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Chuck Sambuchino’s Guide to Literary Agents Blog

Chuck Sambuchino is an editor and published book author who runs the Guide to Literary Agents Blog, one of the biggest blogs in publishing. His site has posts on agents, query letters, submissions, publishing, platform, marketing and more.

Live in the Pacific Northwest? Check out the PNWA Conference in Seattle (Aug. 4-7, 2011)

May 24, 2011 | Chuck Sambuchino | Comments: 0
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I’m very excited about my first year on the faculty at the Pacific Northwest Writers Association Writers Conference. The 2011 conference is from Aug. 4-7 in Seattle. This is a very large conference that brings in a ton of agents and editors. If you live anywhere in the area, keep reading to learn more. Read more

7 Things I’ve Learned So Far, by Bill Peschel

May 23, 2011 | Chuck Sambuchino | Comments: 21
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This is a recurring column I’m calling “7 Things I’ve Learned So Far,” where writers at any stage of their career can talk about seven things they’ve learned along their writing journey that they wish they knew at the beginning. This installment is from writer Bill Peschel.

Bill Peschel is the author of Writers Gone Wild, a collection of true stories about authors published by Perigee Books. Book reviewer and novelist Claudia Leavitt (Pictures of You) called it a “hilarious and witty compendium of writers acting badly. (What? We act badly?).” Read more

The Characters Must Come First (in Any Genre)

May 22, 2011 | Chuck Sambuchino | Comments: 37
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Each of my novels features a protagonist undertaking a difficult personal journey. On the way, each of these characters—mostly female—discovers something about herself and at the same time makes an impact on other people’s lives. Each eventually finds her inner courage and proves she is able to learn from all her experiences, even the painful and frightening. Facing a similar journey, full of challenges and unknowns, I feel obliged to delve inside myself and find the same combination of wisdom and warrior spirit.

Guest column by Juliet Marillier. Her historical fantasy novels, including the best-selling Sevenwaters series, have been translated into many languages and have won a number of awards including the American Library Association’s Alex Award and the Prix Imaginales. Read more

How I Got My Agent: Anita Clenney

May 21, 2011 | Chuck Sambuchino | Comments: 34
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“How I Got My Agent” is a recurring feature on the GLA blog. Some tales are of long roads and many setbacks, while others are of good luck and quick signings. If you have a literary agent and would be interested in writing a short guest column for this GLA blog, e-mail me at literaryagent@fwmedia.com and we’ll talk specifics.

Anita Clenney spends her days writing mysteries and paranormal romantic suspense about Secret Warriors, Ancient Evil and Destined Love. Her latest book is Awaken the Highland Warrior, a book the Romantic Times Book Reviews called “A romantic adventure that’s hard to resist.” Read more

WD is Looking For Writers to Submit Work for a Possible Critique in the Magazine

May 21, 2011 | dmatriccino | Comments: 0

Writer’s Digest magazine is working on a new article where literary agents look at actual first pages and give thoughts on why they work well, or why they don’t. If you’re feeling … Read more

Agent Advice: Deborah Grosvenor of Grosvenor Literary Agency

May 20, 2011 | Chuck Sambuchino | Comments: 0
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This installment features Deborah Grosvenor of Grosvenor Literary Agency. Formerly with Kneerim & Williams, Deborah reopened Grosvenor Literary Agency in January 2011. With more than 25 years’ experience in the book publishing business as an agent and editor, she has edited or represented several hundred books—and her best-known fiction acquisition is Tom Clancy’s The Hunt for Red October.

She is seeking: Grosvenor is interested in narrative nonfiction in the categories of history, biography, politics, current and foreign affairs, memoir, food, health, the environment and travel. For fiction, she is simply interested in great storytelling, especially in an historical context.
Read more

The Revision Process: How I Prepared My Book for Publication

May 20, 2011 | Chuck Sambuchino | Comments: 7
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1. Create a revision plan. I created a revision plan based on my publisher’s and first reader’s notes. Once I buy-in from my publisher to this plan, I was ready to get to work.

2. Don’t edit as you write. Write, wait a while, then edit. Leave your work alone for as long a time as you can before sitting down to edit it. While I spent over two years querying agents and small presses, my manuscript laid dormant. So when I finally got my book contract, I read it front to back, chapter by chapter, with my revision plan in hand. I marked up a hard copy with a red pen. Read more

New Agent Alert: Susan Finesman of Fine Literary

May 17, 2011 | Chuck Sambuchino | Comments: 0
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Reminder: Newer agents 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.

She is seeking: “I continue to be interested in all kinds of books but tend to be compelled by work that features characters that I cannot shake. I challenge authors to make me laugh or cry and you will have certainly won me over by doing both. I love the twists and turns of a great page-turner, can be seduced by a truly honest memoir and am delighted when transported by historical fiction.” Read more

Synopsis Example: “Ransom” (Thriller)

May 17, 2011 | Chuck Sambuchino | Comments: 1
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Here’s another example of a fiction synopsis. This time it’s Ransom (1996). One thing to notice here is that, in the movie itself, the five kidnappers all have their own personalities. But here I had to cut all that and just focus on the leader. Tom is the main character here, and we need to see his journey over the three acts. Read more

3 Reasons Why Personally Visiting a Source (or Location) Will Better Your Writing

May 16, 2011 | Chuck Sambuchino | Comments: 20
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1. You can ask your own questions. If you use only written resources, you can miss out on key information that could help bring your subject alive to your readers.

2. You can get the personal viewpoint of the people involved in your subject matter. I learned this many years ago, while writing a book about different breeds of horses. I had written to the official organizations representing various breeds for information, and each of them strove to convince me that their breed was the ultimate “all purpose horse.” I couldn’t figure out what to write about for each breed that made it unique and special. Read more

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