Founder & Agent @HeadwaterLit. Host of the award-winning @printrunpodcast. AALA member. Publishers Weekly industry MVP. She/her & Ms/Mx. Open to queries!
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May 30, 2023 • 17 tweets • 3 min read
I've been at my desk for 22 minutes and I've already received TWO notices of offers from querying writers, so let's talk about it real quick!
It's my favorite thing when a writer tells me they've got an offer from another agent bc it marks a turning point--but I'm not talking about their career. I'm talking about how this is the point where all the agents drop the pretense that the writer isn't the one in power.
Sep 30, 2022 • 12 tweets • 2 min read
Okay buckle up friends I’m feeling spicy. What the FUCK is this nonsense? Let us count the 🚩
1) listing cumulative degrees in the signature instead of having actual real bios on their website OR (1.5) any evidence of previous mentorship or sales
It’s in a writer’s best interest to let all other agents know they have an offer on the table—you can compare (potential) agents and better get exactly what will work best for you.
Feb 7, 2022 • 29 tweets • 5 min read
As promised, here's a thread on word counts! I won't be dipping my toes into the specific conflict that inspired this thread, so think of this instead as more of a Beginner's Guide to Word counts!
Word counts are one of the first things a writer will learn about when they start looking into the publishing side of the business of writing. Not because it's a definitive rule, but because it's easy to list and teach, and it's a pretty basic metric (most) professionals agree on
Dec 6, 2021 • 29 tweets • 4 min read
I'm starting my morning with a gigantic pot of tea and my slush pile, so let's talk about queries for a few minutes!
Every query needs a metadata paragraph, where you tell an agent the data (material information) about your data (the book itself). Most of this metadata is super easy to provide...
Oct 7, 2021 • 15 tweets • 1 min read
I've been talking with authors a lot about how they're frustrated that writing in a panini isn't getting easier. So here is my guide to writing in a global pandemic/when life is hard and uncertain/in late-stage capitalism/in a climate crisis:
Write your 1) most marketable idea 2) as best as you can 3) as fast as you can
Sep 22, 2021 • 21 tweets • 4 min read
I'm making the curry from That Episode of @printrunpodcast today and in honor of that, let me do a quick thread on agents and their biggest red flags!
An agent/agency should NEVER ask an author for money. Not for reading. Not for submission. Not for marketing.
Jul 30, 2021 • 25 tweets • 4 min read
I drank too much tea and can now hear my heartbeat in my ears, so instead of sending nice, measured emails, let’s do a quick thread on manuscript word counts!
Every book genre (and category) has industry-standard word count ranges.
Before we go further, what this does NOT mean: your book will automatically be thrown out if you’re a few hundred words outside this range
Jul 23, 2021 • 36 tweets • 6 min read
Up early going through queries with a huge pot of tea. I'm thinking, as always, of different ways to make querying easier and more successful for all kinds of writers.
I think a lot of writers find hard-and-fast rules about querying useful. But many don't. (thread)
In teaching queries, I've embraced a method of teaching "best practices", which allows for an author to intentionally deviate from the rules, with the understanding that such deviation should be logical and necessary in communicating the reality of your project
Apr 28, 2021 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
I’m not going to RT the biphobic YA take but a bi person is literally never in a “straight” relationship. Every relationship they have is queer. Even a relationship they might have with someone of a different gender is still going to be very, very different from a hetero one!
“This bi woman has only ever been in relationship with men!” Well guess what, they’re still not straight, and their relationships still aren’t straight.
Mar 2, 2021 • 19 tweets • 5 min read
Okay, because I'm having some Feelings about this, let's talk about how to circumvent different ways publishing weaponizes #ownvoices and creator identities:
First, there are many agents and editors calling for #ownvoices in their subs. Ideally, this means this person is open to various (and non-monolithic) marginalized experiences--feel free to sub to them with or without mentioning #ownvoices or self-identifying...
Dec 2, 2020 • 10 tweets • 2 min read
When authors grossly misbehave online and put marginalized people at risk, @erikhane and I always talk about what we would do if we were their agents. How do we help repair the harm done, and leave publishing better than how we found it?
In most cases, a very clear, correct move is to drop the author, but it's not for the reason you might think. It's not an agent's role to punish an author for bad behavior, and we're not their bosses. We drop someone to reject our complicity in racist power structures.
Sep 16, 2020 • 26 tweets • 4 min read
Okay, I've become aware that a lot of American writers on here don't know about taxes for their business (writing is your business!) so I'm going to do a lil thread on the subject.
DISCLAIMER: Your financial situation is unique, and you're best served by taking this rough overview and talking to a certified accountant, particularly one who specializes in working with freelancers/artists.
Sep 2, 2020 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
I thought I was getting just getting a chair. Now, my husband is on hour two of arranging furniture in two (2) rooms so the chair can be *optimally placed*, rearranging art, and shopping for rugs and shelving to make a "cozy nook"
Folks, I sacrificed my guest bookshelf for this (kinda--it just moved into the office and blended with another themed bookshelf)
Sep 1, 2020 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
I'm getting a new armchair this afternoon and am fully expecting my entire life to change
It is a La-Z-Boy from Craigslist and it might be blue or gray, I honestly have no idea
Aug 31, 2020 • 11 tweets • 2 min read
A lot of people have mentioned that their query lists are super small because they want to be sure they’re working with someone safe. So let’s do a quick thread on how to still query effectively with a smaller list!
First, you must always remember that querying is a numbers game—all you need is one yes, and you will never be able to guarantee you won’t get form rejections (and many might not have anything to do with something you did)!
Aug 23, 2020 • 4 tweets • 1 min read
It’s feels like a sauna outside and I’m thinking fondly about the time my husband got into a Facebook fight with a Southern woman who didn’t believe that anyone actually drove on the highway when snow was on the ground (it was a death trap, apparently)
I would pay to drive through a snowstorm right now
Aug 17, 2020 • 20 tweets • 4 min read
As an agent who is closed to queries and desperately trying to get through her slush pile (s/o to QueryManager for the incredible self-own that is the stats homepage) I've been thinking about how tech like this is influencing querying, for better and worse. (thread)
First, an explanation for those not in the know: QueryManager is a free (!) online service that allows agents to manage all their queries outside of their inbox. It has flags and letter grades and tags, etc. When I'm in the mood to read romance I can filter my subs! How neat!
Jul 27, 2020 • 10 tweets • 2 min read
I want to share a story that's been on my mind lately. It's a story that's been told to me many times, in many different ways. It's the story of the Rondo neighborhood in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Rondo was a neighborhood that sat right in the heart of Minnesota's capital city. It was a middle-class black neighborhood. In the late 1950s, Rondo was targeted, like many black neighborhoods across the country, by the urban renewal movement.
Jul 27, 2020 • 5 tweets • 1 min read
I’m rearranging my big bookshelf this week and I’ve decided to get rid of my Harry Potter books.
I grew up with HP, but more importantly, I grew up Jewish in an LGBT+ household and JKR’s bigotry, both latent and deliberate, will have no lasting place on my shelves
I’m lucky that HP didn’t play a primary role in my reading life as a teen. This is not a life-changing sacrifice for me, especially after years of growing discomfort with the author.
Jul 20, 2020 • 23 tweets • 5 min read
I woke up super early and was going through my queries because none of the pets wanted to hang out with me (and also capitalism) and I wanted to talk for a minute about how agents talk about queries on social media (#querytip)
Many agents, myself included, have built up our brands/social media platforms talking about queries (see my #500queries as an example). And sometimes, the tips are honestly helpful, or they shine a light on an otherwise murky process. Plus, it's quick and easy to do!
