You’ve undoubtedly done everything listed below since you’re one of our readers. However, based on the many unsolicited submissions we receive, many new authors still need to follow good advice. If you’re mentoring new authors, we suggest recommending the following:
Please Read and Follow Our Guidelines
As Steve Laube says, “We are not hiding.” We feature our guidelines on our website. These guidelines state what type of manuscripts we seek. Reading further, each agent presents which Christian manuscripts we seek. Because we often see submissions contrary to Christianity, and because each of us receives Christian manuscripts that don’t fit the categories we seek, we discern that many authors need to consult our website before querying us.
Perhaps some authors feel that visiting each agency’s website wastes time, and agents can handle it. Those authors should consider whether they enjoy the soul-sucking exercise of rejection or ghosting. Why not take the time to visit the sites of every agent to whom they want to submit? Then, they are more likely to garner interest from several agents who may offer representation instead of collecting letters of rejection.
Respect Proper Word Count
The guidelines below are general. There will always be exceptions that prove the rule.
Fiction:
Most mass market and category book publishers include word count requirements on their sites. No matter how amazing your book may be, no one will sell a book that’s too long or too short to these publishers.
Otherwise, most publishers currently prefer books that are 85,000 to 95,000 words in length. Some books, such as comedies, may run shorter, perhaps 80,000 words, to maintain comedic tension. A few books may be as long as 105,000 words, but this must be because the story cannot be told more succinctly.
At this time, we are not able to consider standalone novellas.
Nonfiction:
Gift books and devotional collections can be as few as 20,000 words to allow for a spacious layout.
Self-help, memoirs, and other nonfiction books should fall in the 80,000-to-100,000-word range.
Investigate Markets
Agents are the ones paid to know the markets, right? Right. But we all appreciate authors who can tell us about their goals and dreams.
Authors who give us a thorough comparison of books like theirs that are already on the market help us and, in turn, help editors in their reviews. The comparison section is a crucial part of any excellent proposal. As authors search for books that are both direct and indirect competition, the publishers releasing those books and supporting those authors may be open to considering new, similar works.
Be Willing to Work with Technology
I enjoy technology, but I know how frustrating it can be. As I write this post to be published a few months from now, a website I’m trying to access has crashed. Earlier this week, a store announced the arrival of a famous brand of winter coats; and their site crashed, which led to the coat manufacturer’s site crashing for at least two days. So, yes, technology can be a hassle.
However, a patent refusal to use technology needed to have a book published will land an author forever in Rejection Land. A few months ago, an author sent my office a proposal that looked promising. However, the author patently refused to send an attachment. Instead, the author thought we should work with an entire book pasted into the body of an email. When asked for an attachment, the author took on an attitude and decided to look for another agent. That’s fine, but good luck. And I don’t believe in luck.
So, even if we were to create and submit our own Word document, what would happen once the editor asked for attachments during the editorial process? In other words, this author has taken themselves out of the running. And because of the author’s attitude, even if they returned to me, the answer would be no. Why? Because I wouldn’t want to inflict this individual on my editor friends.
Attitude
Yes, tell your writer friends always to maintain a great attitude. We will do our best to maintain a Christlike attitude with our friends in publishing, too.
I am signing off for now with good cheer!
