I’m getting lazy. Or bored. Or something.
I sent this query letter (a new one, by the way, spit polished by the fabuloso ladies in my critique group) without doing all the research I should have. I knew this agent is actively building her client list, especially for YA, and that she likes books similar to mine, at least in theory. She wrote that she’s interested in mature YA books that cross genres and reinvent popular stories with an engaging new twist, especially when there’s a historical and/or speculative element involved. Sounds like a perfect fit, right?
Well, apparently not. She sent me a very kind rejection letter.
Which isn’t really surprising. Since I hadn’t actually read any of the novels she represents, how would I know what her take on what constitutes “engaging” or even “popular” is?
I confess part of what kept me from doing the research I should have done is a sense that it doesn’t really matter. I don’t know this woman from Eve. She doesn’t know me from Eve. Reading a partial is a lot of work, takes a lot of time. So unless my query letter knocked her socks off, why would she invest all that time and energy?
And it clearly didn’t knock her socks off. Which makes me wonder if it will knock anyone’s socks off. Or if I will just end up with another slough of rejections…
I know this query process works for people. I just don’t actually know anyone who’s found their agent this way without some sort of personal connection like meeting them at a conference or being referred by someone who knows them. In fact, the two partials I have out now are because of personal connections: I know someone who knows an agent. Now that’s food for thought, isn’t it?
If you’re a writer who found your agent through the query process, without having met them or been referred to them prior to sending your query, well, I really want to hear from you!