How I snagged my agent Part II with Lisa Regan

Welcome back, dear blog viewers, to the second part of Lisa Regan's how I snagged my agent interview. Yesterday we learned about her incredible tenacity in pursuing her goal of publication, her query experience and her revision techniques. Today we're in touch with Lisa's bubbly side (oooh, a pun!! *snort* you'll get it when you read on)

AND, if you write mystery/thrillers don't forget to click on Lisa's name to enter her Hook for Your Book contest with her agent Jeanie Pantelakis. The clock is ticking: you've got one week to enter with your 50 best room-rockin' word pitch.

If you could travel back in time and kick someone's butt, whom would that person be?

Whoever came up with the M'Naghten Rule. It's like legendary FBI Profiler, John Douglas says--you can be crazy or mentally ill AND guilty. It shouldn't be one or the other.

Can I be crazy and innocent? I'll go with that.

And what song would you butt-kick to?

Stop by Matchbox 20

My most shameful writing secret is:

I write in the bubble bath! I love a hot bath and sometimes it's the only quiet, alone time I get so I often take a pen and notepad into the tub with me. I've done some of my best work in the tub!

Wow - you must be able to spend a loooong time in there. *thinking of own household with kids, hubby pounding on door, phone ringing* Jealous.

My most favorite nonwriting blog is:

It's a blog called Adventures in Kidneyland run by a woman I went to high school with. I'm not sure she has kept up with it in recent months as she's had another kidney transplant but it is very riveting. Just after high school she was diagnosed with chronic kidney disease and this blog is about her journey in dealing with kidney disease. I never knew her well although she was always very nice. Last year I found her blog through Facebook and couldn't stop reading. I just think she's amazing. She really should write a book.

And now *drumroll* Lisa's QUERY:

Dear Ms. Pantelakis:

I am currently seeking representation for my novel, Finding Claire Fletcher, complete at 108,000 words. I believe my novel would appeal to readers of authors such as Karin Slaughter, Harlan Coben, Greg Iles and Lisa Gardner.

Detective Connor Parks unwittingly spends the night with a woman whose family reveals has been missing for ten years. Newly divorced, with his career in jeopardy, Connor Parks takes solace in the arms of a woman he meets at a local bar. The next morning Claire Fletcher is gone, leaving behind an address and a decade-old mystery. The address leads Connor to the Fletcher family home, where Claire’s siblings inform him that their sister was abducted from a city street ten years ago and is presumed dead.

Convinced that the beautiful, mysterious woman he met is indeed Claire Fletcher and driven by his desire to see her again, Connor begins his own investigation. He is determined to find her and unravel the mystery of her abduction and odd reemergence.

For ten years, Claire Fletcher endured the cruel torture and depravity of the man who abducted her. Paralyzed by fear, too ashamed to return to her family, Claire is resigned to her life as Lynn, an identity her abductor created and forced on her. Every time she attempts escape or betrays him in the smallest way, someone dies. Even now her clandestine run-in with Connor Parks may have put Connor's life at risk, as well as the lives of her family.

As Connor works to solve the mystery of Claire’s abduction, Claire makes a stunning discovery that leaves her no choice but to return home and enlist Connor’s help. When police fail to apprehend Claire’s abductor and another young girl goes missing, Claire and Connor take matters into their own hands.
As per the instructions on the Sullivan Maxx website I have attached a one page synopsis and the first three chapters of the manuscript as Microsoft Word documents. I would be happy to provide you with more sample chapters or the complete manuscript for your consideration. Thank you for your time and attention.

How I snagged my agent, Part 1 AND Hook Your Book contest

This week's spotlight is on Lisa Regan, an aspiring crime/thriller author who's represented by Jeanie Pantelakis of Sullivan Maxx Literary Agency. Her blog is filled with her own writing journey so check it out.

And while you're there, be SURE to enter the Hook Your Book contest sponsored by Ms. Pantelakis. You've got 50-words to catch her interest; when you've buffed them to a shine, throw them in Lisa's contest sometime this next week. The contest ends next Friday. All the details are on Lisa's blog.



How many manuscripts did you write before the one that hooked your agent?

I wrote one full manuscript before I wrote Finding Claire Fletcher. I had written several YA novels when I was a young adult myself and I had started a bunch of novels that I didn't finish as an adult but I only finished one manuscript before I wrote the novel that got me an agent.

How did you know this MS was the one?

Well unlike the novel that I had written before, FCF was not trying to do too many things. It had a very simple premise. It took me several drafts to really make that simple premise shine--I still had to cut a lot of extraneous elements--but on the whole I just felt it was a much better book than my last one. More than anything though, the main character's voice was so strong and so compelling to me that I really wanted to see her story through to publication.

Will you share your revision techniques?

The first thing I do is make an outline of what the book looks like as it stands. I go chapter by chapter and list the main events so that I have an overview. That way if I have to cut things out or rearrange things to make the pacing better, I know where everything fits. It's like having an aerial view. Then if there is major cutting to be done, I do that first. I go right through selecting and cutting. I make a separate Microsoft Word File called cuts and anything I cut, I keep there in case I need something from it later. Then I go through from the beginning and make any major changes that need to be made, including writing any new scenes. Then I go back through and smooth out all the transitions. Finally I walk away and come back a couple of weeks later and read it without making any changes to it. I pretend I just pulled it off a shelf and see how it reads, making notes on what I want to change as I go along. And I always, always use critique partners.

How long did you query?

I queried for four and a half years. I sent out 155 queries for Finding Claire Fletcher. I got 16 requests. I queried for my next novel for a year and a half while I was still querying for Finding Claire Fletcher. I sent out 85 queries on that one and got 4 requests. After I signed my contract with my agent she asked to read my next book and offered me a contract for that book as well (after I made revisions).

You'll see Lisa's query letter tomorrow!

Most difficult part of querying?
The most difficult part is the waiting. For me it was especially excruciating as I had three different agents make me wait a very long time before rejecting me. One agent rejected me after four years, another after about two and a half and another after a year and a half.

Or best rejection, if you had one with lots of advice?

My best rejection was one where the agent said, "This novel is a home run" and then went on to list twenty-three things in my book that needed major work! Fortunately the twenty-three suggestions were great ones which I used to make the book better. But that agent passed on the book anyway--even after reading the revised version based on all of his fabulous suggestions.

Was there ever a point where you gave up? What made you keep trying?

Oh yeah! There were many times I almost gave up. I think I probably would have given up very early on if those three agents in particular hadn't been holding onto my book for so long! Once I felt my next book was suitable for querying, that kept me going for awhile--it felt good and gave me hope to have another iron in the fire, so to speak. There was a point a few months before I got my agent where I was ready to throw in the towel and give up on writing completely. It was definitely rock bottom. It was my daughter who made me keep trying. I didn't want her to grow up and have family members say to her, "Oh your mom was quite the writer back in the day. She wrote all the time. She could have really done something with that." I don't want the example that I set for her to be one in which you give up on your greatest dreams. I decided I'd rather be twenty years older and still trying than be someone who almost did something with my writing.


Wow - talk about stubborness
perseverance and grit! My jaw is still on the floor at the 4.5 years you spent querying the same MS. Holy toledo, batman. We've had presidents in office for less time than that.

Be sure to check in tomorrow for Part Deux of Lisa's journey, including her successful query and the music to which she butt-kicks.

Critique winner, upcoming posts and bling

Thanks to all of you who commented and entered Becky's drawing for a free, ten page critique. The totally random winner is:

Larissa!!

I know Becky will have fabulous advice!

The week ahead will be tres exciting (snuck a little high school French in there as I am wont to do in times of high excitement) because 1. on Wednesday, I am reviewing Libba Bray's Beauty Queens, which is so funny my throat is sore from snorting, 2. aspiring author Lisa Regan talks with me Friday about how she snagged her agent AND 3....wait for it...

Lisa's agent, Jeanie Pantelakis of Sullivan Maxx Literary Agency is sponsoring a 50-word Hook for Your Book contest!!!
*minor hyperventilation followed by chocolate intake*
This is for finished manuscripts only, in the mystery and thriller genres.
The contest begins this Friday so you have several days to get your editing groove on and buff up/spin down your hook to 50 soul-snagging words. When it's so shiny you need sunglasses to read it, head over to Lisa's blog and toss it into the comments. She'll have more details there. In her interview here, Lisa will share insider information tips on catching Jeanie's interest, or at least what worked for her. Be sure to check the Sullivan Maxx site as well, accessed by clicking on Jeanie's name. Contest deadline is August 19.

Thanks to Marcie for nominating me for the Liebster (aka newbie blogger) award. She's got an incredible tale of perseverance and pluck she's turning into a memoir. I can't wait to see it on the shelves!

Per the award guidelines, here are my nominees:

JJ DeBendicitis, aka Query Goblin. Check out her interview in this very blog and then go submit your query to her. She's a Mistress of Query Art.

Tracy Jorgenson, who is hosting a stupendously creative contest on her blog where she films a scene from your book! *blinking in awe* SOOO cool, words fail me.

Rebecca Hamilton who offers free editing on a regular basis on her blog, Free Editing for Writers (just so you get the drift right away). She's also very close to getting her MS published in a nontraditional way. Check out her author blog - linked from the site above - to read her story but I'll sum it up on one word: fearless.

The wondrous Taryn Albright
who puts my (former) 18 year-old self to shame. This girl writes, edits and blogs like a maniac. If I'd had an ounce of her gumption when I was her age, I'd be the freakin' president. Seriously. She's generous with her critiques so if you need a teen eye to assess your stuff, ask her. She works cheap. For now.

Crit giveaway, agent contest, WriteOnCon AND what I wish I'd known

*drum roll* Becky Wallace is joining me tomorrow for a two-parter interview on how she snagged her agent. This lady is soo talented she received SIX - count'em 6!! - offers of representation for her YA novel, Saw It Coming. She's giving away a 10-page crit so stop by over the next few days and sign up.

Upcoming debut author Rachel McClellan is hosting a summer contest with agent Lauren Ruth from BookEnds, the agency that hosts one of my all-time fav writer blogs. You have until Aug. 11 to submit.

Also coming up is WriteOnCon's annual conference with extremely cool opportunities to network and capture agents' notice. If you haven't already bookmarked/joined their site, go on over and check it out! Be sure to sign up for their forums so when it comes time to get agent feedback on your query on Aug. 17, you're ready to go.

Thinking about submitting to contests makes me think of querying, which now has the same connotations has going for my annual exam. *shivers of dread* Because even if I write a jaw-dropping query letter, that's not going to hook me an agent. It's all about the pages...and the concept. I knew the former, of course. But nobody told me there's such a thing as market saturation. Agent extraordinaire Holly Root tweeted today that: Telepathy has become so common in my query pile that if it's stated the MC is unusual, I think, "Why? Is that weird?" And my last MS, the one I've laid to rest, had a MC with telepathy. Sigh. So as you, my handful of followers, look over your MS, don't do what I did. Don't even start writing until you're sure your idea is unique. Write what you know but be aware that if everyone else is writing about the same thing, your chances of publication (unless you are the vaunted exception to the rule, which I am not) are slimmer than they already are for aspiring authors.