Choosing The Right Agent

My querying adventures ended with one offer of representation that led to another. You might remember from last time that it came about due to #PitMad, where I caught the attention of a very well-known, big name agent--and you might also remember me admitting that wasn't the agent I settled with. (Warning: this post may contain more boasting than usual)

While I had some other nibbles, ultimately I boiled my choice down to two agents. I can't tell you how much I agonized over the decision at first, but you know what? In the end, it was easy.

To recap from last time, agent #1 is the president of a very well respected agency, a NYT bestselling author herself, with a hugely impressive client list and 30 years of experience. I actually would never have queried her, because she doesn't state that she represents science fiction. She's mainly known for women's fiction and romance. But you can bet I was psyched out of my mind that she loved my writing. She called the story "incredibly vivid, with strong emotionality and high stakes." Two thirds of the way through reading, she emailed me to say, "The writing is wonderful—I even read parts aloud to my husband last night!" and called the first meeting of my main characters "masterfully done, the writing so lush." (Can you hear me purring over here?)

"Amber," you must be thinking, "she sounds amazing! Why did you pass on that?" Of course there was a catch.

While she loved my writing, she had concerns about the story and its structure. It's written with alternating timelines, and she thought it could be much stronger if told in a linear fashion, especially if I expanded the one book into three. Her suggestions involved some pretty radical re-writing, and it wasn't really how I envisioned the story.

Now, that sounds almost like a deal-breaker right there, but the tricky part is that we came to some good compromises. She imagined she could see it working if I tweaked a few things about the beginning and ending, and we agreed that if we signed on together we could brainstorm ways around the issues that were concerns for both of us. I could fight for the things I loved, while still working toward something that would appeal to editors. At this point, I hadn't heard back from anyone else, so I was ready to say yes if everyone else rejected me.

However, that's not what happened. A few days later, I got the offer from the other major contender. And I'm telling you, it's the email I'd been waiting for my entire life.

Thanks so much for giving me the chance to look at PULL OF GRAVITY. I was so taken with the depth of the story, the emotion of the characters, the brilliance of the worldbuilding—this novel spoke to me on so many levels! I was reminded in many ways of one of my favorite novels, Ancillary Justice, but the tension and heartbreak of Iari and Alex’s relationship adds a remarkable new dimension that brings it to an entirely new, emotional level.

All in all, I absolutely loved PULL OF GRAVITY and am thrilled to make an offer of representation! I know you already have an offer and need to give a response soon, but I would love to get on a phone call at your convenience so that you can get a sense of how I operate as an agent, my vision for the project, and I can answer any questions you might have.

The only appropriate course of action was to dance around to electroswing. (Then remember I'm terribly out of shape and spend the next 10 minutes trying to catch my breath).

Thus I found myself in a difficult position. Agent #2 was already high on my list for my next batch of queries. The only reason I didn't query her initially is because I'd sent to someone else at the same agency and hadn't yet received a response. Unlike #1, she specifically reps sci-fi and fantasy, and all things geeky. She also works for a big name agency, and here she was absolutely in love with the novel I wrote, the way I wrote it (mostly).

My writer friends had no interest in hearing about "Woe is me, I have to figure out how to choose between these two amazing agents who both want to represent me!" My parents couldn't stop calling me for updates. My husband listened patiently and offered reasonable advice, but was careful to be more of a cheerleader than try to get involved in my constant stressing. I had no idea how I was going to choose.

But you might remember me saying that the decision ended up being an easy one. Based on how I've written this blog post, you've probably already figured it out.

Ultimately what made up my mind was speaking to them both over the phone. It became very clear, very quickly, that while both were great agents, agent #2 was the far more enthusiastic about this novel. #1 was looking for a different story, and I could tell by her tone that we would both be making compromises. She liked my writing and thought I could go far, and maybe she would have been a great agent for my career, but not for this story. Everything #2 had to say was glowing, and her editorial suggestions all made me think, "Oh, that's a great point!" Plus I think our personalities matched a lot better, both being SFF geeks.

Even though both agents had a lot of suggestions, and picked up on a few similar concerns, their outlooks on the story's themes and goals were very different. Both involved a lot of work, but with one I would have been dragging my feet, and with the other, the ideas "clicked." There was interest and love from both agents, but more excitement and passion from #2. And I think that's what you need on your side, to get you through the thick and thin of it all, months and years down the road.

I thought I would have to canvass my friends and family for opinions, but after I got off the phone with both of them, I already knew. I felt bad saying no to the other, but I would have felt that no matter which one I chose. After a few days of mandatory "let it percolate" time, I accepted #2's offer, and couldn't be happier I did.

That's how and why I signed with Caitlin McDonald of the Donald Maass Literary Agency. Now the next step in the journey is edits and submission to editors!