Guide to Literary Agents Blog
by Chuck Sambuchino
GLA Editor Chuck Sambuchino keeps track of all news related to literary agents and writing conferences on his blog. Common features include agent interviews, new agency listings, agency profiles, upcoming conferences of interest, contests and other publishing opportunities, valuable writing resources, submission tips and information, and a blogroll of other agent blogs. Read Chuck’s Blog
There Are No Rules
Questions & Quandaries
Poetic Asides
Leon is seeking: He has a particular interest in science fiction & fantasy, young adult and middle-grade novels filled with strong characters and original premises, but keeps an open mind for anything that catches his eye. He is also looking for historical fiction set in the 20th century, particularly the 1980s or earlier. He...
We talk a lot about the importance of writing characters that readers like or can relate to—and by “we” I mean anyone who feels strongly about books, regardless of profession. It’s nice to know when the good guy is good and when the bad guy is bad. That’s what you expect from a story....
Quick note: If you’re searching for a gift for a writer friend or family member, consider giving the gift of a subscription to Writer’s Digest magazine. Click here for details. For today’s prompt, write a high poem. Now, I know the word “high” is a loaded one–so take it where you may. There are...
I love interview debut authors when I can. It's important that aspiring authors be able to see their journeys to publication, so they can understand what they did right & wrong along the way. This interview is with Thomas Lee, author of the business guide REBUILDING EMPIRES (Palgrave Macmillan Trade, Dec. 2014).
Heather is seeking: Picture books, middle grade, YA, and literary graphic novels. Specifically quirky picture books with a strong emotional core, middle grade about a moment that changes a kid forever, and beautifully written YA.
I'm putting a call out for possible interview article ideas for the 2016 CHILDREN'S WRITER'S & ILLUSTRATOR'S MARKET. There are 4 types of articles in the book each year. (We usually tend to work with writers who are very familiar with the book and use its editions. Those types of writers are the best...
For this live webinar on Thurs, Dec. 18, "Slush Pile Showdown: How to Make Your Submission Stand Out," literary agents Barbara Poelle and Holly Root are pulling back the curtain and showing you exactly what goes on when an agent reads your query.
Writing poetry for the sake of writing poetry is a worthwhile pursuit, but poets who wish to build an audience for their poetry will benefit from Find More Readers and Success With Your Poetry, an hour-long live webinar on finding more readers and success with their poetry. This session will share lessons learned first...
There’s something about the holiday season that puts people in a generous mood. From random anonymous acts of kindness to time-honored remembrances, it truly is the giving season. Heck, even the Grinch’s heart grew three sizes during the holidays. So what can writers do to pay it forward within the literary community? Here are...
For today’s prompt, write a false poem. Emily Dickinson once wrote, “Tell all the truth but tell it slant.” That’s good advice, but these poems should descend with falsifying the intent. False documents, false names, false teeth, the balance of true or false, and so on. A revision to Dickinson, “Tell all the truth...
Do you ever write something and immediately find yourself wanting to edit it (or worse—delete it)? Or are you struggling to really develop an idea? It’s tough not to immediately begin the rewriting process or automatically start second guessing yourself. Sometimes, as writers, we can get lost in continually improving a piece, trying to...
Dan is seeking: Mostly nonfiction for the Christian market, but represents a select number of novelists working in Christian historical, contemporary, Biblical, and futuristic genres. He is a 30-year veteran of Christian publishing and works at Steve Laube Literary Agency.
In this live webinar, "Do Your E-Book Right (and Start Making Money)," you'll learn about the most popular services and retailers available to distribute your e-book-including outlets such as Kindle, Nook, the iBookstore, and Smashwords. This webinar is taught by eMedia guru (and former WD Publisher) Jane Friedman.
Okay, here are the next steps for this challenge. Before you dive into them, click here to read the original guidelines for the challenge. Step One: Write the Poems We accomplished this step during the month of November. We have 30 prompts to prove it. Step Two: Revise the Poems This step is optional,...
BY ANDREW MARANISS People assume that when your father is a Pulitzer Prize–winning, bestselling author, he must have helped you a lot with your first book. For a while, I thought he might, too. I’d email first drafts of my chapters for “Strong Inside” to my mom and dad, and I soon discovered why...
Time to get back into the swing of the Wednesday Poetry Prompts. I’m sorry for the late prompt this week; I ran into some technical difficulties, which actually influenced this week’s prompt. For this week’s prompt, write a difficulties poem. The poem could be about technical difficulties, or perhaps, financial difficulties, health difficulties, or...
Sometimes, as a writer, it’s difficult to think about large, overarching goals when you’re working on a project or planning to start on something new. Thinking, “I’m going to write a novel and have it completed by XX date,” is ambitious. And maybe it’s too much of a reach. Instead, develop a plan. Write...
With the buzz of National Novel Writing Month over, it’s now a time for reflection and introspection. Take a step back from your work before examining it. Did you meet your goal? Did your writing meet your standards? Will it ultimately meet your standards? Will you make something of what you’ve written this NaNoWriMo?...
Abby’s looking for great and engrossing writing, no matter what the genre. Her top picks from the current wishlist: (1) Complex, literary-leaning psychological thriller/crime. (2) Gothic novel, contemporary or historical. (3) Substantive women’s historical fiction with romantic overtones.
Agents from Jennifer De Chiara Literary are teaching the newest WD boot camp on Dec. 5 called "Sell Your Children's Book." All attendees get a critique from the literary agent instructors -- either your entire picture book or the first 10 pages of your MG/YA novel.
Here we are: The final day of the challenge. Well, the first draft part of it anyway. While veterans know what to do and the guidelines give a clue, I’ll post tomorrow on next steps for completing this challenge. For today’s prompt, write an inevitable poem. The poem that always had to be, or...
Tomorrow is the final day of the challenge. So let’s make these last couple days count. For today’s prompt, write a do it again poem. This could be a poem about taking a mulligan or re-doing a mistake. Or maybe re-doing a magical moment. Or a poem for all those folks who like to...
Suzanne Van Royen is a South African author whose forthcoming book is I HEART ROBOT (Month9Books). Her agent is Jordy Albert of The Booker Albert Literary Agency. This is the story of how she came to sign with Jordy and get a book deal.
Whether you are successfully closing in on 50,000 words this National Novel Writing Month or decided to call it a month a little early, there’s always something you can take away from this experience and apply to your normal writing habits. For some writers, it may be that you need to spend that day...
Four weeks in and only three days left. Boy, time flies! For today’s prompt, take the phrase “(blank) News,” replace the blank with a word or phrase, make the new phrase the title of your poem, and then, write the poem. Possible titles include: “Good News,” “Bad News,” “Daily News,” and “Old News.” *****...
