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[Agency] Dee Mura Literary / Dee Mura Enterprises Inc.

CaoPaux

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I've no direct experience with Dee Mura, but Google brings up a lot of complaints about no response, including the P&E listing of same. So I wouldn't hold your breath with this one.
 

smallthunder

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I can breathe again!

Well, I can't really say that I was holding my breath in anticipation of a reply from Dee Mura -- but it is still a relief to know that I'm not the only individual wondering if she fell off the face of the earth recently.

I sent a query, and then a follow-up, but not a peep and we're coming up to the "2 months/abandon all hope" stage.
 

Mark

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Dee Mura...Two queries for two different novels...

There's no reply at all
There's No reply at all
Is anybody listening
Is anybody listening
Whoa-whoa
There's no reply at all
 

smallthunder

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Laggards or Lost Causes?

Greetings!
Of 25 literary agents/agencies I have queried, five have not yet responded. I don't know if they are laggards or lost causes, but I thought I might as well throw out their names to hear what others have to say and/or let others know for future reference:

Willliam Clark Associates -- 8 weeks, 2 e-mails generated generic e-mail receipts

McHugh Literary Agency -- 9 weeks, 2 e-mails, nothing (not usual, I've read)

Dee Mura Literary -- 9 weeks, 2 e-mails, nada (not usual, I've read)

Southern Literary Group -- almost 8 weeks, nothing in the mail

The Vines/James Vine -- 9 weeks, e-mail, no response
 

victoriastrauss

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Vines and Clark are very successful, and probably very busy. Worth waiting for.

Dee Mura seems to have a rep for slow turnaround (Writer Beware has received a number of complaints). I think this agency does have a track record, but my impression is it isn't large.

Elisabet McHugh asks clients to provide multiple full ms. copies upfront--sometimes as many as 30, which is way more than would be needed, even for an auction. Again, she has what appears to be a smallish track record, but I've received and seen a number of complaints about inefficiency and nonresponsiveness. Several clients have reported no response despite repeated attempts at contact, and say they were unable to get info about where their mss. were submitted or whether/how they were rejected.

Southern Literary Group used to claim an association with Laurie Perkins (it still may), but I'm not aware it has any sales.

- Victoria
 

smallthunder

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Not UNusual

Thanks, Victoria, for your response -- I meant to type that I've read it is not UNusual for McHugh & Dee Mura to be so unresponsive. I think I'm brain-dead tonight (Taipei Time).
Then again, it's not UNusual for me to be brain-dead these days.
But that's another story ...
;)
 

Vomaxx

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Vines Agency: Mail query sent Oct. 7. Rejection received Oct. 25--a rubber stamp on the query letter.

Dee Mura: Mail query sent Oct. 4. Second mail query sent Jan. 27. E-mail query sent Mar. 25. No response at all.

A pox on both their houses!
 

sirensix

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Dee Mura literary agency

I just called the Dee Mura literary agency to ask and see if anyone there represented both fantasy & mainstream fiction. The assistant checked to see who was currently reading, and said I should send it to "Sandra." I asked for the last name, and there was kind of a pause and she said, "There's only one Sandra here." I was too abashed to inquire further.

Who is this oh-so-famous Sandra I should know about? I'm not in the habit of addressing business letters to people whose last names I don't know.
 

victoriastrauss

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I can't answer your Sandra question, but Writer Beware has been getting questions about the Dee Mura agency for years and we've been able to find out almost nothing about them. I think this may be because they are more focused on film properties and talent management than on selling book manuscripts. I follow sales reports for fantasy and SF, and I can't recall seeing any SF/f sales for this agency at least in the past couple of years.

I've also gotten reports of nonresponse to queries and looooong turnaround times.

They appear to have a website, but I have never been able to get it to load.

- Victoria
 

Cathy C

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I just called the Dee Mura literary agency to ask and see if anyone there represented both fantasy & mainstream fiction.

Umm... Why would you want to submit to them? The agency has numerous complaints at P&E about not responding to queries, there are no sales on Publishers Marketplace, no listing as EXISTING on Agentquery, which are detailed on her own thread here:

www.absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=792
I wouldn't worry too much about Sandra's last name. It sounds like a shonky operation anyway. Move on to the next one on the list, IMO! :)
 

MacAllister

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P&E confirms Victoria's observation about the non-response issues.
 

Aconite

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sirensix said:
I asked for the last name, and there was kind of a pause and she said, "There's only one Sandra here."
What an odd response. What on earth does her being the only Sandra there have to do with her last name? As you pointed out, you'd need to know her last name in order to address mail to her, regardless of how many Sandras there may be. Peculiar, that.
 

astonwest

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Maybe the reason for the nonresponse issue is that everyone keeps sending their queries directed to Sandra. She gets it and thinks "if they can't even bother putting my last name, why would I bother responding?"
 

zeprosnepsid

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Well, I work in the film industry and at my to-be-unnamed company we have 'Janice'. Whenever someone inquires about sending us stuff we don't want my boss tells them to address to to Janice. If they continue to bother us about it, my boss says Janice doesn't work here anymore.

I have a feeling Sandra is good friends with Janice.
 

Live2Write

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Dee Mura Literary Agency

Hello all,

I'm in the process of narrowing down my agents to query and as I was going through the web looking up more information from the 2007 Guide to Literary Agents I found that the Dee Mura Literary Agency seems to have hardly any information about it. It's listed as a publishing house in the book but seems to "do everything", even work with actors and bands. To me, this is completely fishy. The book doesn't list any of their publications only that they've "sold over 40 titles and 35 scripts in the last year."

It seems too generalized. Does anybody know anything about these guys?

Thanks,

L2W
 

novellabob

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Dee Mura has been around for a while, and her listing in Writer's Market has always listed a fair number of sales. That having been said, Preditors and Editors says it has received complaints that Dee Mura has not been responding to queries. It is not unusual to see some agents handle scripts or other media.
 

williamfromkc

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And now more than 2 months later the website is still under construction. I think you might as well send your query by telepathy.
 

Sean Corey

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It's the Story Stupid

Some of you people remind me of the losers that attended the proffesional writing classes at the U of W.

In regards to Dee Mura I used the phone number provided by Writers Market last friday and got the maid. Two days ago I fired back another try and Dee answered. I gave her the elevator pitch and in less than a minute she requested my complete manuscript.

That led me to this forum to look for complaints.

Not every agent and writer are a match.

Dee admitted to me her reply to query thing is scketchy.

Now if you losers don't have any more to add than you have been ignored I will send her my masnuscript.

Thanks,

Sean
 

Sean Corey

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Hey Vicki

Whatup?

You have to admit that getting ignored is a weak criticism.

I was fortunate to have a couple of instructors at the University of Washington take me under their wing. Teri and Dr. Robert Sprackland do my editing now. I was semi-joking about the loser thing. I'm sure most writers understand the work invoved in getting through to an agent even after the book has been written. Some do not.