Jan
25 2008 |
You know you want to.
Laura is my fabulous agent and she reps some really fabulous authors like Ann Aguirre, Cynthia Eden, Anya Bast, Megan Hart, Jodi Lynn Copeland and Marissa Scott (most of you haven’t read her yet but i have and she’s wonderful). Anyway, I’ve asked her if she’d be willing to answer questions sent in by my blog commenters and she said she’d be happy to (because as I say, she’s made of awesome)
SO – toss some questions my way in the comments here and I’ll choose one or two and send them her way. I’ll continue to pelt her with them over time and put up her answers as I get them back.
January 25th, 2008 at 2:42 pm · Link
Questions, questions, how fun. I’m going to shoot several because I couldn’t settle on one . . .
How would a typical day in the life of Laura Bradford be?
Is she currently looking for something in particular?
What does she see the publishers are buying or looking for now?
Any tips or valuable advice she can give us?
Lauren, you rawk for doing this! π
January 26th, 2008 at 1:41 am · Link
Hmm, I second Red’s question about is she looking for anything in particular in submissions at the moment as regards to genre?
Thanks, Lauren. π
January 26th, 2008 at 7:44 am · Link
Are any agents willing to communicate by email? Why do so many want to use the telephone?
Ash
January 26th, 2008 at 11:06 am · Link
My question is about genre-crossing. My wip is either a fantasy with strong romantic elements, or a romance with strong fantasy elements. I honestly think it could go either way.
When I start shopping this around to agents, is it best to take a stand and represent it as one or the other, or admit in the query that it could go either way?
I don’t want that ambiguity to cause the agent to toss the query in the circular file, but I also don’t want her to start reading and then say to herself, “Hey….what’s going on here?”
Thanks!
January 26th, 2008 at 12:33 pm · Link
Hey Lauren and Laura (big smooches to my fellow D3 girlfriend!)
I’ve been working on something for Laura for a while now. It’s an alternate earth/paranormal and is so big I’ve split it into three books. When do you stop editing and just submit the thing? I want it perfect. But if it’s not something marketable, am I wasting time by continuing to tweek, tweek, tweek it?
Thanks you two ;D
TJ
January 26th, 2008 at 12:41 pm · Link
Second question – On Laura’s site she welcomes electronic query letters but not electronic submission. Am I reading that correctly? No subbing the synopsis & 3 chpts by e-mail?
With a book as large as the one I want to submit, in her agent’s POV, is the first 3 chpts really enough? What does she think when she starts reading a sub with her agent’s hat on?
If she doesn’t really think the book clicks with what she’s selling these days, will she, if possible, make a recommendation to another agent that she thinks might work out better?
Thanks again ;D
TJ
January 26th, 2008 at 1:27 pm · Link
Thanks for doing this Lauren. My question is: Last year I finished a novel, the agent I contacted agreed to rep the book and send it out to agreed publishers. I had made several contacts. The agent sent it out to those and one of his, but refused to send it anywhere else, so I have a half-shopped book. I have finished the relationship and just got on with the next book. Should I bother trying to contact another agent for a half-shopped book?
Best
Cathleen Ross
January 26th, 2008 at 2:08 pm · Link
Lauren and Laura, you guys ROCK for doing this!
What I’m wondering is how you see the current market of erotica and erotic romance. Do they still have a lot of growth potential in them, have they reached the saturated mark yet, or, for those of us still in the beginning stages of our writing careers in these market, has the boat already sailed and the wake is closing over our heads if we’re not Olympic-level swimmers out of the gate?
January 27th, 2008 at 6:32 pm · Link
Ask Laura what she’s wearing, right now.
My interest is purely profssional. π
January 27th, 2008 at 10:06 pm · Link
*Waving* Hi lovely Laura!
No questions, just want you to know that I think you still rock! π
January 28th, 2008 at 9:48 am · Link
I just would like to know if she does it
FOR SPPPPPPPPPAAAARTTTTTTAAAAAAA!!!!!!
January 28th, 2008 at 7:23 pm · Link
Hi Laura and Lauren. Thanks Lauren for setting this up.
My questions:
Do you thinks itΓ’β¬β’s important for an author to be flexible and adapt easily to the changes in our genre or to stick to one sub genre and master it?
Have you ever gotten a synopsis that made you not want to read the submission? Also what catches your eye when you read a synopsis or cover letter?
Thanks to you both.
Emma
January 29th, 2008 at 3:36 pm · Link
No questions from me–but I still have mad love for Laura, and, of course, for the very talented Lauren. π