I received an offer of representation for my middle grade manuscript -- YAY! Having had a schmagent before, I'm doing more due diligence. I also joined Publishers Marketplace based on your blog advice. The agent who offered is a junior agent at a fairly young agency and according to PM here are their stats: 30 deals in the last 12 months | 21 in the last 6 months | 49 overall -- quite a few digital deals, so I'm thinking about what that means... (not the real reason I'm reaching out, but if you'd care to comment on that tidbit, please do).
Anyway, the junior agent does not have any deals listed, and, yes, I will be them asking about that. But I did see that this person has three listings on the rights board. I didn't realize PM had this sort of offering and after perusing it for a bit, I didn't recognize any other names on the board and so that has me wondering -- why would an agent post to the rights board in the first place? Shouldn't they have contacts already established with editors and so this sort of offering wouldn't be necessary? Any information you can provide would be greatly appreciated.
The rights board at PM is an interesting backwater indeed.
I keep an eye on it ...sort of.
When I looked at it again last night, as I wrote this blog post I was shocked to my shoes to see that it's become a place writers tout themselves! I have no idea if anyone has gotten rep from one of those postings, but I can tell you that I never go looking there for writers. My incoming queries, maybe one of the Twitter #hashpits give me all the material I need. And more.
I don't think editors use it much either.
And those that do, are generally going to select for repped material first.
But, I digress.
In answer to your question:
I posted an offering to it once about 15 years ago, when I was beating my head against the wall on a submission.
There's nothing overtly wrong with agents who post offerings there. Some reputable agents do, usually for some sort of sub right from what I could tell.
It's not a sign of anything other than the project might appeal to editors they don't yet know.
What you want to look at it is exactly what you did: what the agent and agency have sold and to whom. Where I meet editors isn't important. That they buy my stuff is.
10 comments:
Where I meet editors isn't important.
And we-all naive writers thought yawl agents waylaid them editors at the Ritz bar over single malt and cognac. (Slurped separately, of course.)
Wow, something new I have never ever heard of before. And it confuses me. I am disregarding this bit for now. I just want to know what the agent/agency has sold, and I would be concerned if all the sales were digital only. I want a paper book that people can touch and keep and put on a bookshelf. But that is just me. Have I mentioned that the prospect of querying is making me a tad nervous?
I'd never heard of this and had to look it up: https://www.publishersmarketplace.com/rights/
It's interesting that very few of these first sentences are the attention-grabbing ones of a query or first chapter.
Location does too matter. Since I already know you did it, and that you used the candlestick, if I can just eliminate either the ballroom or the conservatory I'll have you dead to rights.
E.M. Goldsmith, I'm partial to paper, too, although these days most of my books are coming straight to my ears so I can pretend to get work done while I'm "reading." Take heart -- I expect any day now we're going to hear about your wonderful new agent and then your fabulous deal, and then we'll all be able to trek to our local bookseller and pick up a real life copy of your book. I'm counting on it!
This was one of those posts / conversations where I understand all the words but have no idea what is going on. 'Posting an offering' sounds like a sacrifice going up in flames so clearly I need to do a little research here.
The value of reading this blog is sometimes you don't know what you don't know.
Congrats, OP, on the offer!
OP: I'm sorry that you got bitten the first time. I kind of like the idea of a young agent or young agency to settle my work with. I think it would be easier to grow a relationship with one of those, compared to an already established empire. Hope you can make it work, but keep querying while you work it through.
Publisher's Marketplace seemed like a good idea, but I'm not sure that I would like the details of my deal published there. It has begun to seem like a place for ulterior motives, rather than its original plan.
P&E is still there, if it will give you some idea about the agent that offered.
Was the flash fiction winner ever announced? If not, please can we know? :)
Alas, TS, among the many many ways this blog helps you is how it reminds you of the crazy publishing industry we're all trying to ascend to. Well, what better way to demonstrate the glacial speed of publishing?
Or perhaps it's a lesson in building suspense? Ya gotta admit, you keep coming back, right?
I would say to come on over and we can netflix and chill until the results come out, but somebody would be getting in trouble, and I think it'd be me. So let's both stay right here where we are. Forget netflix. But we'll lean into the chill.
Just finished 1100 words (goal = 800) for fiscal Thursday word count.
Keep writing, y'all.
John - I'd be happy to netflix and chill in the Shark-approved usage of the phrase :) And the temperatures have dropped here, so 'chill' is definitely the order of the day, including a cat using me as a human-shaped heating pad.
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