tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post299241209538219324..comments2011-06-27T07:00:08.503-07:00Nathan Bransfordnoreply@blogger.comBlogger70125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-18548304583201719522010-06-30T12:42:52.817-07:002010-06-30T12:42:52.817-07:00oops, sorry for sending multiples!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-31663894321964053592010-06-30T12:42:52.816-07:002010-06-30T12:42:52.816-07:00Nathan,or perhaps I should refer to you as Mr. Bransford being that I&#39;m only 17. I wasn&#39;t planning on including my age within my queries, but if interest was shown, say a request for a partial, I would have given my age then. My question then: Is it absolutely necessary to put my age in my query or for the sake of avoiding some subconscious disapproval from an agent may I leave it out?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-45835341029339439362010-02-16T09:38:29.217-08:002010-02-16T09:38:29.217-08:00I read your advice for under 18&#39;s, but was wondering, I&#39;m 16, say my manuscript is really good, will I have less chance of getting published because I&#39;m young?<br /><br />thanks<br /><br />HannahHannahnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-1872122801287048632009-07-03T11:23:28.524-07:002009-07-03T11:23:28.524-07:00Dear Nathan,<br /><br />I am a more than competent writer, but my speciality is historical pioneering/discovery. <br /><br />My question is: due to the sensitive nature of some of the work, how might I formulate an approach? For example, if I told you I had discovered a &#39;missing link&#39; or another Egyptian pyramid, how might my submission be altered to reflect the nature, or maximise the potential of the topic?<br /><br />I&#39;ve made a few headlines, published a series of innovative history articles, and discovered a great many amazing things. <br /><br />Problem is, I&#39;m only 29!<br /><br />Heeeelp! :)NervousScholarnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-12830675496887249392009-06-16T08:37:59.856-07:002009-06-16T08:37:59.856-07:00Nathan, I was just wondering. Do you (or agents in general) discount authors younger than 18? I have heard that falling into that age group can give me a definite disadvantage. Also, how necessary is it to put my age in the query letter?Bretthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04468375791995188590noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-81035104417320712232008-11-12T09:40:00.000-08:002008-11-12T09:40:00.000-08:00What about when to tell an agent about publishing credits you're not particularly proud of (but that are in the same genre as the book you are shopping around)?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-77573441321572365432008-11-12T06:57:00.000-08:002008-11-12T06:57:00.000-08:00When is it appropriate to send a nudge on a query that received no response? I know many people consider email Q's to be informal, but it seems many agents don't reply at all, even when a beloved form rejection would suffice.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-57079466348522237252008-11-10T05:58:00.000-08:002008-11-10T05:58:00.000-08:00Wonderful information, and thank you for sharing. Many times it's difficult to figure out what, when and how, even for those of us who have been involved in the publishing industry for some time. ElaineElaine Williamshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13248752793967857144noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-23090764828215280072008-11-08T07:43:00.000-08:002008-11-08T07:43:00.000-08:00Nathan,<BR/><BR/>(Is this posting still open for Q and A?)<BR/><BR/>But would telling an agent about your young age affect their perception of your manuscript? Would they be looking at it with a less critical eye...? More critical...?<BR/><BR/>I know age becomes a factor when it comes to signing things, but what are the results of revealing it in your query letter? I didn't do that with my first few queries, and I'm preparing to send more soon, so getting smarter about it would be a good thing. :)<BR/><BR/>To God be the glory,<BR/>A SF writerAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-79922923654764450592008-11-07T12:26:00.000-08:002008-11-07T12:26:00.000-08:00Nathan - thank you. Another question, I'm afraid - between 'agent requests full' and 'agent offers representation' there seems to be a possible alternative of 'agent asks you to do extensive revisions, which may lead to representation.' that seems to be kind of like going steady, or maybe pinned, but not engaged yet. Do you tell the other possible suitors?Tracey S. Rosenberghttp://tsrosenberg.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-33101079821614466022008-11-07T12:18:00.000-08:002008-11-07T12:18:00.000-08:00Nathan,<BR/>this is a great post. One Q you don't seem to have answered was ...<BR/><BR/>Robin Minnick said... on <BR/>November 6, 2008 8:03 PM <BR/><BR/>He asked about POD and very small publishers, I'd be interested to kow what you think on this too. Could you give us your take?Grymalkynhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14011572070460058243noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-44449848891248452972008-11-07T08:51:00.000-08:002008-11-07T08:51:00.000-08:00Hey everyone, I updated the post with the questions that came in yesterday night. Hope I got everything. I didn't answer everything because some are covered in the FAQs and aren't directly pertinent to this post, so please check out those.Nathan Bransfordhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17938449789819847825noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-48778671649229468812008-11-07T08:19:00.000-08:002008-11-07T08:19:00.000-08:00I have an idea for a book trilogy on the back burner. I might write the whole thing first to get it right without being under pressure for a contract. Assuming that I don't have an agent for my other books when I get done with this project, should I query only book one or all three?C.D. Reimerhttp://www.cdreimer.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-71513427259068902562008-11-07T06:49:00.000-08:002008-11-07T06:49:00.000-08:00hahaha, I would totally seek agent representation if I thought foot massages came with the package.Zoe Wintershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14589718828140163088noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-41608799087391305052008-11-07T06:07:00.000-08:002008-11-07T06:07:00.000-08:00Superwench83,<BR/><BR/>So, we shouldn't use a pen name such as "Slash Bones" if we're writing Historical Fiction? ;)Justushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11031226145526664876noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-37149378567905807852008-11-07T05:32:00.000-08:002008-11-07T05:32:00.000-08:00Haven't had time to scan the comments, so sorry if someone else already mentioned this. Another reason it's a good idea not to query with a pen name is because an agent might feel that your pen name isn't the best name to use. A friend of mine recently had her agent tell her that her pen name didn't sound right for the genre she was writing in, and suggested that she change it.superwench83http://superwench83.livejournal.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-12116759547479451162008-11-07T05:23:00.000-08:002008-11-07T05:23:00.000-08:00PS: Oh1 and If I may add to Nathan's comment about pen names: sometimes a writer gets to the point where there's the feeling it's not needed any more. In my case, I just got tired of a) explaining it all the time, though it's a lovely inside joke around here; and b) some of my French readers were mistaking me for a man. Not a bad thing, but en francais, gender sort of wreaks havoc with pronouns and adjectives. :PBarbS.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16083395157961431094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-6173487425044080182008-11-07T05:13:00.000-08:002008-11-07T05:13:00.000-08:00Here's a tale: I politely advised an agent that another agent wanted to represent me after the advisee became embroiled in a recent, notorious scandal. It was the only way I could think of distancing myself from that person with any shred of professionalism.BarbS.http://www.blogger.com/profile/16083395157961431094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-62241418079118957902008-11-06T23:08:00.000-08:002008-11-06T23:08:00.000-08:00Nathan, I know a person should only mention one work in a query. At what point should a person ask the agent if they are interested in a different project than your query subject?<BR/><BR/>It seems like it would be much more efficient to have one agent handle all of your work if possible.Julie Weathershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13725236516593676381noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-4420591697866548312008-11-06T22:10:00.000-08:002008-11-06T22:10:00.000-08:00Hi Nathan--<BR/><BR/>I don't know if you've written about this before, so sorry if this a repeat question. What's your opinion on when under-eighteens should reveal their ages to prospective agents? While I was querying, I heard a lot of conflicting advice--on the one hand, you don't want to turn off an agent immediately or come off as if you're expecting special treatment, on the other, you don't want to leave it until the offer's on the table and discover then that an agent isn't willing to work with a teenager (this actually happened to a friend of mine.) <BR/><BR/>I actually dodged this bullet myself, as my soon-to-be agent mentioned me on the phone to one of her clients, a friend of mine, who replied with, "And isn't it awesome she's only sixteen?" I was wondering if you had advice for those who aren't so lucky. Thanks!hannahhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02347576280638165266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-41484115371891206852008-11-06T20:03:00.000-08:002008-11-06T20:03:00.000-08:00Okay, I may regret this, but... you have a book that was not POD or self-published, but published by a very teeny company and sold VERY limited copies. Some people would not even consider it published. You have the rights back. You revise it, time passes, you revise it again, and again, and it's so much better. You want to try a more traditional publishing route. When do you tell the agent(s) you're querying that it was once-upon-a-time published by that oh-so-teeny-company? (I've had people tell me 'never')Robin Minnickhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03386756765715795405noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-57445262773092870332008-11-06T19:44:00.000-08:002008-11-06T19:44:00.000-08:00Will you give me a foot massage? I have no foot fungus, just a slight case of leprosy - which is bacterial, not fungal.Moosehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14647609012981548347noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-796675040051844272008-11-06T18:36:00.000-08:002008-11-06T18:36:00.000-08:00Hi Nathan,<BR/><BR/>What if you're writer who works for another agent and though the agent you work for is very distinguished they don't rep your genre? Is it okay to mention this or is it totally awkward and unprofessional?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-67396277040539576682008-11-06T18:27:00.000-08:002008-11-06T18:27:00.000-08:00Long time reader, first time commenter; I think this might be a good opportunity to ask a question that only very recently came to mind. Perfect timing!<BR/><BR/>Perhaps you lived in, say, Australia, and had queried a couple of editors there, before deciding to query agents in America. How does the 'editors and houses queried' factor come into play there? Do knockbacks in one country affect the potential of a foreign rights deal sold <I>to</I> that country at a later date, or if you queried the Australian branch of a big international house, will it count as the American branch having seen it too? If so or no, when should you inform an international agent that an editor or two from your home country had seen the work?<BR/><BR/>Sorry for the complicated question, it's just something that occurred to me recently that I thought I may need to know someday if things don't go so well with my querying Down Under :)<BR/><BR/>Thanks, and thanks for all the advice in your blog thus far! It's been a fantastic help to me.Amanda Kellyhttp://sinn-ryu.deviantart.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5334836757176538347.post-50058030585974159542008-11-06T18:21:00.000-08:002008-11-06T18:21:00.000-08:00I applaud you, good sir, especially in knowing you knew the amount of questions that would be flying your direction :) You've been great in answering them all.<BR/><BR/>I, too, am interested in the question regarding revisions and resubmitting. Say, hypothetically, an agent suggests revisions but in the end decides not to rep. Say I take those suggestions, revise the ms, can I resubmit to other agents? And if so, what's a good time length to wait before doing so? And how exactly would I word it in the query? Sorry, 3 questions in one. But if you're offering for us to pick your brain, you know we're gonna be zombies about it :DChristaCarolhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02908423468344511136noreply@blogger.com