Literary Agents New York Times
Friday, January 6th, 2012 at
8:16 pm
Tagged with: literary agents new york times
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For a beggining writer, how do I get the attention of a publishing company?
Obviously, I’ve written a book, and would like to publish it. However, I don’t know where to start. I don’t expect my work to rocket straight to the top of New York Time’s Best Seller list; that’s wishful thinking. (But I can still hope!)
My book is called BOB(The Book of Bumology). It is a fictional piece that explains the history, reasoning, and principals of anyone or anything bum-related. It is a rather funny book.
What is the process to submit a work of literature? I have a gut feeling that there’s more to it than wrapping the pages in brown paper and shipping it off. From my own attempted research, I’ve heard of literary agents. Are they similar to Hollywood agents?
You start by querying literary agents. This is done with a one page letter describing yourself and your book. Sometimes the agent will request you include the first few pages or chapters, but that is an individual preference.
There are several websites out there that will help you find an agent, my favorite is QueryTracker.net at http://www.querytracker.net/ . It is free and has a list of literary agents and also tools to help you keep track of who you already queried and who you haven’t, plus more.
They do a good job of keeping the crooks off their lists, but it is still a good idea to double check at http://www.sfwa.org/beware/twentyworst.html.
There are a lot of crooks out there. Never pay anyone to read or publish your book. A real agent will never ask for money except as a percentage of your royalties.
Keep in mind that finding an agent and getting published is not an easy process. Some people have to query hundreds of agents before they find one who will accept them (sadly, some never get accepted), but be persistent and keep trying.
You should also visit http://www.absolutewrite.com/forums one of the largest forums for writers. They can be very helpful.
Good luck.
Is this literary agent going to respond?
I sent a query letter to a literary agent and got this e-mail;
The agent writes below;
Forgive the first para. My mistake. We will be in touch if we want to read this.
Sincerely,
In a message dated 3/17/2010 9:45:42 A.M. Eastern Daylight Time, hisemail@.com writes:
this is his previous email;
Thank you for the email. I have passed this on to my associate who would normally be in touch if we have any interest in pursuing this. However, I liked your pitch so please submit this to me. I am in Los Angeles next week but back in NYC on the 30th.
One of PMA’s biggest fall projects, The Christmas Cookie Club by Ann Pearlman (Simon & Schuster), was named a USA Today Top 12 Christmas Book of 2010. CBS Films has acquired film rights The Christmas Cookie Club. Wendy Finerman (“The Devil Wears Prada,” “Forrest Gump”) is producing. The Story revolves around an annual holiday celebration in which a dozen women trade their homemade cookies. As the evening unfolds, the friends bare their personal adventures of the past 12 months. hi name here, who is Pearlman’s lit agent, will exec produce.
(as reported in Variety). http://literarylion.wordpress.com/2009/10/29/christmas-cookie-story/
Just out: The Element (Viking) by Sir Ken Robinson with Lou Aronica, a New York Times bestseller, is out in trade paperback (Plume)
Keep an eye out for The Compass by Tammy Kling and John Spencer Ellis as it is PMA’ s next global bestseller. It was published in the US and UK this past summer.
Here is a press release on a movie I am executive producing that should be out in summer/fall 2010: http://www.movieset.com/theirishman/castandcrew/above-the-line
Please also view my Interview at http://www.NewYorkBTV.com Click on Video Vault and find my name,
Enjoy this recent interview too. Click on #3. http://www.whoswhospeaks.com/pre view.html
You can also view my trailer on http://www.YouTube.com by typing in 4 words Author Screenwriter
Here is my latest YouTube posting http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ONu7wHOA7k0
In case you have any desire to travel to Paris and go on a River Cruise this September, I highly recommend you look at this link You will also be traveling with me and the talented author/screenwriter James Dalessandro.
http://literarylion.wordpress.com/2010/03/01/france-tour/
Follow me on Twitter: http://twitter.com/AbundantLion”
PMA is very selective about the clients and projects it manages. as we seek long term management relationships with prolific authors who write cutting edge fiction or narrative non fiction with global marketing potential as well as motion picture and television production potential. We are deluged with submissions and are selective about who and what we manage, but we do review everything.
With all good wishes, I remain
Sincerely yours,
, President
I took the agents name out of the email for security reasons.
Anyway Should I send another email after the 30th, or keep looking for other agents? Will they let me know wheter or not I’ve been accepted or rejected? I’d rather be rejected than just ignored so I can know if I need to move on.
hey there. I’ve actually published a book before, so I could probably help you out with that. I’m not really sure if this literary agent is credible or not, but if an agent has not responded to you after some time then you should probably move on. I would keep on submitting to other agents in the meantime, but agents are picky when it comes to representing new authors. You might get some rejections. If you can’t get an agent to help you, I recommend that you self-publish as an option. I’m currently doing it, and it is worth it. I recently made a new website that has some information on how to go about publishing a book. It’s called http://www.2publishabook.com. I hope it helps you in your quest. Anyway good luck.
BEWARE of Literary Scammers?
For those who wish to write and have a manuscript ready to send to a literary agent…STOP. There are many scammers out there, willing to take your hard earned cash from you. The latest (according to The New York Times) is the Lee Shore Literarcy Agents, Pittsburgh, PA.
Never part with money to anyone. Your book, time and money is better kept in your pocket. Find an agent that is local to you, and let them help you. NEVER accept any offer from an agent so far away that you cannot knock on their door if they are more than a half hour drive from your home.
Happy hunting
what is your response to these journalists?
Name: Jayson Blair
Publication: The New York Times
Busted: May 2003
Offense: The undisputed heavyweight champion of journalistic fakers did more than pilfer quotes from The Washington Post, borrow phrasing from the AP, and plagiarize The San Antonio Express-News (the event that solidified his downfall). When pressed for deadlines, Blair simply made up breaking stories. Among his best work was the front-page exclusive that claimed D.C. sniper suspect John Lee Malvo’s DNA had been identified on grape stems found near one of the crime scenes. In an interview with The New York Observer, Blair explained that his penchant for alcohol was one of the reasons he turned to fiction: “I was drunk on assignment.”
Cashing In: Literary agent David Vigliano is fielding book and movie offers for Blair, and reportedly is already showing publishers a sample chapter from Blair’s inevitable tell-all memoir. Ka-ching!
Name: Stephen Glass
Publication: The New Republic
Busted: May 1998
Offense: Glass became the young hot shot of the New Republic staff after a string of sensational stories, including a piece on The First Church of George Herbert Walker Christ, an expose on the immoral shenanigans taking place at a religious retreat, and a story on a group of investment bankers who had erected a shrine to Alan Greenspan in their office. The only problem: None of these events happened. An investigation turned up fabrications in 27 of Glass’ 41 bylined articles. Only after an editor forced Glass to take him to the site of one of his tall tales did the writer break down and admit his deceptions.
Cashing In: Glass earned a reported six-figures for his new Simon & Schuster novel (about a young hot shot reporter who makes up his best stories), The Fabulist. Glass also sold his story to Hollywood. Shattered Glass, starring Hayden Christensen in the title role, hits theatres this October.
Name: Janet Cooke
Publication: The Washington Post
Busted: April 1981
Offense: In late 1980, Cooke ran a heartbreaking story about “Jimmy,” an eight-year-old heroin addict. Alarmed activists demanded to know where the boy lived, so that he might be helped, but Cooke claimed that the boy’s life (as well as her own) would be endangered if she revealed her sources. The pressure to name the boy grew more intense when the story was awarded a coveted Pulitzer Prize. Finally, after a heated confrontation with her editors – during which the veracity of several academic credentials on her resume were also questioned – Cooke admitted that the whole story was made up.
Cashing In: Disgraced, Cooke left Washington and the world of writing. At first, the only job she could land was behind a fragrance counter in a department store. But after several years of reclusive living, Cooke sold her story to GQ, and later to Columbia Tri-Star Pictures for a reported $380,000
Name: Patricia Smith
Publication: The Boston Globe
Busted: June 1998
Offense: During what editors described as a “routine review” of Smith’s work, it was discovered that she had fabricated quotes in four recent columns. This shocking news came only weeks after Smith had been announced as a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize. In a statement following her resignation, the chagrined columnist said, “From time to time in my metro column, to create the desired impact or slam home a salient point, I attributed quotes to people who didn’t exist.” Oops. The revelation prompted the American Society of Newspaper Editors to rescind an award they had given her earlier that year.
CASHING IN: Although her career as a journalist was destroyed by the scandal, Smith’s moonlighting gig as a poet went unharmed. Three volumes of her work have been released since the scandal, and all have sold well.
Name: Mike Barnicle
Publication: The Boston Globe
Busted: August 1998
Offense: After Patricia Smith was canned by the Globe, the paper announced that it would review the work of all their columnists, for good measure. Among those reviewed was Mike Barnicle, a controversial figure who had already settled a lawsuit with Alan Dershowitz over allegedly falsified quotes and been accused of plagiarism by Chicago Tribune columnist Mike Royko. The investigation found that Barnicle had lifted jokes verbatim from George Carlin’s book, Brain Droppings, copied passages from A.J. Liebling’s book, The Earl of Louisiana, and had invented key elements of a story about two cancer-stricken boys. Barnicle was fired after he refused to resign.
CASHING IN: Barnicle went on to become a weekly columnist for The New York Daily News. He is also a cable-TV staple, offering commentary and frequently guest-hosting Hardball with Chris Matthews.
Name: Michael Finkel
Publication: The New York Times Magazine
Busted: February 2002
Offense: In 2001, Finkel spent three weeks in the Congo investigating tales of child slave labor on plantations. The riveting article that trip produced, “Is Youssouf Male a Slave?” not only profiled a 14-year-old cocoa farm slave, but included a photograph of the boy. Nothing seemed out of place until a group called Save the Children claimed to have located the boy in the photo… and it wasn’t Youssouf Male. After first sticking by his story, Finkel eventually admitted that Male was a composite of many boys he had met on his trip. Even after his resignation from the Times, Finkel stuck by the facts of his story. “I didn’t want to inundate the readers with complexities and numbers. I wanted the whole to be greater than the sum of its parts and felt, wrongly, that a greater truth could emerge using this technique. I know that the article, at least in spirit, accurately reflects the situation among the young farm laborers of West Africa.”
Cashing In: Dropped from the Times, Finkel wasted no time in combining the story of his deception with the story of Christian Longo, a man who killed his wife, fled to Mexico, and then assumed the identity of “Michael Finkel, New York Times reporter.” The interweaving tales made for a great read, and HarperCollins bought Finkel’s manuscript for a reported $300,000.
Name: Christopher Newton
Publication: Associated Press
Busted: September 2002
Offense: Newton’s trail of journalistic trickery was uncovered after he wrote an article on declining crime rates that quoted two men, Bruce Fenmore of the Institute for Crime and Punishment in Chicago and Ralph Myers of Stanford University. When reporters from The New York Times and three other publications sought out these men for follow-up stories, it was discovered that neither man (nor the Chicago institute) existed. An AP investigation found similarly manufactured quotes in more than 40 of Newton’s other stories. Upon being confronted by his editors, Newton denied that any of his sources were made-up… and then resigned.
Cashing In:In America, anyone can cash in on their misfortune if they simply admit their wrongdoing with a marginally believable tone of contrition. But Newton seems to be taking the Pete Rose approach, saying, “I was not given an opportunity to account for the names of those people The AP did not find. I am pursuing the situation with an attorney. We have already located some of those people The AP says do not exist.”
Name: Tom Junod
Publication: Esquire
Busted: June 2001
Offense: Junod’s profile of REM lead-singer Michael Stipe raised eyebrows with the revelations that Stipe ate an entire dispenser of sugar during their meeting, chartered a limo for a five-hour ride to the Hoover dam, and incessantly sucked on pennies, which he often stuck to his eyelids. An uproar over the article forced Junod to admit that he made up large portions of his story. But this story doesn’t end like the others. Upon his revelation, Esquire chose to defend Junod, claiming that the farce was “given away” with a subtle sub-headline and claiming (rather unbelievably) that “in the first place, one of our duties is to amuse and entertain our audience.” Objective achieved… sort of.
Cashing In: The furor over Junod’s actions never slowed down his career. Or his attitude. Says Junod, “Hell, in order to make him a great mythic rock-’n’-roller, it’s almost as if you have to make half the story up. So that’s what I did.”
Name: Marcia Stepanek
Publication: BusinessWeek
Busted: January 2001
Offense: Stepanek, a 20-year veteran of the reporting scene, sabotaged her reputation when an article she filed for BusinessWeek about the company Pharmatrak bore more than a striking resemblance to a similar piece that ran months earlier in The Washington Post. Confronted by her bosses, Stepanek denied having ever read the Post story and blamed the similarities on sloppy notes. BusinessWeek was unsatisfied with her explanation, fired her, and ran a retraction that apologized for using “information and wording without proper attribution.”
Cashing In: The scandal hardly dented Stepanek’s career. Within three months of her dismissal, she was hired by Ziff-Davis as executive editor of CIO Insight, a position she still holds today.
Name: Julie Amparano
Publication: The Arizona Republic
Busted: August 1999
Offense: Amparano, who wrote three columns a week for the Republic, was canned for allegedly conjuring her sources from thin air. Amparano may have never been caught, but in a stunning lapse of judgment, she actually used one fake source (“Jennifer Morgan”) on multiple occasions. Despite the seemingly obvious transgression, Amparano firmly defended her actions, claiming, “I think this has been just very unfair to my name and credibility.” (No, really?). Amparano also claimed that the private investigator hired by the Republic couldn’t track down her sources because “they are real people, and real people are sometimes hard to find.”
Cashing In: Amparano left the Republic to become President and CEO of AmericanLatino.net, a website devoted to Hispanic news and issues. Despite rumors to the contrary, Jennifer Morgan is not a staff writer for that same publication.
Every barrel of apples has one or two bad apples in it, and you have just named a couple of them.
Fortunately all reporters, and columnists are not like them, and try to report fairly, and accurately.
thanks for the info, what you didn’t ask a question
;o)
DOES ANYONE KNOW A GOOD LITERARY AGENT?
LIVED A CRAZY LIFE, WROTE A MANUSCRIPT ABOUT IT, HAD A FEW AGENTS WHO LOVED IT BUT DIDN’T KNOW HOW TO PROMOTE IT, SENT OUT FEELERS TO HOLLYWOOD, GOT SOME BIG GUYS INTERESTED SENT THEM BACK TO MY AGENT WHO DIDN’T KNOW WHAT TO DO?? THIS WAS A BIG TIME NEW YORK AGENT!
SO NOW I GOT A GREAT MANUSCRIPT AND ALOT OF INTREST BUT NO AGENT. ANY IDEAS?
I recommend checking on agentquery.com/ and also Preditors & Editors http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/ for some tips. Those are really useful sites to direct you to finding the right literary agent.