Thoughts on results of my latest #PitMad submission

[Lex Black]

Hey, everyone.

So...this PitMad went better for me than last time...I think? I had vastly more activity on my tiny, obscure and quiet Twitter account than I ever have, with a lot of very kind people (including a number of Litopians, thank you kind Colonists!) offering retweets.

The downside is that, of only a handful of likes, most of them weren't legitimate (for those who don't know, one of the rules of PitMad events is that only literary agents and publishing houses are allowed to like Tweets; anyone else can retweet to spread the word, but don't like a post you aren't supposed to and get someone's hopes up, only to disappoint them. Guess how many times that happened. ).

Anyway, I did get a handful of likes from people at what appear to be legitimate publishing houses. One of my tweets even got likes from two different people from the same company.

The problem is that these are all publishing houses, with not an agent in sight. Anyone who listens to my constant complaining around here knows that I don't hold out much hope of ever being published, but I still believe that anything worth doing is worth doing right.

So, on the one hand, I wonder if I should hold off jumping the gun and responding to any of these folks, instead holding out to find proper representation. Don't panic and go for the best possible deal with someone on my side, right?

On the other hand, per the above: constant complaining and frustration, it's not like good agents are lining up to represent me. Would I be better off taking the bird in the hand instead of waiting for an agent that all signs indicate may never materialize?

...help?

 

[Nikky Lee]

I had a look through some of the top performing tweets and VERY few were liked by agents or publishers under the fantasy tag. My guess is that many agents who rep spec fic are at capacity after #SFFpit and #IWSGPit in Jan. Most of the likes came from fellow writers, even those that had double-digit likes. The best performing one I saw was a comic book, that in all fairness was amazing, and had about 4-6 agents like and comment that they would love to see it in their inboxes.

So, in wake of that, getting any publisher or agent interest is AWESOME.

If it were me, I would investigate, do all the homework etc. If they check out and offer a decent deal, I'd submit and also keep submitting to other agents at the same time.

 

[Leonora]

If you got real interest from a publishing house, I'd have thought that would help in getting an agent. So if it was me I'd go for it! So long as you think they're bona fide.

 

[Katie-Ellen]

I missed that yesterday. I'd say, research those publishing houses, look up their terms of publishing. Look hard at the other titles in their shop window. Just because they are small or obscure does not necessarily mean that they are a vanity publisher. What would be the matter with spinning a wheel, looking into that route, if they are genuine?

 

[Lex Black]

What would be the matter with spinning a wheel, looking into that route, if they are genuine?

Well, I wanted an agent first, odds against it or not. If I ever get published it's going to be one time, and I certainly don't want to throw that one time away to a terrible deal because I didn't have anyone working in my best interest (because they get a cut of the result).

Between this and the change in accounts locking me out of the Writing Groups, I'm even less optimistic than before. I didn't even think that was possible.

I guess I'm really not in a position to be picky, so I'll look into those places and submit if they're at all legitimate.

 

[Chase Gamwell]

I want to point out that when I checked trending twitter hashtags in the middle of yesterday, there were already 125k tweets about #PitMad. So, first, CONGRATULATIONS! Making it through the noise to get ANY likes (from agents OR publishing houses) means you’re doing something right!

As far as getting published, if you want an agent, go after an agent. You’ve had some luck recently, which is positive. Just take your time and go one query at a time. If you’re only planning on getting published once, there’s no rush and you should strive to do it the way YOU want.

Keep the faith and we’ll keep rooting for you! XD

 

[Lex Black]

You’ve had some luck recently, which is positive.

...what? What are you talking about?

I do appreciate the good will, however. I'll take some time to ruminate on this. Question: the interest could theoretically work in my favor, right? As in, if I submit to the place that showed interest, I can then mention it to any agents I query? It kind of gives me some credit? I know it's via the newer mode of Twitter and not traditional routs, but I know that equity like that is a thing in this business...

 

[Chase Gamwell]

...what? What are you talking about?

You got a full request recently! That’s definitely something!

And you can definitely turn positive reactions into submission capital if you play all your cards right...

 

[Lex Black]

Oh! No, that was some kind of mixup. The person that made the request represented the Romance genre (fine if it's your thing, but it's definitely not mine) and after receiving the full never bothered to get back to me in any form.

As for "playing my cards" right, I'm guessing I'll be asking for a lot more guidance and advice around here in the near future.

 

[Lex Black]

OK, query sent to the folks that liked the Tweets. Tomorrow, back to agent hunting. Sigh

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Well, I wanted an agent first, odds against it or not. If I ever get published it's going to be one time, and I certainly don't want to throw that one time away to a terrible deal because I didn't have anyone working in my best interest (because they get a cut of the result).

Between this and the change in accounts locking me out of the Writing Groups, I'm even less optimistic than before. I didn't even think that was possible.

I guess I'm really not in a position to be picky, so I'll look into those places and submit if they're at all legitimate.

That is being picky. I wouldn't despise that route at all, for myself. 'The Loney' was published first by a tiny publisher, Tartarus. No agent. Then got noticed and was republished, via an agent with a mega publisher. Movie next.

The Loney by Andrew Michael Hurley review – eerily good

 

[AliG]

I'm sure you did the right thing. The Society of Authors will review contracts for you.