Need Advice on Where to Go Next!

Literary fiction is normally a hard sell -- much harder than established genres. Publishing is still a business, so the publishers or agents are looking at something that is not only well written and great, but also marketable, and "lit fic" is the hardest to sell -- so it needs something more than just "great writing." A unique concept that makes people go "wow, I've got to read this"? Hot topics (e.g. the Kite Runner came about the time when Afghanistan was on everyone's tongue). So on a so forth. It all depends, of course. Something one agent thinks he/she can't sell, another agent may realize "wow, I have an editor looking for just that."

Sometimes it's just being at the right place at the right time.

How many agents/publishers have you submitted? I hope you aren't going to say "just those two." The thing is, you need to keep sending it out and hopefully it will lend on the lap of someone's who's enthusiastic about your book. Susan Gruen had over 120 submissions before she found a boutique agent who was enthusiastic enough about her book.

When you ask "should I self-publish" my first thought is, here we go again. As soon as a write hits a brick wall, the first instinct for him is to self-publish (and by self-publishing they also don't mean starting their own companies, but instead they mean "vanity" publishing, which seldom achieves the results they want anyway). My question is: How many agents and publishers have you approach? Have you exhausted your list yet? If not, you're not done. Why quit so easily and early?

FYI, it took me over 60 rejections before I found two publishers. Frustrating? Yes. But I learned so much from the process. Now, I'm ready to shop my new novel around, and I'm prepared.

proudtobedad said:

Hey everyone,

For my first novel (literary fiction with a gay lead), I've been going down the traditional publishing path, querying agents (and a few publishers), and am now stuck.

I've had two very well-respected industry folks read my novel and tell me essentially the same thing. Here is one direct quote from an indie publisher (who would be the ideal publisher for a book like mine):

"Fiction these days is a challenge for everyone. It's not a gay thing but a fiction thing. There's so much out there and getting attention is a real task. Even on my first list I'm doing just three novels out of 13 titles and spring 2012 looks as though it might be the same. This isn't at all a reflection of my interest in novels but the care I need to take in forming a bankable list."
​

An agent who read my manuscript reps a Pulitzer-winner and had this to say:

"I read your novel and thought it might be a good fit for another agent here, who then took a look. That agent also liked it, but had previously had a lot of trouble with a very similar book and is just not prepared to try again. I think your writing is funny and contemporary, but I did not find myself with great instincts on selling it. It’s quite a difficult market."
​

So, my question is this: If literary fiction is a crowded field these days, and these two industry icons don't know what to do with my book, does it even make sense for a first time novelist to continue to try this route?

Most of the agents I've queried have not been interested in even reading a sample. (And, yes, my query has been fully vetted! ) And even I were to find one, if this is truly the state of literary fiction, would they then be able to sell it???

Click to expand...

These two quotes read like the writing is publishable but the actual plot/story might not be. But it's only two people's opinions, and I don't think you can know anthing definitively off two opinions. Have you queried every agent you'd consider working with? You can't know if it's "worth it" until you actually try.

If what you are hearing is this is good and I was tempted but I don't love it enough to try to sell it, or I'm not sure it could stand out in a crowded market, then you have nothing to lose by querying more except time. And why rush it? What will a few more months worth of querying really cost you?

But you have more fundamental questions to answer for yourself. What do you want? And which path is going to give you the best chance to get there?

If you want to be published by a large trade publisher or a well-known independent press, then it seems to me you should exhaust your avenues to that goal, before considering self-publishing.

But that is your call to make.

Having said that, if you do decide to pursue more agents, you'd be advised *not* to pursue publishers at the same time. You might very well find an agent only to have them lose interest because you've burned too many possible publishers by trying to shop it yourself.

But two people's opinions are just that - two people's opinions.

proudtobedad said:

Given my experience in promotion and marketing, I'm now strongly considering self-publishing (and am well aware of the pitfalls of that.)

If you were me, would you continue hitting up publishers, given what I'm hearing about the world of literary fiction? Continue to look for an agent? Or dive into self-publishing?

Any and all advice would be appreciated!

Thanks!

Click to expand...

What to do depends on where you are.

Have you queried every agent with which you would consider working? If not, then I'd do that, if it were me. But I wanted a respected trade publisher. And I was willing to put in the time to try to find an agent and connect with one.

Someone else might say screw that, if you have the contacts and accept the risks, then that person might say they'd self-publish now. And that would be their valid decision for them.

The thing is, you need to decide what you want. And then make a calculated decision on what has the best chance of getting you to that point. And not get impatient.

Two people's opinions wouldn't cause me to stop if I had other possible persons I wanted to query. But that's me.

~suki

Have you tried GLBT-specific agents and publishers?

I know you probably want this to be more "general fiction" or even litfic instead of categorized as "gay book" but for the sake of marketing it may not be a bad thing to sell this as a GLBT genre.

proudtobedad said:

I've focused on those agents who specify such on AgentQuery, but really haven't for publishers. I was hoping one of the agents would bite, but now I'm thinking of going straight to the publishers...

Click to expand...

It may not be a bad idea, especially for niche lit fic. Definitely before you even remotely consider self-pub.

proudtobedad said:

Would it make sense, if I exhaust my agent list, to just focus on publishers??? I know, should I find an agent, they'd likely take issue with that, but I'm just not sure an agent would look at my book as marketable.

Any thoughts? (And thanks for ALL feedback!)

Click to expand...

Yes, if you exhaust your list of potential agents, then you have nothing to lose by going directly to reputable publishers.

But...make sure you vet the publishers as hard as you did the agents - maybe harder. Because there are a lot of folks out there calling themselves small publishers or cooperatives etc. who aren't going to position you any better off than you would be if you really did your homework on self-publishing.

Any press you consider, you need to see - are their books in bookstores? If not, well-positioned online, with the ability to fill store orders with favorable terms, etc? Who actually does the editing and design, etc.?

If it's a barely off the ground "press" or someone doing it on their own with little to no experience, and lacking distribution, you might be better off on your own - contracting for all the editing and design services, etc.

So, do your homework. Make sure you know what you are getting and what you are giving up and that the people making you promises can back them up.

good luck!

~suki

maestrowork said:

Definitely before you even remotely consider self-pub.

Click to expand...

Definitely before you even consider self-pub.

I am having the same trouble with my memoir and once I exhaust all my options with agents, I shall try indie publishers and if I get nowhere, I'm trying agents and then publishers in Taiwan, mainland China and India (my book has very strong American, Chinese and Indian elements).

What i'm saying is, I'm not even considering self-pub at the moment.

Did you ever read the novel Faggots by Larry Kramer? Published in 1978. There’s a Wikipedia entry on it. Sounds as if it might be similar to your manuscript. It’s one of the best novels I ever read, primarily because of the voice. Reading it not only opened my eyes to a place and culture I knew nothing about, but also showed me how individualized and smart and sharp voice can be. And I believe it was quite a commercial success.

When reading the following comments, take into consideration that I’m not published, likely never will be, and there’s a good chance that I don’t know what I’m talking about. I read the home page of your website, and to me, there was some awkwardness to your writing. I say that not just to be critical, but to suggest that for unpublished writers our writing not only has to be sharp, but razor-edged. So, have you had your manuscript read by others, and have you revised and re-revised it until the writing is so sharp that touching the computer screen draws blood? And is the voice of your POV character as colorful and interesting as that of Fred Lemish?

I hope I haven’t offended you, but when I read your post it made me think of one of my favorite novels, and I felt a great urge to comment. Good luck.

another option would be to wait until January of next year, when Amazon starts up it's breakthrough novel award contest again. if you make it to a certain point, your manuscript will receive a review from publishers weekly. i know several people who, though they did not win the contest, got a great pw review, included that in their previously unsuccessful query letters, got an agent, and had their manuscripts sold to a major publishing house.

good luck with whatever you decide to do!

If you really feel you can tackle the marketing on your own, I've heard great things about CreateSpace.com. It's a site that allows you to publish the book on your own, design your own typeset and cover, and sell the book on Amazon.com.

Personally, this is my last resort. I decided that if I didn't have an agent in six months, and no indie publishers wanted anything to do with me, then I'd publish it myself on this site and do all the publicizing and marketing myself.

I didn't read the entire thread, but how long have you had queries/submissions out? An author friend who's published seven or so novels used this method for his latest book, and had great things to say about it, but didn't turn to it until every agent told him no way.

Just a thought. For me at least, I love the idea of having total control over all the artistic things, like the cover art and book jacket.