Ask the Agent:

I know you probably get asked this all the time, and I’m so sorry if it’s annoying, but when do you plan to open to queries again?

Is “The Call” usually an actual phone call? Or is it a Zoom call/video chat? I know it probably depends, but I’m curious what you and your colleagues usually do.

Hi Jennifer! So with YA books having a big adult audience as well– do agents take into account crossover potential or appeal to an adult audience too when they consider taking on a new client? Or is it just evaluating the appeal of the story to teens? I feel like YA is just a prime example of why there oughta be a clear delineation for New Adult and upper and lower YA officially.

Hello Jennifer! I see some redditors are saying agent MSWLs don’t mean anything and are often outdated. I think writers should be mindful of anti MSWLs as a minimum, but what are your thoughts on how we should see MSWLs?

Hey Jenn! This might be an odd question that differs for every project, but about how often/how many times are you nudging editors these days for kidlit projects? I know everything is slower than ever right now, especially in MG, so I’m just curious how you approach it? Is it a once every few weeks kind thing? Once a month? Or more like once every three months or so?

Hey Jenn, Is a dead body (no gore, graphic details, etc.) OK for MG Mystery? My MC finds a dead body but I don’t want to cross any lines. Thank you for all of your help :-)

Hi! Thank you so much for running this blog, it’s been so helpful for me and many others! What are the average deal amounts these days for a middle grade authored and illustrated graphic novel? Let’s say around 100-150 pages. How does the amount change when it’s signed as a series of let’s say 2-3 additional books. Not sure if that’s too vague but I’d love to have some sort of an idea. Thanks again😊

Hi Jenn, I’m a querying author who is very bad at titles… I know titles often get changed and what I query with might not actually be the final book’s title. When does this usually happen and what’s the process like? Will an agent suggest changes before the book goes on sub, or is it the editor after they’ve bought the book? How much of this is marketing? Will I get some help coming up with a better title? And will my bad title affect a submission to an agent or an editor? Thanks! :-)

What is reasonable vs unreasonable for an author to push back on for edits with an agent or editor, or any other aspect on publishing like art cover, etc?

When you are going to make an offer, do you set up the call via Query Manager or just a straight email to set something up?

Jenn, Before diving into a submission you’ve requested, do you typically revisit the original query to refresh your understanding of the book? Thx.

Hi! I know the main diffs between illo agencies and literary agencies but I’ve never seen books autho/illo’d by someone in an illo agency. Mine states they can shop your work to their clients but I haven’t found anyone in my illo agency or others who has done this and successfully published their work. I like illustrating (been doing it w/agency for over six years) but now I’d like get some of my stories out there. Can you share any insight into this side?

Hi Jen! Have you ever had authors who leave your agency for whatever reason and want to later on resign with you? What’s your thoughts on this? Is it sorta a bad look to do this?

What do you suggest for people who need to choose between two or more agents that are equally great choices?

Hello! What does a good agent response time look like? And what are red flags in communication from both sides? My agent takes an average of over two weeks to respond, and my other agented friends say they usually get a reply within 3 days unless there’s a holiday break. Also, what’s the average recommended reading time for a client’s new WIP? Thank you for your ask the agent help for everyone!

I’m concerned about the editor who wrote in today saying she “suspects” a client used AI in their writing. I’ve been seeing people accused (wrongly!) of using AI-generated prose if they use em dashes or SAT words. Except some of us actually like em dashes and fancy words! How do we as writers protect ourselves from editors who assume in bad faith that we’re using AI prose when we are absolutely NOT?

Hi Jenn, I’ve been doing freelance editing work and just finished a developmental edit of a client’s book that I think might be written with AI. I’m afraid the author might want me to edit future books, too, but if I think AI might be involved, do you have any suggestions on how to set boundaries without running our relationship? Sorry, this is a bit of a tricky qs.

Hey Jenn, a couple of years ago a complete novel I wrote was longlisted in a prestigious competition run by a Big 5 publisher. I let the agents reading know at the time and still mention it in my bio (some people ask to see that novel because of that). Recently, another project has been longlisted in the newest version of the competition! However, this project is in progress (the comp doesn’t require a complete novel and you write more for each level you advance to). I also have another novel on submission that has had quite a few full requests. It’s getting to the 3 month or so mark on a lot of those fulls and I’m planning to nudge them soon. I’m wondering if I should mention this new comp level/longlisting when nudging? I’m proud of the achievement. They already know the previous novel was longlisted. I think it might be a boon to mention the new one being longlisted too, but the only concern I have is that the novel is in progress, so unlike the other one, it’s not complete if they asked about it/to see it. So, what do you think - should I mention it as am sending nudges anyway or will it confuse things? Thank you!

If you close a query due to receiving no response for, say, six months, is it necessary to formally withdraw your query before querying the same agent with a different project? Thank you!

Hello Jenn, can I please ask what an author should do if they want to write something their agent doesn’t represent? And what if they have one element in their new WIP that’s on their agent’s anti-MSWL? How should authors approach that? Can you also explain what “joy” entails for agent MSWLs? Thank you!

Have you heard of any traditionally published books being outed for having AI content in them?

Do publishers believe in new authors anymore? It seems like there are less debuts in the kid space, in particular YA and MG. Yeah we know publishing is HIGHLY competitive, it just feels like publishers are less willing to take a chance on a new voice.

Hi Jennifer! Adding to the previous question: what do you normally need to explain to new clients? Are most agents and publishers happy to explain things a little more specifically if the author is ND or should the author try and research a lot when some direction or pointers are given? Thanks in advance!

Hi Jennifer! One of the agents from your agency said in an interview that after two passes (over a manuscript) they lose their sharpness. Which I totally get. I was just wondering, do you have a set number of passes on a manuscript when doing edits with a client? Do you notice your sharpness dropping after a point? Do most agents have a limit too?

Hi Jenn, thanks for all your stellar help and advice. I wonder, how would you consider a JLG Selection (gold standard?) versus a starred review in terms of prestige and sales-boosting possibilities? It’s hard to know which of the industry accolades gives the biggest boost!

Hi Jenn, Do you think it’s a red or yellow flag if a bunch of agents leave an agency around the same time? Or is that sort of thing typical in this industry?

Hi Jenn, a bunch of us writing folks have been wondering how a 2016 PB has hit the NYT list for the past few weeks (it hasn’t been on there before?) It’s called Never Smile At A Crocodile and it’s pubbed by a small press. Yay for the author and illo but how does this happen?

Hello Jenn! May I ask how agents (and publishers) offer accommodations to authors? Whether they’re overworked parents or disabled or have to deal with a sudden emergency? What is reasonable vs unreasonable?

What happens when an author with a multi-book contract for whatever reason (health/life/plain old writer’s block) doesn’t meet the deadline for the next contracted book? Are there usually any repercussions other than maybe not getting paid for a while?

For author-illustrators, how much work should we have ready to show when querying? In my case, I have a polished dummy, my illustration portfolio, two text manuscripts with some polished character sketches and rough thumbnails, and a couple more text manuscripts. Would you consider that ready? Or would you prefer to see at least one more polished dummy?

Hi Jenn, Do you generally read submissions in the order you receive them?

Hi Jennifer!! Thank you so much for the answer on the copyright registration fiasco. I’ve been trying to track down the cutoff date to determine which works of mine are impacted—can I ask where you found the August 2022 date, so I can pass it on to colleagues? Thank you so much!!

Hi Jenn! When you decide to open up to queries again, will you announce it anywhere? Or should we just check the ABLA website periodically?

Hi Jennifer! What’s the scoop with a couple authors on social media saying they are just now discovering that their publishers didn’t file the copyright for their books? What exactly does it mean, and what are the consequences? Thanks!

Hello! I was just wondering if there is a specific time of year that is best to query agents? And if you don’t mind another question, what’s your thoughts on a new author querying the first book in a trilogy as opposed to a stand alone book that can stretch to a trilogy. Thank you!

Hey Jenn, if an agent doesn’t request content warnings, does that mean we don’t need to include them at any point unless something particularly graphic or explicit appears directly on the page? Also, what do we do if an agent says “not for me” for something generic like “no misery” but they’re also open to horror and thrillers?

Hi!! Can you speak on how the querying scene is as of late? I left the scene after leaving my agent (who turned out to be a schmagent or whatever it is called) and I proceeded to have a baby and basically go on a 2-3 year hiatus. I’m ready to dive back into the querying scene as an established kidlit illustrator with project ideas. In 2022, yes, the query process was hard and lots of nos. But now it’s a diff economy and more people in kidlit, more competitive, etc. I’m worried it’s just so over saturated now! What are your thoughts?

Hi Jenn! Hoping this doesn’t come off as rude. Your client Kate Messner writes a LOT, and it seems like she has pretty established relationships with editors, with series coming out and everything. At this point in her career, what do you do? Do you still send things out for her? What does it look like to have her as a client? I ask as someone who writes a ton too and wants to have strong editor relationships one day!

Hey Jenn, From an agent’s perspective can you walk me through your thought process when you request a full? Thank you for any insight you could provide :-)

OK ANONYMOUS

Jenn! Help! I queried an agent with a project a while back. After months of no response, I queried another agent at the same agency with a different project for another age category (one I actually like more). Well, now the first agent requested my work, way outside the “it’s okay to query another agent if you get no response” window. I JUST queried the second agent and like that work a lot better. Should I really withdraw, even though I haven’t heard back from the second one and feel more strongly about that project?

Hello Jenn! Can you please explain the anti-AI clauses that should be in contracts for agents (and publishers too) and how we can ask our agent to include one if there isn’t one in the first place? Thanks so much!

confidential stuff

Hi Jenn. I’m worried one of my readers fed my MS into AI for feedback because some hallucinations were included with the overly AI feedback framing. Does this affect me trying to get published in any way? I’m not going to use any of that feedback. I’m so furious.

If you got a submission and the word count was off by about 10000 words (less), would you want the author to follow up with you to let you know they made a mistake and to clarify the word count she received? Or should I tell her I’ll resubmit an updated ms if needed? She’s had the ms for 25 days so there might be time before she reads. I just need some guidance here. Thank you Jenn.

Hi Jenn, Before asking for a full do you always read the sample pages or go right from query to request? Also, When agents say they are building their lists in a certain category, does that mean more requests and potentially taking on more clients than usual that year?

Hi again! I won’t share whispers anymore. The WN person never gave receipts. Others I asked didn’t get any either. You’re definitely right about gossip motivations. Is it bad if an agent posts daily on socials or anon forums a lot? WNP apparently knows who most anon agents are. Example of “bad” shared: a “big” agent held MSs hostage, didn’t sub, edit, or release authors from contract. Another: a “too many R&Rs” agent is at ABLA and she allegedly ghosts most R&Rs. No receipts. I don’t trust it.