And the Mystery Agent is..... (plus winners!!)

Please give a warm round of applause to our Mystery Agent, LANE HEYMONT, of the Seymour Agency.

Lane has chosen three winners from the batch of 50-Word Blurbs, so without further ado, congratulations go to: 

Michelle Rose: OUTLANDER meets TITANIC when a girl is sent back in time to the ship after holding a séance to summon a boy aboard Titanic. There, she discovers the witchy powers that send her there can no longer get her home. She has a choice: save the ship, or save herself.

Laurence King: Deirdre Walsh (16) finds herself at the center of a faerie quest to conquer humanity using a magical stone that has been in her family for generations. Unawares, she teams up with the son of her family’s archenemy to retrieve the stone, ransom her kidnapped grandfather, and stop the faeries.

Salma T. Wahdy: Set in a world reminiscent of the Balkans during WWI with an energy-field that is manipulated by second-class Loders, HEIRESS OF DANISKAR is a reimagining of Shakespeare blended with elements of STAR WARS and DOWNTON ABBEY. Hamlynne’s thirst for revenge is complicated by her Loder abilities and approaching war.

WINNERS! I'll be in touch to tell you what to send the amazing Mr. Heymont. 

We couldn't let Lane go without an introduction and asking a few questions. :-)

Hi all, Lane Heymont here. I’m an agent at The Seymour Agency. My fellow agents include Mary Sue Seymour, Nicole Resciniti, and Julie Gwinn. We represent a range of genres from Christian/Inspirational to Fantasy/Science Fiction and a great deal of Romance.

(OA) How did you become an agent?

(Lane) I saw a tweet that The Seymour Agency was looking for an intern/reader, so I applied and got the job! After a few months they bumped me up to literary assistant. Then, a year and a half later our senior agent Nicole Resciniti asked me if I wanted to make the switch to an agenting position. That’s where I am today.

(OA) What draws you to Sci-Fi and Fantasy?

(Lane) I grew up on science fiction and fantasy. I was a huge Trekkie as a kid, read fantasy novels intended for adults in middle school, and played Dungeons and Dragons, Shadowrun, and even Marvel Legends. As kids we all have our ways to escape during tough times, and science fiction and fantasy film and literature were mine.

(OA) Best advice for querying authors? (besides "never give up")

(Lane) Do. Your. Research. I cannot express that enough. I have submission guidelines. All agents do. If I ask for five pages pasted in the body of the email you should give me five pages pasted in the body of the email. If I sound curt, it’s because this is something I see constantly and don’t understand why. If having your baby (book) published is your dream, then why wouldn’t you go for that dream as hard as you can. People may say, “I don’t know where to begin” and I feel that’s a cop out. Google “how to find a literary agent” and go from there. You cannot run a marathon if you haven’t trained a day in your life. Just like you cannot succeed as a writer without learning the craft and industry.

(OA) Will you be at any conventions this year?

(Lane) Yes! I will be at several, including RT Booklovers Convention in Dallas, RWA National in NYC, Unicorn Writers’ Conference in New York, The Southern California Writers’ Conference in Los Angeles, and the 2015 Florida Writers’ Association Annual Conference.

I’ll be taking pitches, sitting on several panels, and presenting a workshop on worldbuilding. For dates, registration, and more information you can click here to view my conference schedule.

(OA) Are there trends in plots that you get tired of seeing? 

(Lane) I’m tired of post-apocalyptic and dystopian settings. Demons as antagonists is getting old for me, mainly because I have clients and agency mates who write demons so perfectly that it’s an unfair competition. I’m also not a big fan of space opera. For me it’s become oversaturated with outlandish settings and alien species that just don’t make sense. Flying toilet people don’t sit well with me. I thrive on subtlety and subtext.

QUICKIES:

Sugar or Salt? Truvia in my coffee and salt on my popcorn.

Coffee or Tea? Both! I have a constant IV of coffee and only drink green tea.

Dream Vacation spot? Only one? The Caribbean.

Dream Car? A Bugatti Veyron 16.4, or Ford Mustang (I’m simple).

Proudest moment of your life? Reading letters from Holocaust survivors thanking my grandfather for changing their lives while he oversaw the Landsberg DP Camp.

Most embarrassing? Winter. Ten years ago. Walking outside, I slip on a patch of ice and land on my ass in front of my boss. I’ve never heard a man cackle so loud.

You can connect with Lane Heymont on Twitter, Facebook, and follow his blog. 

October Mystery Agent Reveal!!!

Time to reveal our awesome Mystery Agent. Everyone please give a very warm Operation Awesome welcome to TAYLOR HAGGERTY from the Waxman Leavell Agency!!!

A little about her (from the agency's website):

Taylor is drawn to novels with a compelling voice and grounded, relatable characters that pull her into their world from the start. Her favorite books have strong emotional elements that stay with her long after she finishes reading.

Her current interests include young adult fiction, historical fiction, and historical romance. She's actively seeking middle grade and young adult novels of all genres, historical fiction, women's fiction, and romance—contemporary, historical, and new adult. She does not represent screenplays. She is a graduate of the University of California, Santa Barbara, and received a master’s degree from Emerson College’s Publishing and Writing program. Prior to joining Waxman Leavell in 2013, she worked at the Gersh Agency.

And without further ado, Taylor has chosen four winners who each get to send her their FULL manuscripts.

Congrats to:

J. Redman - Sea Hawk & the Lone Isle

J.C. Davis - Cheesus Was Here

Peggy Rothschild - Punishment Summer

T.L. Sumner - Culloden Immortals

Please email us at operationawesome6 (at) gmail (dot) com with the subject October MA Winner for further instructions.

Taylor was kind enough to answer a few questions for us so we can get to know her a little better.

OA: Any tips for writers struggling with their pitches?

TH: Run it by someone who isn't familiar with your book. Agents don't know anything about your story prior to reading the pitch, so that getting feedback from a similarly fresh set of eyes can be invaluable. Beyond that, I'd just say to focus on what makes makes your book unique, and be as specific as possible about the conflict/stakes.

OA: When considering a romance manuscript, do you have any favorite tropes? Any you aren’t crazy about?

TH: Friends to lovers and forced proximity are probably two of my favorites, but all tropes are welcome.

OA: Have you read any books lately you’ve fallen in love with?

TH: I'LL GIVE YOU THE SUN by Jandy Nelson was beautiful. Highly recommend it!

OA: You are looking for historicals and historical romances – do you have a favorite time period? Least favorite?

TH: I am indeed, and I enjoy reading novels set in all different time periods—for me, the fun of historical fiction is that sense of discovery, of being swept away to an entirely new time and place. Surprise me!

OA: Any exciting news you can share?

TH: I recently signed several wonderful new clients that I'm thrilled to be working with, and I'm actively searching for more talented writers to add to my list, so I'm looking forward to an exciting fall!

OA: And a few just for fun:

Coffee or Tea? Lots and lots of coffee.
Sea or mountains? Sea!
Chocolate or bacon? Chocolate! Preferably in oatmeal chocolate chip cookie form.
Ebook or print book? Both.
Favorite tv show? Oh this changes all the time, but I finally started watching OUTLANDER, so I'm pretty excited about that one at the moment. (Can we get a moment for fangirl squeels please - squeee!!)

Thank you so much to Taylor for being our Mystery Agent this month!! And congrats to all the winners!!

Stay tuned for info on our next Mystery Agent contest!

Mystery Agent Winners and Reveal!!!

Please welcome our Mystery Agent.............

Carrie Pestritto of The Prospect Agency

Carrie has chosen 2 first place winners and 2 runners up!! So, without further ado, the 2 first place winners, who each get a full manuscript request are:

Kate L. Mary with her NA Romantic Mystery COLLISION

and

Kara Reynolds with her NA Contemporary Romance LOVE AND THE BARD

Carrie would like to see the first 100 pages from:

Ashley Walker with her Upper Middle Grade Adventure ONCE UPON A TIGER

and

Kim Van Sickler

Congrats ladies!! Please email us at operationawesome6 (at) gmail (dot) com and we'll give you the deets on submitting your material.

Carrie was kind enough to answer a few questions for us as well :)

OA: If you could pick any book that every writer should read, what would it be and why? 

CP: That is such an impossible question!! I have never universally recommended one book: what I prescribe depends on your genre and your story. I have recommended books like Kiera Cass's THE SELECTION, Margaret Mitchell's GONE WITH THE WIND, Alexandra David's Neels THE SECRET LIVES OF ALTAR BOYS as "homework" for some of my authors. I do think that is very important for you to read within your genre, especially any books that are similar to yours. You can see what that author does successfully, what they do that you like or don't like, and so on to create an awareness of your own writing style and what you need to do to improve/hone it. But if I were just to recommend a book just because I love it, one of my all-time favorites is Dodie Smith's I CAPTURE THE CASTLE. My mom gave it to me when I was in middle school and I have re-read it dozens of times over the years.

OA: Do you have any tips for writers struggling with their pitches?

CP: Think of writing your pitch as though you were writing the jacket flap for your book. You don't have to summarize the entire story - just give me enough to whet my appetite and get me eager to read your sample chapters! Also, if you have a platform, have won any writing awards/contests, or have relevant background of any kind make sure to let me know! Those are all big bonus points (but it also doesn't count against you if you don't have any of those yet).

OA: Is there anything specific you are just dying to get your hands on? 

CP: You can look at my profile on Google+, where I list projects I'd love to see with the hashtag #BooksImLookingFor.

OA: Do you have any exciting client/agency news you can share? 

CP: Yes! I will soon have my first book published! And by "I," I mean my author Dan Newman. Keep your eye out for his thriller, THE CLEARING, which pubs November 7th.

OA: And a few just for fun: 

Coffee or Tea? Coffee when I need the energy; tea when I want to be fancy.
Sea or mountains? Definitely the mountains. I love being around trees (which makes my move to New York kind of funny) and I love to hike.
Chocolate or bacon? Ummm both! I'm actually pretty sure that there is such a thing as chocolate covered bacon.
Ebook or print book? PRINT BOOK. I love being able to hold books as I read them and the main decorative feature of my room is stacks of books piled everywhere.
Favorite tv show? My boyfriend teases me endlessly about this, but my favorite TV show is True Blood.

Oh, we are huge fans of Le Skarsgard around here so she doesn't have to tell us about True Blood ;)

Thanks so much Carrie, and for everyone who participated this month!!

For more information on Carrie and what she'd like to see, you can visit her Google+ profile, her blog, or her agency's website.

September Mystery Agent Reveal and Winners!

Our September Mystery Agent was . . .




KATHLEEN ZAKHAR OF HAROLD OBER ASSOCIATES INC.

Kathleen Zakhar is an associate literary agent at Harold Ober Associates Inc. Hailing from the deserts of Tucson, Kathleen graduated with a dual degree in Creative Writing and Finance from the University of Arizona. Having previously worked as a SEO content writer and arts reporter, Kathleen began her publishing career with internships at Jill Grinberg Literary Management, Foundry Literary + Media, and McIntosh & Otis. You’ll also find her on Twitter @kzakhar

Kathleen loves all things young adult and is also actively looking for adult science fiction, fantasy in all its varieties, historical fiction, and horror novels. She enjoys quirky middle grade tales with captivating adventures and original voices, and will also accept picture books. Kathleen has a special place in her heart for sweeping love stories, magical realism, inventive world-building, repurposed folklore, dark comedy, and genre-bending novels.

Ready for the winners? Here are the projects that caught Kathleen's eye:

Winner of a FULL manuscript request: CIRQUE by Faith E. Hough

Winner of a request for the 1ST 50 PAGES: GERALD by Carl Hackman

Winner of a request for the 1ST 25 PAGES: THE LYMAN LEVELS by Jessica Hoefer

Winner of a query submission: ETERNAL by Leah and Kate Rooper

Winners can send their material to Kathleen@haroldober.com with Mystery Agent Winner and the title of their book in the subject line.

 And of course, we took the opportunity to learn a little more about Kathleen:

OA: Care to weigh in on New Adult? Do you read it? Plan to represent it in the future?

KZ: I’m excited about New Adult because it’s showing that publishing is truly a constantly shifting and evolving creature, but for now I’m watching the development closely and waiting for it to grow a bit more. A large portion of New Adult (at least that I’ve come across) feels like contemporary romance. While that’s great and there are tons of agents/editors/readers who want to get their hands on it, I’d love to see the genre branch out. My ideal New Adult project would be something along the lines of Lev Grossman’s The Magicians, where we have people in their late teens/early twenties in some wonderfully otherworldly environment acting their age with all the ensuing glorious messy mistakes and thought-provoking themes we’re already seeing in New Adult.

OA: What are some great books you've read recently?

KZ: I’m currently reading Wool by Hugh Howey and Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples. As a passionate re-reader, I love to refresh my palate with some well-loved classics. Right now I’m falling back in love with Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine, and I just finished Dogsbody by Diana Wynne Jones.

OA: Your tweets establish your nerd-girl credentials nicely. :) What are some of your favorite TV shows lately?

I have a Game of Thrones hand of the king pendant replica, which should tell you a lot about me. I wear it, and my nerd badge, proudly. I’m a huge fan of Doctor Who and absolutely can’t wait for the 50th Anniversary Special and for Peter Capaldi to breathe life into the twelfth incarnation of the Doctor. I’m also looking forward to the third season of American Horror Story and—my guilty pleasure—Downton Abbey. 

OA: Any exciting agency news to share?

KZ: All of us at Harold Ober Associates are very, very excited about the upcoming adaptation of Lois Lowry’s classic dystopian novel, The Giver. It occupies such a special and laudable place in children’s literature and I can’t wait to see it on the big screen. I’m particularly thrilled about Tamora Pierce’s new novel Battle Magic. We’re still basking in the glow of Gatsby fever what with the wonderful movie and the recent audiobook. Seriously, if you haven’t listened to Jake Gyllenhaal say “old sport” a couple dozen times then you haven’t really lived. Because there’s just so much exciting agency news all the time, I recommend following the Harold Ober Twitter account to see what our amazing authors are doing. 

Thanks to everyone who entered, and don't forget that we have another Mystery Agent Contest opportunity coming up on October 1st!

May 2013 Mystery Agent Revealed!

*drumroll* Mystery Agent for May 2013 is...

Sara D'Emic of Talcott Notch Literary

(photo and bio from agency about page)

"I'm excited to be starting my career with Talcott Notch and am actively extending my client base. I'm looking for adult and YA fantasy, sci-fi, horror, mystery, and mainstream fiction (plus all the sub genres those encompass). I'll also gladly look at non-fiction science and technology. I graduated from Emerson College with a BA in Writing, Literature, and Publishing. I've been an editorial/PR intern for Last Light Studio and an editorial intern for Hanging Loose Press."

Her chosen winner, also the recipient of a full manuscript request is...

1st Place:
Name: Sarah Turnbull

Title: AND WE ARE ALL DAMNED

Genre: YA gothic horror



Pitch: On an isolated island, beneath a lush canopy of resurrection ferns and prickly palmettos, a preternatural plague is unleashed across a grotesquely insular Victorian colony when orphans Haeden and Veanne unearth the dark legacy of their bloodline.


2nd Place: (Query & 50 pages)
Name: Leiann Bynum

Genre: YA Mystery

Title: Brothas Torn


Pitch: To prove his father is innocent of second-degree murder,sixteen-year-old Dhamell tries to find out who the real killer is by deceiving someone who believes his dad is guilty--his own half-brother, Tyrik.


3rd Place: (Query & 10 pages)
Name: Sophie Morton

Twitter: @_SophieMorton

Genre: YA Contemporary

Title: Mouse Trap


Pitch: Sixteen-year-old Marnie is concerned by her parents' disapproval of her unexpected reunion with her absent uncle, but she has little time to worry about the reasons why when her father fails to return home from work one night.


Woot for our winners!! We had the chance to get to know our Mystery Agent a little better in this mini-interview:

Katrina: What's your favorite thing about being a literary agent?
Sara: Getting a good deal for a client-- it's immensely satisfying when that happens.

Katrina: In your accepted genres, you list Mainstream. How would you define that genre? Is it more commercial? Contemporary?
Sara: I say mainstream to incorporate commercial/literary/general fiction. a.k.a, not in a particular genre.

Katrina: What would you say is a hallmark work of YA Horror (one that every horror fan should read)?
Sara: A good question; I have trouble thinking of a book that is the defining YA horror. I like the works of Marcus Sedgwick (especially White Crow) and Margo Lanagan.

Katrina: Not that we would bribe you to read our queries, but what's your favorite sweet treat?
Sara: I've gotten into salted caramel brownies.
Katrina: Mmmm.... good choice!


Sara D'Emic also shared some exciting new-book news (our favorite kind)! Recently she sold a New Adult sci-fi: Elected by Rori Shay, to Entranced Publishing.

Congratulations, Sara and Rori Shay! And congrats to all our winners and entrants! Thanks all for sharing your work.

Winners can send their queries and requested pages to Sara at the address listed here. Put "Mystery Agent Winner" in the subject line of your email.

Find more of Sara D'Emic around the web:

Twitter
Writer's Digest Interview
YA Stands Interview
All The Right Stuff Interview
President's Blog Interview
GUTGAA Agent Panel Q&A

April Mystery Agent Winners and Reveal!

Introducing our April Mystery Agent . . .

Peter Knapp of Park Literary!

Pete Knapp joined the Park Literary Group in July 2011, where he has had a chance to work with many of the agency’s bestselling authors -- Nicholas Sparks, Emily Giffin, and Debbie Macomber included -- in all stages of the publication process. He has been actively involved in the company's film activities, helping to coordinate marketing and publicity efforts for The Lucky One (WB) and Safe Haven (Relativity, February 2013). Prior to joining Park Literary, he was a story editor and book scout at Floren Shieh Productions, consulting on book-to-film adaptations for Los Angeles-based film companies, including CBS Films. He has also interned in the literary affairs and development offices of New Line Cinema, Overture Films, and Maximum Films & Management.

Peter is an avid reader of young adult and middle grade fiction, frequently trading book recommendations with his nine-year-old sister. Having graduated from NYU summa cum laude with a B.A. in Art History, he maintains a (mostly) healthy interest in the visual arts, particularly with animation. He is an advisor for Builders Beyond Borders, a nonprofit that organizes international humanitarian trips for teenagers, and though he loves to travel, he happily calls Brooklyn home. He recently signed Melanie Conklin and Chelsea Bobulski as clients. Follow him on Twitter

And in keeping with his stellar, helpful reputation in the interwebs, Pete has selected a Grand Prize Winner, some First Prize Winners, and Honorable Mentions! I'll email the winners with the details of how to get your material to him, but here are the writers who Pete has made very happy:

Grand Prize Winner (full manuscript request!):

Toni De Palma
Title: Pieces of Me
Genre: Contemporary MG

When her mother dies, 13 y.o. Frannie is left with a box of letters, one disgruntled grandmother,two tickets to Italy and a lot of unanswered questions.

First Prize Winners (will be sending Pete the first 10,000 words of their manuscript, and will also get personalized feedback on their query!):

Rachel
Title: VIOLENT DELIGHTS
Genre: YA dark contemporary

It's Heathers meets Before I Fall in a non-linear timeline when popular Jenna falls for outcast Cass and everything starts to unravel - her parents' marriage, her friendships, maybe even her sanity...

Rita Russell
THE TROUBLE WITH QUEENIE
Funny, realistic middle grade fiction

Queenie, a quirky and impulsive ten year old girl with ADHD, moves across the country from small town Ontario to glitzy West Vancouver, where she desperately wants to be popular, but her outrageous behaviour constantly lands her into BIG trouble.

Mindy Alyse Weiss
Ruby Bella Brown, Super Average Girl
Humorous MG

An eleven year-old cartoonist would eat worms or kiss a gross boy like Stinky to make sure this birthday isn’t another suck-a-rama—but is forced to choose between her dream of art camp or avoiding another ditch-a-thon and helping her friend.

Lisa Rosenman
Title: Outside In
Genre: Contemporary YA

Underneath Alexis's perfect facade lies a mess of self-inflicted cuts and bruises; if she's discovered, she'll get kicked out of her elite boarding school.

Carter Higgins
Title: A Rambler Steals Home
Genre: MG Contemporary

Derby's fractured family rolls their food truck to the Rockskippers' minor league baseball stadium each summer, but since Franklin Mattingly, the beloved head groundskeeper, has died since last season, she and Franklin's widow June need each other to lay down some new roots.

Honorable Mentions (Pete would welcome the chance to review these queries and see them in his inbox!): 

Kimberly Ann Miller
Title: Case In Point
Genre: young adult contemporary

An eighteen-year-old girl who writes an anonymous column for her school paper gets death threats when she reports that a teacher is pregnant by a senior. 

Artemis Grey
Title: GONE MISSING GIRL
Genre: Contemporary YA

Shy albino Ansel prefers books to people but when an injured runaway shows up in his shed, he readily offers her help, unaware that he’s befriending a missing millionaire heiress who’s father will stop at nothing to get her back in a psych ward where he thinks she belongs. 

Andrea Mack
THE ETHAN PROJECT
Contemporary MG

Twelve-year-old Molly plans to help her mom de-stress by getting her mute 5-yr-old mute cousin to talk, but her dedication to her project could cost Molly her best friend and destroy her fragile family. 

Robin Lemke
Talk to the Paw
MG Contemporary

Kendra can't make all the unfair things about her family come untrue, but when her vengeful neighbor comes for her dog with a breed ban and a muzzle, she knows it's her fight to win... or lose - and she can't lose her dog. 

Sheri S Levy
Title: Dog Days of Summer
Genre: MG Contemporary 

"Almost-twelve" Trina had the perfect plan on becoming the best service dog trainer ever, until their time together ends with her beach trip and causes her to wonder if her heart can be pieced together like a jigsaw puzzle and allow her to train another. 

Liz Straw
Title: Mystery of the Fountain
Genre: MG Mystery

11 year old Jessie discovers that her mom has been dating her grade school art teacher behind her back, has her bike stolen, and discovers that someone is hiding something in the town fountain all in one day. 

Congratulations to all the winners! Look for an email from Operation Awesome to be sent later today with instructions on how to get your requested material to Pete! And I know this is already a long post, but you want to know more about this agent, don't you? He kindly answered some questions for us.

1)What MG or YA books have you read lately that you fell in love with (your clients' or not)?
Well, of course my own clients’ books are at the top of my list – but it’s too soon to talk about any of that. But as for other people’s books: I read Bill Konigsberg’s forthcoming Openly Straight (Arthur A. Levine Books, summer 2013), which made me weep in public. I am still talking about Kat Zhang’s What’s Left of Me (HarperCollins) and I went on a Courtney Summers kick recently.

2)You're a proud nerd who's worked in the film industry--what are some of your favorite movies and TV shows?
Homeland and My So Called Life, not only because I love Claire Danes. Downton Abbey pretty reliably has me yelling at the screen, which is a good thing and a bad thing. For comedy: Freaks & Geeks, Parks & Rec, Wonder Years. I love animal movies – Carroll Ballard’s films and Out of Africa and Born Free. I love all of Studio Ghibli’s films, especially Whisper of the Heart and Kiki’s Delivery Service. I love Pedro Almodóvar’s films and Superbad and The Talented Mr. Ripley and Michael Clayton and American Graffiti and Gosford Park. I cast a wide net with film.

3)Any tips for writers struggling with their one-line pitch?
Look at other loglines or one line pitches on IMDB or the deals page of Publishers Marketplace. I read for character as much as premise, so I look for one-line pitches that convey a character-driven story while establishing the world and stakes. What is the emotional heart of your story? The part that makes it not just a good idea but a fantastic book? You have to make that promise in your one-line pitch.

4)Do you have any exciting agency news to share?
Check back soon!