What are you looking for?

I'm particularly looking for narrative non-fiction; history; current events.

Other areas of particular interest in non-fiction are: justice and death penalty issues, African politics, contemporary art, contemporary music, and how-to books.

I'm also actively looking for high-concept thrillers.
Just FYI, I do not consider books that deal with assassinating the US President as a major theme.





What have you sold?

Here are the most recent (forthcoming means the book has been sold but not published)
   

    **+Patrick Lee, THE BREACH (Harper: 2010)--New York Times bestseller
    **+Sean Ferrell, NUMB (Harper: 2010)

    +Jeff Somers, THE ETERNAL PRISON (Orbit: May 2009)
  **+Gary Corby, THE PERICLES COMMISSION (Minotaur: 2010)

    Evan Mandery, FIRST CONTACT (Harper: 2010)
    **Alysia Sofios, WHERE HOPE BEGINS  (Pocket:September 2009)

    **+Andrew Grant, EVEN (Thomas Dunne Books: May 2009)
    **+Kennedy Foster, ALL ROADS LEAD ME BACK TO YOU (Pocket:2009)

    Evan Mandery, THE KILLING COURT (Delphinium: forthcoming)
 
   
    **Lucy Hornstein, "DECLARATIONS OF A DINOSAUR: 10 Laws I’ve Learned as a Family Doctor"? (Kaplan: August 2009)
        (formerly10 LAWS OF THE DINOSAUR)      

    **+Adam Eisenberg, A DIFFERENT SHADE OF BLUE (Behler: July 2009)

    +DawnRae Downton, THE LITTLE BOOK OF CURSES & MALEDICTIONS FOR EVERYDAY USE (Skyhorse: 2009)
    **+Amy Minato, SIESTA LANE (Skyhorse: 2009)

    +Bill Cameron, CHASING SMOKE (Bleak House: 2008)
    +Jeff Somers, THE DIGITAL PLAGUE (Orbit: 2008)
    +Dan Tomasulo, CONFESSIONS OF A FORMER CHILD (Graywolf: 2008)
    **+Richard Gilbert, MARCHING UP MADISON AVENUE (Behler: 2008)
  
**debut writers
+writers whose initial contact with me was by a query letter in the incoming mail.


Are you a member of AAR?
Yes.

I'm also a member of  Biographers International Organization, American Historical Association, American Library Associaton,  the NYC chapter of Mystery Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, and the Womens National Book Association.


What does a literary agent do?
I represent authors in the sale of their work to publishers.  
That's a little like saying "a real estate agent sells houses".  It's accurate, but it doesn't give a good picture of what really goes
on here and the value an agent can provide to you.

What value does an agent provide?
I keep up to date on all aspects of publishing, and the people in it so I can place an author's work with the right publisher,
and then coach them through the post-publication process. I handle the business side of things so you can focus on your work.

Post publication process? I thought agents just sold manuscripts.
It's not enough to write a good book these days, you have to be part of the marketing and promotional effort as well. 
I work closely with my authors to make sure they are ready to hit the ground running when the book is published.

How do I get you to look at my work?
First, look at my list of categories.  Does your work fit into one of them reasonably well? If yes, follow the submission guidelines
and send me a query letter. Please, follow the guidelines.  It really helps me evaluate a project if I have all the information.
You're in a VERY competitive field.  Give yourself a fighting chance by following the guidelines!  
   
What are the guidelines?
Click the button at the top that says "Query Information"

What's a query letter?
A query letter is a sales pitch.
It should entice the reader to read on. It should make the reader eager to find out more.
It should also be businesslike.
There are several examples of query letters and suggested revisions at queryshark.blogspot.com

Can't I just email you my idea so you can tell me if I'm on the right track?
No.
    
I emailed you a query and didn't hear back.
Did you write "Dear Janet"?
("Dear Agent" or a cc to every agent you queried get deleted unread.)

Did you check your spam filter?
(I don't respond to spam screener emails.)

And of course, sometimes my server ate your email for lunch.  It was very tasty. Send more. 
If you haven't heard from me in ten days or more, email again.

I respond to EVERY email query that has my name in the salutation.

I wrote you a query letter, and never heard from you!
If you don't hear back from me within three weeks, one of two things happened.
               1. You didn't include a stamped self addressed envelope, or
               2. your query didn't reach me.
Write again.
Make sure you include an SASE.  
I don't respond to queries that don't have an SASE.


Can I email asking if you got it?
No. I don't keep track of query letters. If I have it, I will respond.


I have just a quick question about how to do something correctly in my query?
If you have a SHORT question about procedure or a technical problem (what font to use for example; NOT what
kind of projects I want to see) you can email me. Put QUERY QUESTION in the subject line. I'll answer if I can;
if I can't I'll reply and tell you that the question is beyond the scope of the QQ project.
 

Do you charge reading fees?
No. Be careful of agents who offer to read stuff for money.  
Make sure they actually SELL work, not just "read it".

Do you take new/unpublished writers?
Yes.  And I sell their work too. (all the authors with ** by their name in my list of WHAT HAVE YOU SOLD were debut authors)

Do you consider simultaneous queries?
Yes. 

Can I send to more than one agent at a time?
Yes. Exclusives stink.

Can I send to more than one agent at FinePrint?
Yes, but it's easier if you query us one by one. Those knock down drag out fights in the foyer when six of us want to represent you are really hard on the carpet.

I have a friend with a great idea for a book...  
  ...stop right here.  Generally, I only want to hear from the author directly. If you are going to write the book, you send the query. 
If someone else is going to write the book, s/he needs to be the one to query.  Writing is hard work.
The actual author has to be committed first.  No one can do it for them, no matter how great the idea.

What happens when you get my query letter?
I respond  to queries very quickly. Usually the same day or within a day for email queries, a week to ten days for snail mail queries.

If I want to see a partial or a full, it often takes 30 days to read and consider your work carefully.



You said no, and it’s a form letter that says “not right for me”. What does that mean.
It means no.  There are a lot of reasons to say no. Don’t waste time or energy trying to parse out the hidden meanings.

I know you made a mistake saying no to this.  If I write again, telling you that, will you read it again?
No. There are more than 600 agents in New York City; double that figure in the US.  Query others before you re-query those
who said no. Everyone is looking for different things. None of us is perfect, and none of us have a lock on what’s going to sell.


Why did you say no? I need help here!
These emails get deleted with no response. I don't offer critiques or feedback on queries.  Don't assume there is something wrong with your work either. I say no to many good projects that aren't right for me, or I simply don't have time to take on.  I do keep a blog that about query letters and revisions at www.queryshark.blogspot.com 

If you get 25 rejection letters, and none of them offer any encouragement, it's time to go to a writing conference and get some feedback on what you’re sending out.  Agents are looking HARD for work to sell, if you aren't getting bites, there's a problem.

What’s a writing conference?
Writing conferences are events that bring writers, particularly new writers together with agents and editors. There are workshops and panel discussions and appointments for one on one time with agents and editors.
 
I can specifically recommend CrimeBake, PennWriters, Rocky Mountain Writer's Conference and Muse in the Marketplace as very well organized and well-executed conferences.  There are books with conferences listed geographically and of course lots of information on the web.  It costs money to go.  This is one place parting with your hard earned cash can be a good investment.

I see websites saying they will help me find the perfect agent for my work, for a fee.  Is it worthwhile?
You can get the same information from Writers Market or by reading Publishers Weekly.  (Your local library subscribes to
PW probably but they don’t put it on display; they keep it in the office...ask for it).

There are a lot of people out there who want to separate a new author from his or her short supply of cash. 
They prey on your desire to see your work published.  Don't fall for it.  Anyone who tells you they have the inside scoop has an ulterior motive. The ulterior motive usually involves money leaving your account and going into theirs.  Beware.  You can find out if we are interested in your work with a letter and two first class stamps.  Most other agencies work the exact same way.

Do I have to have an agent?
No, you don't.  However, many major publishers will not look at unsolicited manuscripts, so not having an agent generally means you won't have access to those publishers.  Many small presses will take unsolicited work, and they do a good job.  However, when it comes to a publishing contract, you should at the very least seek advice. I've seen publishers offer a percentage of "the net" --the money
left after EVERYTHING else is paid for. And I've seen publishers buy world rights who have no idea how to handle them. 
Agents aren't the answers to all your problems, but a good agent knows a lot about things you've never heard of. 
Places for authors to get good advice include the Author's Guild and the National Writers Union.

I published my book with a POD press and it did well. Now I want to sell it to a major publisher.
I do not handle second editions.  You do hear stories about POD books or self published books getting picked up by major publishers.  You hear about it cause its NEWS.  It's not common at all. Generally it's non-fiction that’s sold more than two thousand copies and has potential for more.  

What’s POD? Is it the same as self-published?
POD is a technology.  It's a way to print books in small quantities.  Usually if you want to have fewer than 700 copies of a book,
POD technology is a smart choice.  Generally you don't get quantity discount for POD... you pay the same rate per book
whether you buy one or a hundred. (Think of how more copies at Kinkos cost less per page:  10cents for one page ... a nickel
if you make 300).

Some smaller publishers use POD technology.  There’s nothing inherently bad, evil or wrong with it.  POD got a bad rap when it first started out because many publishers using POD exclusively didn't offer the usual terms of sale. Bookstores wouldn't stock POD books and it was hard to convince them to order.

If you place a book with a small publisher, ask how they print.

If they use POD, ask if they take returns, offer discounts and have distribution.  
POD can be useful if you invest in learning about it.

Self published means you published the book yourself whether you use POD or standard (webfeed press) technology. 
It's easy to self publish. It's extraordinarily difficult to do it well.

Vanity presses are not the same as self-published or POD. Vanity presses charge you money and give you a certain number of books. Vanity presses are not respected ways to publish a trade book.  

Book packagers are something entirely different.  They are sort of like dealmakers in Hollywood, bringing together a creative team,
getting a project together, and placing it with a publisher and promoting it upon publication.  There's lots of information about book packagers on the web. Agents are not packagers, generally.

 
 
I have more questions
For general questions about the publishing industry pick up a copy of Writers Market.

I also answer questions sometimes on my blog: jetreidliterary.blogspot.com

For questions about whether your work is right for me, send a query letter.