Serendipity Literary Agency

[James D. Macdonald]

Looking for information about the Serendipity Literary Agency:

http://www.serendipitylit.com/

 

[RoccoMom]

Well, I queried them a few months ago regarding my diva ms. Ms. Brooks responded with a chatty email stating she was an avid soap watcher but chick lit was so hard to sell, could my ms be marketed under women's fiction.

I responded yes and I never heard another word. This was back in April.

Take from that what you will.

 

[ixchel]

I sent her a snail mail query, she requested a full. I sent it off in June. I haven't hear anything back yet.

 

[victoriastrauss]

As far as I know this is a boutique-style agency with an African-American focus and a track record proportionate to its size. No complaints or other negatives that I'm aware of.

- Victoria

 

[FloVoyager]

I haven't heard anything bad about her, but info on her web site makes me wonder if being a literary agent is her primary focus. She seems involved in so many things. And her degree is actually in aerospace engineering. Still, one could always try and see what happens. Like I said, I haven't heard anything bad.

 

[KCathy]

Serendipity Literary Agency just called--too good to be true?

I know I'm horribly cynical, but can anyone tell me about Serendipity Literary Agency, Regina Brooks (president), or Debarati Sengupta? The reasons I'm nervous instead of excited are:

- Ms. Sengupta called me this morning because I hadn't responded to an email she sent yesterday afternoon.
- She said she wanted to see a full manuscript. When I explained that I'd sent a proposal (including a book introduction and two sample chapters that total 95 pages in addition to the 20-page proposal itself) because it's a non-fiction work, she seemed surprised. "You haven't finished the manuscript yet?" Am I just being ignorant here? I thought that was normal for non-fiction. Maybe she got that idea from the fact that my synopsis listed all the women who will be contributing their first-person stories to each chapter?
- I thought maybe I was not explaining what I meant or that her words (full proposal/full manuscript) might have gotten confused, and when I asked if I'd sent a query or proposal, she said that oh, yes, they did have a proposal, but she wanted to look over it and would call me back "immediately." I guess it's always possible that she saw that enormous pile of paper and assumed it was a completed book.

I'm getting a definite too-good-to-be-true or at least too-fast-to-be-true vibe from all this, but any googling I've done seems to support the legitimacy of the agency (small, but I had approached them because they repped the author of Dr. Spock's pregnancy book). Brooks apparently speaks at conferences and I found them through agentquery.com in the first place.

Here's the website: http://www.serendipitylit.com/

Here's the email (my spaminator was holding it hostage, which is why I hadn't noticed it previously):

"Thank you for sending your query for 101 Birth Stories by Real Women to Help You Plan Your
Labor to Serendipity. I am happy to say that we have taken an initial interest in your
manuscript. Therefore, if you have not yet acquired representation, please send us a copy
of your work for our further consideration. Our address is Serendipity Literary Agency,
LLC 305 Gates Ave Brooklyn, NY 11216. In case you want to send it by snail mail, please
mark REQUESTED MANUSCRIPT in red ink on the envelope/box. However, I would prefer that you
email the manuscript to me, in case you have an electronic version.

"We look forward to reading your work.

"Debarati Sengupta

"Assistant Agent
"Serendipity Literary Agency"

 

[zizban]

I looked them up and their authors...they have a niche. Seem OK to me.

 

[CaoPaux]

Small, niche, no complaints so far.

 

[KCathy]

Oh, thank you for the link to the post here--I searched, honest, but I probably didn't find it because of the spelling (Serendipty vs. Serendipity). Sorry to bug you guys with a double-up!

 

[CaoPaux]

May I ask what level of search and string you used? It's spelled correctly in the Index, so the search function should have pointed you there, at the very least.

 

[KCathy]

First I tried the basic drop-down Search feature, but when the entire first two pages were a list of posts about unexpected good things happening, I went to the Advanced Search option. From there I typed in "serendipity" and chose "Bewares and Background Checks" from the drop-down box for the forums. I got three posts, none of which were about the specific agency.

What do you mean by it being spelled correctly in the Index? Are you referring to the title of the post? The title has the "ipty" spelling, too. Anyway, I'm sorry that I missed it, but I did spend a solid five minutes digging around before posting, honest.

Thanks to whomever joined these threads! Is there a way to change the title of the original post by Mr. Macdonald, just in case anyone in the future has trouble finding it because of the spelling?

 

[Kasey Mackenzie]

What do you mean by it being spelled correctly in the Index? Are you referring to the title of the post? The title has the "ipty" spelling, too. Anyway, I'm sorry that I missed it, but I did spend a solid five minutes digging around before posting, honest.

Thanks to whomever joined these threads! Is there a way to change the title of the original post by Mr. Macdonald, just in case anyone in the future has trouble finding it because of the spelling?

Yep, it's spelled wrong in the title of this thread, as well as in the first line of Uncle Jim's post. I assume it was just a typo leaving out one of the "i's" inadvertently. =)

 

[victoriastrauss]

Yep, it's spelled wrong in the title of this thread

Fixed!

- Victoria

 

[CaoPaux]

What do you mean by it being spelled correctly in the Index? Are you referring to the title of the post? The title has the "ipty" spelling, too. Anyway, I'm sorry that I missed it, but I did spend a solid five minutes digging around before posting, honest.

The Index: http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=792 (It's stickied to the top of the forum as "Index to Agents, Publishers, and Others").

 

[KCathy]

Yep, Cao, when I re-did the search just now to see how I managed to miss it, there was the index a third of the way down page 2 of the search results. My best guess is that I was just scanning for the words "Serendipity Literary" in the post titles and rushed right past it. I'm sorry for not engaging more of my brain in the dig and for just not knowing about the index in the first place. Thanks for all the help!

 

[CaoPaux]

No prob. We had some trouble with Search after one move of the board, and I fret over it cutting out again. *fret, fret*

 

[seaaircarol]

Has anyone ever gotten a response from using Serendipity's online form? I tried a couple of times in the past w/o ever receiving a response. Eternal optimist that I am, I tried again today with my new middle grade novel. Thanks.

 

[honeycomb]

Has anyone worked with Serendipity? I got a request to submit the first 15 pages of my ms and was asked to wait 6-8 weeks.

 

[victoriastrauss]

Desperateauthor, before you post a question about an agent, please check the Index to be sure there's not already a thread on the agent. Thanks!

- Victoria

 

[honeycomb]

Guichard Cadet

Has anyone heard of or worked with Guichard Cadet from Serendipity?

 

[batgirl]

I googled the name Guichard Cadet, and after five pages all I'd found was mentions of him as an author (and occasional editor) published with La Caille Nous.
Googling with 'agent' brought up the PM listing, and a profile here with a resume that might be interesting to analyse, for someone with more background and knowledge than I have.
And a mention of him - again associated with LCN - on this poet's interview.
"I prayed a specific prayer. I prayed for a publisher that would understand my past and my goals for the future. I prayed for a publisher who would champion my vision because it was their vision.. I prayed for a publisher that was socially and culturally responsible. God sent La Caille Nous and Guichard Cadet"

-Barbara (not analysing)

 

[KCathy]

Just a little update here. The details are a bit fuzzy in my head after all this time, but the basic time frame and responses are accurate.

After a couple of emails back and forth, she didn't contact me for a couple of months. I emailed to point out that I had a new website and that I hoped that might influence her decision. She answered that she had been busy at a book convention but would look at things when she got back.

After a couple more weeks of nothing, I emailed to very, very politely remind her, with a sentence or two about understanding how hard it can be to keep up with email after a big trip like that. Two or three months later I emailed to tell her that I had a new blog and guestbook set up, which also received no response.

All my emails were extremely polite, understanding, and undemanding to the point of self-deprecation, and all were sent from and to the same email address for each of us.

My last email from her was on Jaunuary 15th, 2008, so it's probably safe to say that she isn't interested. I think it would have been more kind and professional for her to tell me so, but it's always possible that she didn't because she never quite decided not to reject me, lost sight of my file, asked a flaky secretary to handle me, or simply got busy at the wrong time. So take from my experience what you will. I haven't been scarred for life and she has clearly done well by others.

 

[Phantom Writer]

Got my "R" on my full back from Regina today. It wasn't a form letter, it was very nice and well worded, but still an "R".

 

[honeysock]

Has anyone had any recent dealings with them? Got a request for a full today after I had long since crossed them off as "no response."

 

[rifferaff]

They've got a new agent: Folade Bell

She is seeking: literary, upmarket and commercial women’s fiction with a strong sense of story, voice and character; funny and relatable fiction; Daring YA books that showcase a fresh, unique perspective; literary mysteries/thrillers that aren’t formulaic or market saturated, contemporary historical fiction, African-American issues, gay/lesbian, Christian fiction, humor and books that deeply explore other cultures. No subject is out-of-bounds. She loves nonfiction that reads like fiction. Feel free to approach her with ideas adapted from blogs or websites with new views on pop culture.

http://www.guidetoliteraryagents.com/blog/New+Agent+Alert+Folad%C3%A9+Bell+Of+Serendipity+Literary+Agency.aspx