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ALD Literary Agency (Leonid Dubizhansky)

brandercolby

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Hi all,

Does anybody know anything about Mr. Dubizhansky or ALD? Thanks!

-BC
 

Soccer Mom

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Just adding a link.

http://www.aldliterary.com/


Major huge red flag on his website:'

After years spent for knocking at the doors of publishers and literary agents, I have learned enough book publishing business. I offer my clients the experience I have receieved working with publishers.

The guy has published two books. This in no way qualifies you to be a literary agent.
 

herdon

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Don't forget that he wrote a number of articles for magazines specializing in history and literature and co-published a newspaper in the "1990-s" (I guess he didn't know that an apostrophe goes there).
 

Mr. Anonymous

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I was feeling bored so I shot him a query. He requested the full MS. I'll be sure to let you guys know of my experiences with Mr. Dubizhansky.
 

acwd5

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I also queried Mr. Dubizhansky, after which he asked to see the first three chapters, then asked to see the full MS - I have been reluctant to send it off after not seeing any proof of his publishing skills, other than his own book, and when I sent an email asking about his publishing success, he did not respond.
I am thinking now of sending the MS off, just to see what happens... I look forward to reading more about your experiences with him, and will post any updates once I have something more to share.
 

victoriastrauss

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I am thinking now of sending the MS off, just to see what happens...

This is not a great idea. Many writers who consider approaching an unqualified agent think they have nothing to lose--but they do: time and emotional energy.

Suppose he writes back saying wonderful things about your book (the kind of things you always wanted an agent to say), and offers representation. There's no evidence he has any professional background that would qualify him to sell books (the one book of his that I could find on Amazon is published by "LD Publications," strongly suggesting a self-publishing endeavor)--but will you be able to hold onto that knowledge and refuse his offer, or will you be tempted to "give him a chance" because he stroked your ego? If the latter, it's likely that the best that can happen is a lot of wasted time. The worst that can happen is out-of-pocket charges and squandered submission opportunities.

Don't put yourself in this position. If the agent isn't worth querying, don't query.

- Victoria
 

acwd5

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Thank you, Victoria, for your wise suggestion that I follow my gut. I brought my MS to work with me today in preparation to send off to him at lunch, and decided against it.
Now if only I could get a reputable someone to take a look at the MS and stroke my ego! What bliss...
 

JAK

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Understood ... but what to do when upwards of ninety-five percent of national publishers don't accept unagented submissions, and established agents aren't biting.

Maybe new agent isn't just a poser, or a shark, though they're out there. Maybe new agent has determination but few personal contacts with editors. He/She can at least get a clean query letter in front of an editorial assistant who reads all of the first five sentences of Chapter One before passing judgement. A tiny crack in an otherwise sealed door.

Is it worth it then?

Personal tolerance. Expect a 'no' and move on to the next project while the new agent gives it a go. Gain a few rejections from big publishers. Or not.

Computers can hold lots of forsaken manuscripts.
 

brianm

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Maybe new agent isn't just a poser, or a shark, though they're out there.
No one is saying he is, but he doesn’t have any credentials that qualify him to hang his shingle out as a professional literary agent. If he does, he needs to place those credentials on his webpage.

Maybe new agent has determination but few personal contacts with editors.
That’s a big problem and all the good intentions in the world are not going to sell your manuscript. A person gets contacts by working in the business and before a person opens up shop they need to apply for a job with a legitimate agency to gain the knowledge, experience and contacts needed to be a good, professional literary agent.

He/She can at least get a clean query letter in front of an editorial assistant who reads all of the first five sentences of Chapter One before passing judgement. A tiny crack in an otherwise sealed door.
What makes you think he knows what a good query letter looks like? Or a saleable manuscript? When I read a sentence like this on a literary agent’s website it does not reassure me that he has the skills to recognize good writing.

After years spent for knocking at the doors of publishers and literary agents, I have learned enough book publishing business.
That beauty is followed by this sentence.

I offer my clients the experience I have received working with publishers.
Okay, so where is all this experience? This gentleman has one self-published book (if it isn’t, the publisher has gone into hiding since 2007) and I couldn’t find his second book online. The only other information I could find on him is that he lives in San Diego, CA and that he holds a patent for some type of fabrication for grouting tile. Apparently, he is quite proficient at laying tile but where is his experience with publishers? Where is his experience in the business of selling manuscripts?

Computers can hold lots of forsaken manuscripts.
There are far worse things than your manuscript sitting in your computer. An amateur literary agent is one of them.
 
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Marian Perera

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A new agent who sends editors inappropriate/unsaleable material (because of a lack of contacts) or poorly written cover letters is unlikely to get future manuscripts read. Editors know that there are a lot of people calling themselves literary agents without the qualifications to back it up.

He/She can at least get a clean query letter in front of an editorial assistant who reads all of the first five sentences of Chapter One before passing judgement.

Rather than go to someone inexperienced in the business, I'd rework the first five sentences of Chapter One so they were gripping. I like hooking the reader right at the start.

Computers can hold lots of forsaken manuscripts.

Your computer or the agent's?
 

victoriastrauss

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A new agent who sends editors inappropriate/unsaleable material (because of a lack of contacts) or poorly written cover letters is unlikely to get future manuscripts read. Editors know that there are a lot of people calling themselves literary agents without the qualifications to back it up.

In addition to this, an agent whose name the editor doesn't recognize--even if that agent's approach isn't obviously unprofessional--will likely get pushed to the bottom of the pile. Editors prefer to work with agents whose reputations they know.

What's an obviously unprofessional approach? It could be a badly-written query letter. It could be the inclusion of a postcard for the editor to check off and send back to indicate interest. It could be querying for several clients' books at the same time. It could be a letter that begins "Dear Acquisitions Editor" (editors expect agents to be familiar enough with the market to know the name of the editor they want to approach) or begins with the name of an editor who left the company two years ago. It could be including extras a publisher doesn't care about--author photos or bios, cover mockups, a marketing plan for a novel.

Any of these will immediately tag a submission as coming from an amateur agent--and an editor (or the editor's assistant) is likely to assume that the agent's ability to spot a marketable manuscript is on a par with his/her level of professionalism. At best, your submission probably won't get serious consideration. At worst, you won't be able to submit to that publisher again with a better agent.

- Victoria
 

IceCreamEmpress

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JAK, I really encourage you to read what Victoria just wrote with care. The truth is that a submission from an unknown literary agent is treated by a publisher with no more regard than a direct submission from the writer. And a submission from an unknown and unprofessional literary agent is treated with LESS regard than a direct submission.

You have absolutely nothing to gain from entrusting your manuscript to an unknown, unprofessional literary agent--and you potentially have a great deal to lose.
 

brianm

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Worth repeating to get the point across.

You have absolutely nothing to gain from entrusting your manuscript to an unknown, unprofessional literary agent--and you potentially have a great deal to lose.

At best, your submission probably won't get serious consideration. At worst, you won't be able to submit to that publisher again with a better agent.
 

victoriastrauss

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Understood ... but what to do when upwards of ninety-five percent of national publishers don't accept unagented submissions

Sorry, meant to address this in a previous post and forgot...

This is certainly true of the big houses, but there are many reputable independent publishers that are happy to accept unagented submissions (note that I'm talking about indies that market and distribute to the book trade, not the mom-and-pop amateur micropresses that are so common these days on the Internet). If you're striking out with agents and can't get a foot in the door with the big publishers, turning to reputable independents is a reasonable backup plan.

- Victoria
 

JAK

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Checked with my lovely and talented editor at Samhain Publishing for her impressions. A lousy query from a new agent would lead to a bad impression, but not necessarily to black-listing the writer. First impressions are critical, however, in such a subjective (insane ... my word) business.

As for independent houses, M'Lady Victoria ... my experience is while they do accept non-agented queries/subs, they are usually inundated. Worth a try, though. Always worth a try.

Anyway, after 12 months, I'm waiting for a reply from BAEN any day now on my slush submission, sans literary agent.

Wonder what the odds are ....

Thanks for the input from everyone.
 

Greenwolf103

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Well, it's confession time: I queried him without checking the agency out. (But only with THIS agency! I swear!) Sent the first 3 of my novel and received a request to send the rest of the manuscript. I was about to do a happy dance before my gut told me something was wrong here. Followed up on those instincts via Google and found this thread.

It's the lack of experience in the publishing industry that gets to me.

At first, I was willing to take a chance with him. See how things pan out. But then I asked myself, Do I want another bad 'agent experience'? Nooooo.
 

victoriastrauss

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As for independent houses, M'Lady Victoria ... my experience is while they do accept non-agented queries/subs, they are usually inundated.

Sadly, very true.

Anyway, after 12 months, I'm waiting for a reply from BAEN any day now on my slush submission, sans literary agent.
Baen is not part of the mega-conglomerates, but as far as SF/fantasy goes, it is one of the big publishing houses. Although several of the big SF/fantasy publishers do accept unagented submissions, in my opinion they don't do authors any favors with this policy. They are beyond inundated, and most of their time and attention goes to agented submissions--the unagented work gets very, very low priority, and you can literally wait years to get a response. Every now and then they do snatch something out of the unagented pile, but most of what they publish comes through reputable agents.

If your goal is a larger house, your energy is much better spent looking for an agent.

- Victoria
 

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My experience with ALD Literary Agency

I was submitting my novel to different publishers and literary agents for three years, but all in vain. Fortunately for me, the new agency, ALD, appeared in the P and E listing. Mr. Dubizhansky sent my manuscript to his partner in Russia, and my book was immediately accepted by one of Moscow's publishing houses. Russia recently became an open country, and the Russians want to know more about us. I think Mr. Dubizhansky opened a new wide market for American authors.
 

RobU

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I saw on the ALD Literary website that Leonid Dubizhansky wrote Earthshakers and I was curious about it. I also saw it on amazon.com and was wondering about it. Does anyone know any information about this book?
 

Leonid.D.

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I was searching information about my name and came upon this thread. I was accused of asking for a full manuscript to be mailed to me, but it is listed under the guidelines in my website.

Thank you K.K. for your appraisal.

RobU, I am the author of Earthshakers. This book is a ranking of 100 most influential people in history. If you have any questions about my book, you are welcome to ask.
 

RobU

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Please list the top ten people from your list.
 

Leonid.D.

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1. Isaac Newton
2. Pope Urban II
3. Prophet Mohammed
4. Jesus Christ
5. Richard Arkwright
6. Ardys
7. Christopher Columbus
8. Albert Einstein
9. Aryabhata I
10. Louis Pasteur
 

CaoPaux

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FYI - RobU and K.K. were sockpuppets of Leonid.D.

Need more be said?
 

victoriastrauss

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Not just sockpuppets, I'll wager--they are Leonid himself. IP addresses for all three are identical.

Need one say more about a "literary agent" who posts good things about himself under fake names?

And why the heck isn't the Buddha in the Top Ten?

- Victoria