Tag: submissions

Ten Common Mistakes from a Literary Agency Point of View

checklistA little while back, I attended a class offered in conjunction with the Miami Book Fair International led by Amy Rennert. Her literary agency, The Amy Rennert Agency, includes authors such as Herman Wouk, Jimmy Buffett, and dozens of other New York Times and national bestsellers. Throughout the two days, I developed a list of the top ten mistakes writers make that will assure that your decline letter goes out by page five.

In no particular order, here is my list. Continue reading “Ten Common Mistakes from a Literary Agency Point of View”

Indie News Beat with Chris James

NEWS FLASH: Mainstream Publisher opens its doors to Independent Authors

In what is believed to be a first, on 1 October a mainstream publisher will open its doors, for a limited period of two weeks, to unsolicited submissions of full-length manuscripts, including self-published novels.

This represents remarkable admission by a mainstream publisher that Independent Authors have something to offer. Voyager, which is the Science Fiction imprint of HaperCollins, is looking for “10 to 12 new authors”, one of which it will publish monthly over the course of next year. Continue reading “Indie News Beat with Chris James”

Exception Rejections by Bill Stephens

Author Bill Stephens

Before I became an indie author, I did serious agent querying for my current project, and I learned that agents have discovered something more demeaning and insulting than the “Dear Author” form letter/post card/email rejection. I’ve dubbed it the “Exception Rejection.”

Here’s how it’s explained on the agent websites: “We receive such a high volume of queries, that we respond only to those in which we are interested. If you have not heard from us in four to six weeks then consider that we have passed on your project. Do not under any circumstances inquire about your submission or we will put your genitals in a vise and force you to watch us eviscerate your first-born. ” Actually, I added that last part. Continue reading “Exception Rejections by Bill Stephens”