Last week I got the chance to present for the Smith Mountain Lake Writers Group down in southwest Virginia (think near Roanoke). The talk drew in a decent crowd - considering the holiday so close - and attracted writers from several counties.

I'm still out of town and have been having trouble posting on the blog (sorry for the wait). Below you will find some questions that writers asked at the presentation.

Me and some of the Smith Mountain
Lake writers. To my right is group
coordinator Jim Morrison.

Q. What do you do if you're unhappy with how your literary agent is working for you?

A. Complicated question. The standard answer of "Be honest with her" is unfulfilling because you feel like she knows more than you, and she knows how to work. But still, you have to be honest and gently express concern at how things are going.
      That said, have patience.  As long as the agent is working on your project, then she is indeed working.  If it's getting submitted to places with no luck, then examine why this is.  Is this work sub-par?  Does it need tweaking?  What about these submissions she's sending to editors?  Does she have relationships with the editors, or are these just cold submissions?  
      If you have decided to get out of a representation agreement with an agent, you will have to consult your contract, and check out the details (fine print).  Contracts have termination clauses and you could be stuck with that agent for several weeks or months, etc. Usually this is not a problem because a reputable agent will want to cut ties with a client who wants to cut ties with them.  That said, know that any previous books that you worked with the agent on - and sold - will be tied to the agent forever.  For example, if your agent sold Book 1, and now you want to get out because Book 2 is going nowhere, you will always be locked in to that agent for Book 1 because she sold it.  For every dollar you make now until forever, she gets 15 cents.

Q. Why is literary fiction a difficult sell?

A. Screenwriter Blake Snyder said that if you can't boil your story down to one super-intiguing sentence (a logline), then you're already in trouble.  The reason that so much of what's out now in movie theaters is sequels and remakes and garbage is because it's easily marketable.  People know what the story's about.  
      Genre fiction (also called popular fiction), such as mysteries or romance or sci-fi, has a specific framework - a specific blueprint.  People enjoy mysteries because they want to solve a crime.  They expect red herrings.  They expect a clever villain.  These things are integral parts of the mystery blueprint.  Literary fiction has no blueprint!  I've said before that when you don't know what your novel is genre-wise, it could very well be literary fiction.  Because literary fiction has no blueprint, and the stories are often more layered and rich, that tends to make them harder to condense into one super-intriguing line.  And that's why they're a hard sell.  People just don't know what they're about, and they need to know if they're going to plunk down $27 for it.

Reminder: Newer agencies are golden opportunities for new writers because they're likely building their client list; however, always make sure your work is as perfect as it can be before submitting, and only query agencies that are a great fit for your work. Otherwise, you're just wasting time and postage.

Straus Literary Agency

319 Lafayette St., #220  New York, NY 10012. (646)843-9950. Fax: (646)390-3320. E-mail: jonah@strausliterary.com. Contact: Jonah Straus. New agency actively seeking clients. Prior to becoming an agent, Jonah spent 13 years in editorial, sales and marketing for publishing and book distributers in New York and San Francisco. Established: 2003. Currently handles: 50% Fiction, 50% Nonfiction.

Nonfiction areas of interest: biography, history, mind/body/spirit, travel, lifestyle, memoir, cookbooks, multicultural, current events, politics, humor.  Fiction areas of interest: general fiction, historical fiction, literary fiction, multicultural fiction, mystery. How to Contact: E-mail query with synopsis, author bio and two sample chapters as attachment.

Recent sales: Above Top Secret: Uncover the Mysteries of the Digital Age by Jim Marrs (The Disinformation Company); Depression, War and Cold War: Studies in Political Economy by Robert Higgs (Oxford University Press, USA).

Note: This agency is not be confused with Robin Straus Literary, Inc.

Writer's Digest magazine editor Maria Schneider was recently up in New York City accompanying the grand-prize winners of the WD Annual Writing Competition. The big winners get a trip to Manhattan to meet with several agents, who they can schmooze with and pitch.  How cool is that?

Maria came back with some notes (in no particular order).  They are worthwhile to check out, so here are the best ones:

      • The term “book club novel” is hot; consider using in lieu of “literary” fiction; “crossover appeal” is another good catchphrase. 
      • Know what the core conflict/turning point of your story is. 
      • It takes a long time and a lot of effort to find the right agent because you want to find an agent who shares your vision for your writing career. This is one of the most important relationships of your life. 
      • Many newer/younger agents are coming into the field with strong editing background and expect to do a lot of editing. (Chuck's note: This is, naturally, good news, but you cannot expect this.  Assuming an agent will help you edit is a big no-no.  If they do step in, simply be grateful.)
      • Get some publishing credits however you can before you pitch a novel; this sends a signal to everyone that you are a publishable writer.

Ah.  New York.  I took this
photo at BookExpo America in 2007.

This installment features Julie Hill of Julie A. Hill and Assoc., LLC. Julie's specialty is nonfiction.

Literary agent Verna Dreisbach, an agent at Andrea Hurst Literary in Sacramento, is branching off to form her own literary agency: Dreisbach Literary.

The happening is still in motion now (and her new website isn't even up and running yet), but take note if you were considering querying her. I would hold off on any submissions to The Vern until her transition is complete.  In fact, I won't even paste her new contact info just yet because your query would be wasted right now.

Verna, who is a constant traveler to writers' conferences (much like me) is still headed to a lot of places - the Willamette Writers' Conference, for example, in Portland in August.

To learn more about Vern, check out the GLA blog announcement of her arrival as an agent, and then check out Robin Mizell's interview with her.

More info coming soon...

I love this photo. The
man on the left is Uwe Stender
of Triada U.S. Literary Agency.
He's talking to writers and hearing
pitches, but secretly I think
they're all playing Texas Hold 'Em poker.

Each day had a cocktail party where
writers, editors and agents all
informally schmoozed and talked.
Pictured here: Agent Andrea Somberg
of Harvey Klinger (right) listens to writers.