Ask Kathleen Ortiz! Ask the Agent Summer Spree!

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MacAllister

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Please join me in offering a great big Absolute Write welcome to Agent Kathleen Ortiz, who has graciously agreed to drop in and answer your questions for a Summer Spree of Agent information!

Kathleen is an agent with Lowenstein Associates, who've helpfully posted a bio from which to cut-n-paste:
Kathleen is currently Associate Agent and Foreign Rights Manager at Lowenstein Associates. She is seeking children's books (chapter, middle grade, and young adult) and young adult non-fiction. While Kathleen enjoys everything from light-hearted and humorous to dark and edgy, she'd love to find an amazing romance from a male point of view or a steampunk with fantastic world building.

Lowenstein Associates believes with the continued demand for online marketing in publishing, a strong online platform is essential for today's authors. Kathleen uses her background in interactive media design to assist Lowenstein Associates’ clients with branding themselves.

You can follow Kathleen's blog, Neverending Page Turner
And you can find her on Twitter as @KOrtizzle

Thank you so very much, Kathleen! And with that, we'll open the floodgates for everyone's questions. :D
 

charlotte49ers

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I don't have a question yet, but just wanted to say welcome to the best ninja agent evah.

:)
 

PoppysInARow

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I've got a question! Or several! Oh! So excited! Pick me!

This may have been answered in your blog, in which case I am sorry for the repeat.

Is there something in a full that will cause an auto-reject for you? About how long into a request do you need to read to find if it's not right for you?


EDIT: Also, so excited to hear you're interested in steampunk fantasy. I'm currently working on a romance in a steampunk/fantasy world with a male MC. :D Can't wait to query you!
 

Sandy Shin

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Thank you so much for doing this! I've learned so much from following your Twitter and blog. :)

Mine is a rather specific question that I hope is all right: I have a YA manuscript set in a future earth with post-apocalyptic/dystopian society. However, there are also magic and fantastical elements. Should I classify this as YA Dystopian or just plain YA Fantasy in queries?

Thank you!
 

rebobinar

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MG or YA

*waving* Thank you so much for the thread!!

My question: I'm writing a YA (I think) with a 15 year old MC. I'm intending it to be YA with some romance (although it's pretty tame) and it's set at wartime so the kid has to deal with a lot. But I've noticed lots of MG novels with a 15 or 16 year old main character. How do you know where the line is? I feel like I need to write intentionally for a particular age group and it makes me nervous to straddle the line.

Thank you!
Robin
 

kaitiepaige17

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Thank you so much for joining us!!!

Question that has been hounding me: I know that when partials and fulls are sent out they're expected to be extremely clean/free of errors. However, how clean do agents expect partials and fulls to be exactly? Obviously major grammar mistakes would make a MS a no-go, but what about little things like comma errors? Just curious! Thank you so much!!! :)
 

CACTUSWENDY

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Welcome to AW. Thank you for your graciousness and extra time involved being a part of this board. My hat is off to you.
 

KOrtizzle

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::waves:: Hello all! Thanks for the warm welcome and quick jump to action with starting the round of questions :) I'm going to let the thread sit for a few days before I start answering questions, because I have a couple client and office items to attend to; however, be assured that once Sunday hits, I'll be back to answer them. In the meantime you can find me on Twitter or my Blog (see my signature).

Looking forward to a great Summer Spree of questions and answers!

~K
 
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Wayne K

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I don't have a question, but I'll be reading this thread. Thank you for your time Kathleen--It's very generous of you
 

Leanan-Sidhe

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:welcome:
I don't have a question yet, but I'll definitely be lurking. Thanks for doing this!
 

~*Kate*~

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I keep misreading this thread title as "summer squee!"

Thanks for answering questions!
485a55fc.gif
 

jasonguinn78

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Welcome Kathleen...always cool to see an agent take a moment out of their busy lives to help and answer questions. I don't have one now, but I'll be reading with interest what you say on the boards. Love your blog by the way!
 

Jennifer Robins

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Thank you for coming here, Kathleen,
I've been published by smaller presses and have had great reviews. Will this help me or open doors for me to get in with one of the big houses or with a good agent? Seems both are like winning the lottery.

Jennifer Robins

www.jenniferrobins.com
 

Monlette

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Welcome Kathleen!

My questions involve revisions that are requested from an agent as a result of the submission process:

How much attention do revised manuscripts get in the grand scheme of the agent's daily tasks? What is a reasonable timeframe to expect to hear back on revisions? And if an agent doesn't get back a client in that timeframe is that a VERY BAD sign? If it isn't, what is the best approach for requesting a status update?
 
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popmuze

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How long after you've signed up a new client do you try to deliver the notes you promised him on his novel?
 

Cyia

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What's the shortest time after signing a novel that you've turned around and pitched it to editors? (Has anyone ever been "good to go" from the start?)
 
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