Close readers of this Substack will know that I have been working on a new novel called YOUR MILEAGE MAY VARY. I started to query literary agents about it last month and by now, I’ve queried 15 agents and three small presses, and received two rejections from agents and one rejection from a small press.
For my first novel, ACTS OF LOVINGKINDNESS, I queried 95 agents and small presses from 2023—which was way too early—through early 2025, although by early 2025, I’d already decided to publish the book on my own.
How do you know who to query? Well, you think about books that are like yours (“comps”) and you find out who those authors’ agents are. Having started out as a screenwriter, the difference between screenwriting agents versus literary agents was stark. Screenwriting agents, if you are somehow able to even track down their contact information, never, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, ever, etc., etc., want you to send them an unsolicited screenplay. There are all sorts of legal concerns around this—what if, just by coincidence, they happen to have a film in development with a very similar plot to yours? How can you prove that they did not steal your idea? You cannot.
But literary agents put their information on the Internet and ask you to send them your information—your query letter; your bio; your first five pages, ten pages, three chapters, what have you. They often have a Manuscript Wishlist, where you can read a bit more about them and the kind of books they like and what they are looking for.
Here you will read the word “voice” or “voicey” about a million times. You will read about literary agents’ extremely specific interests for books, along the lines of (and I’m only slightly paraphrasing here):
I would love a middle grade novel about children who go on adventures on trains or maybe even covered wagons and solve crimes, and also someone has a disability, but the disability does not exist to teach anybody about anything
Something with “cool girl” vibes
Dark academia, but no one dies and no religious themes and no older professors taking advantage of younger students
It’s great information, if sometimes overwhelming and/or ridiculous. How much dark academia can we really read? Some of you are probably wondering, what even is dark academia? To that I say, go read The Secret History.
I’d like to draw your attention to the title of this post, however. I apply for many, many things: jobs, writing residencies and fellowships, and now, I’m kind of applying for a literary agent. I have been rejected many, many times. I appreciate it when someone takes the time to send the rejection—technically, I’m still waiting to be rejected from a few of those literary agents from two years ago! You like a little closure.
But I think the only way you can make it in this business, and it is a business, is to realize that the rejection is not about you. It’s not even about your writing, although it may feel that way to you, because you have poured your heart and soul into your manuscript. The literary agents may want dark academia all the livelong day until one day, the tide has turned, and dark academia is no longer selling, and your manuscript that is Ninth House meets My Dark Vanessa with a dash of The Basic Eight is never going to get you that agent.
So dust yourself off and try again. Publish your dark academia novel yourself. Write your next book and query the agents again, but know you can publish that one yourself, too. I like to have a few stories going at one time—one I’m actively writing, and a few I’m collecting ideas and notes for.
And tell me, what are your strategies for writing? How do you feel about dark academia? How do you handle rejection? Tell me in the comments!
Comments
Nothing yet. Say the first thing.
Sign in to join the conversation.