AboutCathy Clamp Expertise I'm happy to answer questions about any aspect of getting published through commercial publishers, ebook publishers and self-publishing I can help with writing a query letter and synopsis to an agent or editor. I can explain publishing terminology, acronyms and manuscript formatting. I can also assist with questions about verifying the credentials of agents/publishers and how to proceed once you've been accepted for publication.
Experience I'm a USA Today bestselling author of romance fiction in the Tor/Forge Books paranormal romance line. Along with a co-author, I've published eight novels (combination of mass market and trade softcover) since 2003, and have contracts for six more books through 2009. I've also published short stories in regional and national magazines as well as freelance feature articles.
Organizations Romance Writers of America, Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America, International Thriller Writers, Western Outdoor Writers, Horror Writers of America.
Publications Books: Tor/Forge Books, Western Reflections Publishing; Magazines: Rocky Mountain Game & Fish, Guns & Ammo, Fur-Fish-Game, many others.
Education/Credentials My educational background is limited to real life experience of publishing novels commercially for the past five years.
Awards and Honors USA Today bestseller, Waldenbooks Mass Market Paperback Top 20 bestseller, Nielsen BookScan Top 20 bestseller, Book Buyers Best Award for Paranormal, 2007, Romantic Times Best Werewolf Novel, 2006, Write Touch Readers Award, EVVY Best Historical Chronicle Award, The Lories Best Paranormal. Many others.
Question I quit the newspaper business and wrote my first book. I am searching for a literary agent in Minnesota and have not found many interested in fiction submissions. I would prefer to work with an agent I could deal with face to face. Is this even possible? Is it a huge no-no to e-mail other authors and request information on their agents?
Answer Hi, Russ!
Well, I have to ask: Why is face-to-face important to you? Email and telephone have made it so it doesn't matter where the author is located, nor where the agent is. Naturally, those agents who are close to NY, or travel there often, are your best bet. I'm sure there ARE some good selling agents in Minnesota, but don't know of any personally. What you might consider doing is sitting down and thinking about the reason why you need that personal contact (and keep in mind that a lot of authors DO meet with the agent during the hiring process.) Is it because you want to see someone's body language to see if they're TRULY excited about your book? Are you looking for shifting eyes or "that icky feeling" that a person's aura/emotions/etc. can project? If that's the case, it's fine. But you might struggle to find just the right fit, when you might find the PERFECT agent in New York, and meet with him/her once or twice a year just to feel "in touch."
Yeah, it's sort of a huge no-no to email other authors, unless you know that author personally. However, there's not a thing wrong with going to the bookstore, finding books on the shelf that are similar in genre or tone to yours and looking on the Acknowledgment page. Quite often authors thank their agents there, and then you'll know. And, there are other ways to find out too. If you're really serious about that route, then invest a little in your future and buy a subscription to Publisher's Marketplace. (http://www.publishersmarketplace.com ) This is a website where, for a monthly fee of $20, you can search their list of "deals." Remember that's a big status symbol for an agent to let the world know that they brokered a big deal, so quite a few of the sales are reported over there. Once you're a member, you can search by agent name, or author name or even genre and get a list of people to query. However, it doesn't give you mailing information. For that, you'll need to wander over to either the Association of Author Representatives (http://www.aar-online.org ) or AgentQuery (http://wwww.agentquery.com ) Either of these will give you a good start on wants/needs plus a link to their website to find out guidelines, etc.
Hope that helps a little. If you have any other questions, or need any further clarification, let me know. :)
