Comments on: FAQ: What Makes an Agent Say Yes?

By: Janet Grant

Janet Grant — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:54:00 +0000

Miss Britt, it’s amazing how touchy writers gets about potential flaws in their babies. What’s with that?

By: Miss Britt

Miss Britt — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 13:13:51 +0000

Janet – I think true confidence and self-knowledge is not threatened by criticism.

I mean, you know, until you’re picking at their baby.

By: Janet Grant

Janet Grant — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:41:22 +0000

Miss Britt, you’re right that we’re looking for writers who know themselves well–that self-knowledge informs not only their manuscripts but also the marketing/publicity ideas they implement. But we’re also looking for teachable writers. It’s so hard when, with my more objective eye, I see adjustments that need to be made to a manuscript to make it more marketable, but the author can’t see past the way the idea initially formed for her.

By: Internet Marketing Email » Blog Archive » FAQ: What Makes an Agent Say Yes? | Between the Lines

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 17:41:33 +0000

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By: Genny

Genny — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 15:57:10 +0000

This was such a valuable post to read. It really helped me to better understand an agent’s side of things. Thank you!

By: Miss Britt

Miss Britt — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 15:23:03 +0000

It sounds like a lot of what you are looking for can come from the confidence of the author themselves. Not just in their writing, but in their own skin.

(A writer friend of mine just sent me the link to this blog and I can’t believe how helpful and direct it is!)

By: Teri D. Smith

Teri D. Smith — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 15:05:00 +0000

Thanks, Janet, we needed that word of encouragement after reading the number of queries you read.

I’m off to make those revisions in an attempt to serve an out-of-this-world cake!

By: Lynn Rush

Lynn Rush — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:44:50 +0000

Love this, “I sell the writer more than the project.”

I really believe that the personality match up is so important.

Thanks for the post.

By: Buffy Andrews

Buffy Andrews — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 13:11:18 +0000

Great post Janet. And I so agree about the personality match-up. I’m passionate about my characters, love hanging out with them. I want an agent who loves hanging out with them, too. Who believes in me just as much as I believe in myself. And I agree about authors needing to use multiple platforms to reach readers and market their work — whether that’s vodcasts, Twitter, Facebook, blog, etc. It’s a wonderful world out there for those willing to embrace the changes and have fun with it. But at the heart of all of this is writing that you just can’t stop reading because it grabs you and you can’t let go. To all of the authors and agents out there, best of luck with all of your publishing endeavors.