Not sure of its place in the market

hikarinotsubasa · Feb 6, 2015

I'm between agents, and getting this a lot (on fulls, once on a partial... I wouldn't think anything of it with a query): "Not sure of its place in the market," "Not sure how I would sell it." I got that same response from agents passing when I nudged with an offer of rep the first time.

My concept is a bit odd. However, I know there's at least one editor at a Big 5 house whose MSWL seems to match EXACTLY, and I've got my own little sub list of small-but-reputable publishers who do similar things (bookstore distribution level, these are pubs that agents DO sell to, even though they're not Big 5), to try if no agent bites. So, I'm a little confused about these "not sure of its place" comments. Does that kind of feedback seem honest, or just a way to say "I didn't like it"?

I have had a couple of agents tell me that they actually didn't like it, politely and kindly, and give reasons that made sense, even if I didn't agree enough to want to revise. And the agents who have said "not sure of its place" have ALSO said really nice things, indicating that they've read at least beyond the first ten from the query. It's wonderfully unique, but not sure of its place. Love your MCs motivation, but not sure of its place. Great worldbuilding, not sure of its place (the comments were most specific than that, but GENUINELY NICE things specific to my MS a lot of the time).

I'm torn. If they're being honest, if it really is a good book, but just a little too "different," then that means I might do well with one of those small presses or self-pubbing (although it would probably always kill me to know that I had no way of getting in touch with the perfect-MSWL editor). If that's just the full rejection version of "Great concept but opening pages didn't grab me" (which a couple agents use as a form, but you'd never know it if you weren't on Query Tracker!).... then maybe I need to shelve it.

I don't know... does anyone else get this so often that they start to wonder if it might be semi-form? Or does this seem like legitimate.... criticism isn't even the word, but... a legitimate concern?

Treehouseman · Feb 6, 2015

I think sadly that there can be Big Book Blindness with authors (myself included) where we can fail to see the genre of our own work because we're so enmeshed in it.

I thought I was writing an Epic Fantasy - so hot right now - but my agent tells me it's really Science Fiction, and a difficult sell. But but but...

But I'm too close to tell, I guess.

Marlys · Feb 6, 2015

Well, if there is just one big house editor who might be interested, that could keep agents from being interested enough to sign you--they might prefer something more obviously commercial that they can pitch to a number of editors. And the agents who sell to the smaller houses quite possibly signed those books with the hope of selling them to a bigger publisher. So I could see agents being reluctant.

This probably isn't the only manuscript you'll ever write, right? One possibility is to shelve this novel and write another. If you can sell the next work--either to a small publisher, or with an agent's help to a larger one--you might be in a better position to reach that big house editor with the first novel.

Usher · Feb 6, 2015

My book apparently has "much to admire"; "written with verve and panache"; "Dynamic and original characters" but it's an epic fantasy set on a world which is roughly contemporary to our own so apparently has no market.

Agents have to make money too. So my option seems to be self publishing especially as I had no problem finding people who loved reading it.

I think it's a common experience.

hikarinotsubasa · Feb 6, 2015

Thanks for the feedback! I'm not sure that there is ONLY one Big 5 editor who would be interested... most editors who don't take unagented submissions don't make their wish lists public, so I have no idea. I know that there is at least one, though, who has mentioned wanting things that apply to my MS. There may be others. My previous agent (who quit before we went on submission) had a list of imprints, not of individual editors... she thought there would be some interest, at least, but since we never went out, I don't know.

Usher, your book sounds really interesting. It's so frustrating... I'm not sure that readers would be against that concept!

I'm keeping self-publishing in mind... but I'm also aware that marketing and publicity are not necessarily my strengths, and there is still VERY much a stigma attached to it. Knowing that I'd only be able to get reviews and any other kind of exposure from blogs that are specifically about only self-pubbed authors, and knowing also that I won't really be a full "peer" of my traditionally published friends.... as well as being professionally edited and everything, of course... there are lots of reasons why (even though I do LOVE and ADMIRE a lot of self-pubbed authors and WISH that they got more recognition), I would prefer not to if there's any alternative.

Fuchsia Groan · Feb 6, 2015

I think it's impossible to know for sure what those comments mean. For one agent it could be "Love it, but I don't think this fits a market niche right now." For another it could be "Meh" or "Liked it, didn't love it." Too many possibilities.

If they're not giving you feedback that would help you revise, I would keep querying, but work on something new. The market changes quickly and often. If you don't get another agent or decide to self-publish, I'd keep an eye on trends in your genre and keep this ms. in reserve. Maybe the editor on MSWL is an outlier with idiosyncratic tastes, OR maybe that editor is the first one to jump on a new trend that others don't see coming. It's so hard to know.

Bryan Methods · Feb 7, 2015

I don't think it's necessarily something that should stop you submitting or require a large rewrite. What doesn't seem to have a place in the market right now could easily be hot stuff next month. Perhaps when querying you could hint at other books in a similar sort of space that have been successful?

Jamesaritchie · Feb 7, 2015

I believe it's best to just keep submitting a book until it finds someone who believe sin it, but you need another book, or two, ready to go long before you run out of places to submit the one that's already out.

If you can find only one big name writer, at one large publisher, that has something like your book, there may, indeed, be no market for it. Big name writers have the advantage of proving they can sell, so publishers let them try pretty much anything.

The question is how well the books is selling. If it makes a huge splash, lands at the top of the bestseller list, and has everyone talking about it, then it should help your book find a home. But if it isn't selling like that, even from a big name writer, then it will work strongly against your book.

blacbird · Feb 8, 2015

I don't have the first clue where anything I write fits in any market. I have a query out to the largest literary agency in the Andromeda Galaxy, but they haven't responded yet.

caw

Moonchild · Feb 13, 2015

hikarinotsubasa said:
I have had a couple of agents tell me that they actually didn't like it, politely and kindly, and give reasons that made sense, even if I didn't agree enough to want to revise. And the agents who have said "not sure of its place" have ALSO said really nice things, indicating that they've read at least beyond the first ten from the query. It's wonderfully unique, but not sure of its place. Love your MCs motivation, but not sure of its place. Great worldbuilding, not sure of its place (the comments were most specific than that, but GENUINELY NICE things specific to my MS a lot of the time).

Yup. It's like I'm reading the story of my feedback to date. :Shrug:

In my case, I knew my book was a bit on the niche-y side, not high-concept, best-sellerish. But still, if we keep getting positive feedback about story elements, character voice/motivation/fill-in-the-blank, plus good reactions to the writing itself, it's just so frustrating not to be able to get past that.

We're totally on the same boat: I'm also starting to wonder if this agent search is a waste of time and I should have just targeted small presses to start with. The thing is, I'd really love to have someone on my team to help me or guide me with the business side of things, and I thought my ms was strong enough to attract the right person to do that. Alas, that has not happened yet.

Then again, I do still have a handful of fulls and partials out there, so who knows?

Not sure of its place in the market

hikarinotsubasa

Human, last I checked

Treehouseman

Marlys

Resist. Love. Go outside.

Usher

hikarinotsubasa

Human, last I checked

Fuchsia Groan

Becoming a laptop-human hybrid

Bryan Methods

Jamesaritchie

blacbird

Moonchild

I write fluff and that's OK.