by Mary Sue Seymour The Seymour Agency Are pre-published authors getting published in today’s market? I just sold Dann Stadler’s Angels in the Fire, the true story of a woman rescued from a car accident by angels, to Tim Peterson at Bethany House. This was the first book Dann had sold. So yes, authors are breaking in. I queried clients …
Encouragement: From an Agent’s Point of View
by Terry Burns Hartline Literary The writer’s testimony that I have on my personal website comes from a time nearly 20 years ago when I was attending the conference in Glorieta NM as a writer (that’s the conference that is at the Ghost Ranch at Abique NM now). My mission was to learn what God was expecting of me in …
My Day in Prison
by Greg Johnson WordServe Literary Group I went to prison not long ago to visit an inmate and to hear her story. I needed to know first-hand if she was who my client said she was. My client, her best friend on the outside, is writing a story of forgiveness between two women. I spent two hours in a small …
Agents and e-books
by Natasha Kern Natasha Kern Literary Agency I want to celebrate the new options for writers and the empowerment that has come with the advent of ebooks. There is no question that writers now have more choices about what they can write and how and when they can become published. Books that previously were too short or too long, that …
When it Comes to Getting an Agent…
by Wendy Lawton Books & Such Literary Agency When it Comes to Getting an Agent. . . A Pitch May Not Result in a Catch More writers attend pitching workshops than ever before. They hone their hooks and polish their pitches. You’ve heard it: you need to be able to communicate your book to an agent in the time it …
God is in Control
by Sandra Bishop MacGregor Literary During a recent conference call with my fellow MacGregor Literary agents, I allowed myself to mutter that my to-do list is half a steno pad long. We all lamented together about the reality that our work seems to come at us in waves that can sometimes confuse our priorities and drown out any semblance of …
Thinking Time
by Rachelle Gardner Books & Such Literary Agency Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. (Gen. 1:2, NIV) I’ve always loved that tiny pause right there in Genesis 1:2, were it says “the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.” It …
Tackling a Writer’s Fears
by Les Stobbe Leslie H. Stobbe Literary Agency Fear, like a ghostly apparition haunts all of us as writers. For some it is a memory of a parent’s or teachers deprecating comment, like “Don’t ever consider becoming a writer.” For others it’s the ghost of past failures that produced an involuntary response-shelving a project. For some it haunts the writer …
Voice
by Michelle Grajkowski 3 Seas Literary Agency Louis Armstrong. Etta James. Toby Keith. Eddie Van Halen’s guitar riffs. What do all these musicians all have in common, besides being the top of their musical genres? Voice. Each one of these artists have a unique style, a certain tone that is all their own. In most cases, a fan can identify …
An Agent’s Tips for Your Manuscript
by Mary Sue Seymour The Seymour Agency I am looking for Amish romances and also inspirational historical romances. I have never circulated an Amish romance or inspy historical I haven’t sold to a major Christian publisher. I like to see the first fifty pages, a synopsis and an author’s bio. Some authors seem to be a bit fearful about writing …