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- Jul 9, 2009
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Sorry if this is the wrong place to post this, but I need an epiphany.
My novel features a college-aged guy. The plot does not revolve around his college life, however, and the other characters are in their upper twenties. Apparently this is a big problem. Normally I love personalized rejections, but I've come to dread them because lately, they all say the same thing.
"While I enjoyed the opening pages, I'm not sure of the audience for this novel."
I've had two agents who rejected me say they thought the first few chapters were very funny. One even said the concept was fun, the characters were charming, and I had great comedic timing. But they still passed on reading more, because they didn't know how to classify it in the market.
I know my book is in that awkward "not young adult, but not adult" area. But I would hardly call it too unique. I know for a fact there are other books out there that feature twenty-something year old protagonists. Should I be referencing similar books in my query? Or do I need to pick a clearer genre and stick with it? I'm beginning to think maybe the genre IS literary, since the heart of the story is the MC's struggle with growing up.
Sorry for the long rant. I'm just worried the three fulls I have floating around in Agent Land will come back with similar responses. I guess my question is, is there really no market for this type of book? Should I trunk it and wait to see if college kids emerge as their own literary age group?
My novel features a college-aged guy. The plot does not revolve around his college life, however, and the other characters are in their upper twenties. Apparently this is a big problem. Normally I love personalized rejections, but I've come to dread them because lately, they all say the same thing.
"While I enjoyed the opening pages, I'm not sure of the audience for this novel."
I've had two agents who rejected me say they thought the first few chapters were very funny. One even said the concept was fun, the characters were charming, and I had great comedic timing. But they still passed on reading more, because they didn't know how to classify it in the market.
I know my book is in that awkward "not young adult, but not adult" area. But I would hardly call it too unique. I know for a fact there are other books out there that feature twenty-something year old protagonists. Should I be referencing similar books in my query? Or do I need to pick a clearer genre and stick with it? I'm beginning to think maybe the genre IS literary, since the heart of the story is the MC's struggle with growing up.
Sorry for the long rant. I'm just worried the three fulls I have floating around in Agent Land will come back with similar responses. I guess my question is, is there really no market for this type of book? Should I trunk it and wait to see if college kids emerge as their own literary age group?