How do you stay sane while querying agents?

[CakeRage]

I finished my first book earlier this year (after saying for years I was going to write it), and started submitting to agents 3 weeks ago.

I’ve had a couple of replies, both really encouraging, but ultimately both rejections, and I feel like I’m losing my marbles. How do you keep it together while waiting? Not sure I can take the emotional rollercoaster

The first agent replied within hours to ask for the full manuscript, emailed again the following day to say she was halfway through and absolutely blown away by it, then a few days later to say she did love it, but thought it needed a few changes making. I revised the whole thing (10,000 extra words of work), then she replied just to say it wasn’t working, and she wouldn’t be taking it further.

To be honest I’ve been pretty gutted by it. How do you stop the little judgy voice in your head which tells you you were an idiot for getting your hopes up?

The second agent replied to say she was really impressed by my writing, but didn’t feel I was a good fit for her list at the moment, and recommended another agent (different agency) who she thought would like it. I handled that one much better, even though I guess it was more of an abrupt no.

Please tell me how you cope with this stage - or come commiserate with me at its horribleness!

(Sorry for my crazed rambling - feeling all my feelings this week!)

Yes I agree about the hearts singing thing; over emotive language and yet hardly reflected consistently in a lot of what does get out there. I read some books and wonder if I'm missing something as I find them dull, lifeless, badly written. It's mystifying!

Interesting catching on on this thread again. Congratulations to those of you who have an agent or even in submission. How exciting!

I'm getting geared up to send submissions in the new year sometime, after I've done a lengthy edit of my book which was mainly written during NaNoWriMo and is now nearly complete. I'm happy with it but still have no idea really as to its commercial viability. Its women's fiction but not chick lit so possibly not so widely saleable - think Rachel Joyce, Libby Page. I've done submission rounds before with a YA book I wrote and got some fulls and good responses but no take up in the end and I didn't pursue it, it all got too much with other stuff. However I do have some (very niche) non fiction traditionally published so have some insight into the industry. This just feels very new and scary and I'm not sure that I want to go through the whole rejection city thing again. Maybe I should just self publish... But then I might always be thinking, I never gave it a go...

How is everyone else getting on?

Interesting as well about agents getting more submissions in lockdown. I guess that makes it even harder to get seen.

Just popping on to say I got the 'heart sing' rejection email and it was so sickening and patronising it made me want to vomit.

I have learnt so much about querying. I blasted a whole load of mainly US agents last year - 13 still out and 18 form rejections so far.

After this I let two people read my novel and revised the opening based on their feedback, got some advice on my pitch from a published author (friend of a friend) and started targeting UK agents and personalising my cover letter more. I've basically written off last year's submissions now as I realise how much I had to learn (partly from reading this whole thread - thank you!).

At the beginning of Jan I started sending out my new package. I now have 11 out and have received 3 returns (1 form rejection, 2 encouraging personalised rejections). I've also launched myself into writing a completely different novel to distract me. So fingers crossed, hang in there everyone.

I think I've posted in here before. I subbed two books last year - or one at the end of 2019 and one in early 2020. Different genres (one was an older project I'd only just finished, so they were written at different times but polished up together). Fantasy book got complete silence. I've worked in book publishing and write for my day job so I don't think it was completely awful, but with hindsight rather dated (it was the older project).

Contemporary romance got three full requests I think. One wanted me to completely rewrite it to then offered to look at it again (I didn't). Other two never ever replied, even after chasing.

It was very dispiriting but I know that's the name of the game.

I'm really stuck now! I've got three completely different projects on the go! I genuinely read very widely and I know once you sell a book you need to stick to one genre, but I don't even have a preference!

I am simultaneously writing (thus not making progress), a cosy crime, a YA-ish SF book, a suspense thriller. Ideas how to pick just one are welcome! I thought if I wrote the intro to all three one would take over, but that hasn't really happened. Argh!

@InescapableDeath Picking between three projects - It really depends why you're writing. If your main aim is publication, pick the one which you think would be easiest to market. Try writing a pitch and blurb for each, as if you were subbing them, and see which has the best hook and is most compelling.

In my experience you have a smaller pool of agents for sci-fi and fantasy and Y/A seems a crowded market so that might be the one I'd be most inclined to drop unless it really stands out from the others.

Have you looked at what different agents are seeking at the moment? If one of yours happens to be a brilliant fit for a particular agent that might give you some direction.

My sympathies on the silence - something I am all too used to.

That's good advice Weetabix, I'm just having trouble applying it. For me the goal has always been publication. I think I sometimes struggle having a strong voice.

The cosy I think could have more merit in a post-Richard Osman bestseller world - but how many others are writing something similar?

The suspense has a strong intro/voice but I think I might struggle to sustain it all the way through. I read suspense, but do I actually like it as much as mysteries or SFF? I'm not sure.

The SFF has a strong voice but would be competing in a very crowded market as you say and worldbuilding etc needs to be absolutely spot on. I feel a bit tired when I think about it, but I love the idea and the main character.

For those reasons I'm 20k into the crime and about 3-5k into the other two. But I still wonder...

It's sounding like the cosy crime might be the one to focus on. At the moment I don't think there's any genre where you won't find lots of competition, but I would imagine there's going to be scope to ride the Richard Osman wave for a while.

Writing in the genre you most enjoy reading is generally a good bet and if you're having doubts about sustaining the voice of your suspense novel, that might be a sign you need to shelve it and come back to it in the future. One thing I've seen many suspense writers say is that it often takes several attempts to find the best perspective(s) for their stories.

From what you say about the SFF it sounds as though you've gone a bit stale, so again, shelving it for a while might be a good plan.

If you're 20k into the cosy crime, that must be about 1/4 of your first draft, which is a good point to move forward from.

Thanks, that's helpful. Just realised my last post sounded like I was boasting about having a strong voice, when actually that's where I have trouble.

I think I do need to focus on forging ahead. It's hard to be disciplined at the mo what with home working and home schooling, but I know I'm hardly alone in that.

I'm so glad this thread is still going, it's been so useful. I wondering for those of you that have agents, how did you make the decision which one to go with? I have offers from three agents, and I just can't decide...

@CakeRage , how are you getting on with your agent? What made you decide to go with her?

Getting on well, thank you!

I only had the one offer, but I had serious interest from a couple of others so google stalked all three of them and definitely feel like my agent was the best option of the three (even though she was my only option in the end!). This was based off things like how she spoke about my work, like she didn’t just gush about it, she GOT it, and when she suggested changes they were changes that made sense to me. I also liked her manner of giving feedback. It was clear and detailed, whereas one of the other agents gave me vague instructions on how to fix things that I think would have made for a really frustrating working relationship, for me, anyway. Plus I liked that she was experienced, and I’m very much not, so I felt better with someone who knew their onions.

It can be quite a personal decision, so I don’t think any one answer is right, but my advice is to think of it as a working relationship. Which do you think you’ll work best with? Who can you trust to be your advocate? Who best understands your work?

Good luck with your decision, anyway. Sounds like an exciting time!

Ha! I just got a form rejection from an agency I queried in March 2020 - that’s a personal best

Although another agent has had the full since November 2019 - I’m expecting her call any day now...

@CakeRage, so pleased to hear that it's going well. I asked lots of probing questions and went with my gut in the end...

I know this thread is super old now but I just wanted to put this up here for anyone who was following my journey: I signed a two-book contract today. And neither of those two books are either the book I submitted to agents OR the book my agent submitted to publishers.

So my takeaway from this was that when people tell you to keep writing, do. And when you feel like giving up because your first (or second!) manuscript gets you nowhere, don’t.

Hope you are all in a good place with your writing, and thank you for all of your support on this thread

Oh brilliant cakerage congratulations! What genre do you write? Now I will be stalking new author announcements to try and work out if it's you!

Thank you! I’m having a little bask in it today even though literally no one knows

And I write women’s fic/romance for stalking purposes.

Oooh I will definitely keep an eye out! Although I discovered when I was in that position that the publisher like to make an announcement and they take ages it's so frustrating! Are you a member of the Romantic Novelist Association? If not I can thoroughly recommend it they are an incredibly supportive bunch of authors.

Congratulations!

Congratulations CakeRage! So happy to hear that! Good luck with it all 😍

Congratulations @CakeRage - I've been posting on these agent threads for a while (have name changed but I posted near the start as @Howtotrainyourhamster). It's great to see your effort finally paid off, and inspiring - hope you get an opportunity to celebrate.

Thank you everyone!

And Louisa, I would love the join the RNA - I was never eligible before and kept missing the new writers’ deadline. I have a couple of writer friends who are members and always singing its praises

Oh yay great news about the RNA! I came through the NWS and I'm always singing its praises.

OMG, @CakeRage - that's truly fantastic news, I'm thrilled for you. Slightly thick question: if neither of the books you submitted are going to be published, what is the book contract for exactly? Did they say that they liked your writing style but they want a completely different storyline? Are the MSs that you wrote likely to see the light of day?

Very, very well done

Thank you @everythingcrossed - still feels a bit unreal but I’m very excited

And it’s not a thick question at all. The first book that will be published is my third manuscript which I wrote while the second was on sub. My agent sent sample chapters and a synopsis to the editor when she showed an interest in the submitted book, and she thought it had more commercial appeal than the one we’d subbed, though she did like both. And the second book of the deal is TBC. It could end up being one I’ve already written, but could also be an entirely new one. They just knew they wanted two and I am happy to provide two!

Fantastic news, @CakeRage! What a satisfying update to a thread. 😊

Thanks @Drybird2020

I hope the thread in its entirety helps people see that it’s ok if you’re not one of those people who immediately gets snapped up by the first agent and/or publisher who reads your work. Some of us have slower and infinitely more clumsy routes to publishing and that’s ok too!