This led to a little bit of frantic effort, since I had not thought all the way through to someone wanting to READ my manuscript (not due to a lack of confidence in the thing itself… I mean, it is pretty brilliant… but more because I refuse to get too excited and ahead of myself. Unfortunately, getting ahead of yourself can also be categorized as “planning”).
Luckily I found some excellent advice on AQ, which I blogged about recently. Not only do they have a very helpful FAQ that covers things like this, but even better, they have a very helpful online community. I posted my question, and people responded with directions on how to set up my cover page, how to format the document, and even a template for the letter to the agent. It made me so happy – I love that sense of community.
Oh, and you know what else I love? A beautifully formatted cover sheet on a beautiful novel, especially the part that says:
SHARDS OF GLASS
BY
GUINEVERE ROBIN
BY
GUINEVERE ROBIN
Mmmm.
Anyway, I am continuing to Not Get Ahead of Myself. I am not expecting that this whole business is going to be that easy, that the first agent that reads the first finished draft of Shards is ready to represent it…
[cue fantasy]
Scene: Literary Agency in New York City. Book-lined conference room, decorated warmly (this is how the pictures on the agency’s website looked).
GUINEVERE, AGENT, PUBLISHER are sitting around conference table.
PUBLISHER (holding up manuscript): This is absolutely brilliant!
AGENT: I know! That was what I said the first time I read it too!
GUINEVERE: Oh, stop, guys…
AGENT: She's promoting the book on Oprah in two weeks.
PUBLISHER: We need to talk about movie rights!
(Cut to 5th Avenue, New York City)
GUINEVERE: Hmm, this royalty check is burning a hole in my pocket. I think I’ll buy myself something pretty…
(Fantasy fades out)
Cough.
Well, I’ll be over here, going back to writing away in the real world…
3 comments:
Weird how everyone has a different success fantasy, but everybody has one. I'm not even working on a big project right now, and I still catch myself fantasizing about getting interviewed by John Stewart on the Daily Show.
And congrats on your query. :D I hope on your behalf that they immediately flip through it and go "Hey! Not only do I personally find this engaging and fascinating, but we need a book that appeals to X demographic which can come out in time for Y season!"
Jon Stewart, that's even better than Oprah, really (he doesn't have his own book club, but he's a lot more entertaining).
And thanks. :)
Congrats on your query. I'll keep my fingers crossed for you. :)
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