Agent Monday: On New Clients!

Hi gang!  Happy New Agent Monday to you all (though a bit belated today…sorry). Even though I’ve been slightly crazed dashing around traveling the past few days, I just had to make a quick stop here and share some thoughts on what it’s like getting a new client.

First thought: Exciting!

Many queries I get just aren’t up to snuff, or are perfectly fine, yet not for me.  Then I’ll get a query that makes me sit up and think, hello!  So I’ll eagerly read the attached first 20 pages I request in my guidelines. And all too often those 20 pages just don’t do it for me.

But once in a while, those pages really sing. That’s what happened a week ago when I got the opening pages to a debut novel titled LOOK WELL.  Holy smokes. The writing was riveting. I requested the novel immediately. That was on a Friday. Got the full 2 hours later, loaded it onto my Kindle, and dove in, reading it throughout Saturday, finishing it in the wee hours of the morning. YES!

So, exciting! Exciting that the book fulfilled the promise it’d set up. Exciting that it made me eager to jump up and grab the phone and call the author immediately. (But I had to wait a few hours first…we are in different time zones.)

Second thought: Hopeful!

Okay, so far things are going along smoothly, but now I have to hope that when I talk with the client, we’re on the same page (ha-ha) about what our working relationship will be, about possible edits, about promotion. And I’m hopeful that I can convey just how special I feel the writing is, and what I in particular as an agent can do for her work…stuff like helping with any in depth editing cuz I’m a writer too, offering my experience in book promo, my unending enthusiasm, plus the backing of The Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency, a fabulous group that includes its own film and foreign rights agents.  Also, I’m hopeful that the author and I communicate well with each other, since we need to be able to work positively together for the long haul.

So I call and we talk and everything is AWESOME, but, like many great manuscripts, this full manuscript is being looked at by several other agents, so that leads us to…

Third thought: Anxious!

Here’s the part you never hear about. The part where the tables are turned, and the agent hopes that you, the writer, will choose me, the agent as your representative. I’ve basically made my pitch, and I’m ready to go, but I also want the writer to make the choice that she feels is best for her. That’s what a good working relationship is about. (Of course I know I’m the right choice.) So I suggest she get back to me in a week and give those agents already reading the manuscript notice that she has an offer of representation and give them till the end of the week to let her know.

This part of the gig can go different ways. Sometimes the author tells me right away I’m going to be her agent, and simply lets the other agents know. Sometimes the author gives the other agents a time frame to also make an offer (which I absolutely understand). And then I wait to see if I will rep this author that I’ve fallen in love with or not. Kinda like college admissions where students spend years trying to build up an application worthy of an offer, then, once they get multiple offers from colleges, the colleges have to hope the student now will choose them. It doesn’t always work out, and that can be disappointing, but I always tell authors that whatever they decide, I know they will do great and I thank them for the opportunity to read their work. They should be very proud of the level of writing they’ve achieved. Which brings me to my final thought…and an announcement.

Final thought: Yes!

I’ve just signed my newest client Yvette Ward-Horner, author of the breath-taking debut novel LOOK WELL, which is about a woman obsessed with blazing a new trail up one of Alaska’s most treacherous peaks, and the two men who risk their lives and hearts for her. Yvette has had a number of short stories in journals and anthologies, and her story The Nomads won first place in the Literary/Mainstream category of Writer’s Digest Magazine‘s Annual Writing Competition. She’s an experienced climber who also is on a search and rescue team. No wonder her writing is so believable!

I’m thrilled to have her join my list of incredibly talented clients. You can check out my list of fabulous authors here.

Liar Liar Audiobook…and an embarassing trailer to go with!

“They’re real, and they’re spectacular,” lies author Kelly Simmons.  Click on the video link below and you’ll see members of the Liars Club, including myself, tell a range of shocking whoppers.  And you’ll find out why I won the award for “best facial expressions.” Yikes!

The video is our bizarre version of a book trailer for our new audio version of our short story anthology LIAR LIAR (Blackstone Audio), which has just been released TODAY. Yeah, fitting to have a LIAR LIAR book release on April Fool’s Day, no?

In the anthology is my story “What I Did…,” along with stories by Simmons, Merry Jones, Jon McGoran, Jonathan Maberry, Don Lafferty, Gregory Frost, Keith Strunk, Solomon Jones, Keith DeCandido, Dennis Tafoya, Stephen Susco, Chuck Wendig, Ed Pettit and William Lashner. If you love audio and you lie, then you need this…honest!

Check out more details about the audio book by clicking here. So happy to say that a portion of all proceeds from sales of LIAR LIAR are donated by my group the Liars Club to literacy causes.

Hope you enjoy the trailer below…

Agent Monday: Wrecking Your Chances?

Happy Agent Monday to hard-working writers everywhere! Something has been bugging the heck out of me, so this is going to be a kick-in-the-pants kinda post. As a writer myself, I know just how long it can take to write a full length novel.  Months to years of endless dedication are involved. You’ve invested your time and a bit of your soul into this work, right? THEN WHY THE HECK CAN’T YOU INVEST A LITTLE TIME IN FIGURING OUT HOW TO QUERY AND PITCH THE DAMN THING!!!!  Yes. I’m yelling. At you. Why? Because, my dearest writers, too many of you are wrecking your chances at success.

I see it every bloody day. I just spent the last 2 hours rejecting a slew of queries that committed too many crimes to count. I’ve been to too many conferences where authors squandered their pitch time with me, time that they should have spent hooking me with their novel idea and then reeling me in.

Sometimes I want to grab you all by the proverbial lapels and shake some sense into you. Do some research. Work on your query and pitch with care. Educate yourself about what works and what doesn’t. PLEASE. Don’t do it for me (well, okay, do it for me), do it for your creative work, which really needs your help to get it out into the world.

This is why I’m offering a special 2-session Query and Pitch Clinic over at the Word Studio in Chestnut Hill, PA on April 7 and 14. **Registration is limited to just 8 participants, and closes this Sunday, March 24 , so if you are interested you should click here to reserve your spot now.** Look, if you are going to conferences to pitch, you need to be ready. Pitch sessions are short and you want to do this right. If you are going to start submitting queries to agents, you need to know the ropes so you don’t find yourself blowing your chances with a slew of agents and getting an inbox filled with rejections, or worse, with no replies at all. At the Query and Pitch Clinic I’ll show writers how to avoid serious pitfalls and how they can best showcase their work to agents.

Here’s something to think about: Are you receiving no reply AT ALL to your queries?  Maybe you are assuming that a no reply means no.  Some agencies do this, but many do not. It could be that your query is so poorly presented and in some way actually insults agents to the point where they simply hit delete. Zowie, right?  I hate to simply delete a query, but I do if it’s justified. This happens when I feel ridiculous even taking the time to respond…like when the writer hasn’t even bothered to put my name in the body of the email.  Sending me a generic form query is actually rude…the equivalent of junk mail, actually, and will land you smack in the trash.

And what’s a mistake that I often see in pitching? Leaving the agent with far more questions than answers.  If I have to spend time during a pitch asking the writer what was the genre, whose story is it, what time period it was set in, and I’m obviously more confused than impressed with various plot points, then that writer didn’t do their work justice.

You’ve finished your novel – that’s a great accomplishment. Now finish the work of selling it and figure out how to query and pitch it right!  Do your research and learn these important skills any which way you can. You definitely owe it to yourself.

*Marie is an Associate Agent at the Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency in New York City.  To keep up with all her posts, subscribe to her site by clicking on the “Subscribe to Marie’s site here” link located on her page on the upper left margin.

Slice of Life Friday: We Made it to March!

Am I the ONLY one in the world giddy to flip that calendar and see February is over?  I think not. I bow to the wise one who made February the shortest month of the year. Dark, cold, and what does it have? Valentine’s Day? Psh. Not a happy day for those lonely hearts in the world (though the chocolate’s not bad). President’s Day? Blah. Just an excuse for ad execs to put Lincoln and Washington costumes on actors and make them hawk car sales and furniture deals.

NO! Go the F away February!

It’s March!!!  And, yeah, I know it can snow in March, bladdy bladdy blah. But when I woke up this morning, it was lighter out and I could hear birdies tweeting. It won’t be long before I can shed that dreaded winter coat like a snake skin and ditch the boots for my black and white checkered sneakers (not kidding).

So here is Marie’s list of what is FAB about the up-coming spring:

1. Birdies tweeting in the morning
2. Longer, sunnier, WARMER days
3. Being able to take my coffee outside in the morning onto my patio
4. Working outside on my laptop
5. Taking walks with my pooch in the evening
6. Shedding the heavy winter clothes I’m really sick of
7. Wearing light cheerful stuff instead!!! (And those checkered sneaks)
8. Working in the yard…
9. Seeing those flowers pop up from the ground and the buds on the trees, and, sigh…

So what’s on your list?  Please share what you are looking forward to by leaving me a comment…and join in the springy celebration!

Happy WARM March wishes to you all,

Marie

Agent Monday: How to do a Writer’s Conference Right

Happy Monday, all!  February has almost bit the dust (kudos to the wise one who made it our shortest month). The birds are reemerging, everyone is itching to go to the store and buy pastel colored clothing for some reason, and this can only mean ONE thing: It’s Writer’s Conference Season!!!

Yup, something about springtime rolling around makes writers want to clutch paper cups of tepid coffee and sticky danishes wrapped in napkins and scurry for seating at an assortment of workshops and panels.  The appeal is clear: you get to see that, damn, you really aren’t the only nut who has been squirreled away for months on end lost in your head making up evil plots for a novel. And you also get to see that, hot damn!, there are, in fact, editors and agents out there who want to see what you’ve created.

It’s inspiring and seeing all the excitement can really get your creative sap flowing. If you do it right, you will emerge from your conference more focused, full of inspiration, and with a notebook full of tips and ideas. That’s all great!

But if you do it wrong, you’ll emerge feeling disappointed or down on yourself. Blah. Not cool.

I’ve been to a ton of writer’s conferences over the years as both a new writer, an established author, a presenter, and as an agent taking pitches. I well remember being unsure and nervous at my first few conferences, plus I’ve seen my share of stuff.  So in today’s Agent Monday post, I thought I’d give you two things to keep in mind as you visit your first (or fortieth) writer’s conference.

KEEP THOSE EXPECTATIONS REALISTIC!

THE BAD: You come sure your dream agent is at that conference. Your purpose is clear. You are going to bee-line it for that agent, you are going to wow that agent, and by the end of the conference, that agent will be in the bag. THAT is why you are going to this conference.

Yikes! First of all, the term “dream agent” is a little messed up, don’t you think? I hear that bandied about a ton by writers, but really? An agent is a business partner, not the love of your life  And a dream agent?  Hm. The only legitimate use of that term is when you have been working with your agent for a length of time and they actually meet and exceed your expectations.

But anyway, you see where I’m going with this. If you are setting an impossible goal for yourself, chances are you will be disappointed. I have seen authors come into conferences, hell-bent on success. They can be a little scary. Especially when things don’t go exactly as planned (and, really, what does?).

THE GOOD: Expect to hear agents and editors speak, and to take a ton of notes and to get closer to your goal of publication.

That’s a realistic goal, right? The more you learn, the more professional you’ll be (making both you and your manuscript more attractive to folks who are looking to work with you).  You’ll gain insight into what really interests a particular agent or editor – things that will truly help you target submissions and flavor your queries.

So try to sign up for a pitch session with an agent you are interested in, but understand that it might not work out. Still, know that what you may learn about that agent can help you to sharpen your query to that person after the conference. Did she say something in her talk that resonated with you? Then mention that in the query. I respect when writers do their homework and aren’t just sending me any old manuscript just because they found my email address.

DON’T BE ALL ME ME ME!

THE BAD: You go to the conference and tell people stuff about you, your book, your writing…  At panel talks, you raise your hand over and over and over again, not really to ask questions, but to mainly stand up and have the floor and interject you, your book, your writing.  At the end of the conference, you come home feeling a bit smug. Now everyone there knows all about you and your book!

But guess what? If you come out of a conference with no notes, with no new acquaintances, with no new knowledge, then you’ve done it all wrong.

THE GOOD: You attend the conference eager to learn. You take time to meet fellow writers and ask them what they write and about where they are in the journey, and you learn a ton from them! You share helpful stuff with them.  At panels and workshops you listen, take notes, and, yes, raise your hand if you have a legitimate question.  You go home knowing more, with new connections.

And guess what? Plenty of people asked you about your writing without you needing to pull out a bullhorn.

If you keep these two things in mind, hopefully your conference experiences will be ALL GOOD!

My upcoming conference appearances can be found here.  And if you need help working on your query letter and your verbal pitch, I’m offering a QUERY AND PITCH CLINIC through The Word Studio in Chestnut Hill, PA in April. Registration is very limited (to 8 people) for this 2-day workshop, so you know you’ll get plenty of one on one advice from me.  Info about this workshop can be found by clicking here.

*Marie is an Associate Agent at the Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency in New York City.  To keep up with all her posts, subscribe to her site by clicking on the “Subscribe to Marie’s site here” link located on her page on the upper left margin.

Agent Monday: Best Part of Being an Agent?

Recently I did an online interview where I had to answer the question: What is the best part of being an agent?  That was an easy one to answer: Making a talented writer’s dream come true.

Writers are huge dreamers.  They dream up stories, forming tales from wisps of ideas, fragments of memories, touches of creativity. And their dreams for their future should be huge, too. Finishing that novel. Getting the right agent. Creating something an editor will feel passionate about. Seeing that novel published and set into someone’s hands. Touching a reader with their words. Perhaps even changing a reader’s life.

I’m so grateful to play a part in making those dreams happen.

At the start of this month, I was thrilled to meet my client Carmella Van Vleet in person.  But really, I felt like I had met her the very first time I read her wonderful middle grade manuscript ELIZA BING IS (NOT) A BIG FAT QUITTER. The novel is about a girl with ADHD who must prove to others (and herself) that she can stick with something to the end. I found the author’s voice strong and funny and warm. I fell in love with this manuscript immediately, and connected with the writing. When Carmella and I spoke on the phone when I made “the call” to her, we connected right away, too.

So no surprise that she and I had a great time when we finally met up in New York. And for such a happy occasion. Her debut novel has been accepted for publication by Holiday House, and we got to meet the publishing staff.  Carmella and I chatted with warm and welcoming Mary Cash, the editor-in-chief, and thoroughly enjoyed seeing everyone who works so hard to make Holiday House a high quality press.  And everywhere, there were books. Shelves and shelves and shelves of glorious titles.

Shelves and shelves of dreams come true…  Dream big, everyone. Make your own dreams happen.  And congratulations, Carmella!

Slice of Life Friday: Lentil Storm Soup

Storms coming, Harry! According to alarmist forecasters, it’s a FRANKENSTORM. Obviously there is only one logical thing to do.  No, it’s not run out to buy bread and milk.  It’s to make soup. Obvs.

Soup has always been a “thing” for me. When I was little, it was hands down my favorite food (trailed not too distantly by V-8).  In fact, I used to think the word “starving” came from Chicken and Stars soup, because when I was hungry, that’s what I wanted, and when someone said they were starving, those noodly stars danced before my eyes.

ANYWAYS, I’d thought I’d offer up the recipe for my own lentil soup…just in case you felt like adding the ingredients to your cart along with all that bread and milk… This is an Italian version of the soup devised long before I met my Indian husband and before I knew that ginger was something that could be found in foods other than ginger ale or ginger snap cookies…so don’t expect any East Asian flavors.

Marie’s Lentil “Storm” Soup

Ingredients:

One large can of low fat chicken broth (you can use veg. broth if you want to be vegetarian about it)
One cup of lentils
A few basil leaves
A chopped tomato (can used canned)
Two onions, chopped
A few cloves of garlic, chopped
3-4 carrots peeled and sliced into half-inch slices
3-4 celery stalks sliced into half-inch bits
A generous splash of wine (like a half-cup or so)
Salt and pepper to taste (add this after it’s all cooked so you get the full flavors before adding)

Take all of these things, put them into a soup pot, bring it to a slow boil then lower heat, cover and simmer it until the lentils are soft and blending into the broth.  Could take a while, depending on the lentils. Stir occasionally. Be patient.

Serve topped with some grated cheese and accompanied with hot bread, salad and a glass of wine, and you’re good to go!

Salute!

Writer Wednesday: My Learning Novel

A number of years ago an idea took hold of me. It was actually from this really cool dream I had as a teen of a secret staircase hidden in an old house. A path to another time. So when I decided I really wanted to get serious about novel writing, that was the notion that took hold of me. First I called the novel Magic in the Fireplace.  Then I called it In and Out of Time. I worked on this novel, polishing and revising and submitting it to publishers countless times. It was never published.

Since that seemingly endless time of hard work and revision and heartache and hope, I’ve gone on to write 3 more novels with happier results. And now I can look back at In and Out of Time and see that it was my “learning novel.” My non-MFA thesis. Through writing this book I struggled and discovered better openings to books, more effective pacing and focus. I fought with and sometimes won my own battles to discover better dialogue and more vivid imagery. I found and learned to value critique groups and writers conferences. I met editors and agents and other writers. I grew a thicker skin as the file of rejections grew.

I learned. I spent 10 years on it.

But still the novel never got published.

Sometimes that path felt tortuous. I’m a determined person. When I vow that something is going to succeed, I’m not one to give up. But finally I didn’t really give up, I decided to move on.  Good decision. The next novel I wrote took only 4 months to complete. Within a year I had both an agent and a publisher.

I really had learned.

Looking back, I wished my own “personal MFA” had been quicker. More efficient. But I’ve also met some wonderful and successful novelists who had 5 or 6 learning novels sitting in a drawer at home before they wrote the one that sold.

When you think of that, you realize the deep level of commitment and determination that writers bring to the page when they create.

These days, when I talk to others about what it takes to be a successful writer, I always say something like this: If this is what you love, you can’t give up. Nothing’s for sure, but one thing’s certain – if you give up, then it will never happen for you…

Then I whip out my massive stack of rejections, along with my published works.  The message is pretty clear.

But what about that novel of mine, In and Out of Time? Its got some cool stuff in it, but maybe too much cool stuff. It was a middle reader novel, but some part of the plot was too grown up…so I actually stole the heart of that and used it in my YA novel DRAWN. And with In and Out of Time there are three different time periods that characters travel to. Hm, couldn’t each one form a separate adventure and novel?

But how to do that?  Well, I’m not sure yet.

I’m still learning.

Agent Monday: Conference Encounters from the Agent’s Side

Last week I shared some things I learned as an author about meeting agents and editors at writer’s conferences. So, BAM! Let’s switch pitch table sides. Now, as Associate Agent at Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency, I really am on the other side, taking pitches, sitting on the panels, and walking around conferences to meet writers and hear what they have to say. So here are some thoughts, and some tips.

First of all, like I said in last week’s post, the important thing to remember is that agents and editors are people. And most are pretty nice, too. Take the folks at last weekend’s great Push to Publish conference.  I wish I had time to hang out with these agents and editor and swap stories about our clients and our projects. But that’s one thing many conferences are tight on: time.

So as an agent, I arrive with a schedule in hand. For some conferences, I may have just been whisked over from an airport, and have barely arrived before I’m “on.” I love to meet my fellow agents and editors. But above all, I want to meet you writers! But time is short. So I meet with you during pitches, or chat with you during registration, or swap ideas with you during panel talks.  Longer conferences are great because there are more chances for real exchange. Exchange of biz cards, yes, but also exchange of conversation and ideas. There can be time during a cocktail party or in line for breakfast, or just hanging out in the hotel lounge after the main events are over.

But there are often many of you and few of us agents, so when we do get time with you, it’s important to use it well. I’ve done pitch sessions that have run anywhere from 5 minutes to 15. If a writer comes to me and is especially nervous, I understand. Sometimes however, this wastes our valuable time together as we spend our minutes more on getting focused than on talking about a book. In these cases, I think it’s best for the writer to have their pitch written out. If you just admit right up front that you are really nervous and ask if it’s okay to read your pitch, I for one will smile and say of course.  Then you can take a deep breath, read the pitch, and then our conversation can begin from there. And I bet you’ll feel better after that.

Some writers are naturals with pitches and with chatting. And for me, it really is a chat. As if we are sitting together for a moment at a coffee shop, talking shop. These writers smile, and introduce themselves and shake hands. They then sit and say something to the effect of, “I’m here to tell you about my new memoir called ‘About All That.’” And then they say their brief, focused pitch. These authors allow me to then respond with my reaction to the pitch. They listen to any questions I may have and answer them as well as they can. And they ask me questions like what do I think about this sort of book in the marketplace? They listen and allow us to interact, with note-taking happening after our allotted time.  This is all time well spent.

Sometimes writers squander their pitch time because they come to me unfocused. They haven’t thought ahead about the market of their novel (is it YA or mid grade?), or come up with a succinct way to describe the novel to me. So we spend our time together learning about the author, her approach to writing, what she wanted to achieve, the many ways she approached creating this book. Everything but what the book is actually about. And because of that, I can’t give any viable feedback or know if this novel is something I want to look at.

Sometimes writers come into the pitch with only one goal: sell!  I’m not naive. I KNOW that is the goal. But I think this sort of over-focused writer can miss out on great opportunities that lead to the sell. It’s not just about getting that jazzed reaction from the agent and the green light and that book deal. Seriously. It’s about coming into it ready to learn and pick up cues and adapt and make connections. And all of these things can lead you to the sell, so don’t be short-sighted.

Here’s an example of what I mean. A writer comes up to me very confidant with a pitch. She’s ready to sell it, and is sure a smart agent will snap it up. So I hear the pitch. I may be interested, but I’m confused about something so I ask a question. Over confident writer immediately deflates, convinced they’ve failed. Or withdraws, upset (yes, I’ve seen tears in response to questions). Or grows hostile, convinced I’m ridiculous to say no (which I haven’t even said yet) and that there is nothing more I can do for them and so they should just move on to wow the next person.  Every single one of these writers is simply blowing it. Why? Because as long as we have minutes together we can be learning from each other.

I can learn more about the novel in response to my questions. If my concerns are addressed, then maybe I will be interested. The writer can spend time building a relationship with me. Maybe this book won’t fly, but another book might in the future. Why burn bridges? The writer can also be paying attention to my reaction to this pitch. Even if I’m not the agent for you, did I become interested in certain things? Did I become puzzled? Did I express concerns about certain aspects? Then perhaps you can tweak your pitch and your queries to future agents based on this, and be more successful at your next pitch appointment. Ask me, “what do you think?” And if I say I’m not interested, ask me, “do you have any advice that I can use?”

When it comes down to it, I’m looking to work with pros. Even a debut author can be a pro. People who are open to discussion about their books, who are open to suggestions, who are folks I’d consider working with. If you are overly emotional, then I can’t picture you handling changes from an editor or meeting deadlines. If you are hostile or a prima donna, I’m never going to want to work with you. There are many talented people, and even if you are a major talent, if you are sending up flares that you are a difficult person, then I’m not interested.

When I go to conferences, I’m there to meet you, chat with you, and swap ideas. I’m hopeful that I will be finding my next client sitting right across from me. Someone who is professional and interesting and ready to work hard. I meet tons of fascinating people at every one of these conferences. Not all of them end up as my clients, of course. But many of them end up as people who I hope to hear from and interact with again.

I encourage you to remember that a pitch is more than a sell. Conferences are a place to meet people, to make contacts and to learn.  Get questions answered. Try out different pitches for your novel at different conferences and learn bit by bit which parts are most effective and which are not working so well.  Remember all of this can lead to a sell. I always enjoy meeting people who are passionate about their writing. It’s energizing and exciting.

Enjoy the process, and best of luck!

*Agent Monday is a weekly post. To catch all of these, subscribe to this blog by clicking on the “Subscribe to Marie’s Site Here” in the upper left column.

Agent Monday: Close Encounters of the Conference Kind

Happy Monday! This week I’m getting ready for Saturday’s Push to Publish Conference, where I’ll be on a few panels, plus doing “Speed Dates” with writers. So this seems like the right moment to share a little bit of my own experiences on both sides of a pitch table, as both a writer and an agent. Close encounters of the conference kind can really instill fear. But they don’t have to, and if you keep a few things in mind, they can be so helpful to a writer’s career. And, dare we say it, enjoyable?

Nerves! We all get them.  As a writer, I well remember the sweaty heart-pounding panic that filled me when I realized that right there next to me was THE dream agent or THE dream editor.  Palms became damp just before I’d shake hands. I’d speed talk and ramble a bit.  I did manage to pull myself together enough to talk coherently, but after a close encounter, I felt like I’d aged a few years.  Zowie.

Some of us writer-folk are shy. I’m not exactly the shy type though, so what was going on? First of all, this was all so new to me. Fish out of water, and all that. I didn’t really have a good idea of what was expected of me, or how to act, or what, even, I really wanted from an editor or agent. No wonder I felt awkward.

But this newness was also exciting and challenging. It propelled me to go to the next conference, and then the next to get smarter, more comfortable, less mouth-flappy. I read up ahead of time about the editors and agents who were there. What were they really interested in? What was interesting about them? And what questions did I have for them based on this info? I also spent time at conferences listening more, learning, and talking a ton with other writers there. Fellow writers, I soon learned, were eager to swap thoughts and of course they make great friends, too.

I also think my nerves stemmed from me telling myself that this is it! The big moment! My huge chance! I can’t blow it!!! In this scenario, OF COURSE a writer will be nervous. You see the editor or the agent as your savior. The one person who will make your dreams come true. They are iconic. And you have this one and only chance…

Blah. Why do we do this to ourselves? I think after you are in “the business” for a number of years most of us “get it.” There isn’t one chance, but many continuous ones that build like a chain from one experience and encounter to the next. There isn’t one book, but many books and ideas that will flow from you, each a stepping stone to better and better things, even when some stones seem to be leading you backwards. You are learning and growing. You are meeting people and making contacts. And hopefully you are having some fun, too.

I remember standing in a pitch slam line waiting to talk to an agent. The writers waiting there shuffled their feet and exchanged nervous smiles. And one lovely writer turned and said to me something like, “I just try to remember that they are people. That we all love books. And we are just having a nice little chat. An exchange of ideas.”

Genius. They are people… That, more than anything else I read or heard, helped me so much.

Now that I’m an Associate Agent at the Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency, I see the wisdom of this statement even more. When writers approach me as a person, and share their idea in a friendly way, we connect and enjoy it.

And when writers approach me all nervous and sweaty, I smile and tell them I understand, and that it’s okay. Take a deep breath. You’re gonna do just fine. Then we enjoy our own little chat. And it IS just fine.

In next week’s Agent Monday post I’ll share what it’s been like for me to now be on the other side of the pitch table as an agent, and some things I’ve learned along the way. Stay tuned!

*Agent Monday is a weekly post. To catch all of these, subscribe to this blog by clicking on the “Subscribe to Marie’s Site Here” in the upper left column.