#ask j.m.

It'd be a heck of a fun pub night if we could all get together! I think the Prince of Stories has grabbed something in each of us and shaken it loose. It's delightful.

The post-locked-book-pre-book-release slump is real. It's that few weeks where you question every choice you made, your talent, and whether all the stress and worry and hard work and lack of sleep you put yourself through is worth it.

But it's literally to late to do anything about it.

This is the 15th year I signed up for NaNoWriMo. It is the 4th time I have failed to reach 50k. This year I did 7k.

The first two times I failed because I couldn't juggle writing books with writing a thesis. The third because I was hospitalized with sudden organ death. (Though I still tried to write while high on pain meds in the aftermath.)

In the past, I've centred my annual writing schedule around NaNo: Planning in October, First draft in November and December, it Rests over the holidays, the spring is spent doing Revisions and working with my critique group, off to the agent in the summer, start again in the autumn.

And mostly it's worked. However with the signing of this six book deal with Reuts, and another two books coming out on the side from a second publisher, with books coming out December and thus the most intense part of the editing and marketing prep happening through October and November, with some massive delays on the part of my editor, and ever changing marketing heads making it hard to stay on top everything that has been/needs to be done, with a new screentime-and-writing heavy dayjob, and a very welcome upswing in the number of invitations I'm accepting to speak at conventions, events, libraries, and schools, I found I simply no longer had the energy and creative drive to think of anything when I finally had time to sit at the keyboard.

Additionally, I have three books out next year whose edits I need to start thinking seriously about working on like, right now.

And of course, the three new novels I pitched to my agent all require intense research before I can even put any words together. Research I didnt have time to commit to this November, and probably won't until April.

Nevertheless, I was beating myself up for failing to DO anything for NaNo. Me, its biggest champion. Me, who has reccomended it to countless writers, both professional and hobbyists. Me, who has run workshops and write-ins, offers charity manuscript reviews, and writes blog posts extoling its virtues. Me, who so wanted my 15th year to produce something incredible and meaningful.

I felt like a failure. I was letting myself down. I was letting my story down.

Then my mother, who has in the past stood over me at thr kitchen table making sure I got my words in, who is as supportive as you could ever ask a loved one to be during November, asked me: "Who are you doing this for?"

And I actually had no answer to that.

Who was I doing NaNo for this year? Not for myself, who was already getting only an average of fours of sleep each night and so stressed that I was having trouble keeping food down. Not the agent who wanted my best work, not my quickest. Not my editors and publishers who needed me to comit to the process. Nor the people I was speaking for, who deserved the best experience I could provide. Not for the stories I'd written in previous years, who needed my attention as I worked with my editors and publishers to prepare them for publication.

I was doing them, all of them, agent, publishers, editors, students, and stories, a disservice. And the readers who were looking forward to my next book, they deserved the best I could provide, too.

So I made the extremely difficult choice to fail my 15th NaNoWriMo. For me, for my schedule, for my career, here in 2017 it didn't make sense.

Does this mean I'll never do NaNoWriMo ever again? I don't know. It has been the foundation of my career. Everything I've ever sold started as a NaNo. Maybe Ive outgrown it as a writer. Or maybe just this year it didn't work with my schedule and I 'll be back like a phoenix rising next year.

But I still believe firmly in the power of NaNo, and will continue to be it's biggest champion. It is still fantastic. It is still worth it.

Question: If I do decide to go the agent route, at what point would it be recommended to start looking? Total manuscript completion?

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Basically, yeah, wait until the book is written, polished, and has been through beta readers or critique groups. You only get one chance to impress an agent. Always, always, always ensure that what you're sending them is the very best version of it. Also, waiting until the manuscript is totally complete also means that a) you've proven to yourself and to the agent that you can finish what you start and b) you won't get caught with your pants down if they respond right away asking for the full, after you've sent a partial. But more than just a totally spit-shined MS, also ensure you write a complete pitch package before you start to query. Why? Because agents invariably ask for come combination of these documents as well as the query letter and MS, and it makes sense to just sit down and do it all together once instead of scrambling to create new docs with each submission.

Pitch Package:

Elevator Pitch: One or two sentences to hook 'em. Imagine you have the length of one elevator ride to intrigue a publisher/agent/producer. What would you say? (Example: A girl vigilante and her mystical, semi-sentient rocketpack are shot down behind enemy lines, and now have to rely on the help of an underground rebellion to not only get home, but end a decades-long war. The only question is whether the rebellion can be trusted, or if they're planning to turn her in for the bounty.) This is the only part of the pitch doc I recommend memorizing, because you may have the opportunity to pitch someone in person at an event, and you want to have a slick response to: "So what are you working on now?"

Back Cover Copy/One Paragraph Pitch: Basically, write the stuff that goes on the back of the book. Try to keep it to about 100-200 words. You will use this in your query letter, as well as turn it over to marketing when it's time to design your cover.

5 Page Synopsis: Write out the entire plot of your novel, beat-by-beat, pointing out cause and effect and character growth, INCLUDING the ending (surprise your readers, not your agent.)

3 Page Synopsis: Turn that same doc above into a 3 pager.

1 page Synopsis: Turn that same doc above into a 1 pager. (Why? Because these are the industry standards, and these get asked for a lot).

If the book is first of a series, DO NOT WRITE THE SERIES. Write the back cover copy/pitch paragraph & a 1 page synopsis, and included it in the package as well. (Why not write the whole series? What if the publisher only wants the first book? You've wasted your effort. Or what if your editor asks you what book #2 is about and the two of you come up with a MUCH BETTER idea? Wasted effort.)

Once you've done all that, then you can craft your Query Letter, and begin to submit to agents. (I made an Excel with each agent I wanted to submit to and their individual submission requirements.)

Best of luck!

Question: Was just wondering, is it better to have an agent? Or would submitting directly to publisher's on your own be better? I'm not yet at the submission stage but I started to wonder, would it be recommended to get an agent, or go it alone?

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It really depends on what kind of career you're looking to have. Some people are after the big J.K. Rowling kind of thing, and some people are looking for something small and local.

Agents are required for the first, and not so much for the second.

Having an agent means you have access to the Big 5 Publishers (Hachette, HarperCollins, MacMillion, Random Penguin House, Simon & Schuster) through the best channels. You MAY be able to submit to those houses via the slush pile with no agent, but doing so through an agent is best. Agents know the editors, and talk to them frequently. The Big 5 are are big companies and things can get lost in the shuffle, so it's always better to have an agent who will and CAN follow up for you.

But if you're looking to submit to ChiZine, or REUTS Publications, or any of the good mid-list publishing houses, or any of the great quirky small presses, you don't need an agent for that. I signed my first book to a small press without an agent. I signed my fantasy series to a mid-list publishing house with one. She's working on getting my next book into the Big 5 now that I have a proven track record and an established readership.

Advantages to Having an Agent

Built-in beta reader

Access to the large publishing houses that you couldn't otherwise submit to

It's nice to have someone as excited about you finishing a manuscript as you are!

Advocates for you and is in your corner if there are contracting disputes, legal battles, or just plain issues like the publisher not delivering something on time

Already knows the industry and can guide you through the hurtles, roadbumps, or emotional breakdowns

Can help shape and craft your career, listen to your ideas and suggest which one to do next, etc.

Is there to help you navigate adaptation rights, such as audio books and TV

Probably has a big mailing list and social media following so there's extra eyes on your work right away

Can handle any pitches or proposals that come your way and make sure that any partnerships are legal and protect you and your work

Marketing support - your agent/agency will have connections with review publications, bloggers, etc. and will know which avenues of promotion are worth pursuing before you spend the money on them. Sometimes, they know before you do which new website or app is going to be the next cool place.

Your publishing sibs (authors with the same agent/agency as you) are a supportive and connected network that are usually happy to push and blurb one another's books, answer questions for each other, and generally celebrate when one of you finds success. (And their awards and bestseller hits reflect well on you because you share the same agent/agency)

Advantages to Going It Alone

Keep all your royalties for yourself

Can craft your career however you like, which means you don't have to write something saleable if you just want to write something fun and nichey

Can do business directly with the publisher with no middle man (though I've found I still can contact the publisher/my editor/marketing team no probs with my agent; she's happy to let me be as Type A as I need to be)

More control of your marketing, and your brand.

Less pressure for deadlines or to churn out the "next thing"

The publishing industry is a hot mess right now. Nobody is willing to take any risks at the top tier levels, the editors are looking for the Next Big Thing, but don't trust what the readers are telling them they want, and basically most of New York is flooded with professional cowardice. They only want The Next Big Debut Author (aka Angie Thomas, The Hate U Give) or the next big hit from an author with a string of hits. Smaller presses have less pressure to sell hits, can take the weird, and the wonderful, and the small, and interesting. (That is not to say your small press book can't hit big, it just will need a lot of flogging to review publications, award competitions, etc.)

It takes so much tiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiime to go the traditional route. Books may take yeeeeeeeeeears to get signed because everyone is waiting on the next person down the chain to read it, or pitch it, or put together the contracts. UHG. A book I wrote in 2012 is coming out September 2019. With no agent and a direct line to the publisher, you can speed the process.

You can be more creative with your marketing.

However, you do have to look at the disadvantages too. Going back to my example of signing my first book sans agent - I got screwed and didn't know it. It was the first contract I'd ever signed. Eventually my agent got me out of that legal tangle (and the book is being republished with a new house and a new cover), but she wasn't obliged to because she hadn't brokered that deal.

On the other end of the spectrum, I've had authors contact me for advice about how to deal with their agents because the agent has gotten lazy with her A-list clients, stopped advocating for them, stopped pushing, and generally relegated them to the back burner.

Again, it all depends on you, what you write, what kind of career you want, and how much work you want to do or how involved you want to be.

Remember, there's also nothing saying you have to pick one or the other and that's it. You can start with an agent and decide it's not for you and let them go. (Remember, they work for you, not the other way around). You can publish small first, like I did, and then seek an agent for your second or third book.