As always, this Pitch Wars event isn’t simply about grabbing the attention of your dream agent or publisher. It is also about connecting with the writing community.
Taking part, I gained more followers. People retweeted my pitch to show support and help it get noticed and some even commented to let me know they liked my idea which is really encouraging. Further down you will find a collection Tweets that sum out the event for me.
The Manuscript Wishlist
One Tweet that was incredibly useful was by @RebeccaFKenney1 who told me about #MSWL. I never knew that agents tweet about the manuscripts they are wishing for. A quick search for “#MSWL Mermaid” sorted by most recent, brought up the two agents she had sign posted me to.
I have now discovered that on 24 September 2019 is #MSWL Day when agents will tweet their wish list to help authors find their match. I shall be adding that to my Literary Calendar which you can access to discover useful literary dates.
How successful was I?
Tinsel Tiger (picture book) – 4 likes (none were agents or publishers)
Jewel of the Sea (YA fiction) – 5 likes (three by publishers)
I will research these publishers to see if I feel they are a good fit for me before submitting. On initial inspection, one of them really appeals to me due to their ethical values.
This event was hosted by Phoebe Morgan who promised to share her advice on how to get published, attract an agent and attract an editor. It was held at the Sailing Club with stunning views of Felixstowe Ferry.
Introductions
Phoebe Morgan is the best selling author of The Doll House and works at Orion as an Editorial Director. She explained a little about the books she works on (crime, thrillers, women’s fiction and saga). She had created a presentation especially for us.
Before she started, Phoebe went around the room and got each of us to introduce ourselves and what we are writing and hoping to get out of the talk. There was something very endearing about Phoebe. People instantly warmed to her and wanted her to know about their writing. I think it is the way she appreciated and valued every writer in the room.
I shared that I have just finished editing Jewel of the Sea and sent it out to Beta Readers. I explained that I have queried a lot, been rejected a lot and then edited again and have lost count of the cycle. I confessed that I am now considering self publishing and believe my query letter and synopsis is not having the right effect on agents.
First Impressions
Phoebe’s talk began talking about bestsellers and popular genres and why these books are doing well. She emphasised why it is so important for writers to know what is trending when they are querying because this links to how it will be pitched to editors and publishing houses.
Phoebe had put together examples of pitches to illustrate how important it is to quickly get agents up to speed on what your novel is about in just one sentence.
Example: The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins – Woman sees inciting incident through her train window.
Phoebe told us what genres are trending right now. However, it is best to write the novel you want as these are constantly changing. She talked about why genre fiction is popular and why it is important for us to identify the genre where our novel will be placed. This helps the publishers identify where to market, package, design and price it. She pointed out how we need to be passionate enough about our books to promote it for two years!
Phoebe had collected examples of the first line of successful books and discussed how these sentences grip the reader right from the start. She pointed out how agents are often very busy and if they are not pulled in from the start, they will move on to the next. She pointed out how in a shop, a reader may pick up a book and look at that first line to decide whether to buy it or not.
Example: The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins – There is a pile of clothing on the train tracks.
Then, she got us to share the first line of our books and discussed their strengths. She also suggested that some writers should consider starting further into the story where the action starts.
She went on to talk about how to use suspense and pacing in our novels giving us tips on how to use these to make our novels a page turner. For examples, shorter sentences and chapters can speed up action but you can do the opposite for when you need to pull the reader in for more detail – there needs to be a balance between the two.
Ending a chapter on a cliff hanger can leave a reader needing to read the next chapter, to do this successful you need the reader to care about the character and be worried about them or the invested in the outcome. It helps to make the characters life full of obstacles – if it is too easy, it is boring. Obstacles create conflict.
Phoebe briefly covered different ways to structure your novel and why this is important.
Characters are incredibly important in your novel so Phoebe had collected a few tips to help us. In my notes I jotted down:
Not too many – you only need three to five main characters. If you have more then you can lose the reader as they won’t be able to connect with them. If you have too many, see if two characters can be merged together to fulfil one role.
Zoom in technique – Imagine a lens and zoom in and think of little things that makes the character who they are.
Back stories – Make sure you know your characters back stories, even if this doesn’t come into the story it will influence who they are and make them more vivid when you write.
Motivations – Understand what drives your characters. What are their goals and what they want to achieve, etc.
Likeable? – It is not necessary for the reader to like your main character whoever readers do need at least one character they can emphasise with.
Phoebe then got us to think about one of the characters in our novel and write for five minutes about their backstory. I chose Luna who is a secondary character but her back story and actions are the catalyst for the entire series. She is a character I need to know inside and out. I may one day write a short story about her.
Roles
She then told us about the steps to getting published. There were twelve steps! I’ve always been focused on ‘getting an agent’ that I have not thought much more about ‘what next’. It turns out there is a lot that happens after you get an agent, and a lot that happens after you an editor and after all that, when you finally get an offer from a publisher, you can say no.
Phoebe went into more detail about what an agent does and how to pitch one. I felt like I knew a lot of this as it is something I’ve done a lot of. Phoebe was able to recommend some good agents and resources like The Writer’s and Artists’ Yearbook.
She then told us what editors look for. It was very insightful to hear this as the agent will be looking for these things in your query. The agent will be trying to figure out whether they can pitch your novel to editors. Here are the main things editors want:
A strong, clear, one-sentence hook
A good sense of voice – character needs to feel new and unique
Fill a spot on their list – keep an eye out for out for wish lists
Pleasure to work with – they will check out social media to see if you take writing seriously but this is not a deal breaker.
A clear vision – they need to believe in the book and be able to see it doing well.
She ended by warning us that rejection is something almost every published author has experienced. She gave us tips on how to deal with and was very encouraging that a rejection doesn’t mean give up.
Summary
She finished by giving us a list of resources for further information and how to contact her if we have further questions. She also took our emails so she could send us a copy of her presentation.
Phoebe was so lovely, approachable and genuinely wanted to help everyone in the room. Writers who get to work with her are truly blessed.
I did have a damsel in distress moment in the car park where a knight in shinning armour came to my rescue. More about this in my next Felixstowe Book Festival post.
I hope you have found this useful. If you want to connect with Phoebe, you can find her:
I just finished editing Jewel of the Sea. The chapters are in draft on Wattpad and I just need to consolidate and format them into a manuscript. So, I decided I should take part in PitMad.
I joined the PitMad Challenge Facebook group hosted by Kathy Ver Eecke. For the week leading up to PitMad, Kathy set daily challenges to help us with developing our pitches for the event. It really helped.
I got some likes but they were by other writers that were being supportive and I don’t think they realised what it meant. All thought I didn’t get any real requests, I did make a ton of connections. Twitter kept freaking out with all the activity and kept checking I wasn’t a robot due to the unusual activity. In just a few hours of starting I had 200+ new followers.
Here is my Twitter Moment created to highlight my experience of #PitMad June 2019.
Agent Hunter is a resource you can use to find agents that may be interested in your manuscript. If you want to be able to search the directory and save results then you will need to subscribe. Different subscriptions offer different benefits.
Subscriptions
I contacted them to see about a discount as a blogger and they offered me a 6 month trial with basic access in return for my review.
There are four plans:
For comparison, in the past, I have bought The Agents and Writers Yearbook. This book is updated every summer and is a directory of agents and publishers. The book also contains useful articles of interest to writers. Unfortunately, the market and agency needs are constantly changing and the book quickly becomes out of date. The cost of the book is about £16 to £17 when it is 6 months out of date.
My initial impressions
During January, I used the site to create a list of potential agents that might be interested in my manuscript.
Search
You can search by:
Agent: You can search for a specific name or by the genre they represent. You can also narrow the list further by selecting options such as agent’s experience, number of clients, size of the agency, or include keywords. There is also a way to search for an agent that represents a specific author.
Agency: Search by the name of an agency, size of an agency, whether they take email submissions and if they are an AAA member.
Publisher: Search by a publisher’s name, type of publisher, if they accept unrepresented submissions or by a keyword.
Favourites list
If you find an agent, agency or publisher you like, you can add them to your ‘favourites list’ so you can find them easily again.
Saved search
I did an agent search for ‘Children’s fiction’ as I would like to query for my YA novel. The result was about 8 pages of names, like a directory of literary agents involved in representing this genre.
Being able to save the search was really useful as I only have a limited amount of time. Whenever I had time to research my long list to create a shortlist, I focused on one page a session.
I clicked the name to read the agent’s profile. I’d identify what agency they work for. I would open their page and check that they are currently still interested in YA fiction and if my novel would meet their tastes. I’d also check that they are accepting queries and what their requirements are. I then recorded my research on a spreadsheet on my Google Drive.
Saving the search, meant I could return to the site at a later date and continue working through the list (you can’t do that with a search engine). I just made a note of where I got so I wouldn’t forget.
If I liked an agent (and thought they had potential), I added them to my shortlist.
Profiles
The profiles on the site vary. Some are quite detailed as the agent has cooperated in providing information or has a strong online presence making information easily accessible.
The profiles talk about works the agent has been involved with previously so you can get a feel for their tastes, together with information about what they have said they are looking for. For example, if they are interested in Picture Books or hate fantasy, then I know we will not be a match.
Conclusion
So far, I have found the site to be a good resource with a wealth of information. I could have searched online for literary agencies and found the information myself, however, I have tried this and it is a much slower process as the results are not as defined.
Being able to save my progress has been a huge benefit too. The profiles are pretty up-to-date but agents are constantly changing their needs and preferences, so you still need to do your research once you have a name and agency.
The website is incredibly easy to navigate. I can’t imagine anyone struggling to use it.
Their packages are honest with no hidden costs – I love that. I think they are good value for money. The information is constantly being updated.
Yes – I recommend Agent Hunter for anyone looking for a UK Agent, Agency or Publisher.
Video review and tutorial
Please check out my video review and tutorial for using Agent Hunter.
So, you’ve written your masterpiece and created a shortlist of potential agents. Now, it is time to start querying.
What not to do
In this article I am going to encourage you to create a template cover letter with common content themes, however, do not send this template to agents. Sending a blanket email will not impress.
What you must do
Take time to make it personal
First, make sure you have time for each agent. Do not rush your query. Read their requirements and personalize the template to show them that you choose them for a reason. This will make them feel more special than if you ignore their guidelines and send them flowers and chocolates.
Common themes
I’ve been querying one of two agents a week. This enables me to think about what I am sending them. I am focused on that agent as an individual rather than as another query.
However, although requirements differ between agencies there are common themes in the content requests. I have created a ‘cover letter ideas’ document with headings for the different content requests. This helps me find the paragraphs I need for the agency and then amend to personalize it for them, saving me a lot of time.
Here are the themes:
Letter opening
Okay, no agent has requested this as content in the letter but it is a basic requirement for letter writing. I just state the reason I am contacting them ‘please represent me’.
Tagline
In the age of social media, more agents are requesting you to pitch your novel in one sentence! You can use your tagline to promote your book on sites like Twitter or Instagram.
About me
Finding an agent is a bit like dating. They want to know a bit about you to see if you are someone they want to work with. They are interested in what makes you-you.
Writing Bio
This is a paragraph or two about my writing experience. They want to know if you have ever been published, won a literary contest, completed a writing course.
About your novel
To start with they need to know the basic credentials of your book like the word count and genre.
They also want to know things such as why you wrote this novel and what is it about.
Brief pitch (Blurb)
Check what they mean but this as one agent said ‘brief pitch’ and when I read what they wanted it some described a short synopsis (see below). More agents who requested a brief pitch wanted me to sell them my story so I shared my blurb as I type of teaser to encourage them to want to read the manuscript.
One paragraph synopsis
They want you to sell the story to them and the plot in one paragraph – if you thought writing a synopsis was hard then you are going to enjoy this… Actually, I found this easier than condensing the whole plot to one page because I knew they had the full synopsis to read if they wanted so I just had to make it enticing enough for them to want to know more.
Book marketing
They may request who you think the target market is and what books it would be placed alongside in a bookshop. They need to know if the book is part of a series or have the potential to be.
Why you?
Some agents wished to know why I had chosen them. You can’t default this content as will be a unique element of the query for that individual or agency. Instead, I created some prompts:
why did they make my shortlist
what authors or titles have they been involved with that is similar to mine
Letter closing
This is a simple ‘look forward to hearing from you’ together with my valediction and contact details.
Check before you send
Before you send your query to make sure it is as perfect as you can make it before you send it:
Spell check: There are no excuses with modern processors that will check your spelling, grammar and punctuation.
Proofread: Sometimes the spell checker will miss words that are spelt correctly and make sense but are wrong. For example, ‘people go to church to worship their dog’.
Grammarly: There are apps to help check that your writing is as at it’s best. A quick scan online using Grammarly can find mistakes you otherwise could have missed.
Contact method
Many agencies today will request you send them an email or use an online form on their site. Make sure you follow the instructions for the format of documents correctly. For example:
If they request, all attachments must be .doc files, make sure you ‘save as’ and chose the correct file format.
If they ask you to send it within the body of the email then copy and paste the content into an email.
If you must paste into the online form or attach the document to their online form, please follow the instructions.
If you don’t follow the instructions, they may not be able to open your documents, it may get blocked by virus protection or their server. If you cannot view what you have sent, then you’ve wasted your time as well as theirs.
Common attachments
Preparing these common attachments before you start will save you time.
Query manuscript versions
I have a few versions of my manuscript prepared for querying to meet the most common requests. These are:
Full manuscript
First three chapters
First 10,000 words (to a suitable breaking point)
Query synopsis versions
I have a few versions of my synopsis prepared for querying to meet the most common requests. These are:
Full synopsis
One page synopsis
300-word synopsis
Keep a spreadsheet
You can get free online spreadsheet software from Google or Window Live and many smartphones even had free spreadsheet apps.
I keep a spreadsheet with the name of the agency and agent I contacted, the date I contacted them and when I expected to hear back – check their sites for details on response times. When they responded I recorded the date they replied.
I hope you have found these tips useful. I would love to hear how you got on and if you have any tips to help me too.
