agent

I actually went to bed last night wondering why I haven’t been getting rejection letters.  I had grown so used to them and now I kind of miss them. 

Kind of.

I wrote my first novel in 2012, one I called “Treasures In Diepsloot”, had it professionally edited, and got it back, ready to submit to (*Jaws theme*) an agent. 

After you write a novel and want it published you are given a crash-course in how things work.  You can SELF-PUBLISH (a growing choice now that publishing is changing) or you can publish “traditionally” (do not be fooled by the adverb – publishing is changing every day). 

For Christmas 2011 Mario bought me a book called “The Essential Guide to Getting Your Book Published” by the husband and wife team of Arielle Eckstut and David Henry Sterry.  The book scared the heck out of me but I read the first three chapters and got busy…. Writing a book involves a schedule and I wrote religiously every day any time I could. Then it involves these other little things I had never thought of....

EDITING 

I finally had the story down (I’ll tell you what it’s about tomorrow).  Now was time to get it edited.  I researched all the editors in the universe and finally decided on one I would ask to edit my work: Molly Giles.  She edited all of Amy Tan’s books and I was sure she was the editor for me, so I wrote to her.  She taught Creative Writing at University of Arkansas so I emailed her and asked her if she would consider editing my just-finished baby.  Guess what?  SHE SAID YES!!! 

I must have danced around the house for days, elated that it was going to happen!  My baby was going to be edited!! 

Molly Giles - an angel of an editor!

I sent the book home with my Auntie who had been visiting me at the same time (poor Auntie Emmy lived with me during the final revisions).  She mailed it to Molly Giles and then (cricket cricket) I waited. 

A couple of months later she wrote back: 

 "What an intriguing book! I felt very close to these eight strong women by the time I finished and feel I learned a lot about their lives in South Africa. Your writing is simple and uncomplicated and realistic and it rang true emotionally for all your characters.

 I admire the way you organized the material, pairing mother and daughter in the first two sections and giving the last two sections first to the four mothers, then to the four daughters. Condensing the time period to only three months in the lives of these women, interspersing the present with separate flashbacks and connecting the present sections through Annah’s fire, was also effective. Very accomplished for a first novel! You should be proud. Your presentation too was beautiful; I love the heart design with its chambers and hope to see it again on the cover of the book when it is published!”

I took dancing to a new level that week.  I think I even did a triple lutz and a flip flop.  Mario and I would break out laughing for no reason. 

Molly Giles said “published!!!”  

And she said it about my book

THE AGENT SEARCH -

 Before I could get too happy about the fact that a great editor loved the book that I wrote, it was now time to find a literary agent that could represent it and get it published.  Agents are like heroes to me:  Ninjas who know the back doors to publishing houses and get your stuff read and sold.  They’re half business people, half bloodhounds.  They are like miners for manuscripts of gold. 

The only way to get an agent nowadays is a referral. 

Molly Giles referred me to one of my literary agent heroes.  Her office asked for exclusive reading rights before she gave me an answer.  I said yes, blushing.  She denied it with quite a strong no.  Thanks, but no thanks…it’s not me.

No, it’s me.  It’s my book.  Are you saying you don’t like it?

I’m saying it’s not for me.  I’m not in love.

Thank you… (rejection dance…walking away with my head downcast and my manuscript dragging on the floor).

This happened EIGHTEEN more times.  After my referral dried up, I went from agent to agent, studying who likes world fiction, women’s fiction.  I wrote a query letter introducing the book and introducing myself.  The query letter is a pitch – a pitch to busy agents that they read and decide yes or no.

Eighteen times I heard: “Not for me,” “Not what I’m looking for…” “Too long…” “No vampires”, “No thanks!” … Fifty shades of denied.

In December, I found an auction through twitter called “Publishing Gives Back” – a group of editors, agents, publishers raising money for Hurricane Sandy relief.    Agents offered critiques of our pitch, query letter, synopsis, etc.   I desperately needed to be part of it.

“Haven’t we spent enough money on your book?” Mario asked me.  I was standing in front of him, asking permission to bid on a package, offered by an agent who was auctioning a critique of my synopsis and my first three chapters.

“I have a feeling no one is reading my book,” I said, sadly.  “I think everyone is just reading my query letter.” 

He shook his head.  After all, we didn’t have an unending supply of cash.  In about an hour he apologized and told me I could bid… and I did.

Gail Fortune

Ten hours later I won!  An agent named Gail Fortune had offered a “Critique of first three chapters and synopsis with a 72-hour turnaround!”  I did my happy dance again. 

After contacting her and asking when I should submit my work to her, she asked for a weekend reprieve before she could get started.  I waited for what seemed like hours and finally submitted on Monday night (it would be Monday Morning I New York).

Days ticked by in minutes.  Honestly, I do have a life and things do happen to me, but it was like waiting for your boyfriend to call or something.  I knew that a literary agent had my work and she was going to (gulp) tell me what was wrong with it.  What I should change, why it may not sell in this market…you know – agent stuff.

On Friday there was a note in my email:

  Dear Janet:

 Wow, what an amazing and powerful story. I can’t wait to read the rest. So, if you would be so kind…please send the whole ms. as a Word attachment and I’m happy to read and discuss representation in the new year. I would appreciate having until early January to consider.

You have done a wonderful job of taking me to a different place and immersing me in a new culture. I also enjoyed looking at your blog. I also have a very close relationship with God and I think we would get along fabulously together.

I am so grateful that you found the Hurricane Sandy auction and that you were so generous and won the auction for my critique.

Looking forward to reading more…

 All best,

Gail

Oh my….

Mario and I hugged each other and started jumping up and down.  How blessed are we??  I sent her the rest and waited some more…and then we went on vacation.

All my vacation I thought of maybe having an agent.  Maybe she would like it.  Maybe someone will represent me…

At the tail end of my vacation we were in New York.  I gulped and called Gail, the woman who had my beloved manuscript.  She knew just who I was. 

“Janet, how are you?”

I gulped.  She sounded happy I was calling. 

“I read it and I love it.  I would love to represent you…”

I didn’t hear much else on the call, but she was on speaker phone and Mario heard everything.  All I heard is that she loved my book!  She was going to represent me!!  She likes me!  She really likes me!!

NOW

So, I have an agent.  I’m still writing…but I feel a similar sense of completion as the day I finished my novel.  

This was awesome.

Can you tell I’m smiling? 

Here’s what happens now: My agent and I will work together to get a package ready for submission.  We will submit to people (editors) in publishing houses until we find someone with the same love, the same desire to see this go to print as I have and now Gail has.

After we find that person, they make me an offer on the manuscript and we begin real editing.  The kind of editing that hurts.  The kind where we lob off things that I think are dear and precious in my story (do you hear me preparing myself? ). 

Now please pray I find an someone else who loves it…so it can be published…so you can read it…and love it.

Thank you for reading and sharing this story of joy with me.  

To see more about my agent, Gail, click here