 2002. And I sold HIPPIE BOY, which I mentioned above, to Berkley for a re-release.

 

Anna: When agents ask writers for material and give a turnaround time, they very often don’t make it. Are you likely to miss deadlines, too? If so, what are the reasons?

Jenny: I try to always make deadlines or have a very good reason (such as illness) to miss them.   Part of that process is setting realistic deadlines.

 

Anna: With all the reading you have to do for your job, is it still fun for you? Do you still have time to read and enjoy a book that hasn’t been submitted to you?

Jenny: Yes and yes. Emphatically.

 

Anna: How many book pages can you read in an hour?

Jenny: I honestly have no idea.   I am a fairly slow editor however, much to my chagrin.

 

Anna: What do you advise your clients – to go for a big advance payment or rather for higher royalties?

Jenny: Depends on the scenario.   A higher advance is more of a sure thing, higher royalties are more of a gamble. Having said that, agents are natural-born gamblers.

 

Anna: Which of the above happens more often?

Jenny: Traditional publishers don’t vary their royalty structures very much, so I guess the first one?

 

Anna: Once you land a great book deal, what happens with the book? How long until it’s being released and how does the payment work? Advance payment in little bits?

Jenny: This depends on the publisher. Most contracts specify that they have to release within 18 months. The advances are split anywhere from halves to fifths.

 

Anna: Did J.K.Rowling pitch to you? ;-)

Jenny: Oh my god, I wish.

 

Anna: What if a complete dork writes to you, being arrogant and awkward, but delivers a brilliant manuscript? Are you more likely to take him on or pass?

Jenny: This has honestly never happened. Having said that, if I get warning bells about a person, I am likely to pass. Falls under the life is too short category.

 

Anna: The funniest thing that ever landed on your desk?

Jenny: I’m trying to think of something but can’t…

 

Anna: Would you share one epic query letter with us?

Jenny: http://jennybent.blogspot.com/2012/06/its-really-not-about-who-you-know.html

 

Anna: Agents intimidate authors. What intimidates you?

Jenny: Great question. Nothing in publishing, anymore, but when I first started out I was probably intimidated by everyone I came into contact with! Pitching books used to be terrifying to me.

 

Anna: And finally, what’s your favorite TV show?

Jenny: Top Chef or Girls.

 

Thank you, Jenny, for taking the time to answer all our burning questions. It was a pleasure to get in touch with you!

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Find out more about Jenny on her Website

Check out her Submission guidelines

or follow her on Twitter

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Have you read and Anna-book today?

Book of the year, 2012   ~Midnight Reads

RONE Awards finalist, 2013 ~InD’Tale Magazine

Unsurpassed mastery of imagery! ~Secret Book Spot

2014’s most anticipated sequel! ~Splendid Books

Whatever you do, DON’T watch this BOOK TRAILER!

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DATING TROUBLE cover reveal!!!

Hey, peeps!

I’ve been holding back with this long enough so, without much ado, here’s the brand new cover for Susan Miller’s book.

Here goes…

We have a tentative release date, by the way. February 15, 2015

I’m also rewriting part of the chapters I already wrote, and that means, you’ll get a reworked, hopefully absolutely awesome blurb, too.

DATING TROUBLE

Susan wants Ethan, and Chris wants Sue.

Drawn to Ethan and intrigued by Chris, Susan Miller finds herself caught between identical twin brothers who attend the same school as she does. This should work out wonderfully in her favor. The only problem in that awkward triangle: Chris wants Susan for the completely wrong reasons.

Nothing like his obliging and sweet brother, Chris Donovan has trouble written all over him. He changes his girls like other guys change their t-shirts, and his next trophy on his little black list is Susan. Frankly, that’s the last thing she wants, but for some reason she can’t explain, she finds herself responding to all the goodnight texts and other cheeky messages Chris sends her.

The guy has a way of getting under her skin like no one ever has before.

How long until she falls for his smooth charm and gets herself into more trouble than she can possibly handle?

 

And to make your mouth water, here’s a very short excerpt, just for the fun of it. ;-)

 

It was a good thing their guys came along just then and pulled the girls away. I headed for Science all by myself. Only, I didn’t walk alone for long. As I rounded the corner, someone draped his arm casually around my shoulders and said, “Hey, Sue.”

Looking up, I found a beautiful set of blue eyes trained on me. My smile was inevitable, but already the next instant I stiffened in wariness. Careful, Susan, I told myself. So with a distrustful frown, I asked, “And you are…”

“Chris.” He rolled his eyes as if tired of me not being able to keep him and his brother apart.

Heck, how could I? It was like trying to tell one grain of sugar from the next. Impossible.

“What do you want, Chris?” I snapped, not bothering to hide my disappointment about walking through the hallway with the wrong guy by my side. And to make my point clear, I picked his hand up with two fingers and removed his arm from my shoulders.

Instantly, Chris slid in front of me and blocked my way. He leaned against the metal door of a locker and folded his arms. Sporting a black leather jacket and ragged jeans, he didn’t look like a Peanut one bit, so maybe that was the way to keep them apart. From now on, I’d pay a lot more attention to their clothes. Hopefully the times of being fooled would be over.

“I’m curious,” he said with a smirk that rendered me speechless for a second.

Uh oh. One look at his face, and I knew he was trouble. I got that bad feeling deep down in my gut, almost like when you’re facing a Rottweiler and you know it’s going to bite you at your next move. Maybe it was just his black leather jacket, though.

He tilted his head, locking gazes with me. “Did you and Ethan kiss yesterday?”

“Keep your drool in, Spike,” I managed to say after I figured out how to function my vocal cords again. “What happens between your brother and me isn’t any of your business.”

Chris only laughed at that. “I knew it. He didn’t have the guts to kiss you.”

What the hell was that supposed to mean? The longer I stared at Chris’ face, the more he got on my nerves, so I decided not to question that last comment but pushed past him, brushing against his shoulder with mine.

“Have a nice day, little Sue,” he cooed after me, and I was once again tempted to flip him off over my shoulder. Ah, why actually not? My middle finger was the last thing he saw of me before I rounded the corner.

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Don’t miss the first 4 books in this enticing teen romance series!