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The Choate Agency

CaoPaux

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06-15-2006, 01:28 PM
hraaja
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The Choate Agency

Michael Choate and The Choate Agency do not appear in the index. P&E does nit indicate any confirmed sales. Anyone heard of him/the agency?
06-15-2006, 02:09 PM
Wesley Smith
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His profile at AgentQuery.com has one sale listed for him (doesn't say if it was recent or under with his previous agency, Lescher & Lescher), and says that he's interested in journalistic non-fiction.
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06-15-2006, 02:35 PM
James D. Macdonald
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How did you hear of this agency?

Remember: the question you should be asking isn't "Is this agent so bad that I should cross him off my list?" it's "Is this agent so good that I should put him on my list?"
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06-15-2006, 03:14 PM
hraaja
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Source

That's a very good contrarian-oriented way to view it, James. Thanks for pointing it out. I obtained his name/agency name from the Agent Query website cited in the first response to my original post. He is listed as an AAR members, so the benefit of the doubt is in his favor. Thanks again for the response.
06-19-2006, 12:02 PM
CaoPaux
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Per P&E: Mickey Choate: $ An agent at the Choate Agency.

Google finds these sales under that name:

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0471428078/?tag=absolutewritedm-20

http://www.powells.com/cgi-bin/biblio?isbn=0399152172
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CaoPaux

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Google now finds mention of several clients, including Joe Hill. (Can you imagine repping someone for eight years before learning his dad is Very Famous Author? Oy!)
 

IceCreamEmpress

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Google now finds mention of several clients, including Joe Hill. (Can you imagine repping someone for eight years before learning his dad is Very Famous Author? Oy!)

It's hard to know which possibility comes off as more creditable there--cluelessness in actually not figuring that out, or chutzpah in lying about it?
 

victoriastrauss

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My impression is that Joe Hill wanted to make it on his own, without his famous father's help, and deliberately kept his background hidden. I read his (terrific) story collection last year for the World Fantasy Awards, and neither I nor any of the other judges had any idea who his dad was. I think the info only came out after the book became a critical success.

- Victoria
 

Julie Worth

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Choate's rejected me on several books, in anywhere from half an hour to a couple of days. And aways the same wording: it didn't "pique" his interest.
 

gettingby

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I got a quick and personal response last week.
 

JacksonMcGees

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My impression is that Joe Hill wanted to make it on his own, without his famous father's help, and deliberately kept his background hidden. I read his (terrific) story collection last year for the World Fantasy Awards, and neither I nor any of the other judges had any idea who his dad was. I think the info only came out after the book became a critical success.

- Victoria

The idea that people in the Horror and Fantasy genre didn't know who he was is kind of funny, considering he LOOKS just like his dad and had a big photo of himself on his website for years before the "news broke."

My understanding, which comes from speaking to award judges and publishers I trust and have known for many years, is that Joe's "real" identity was a well known "secret" and everyone played along because he didn't want anyone thinking he was getting by on the family name because he knew people would trash him (rightly or wrongly) if that was the case.

So publicly, no one "knew" who he was, but privately, everyone knew that you should look at any Joe Hill manuscripts REALLY CAREFULLY because, wink wink, he might just be someone worth publishing. :)

All you have to do is look at that print run for his short story collection, which was WAY out of line for what that publisher normally prints for ESTABLISHED authors (his was much higher), and you KNOW the publisher knew something was up. ;) (And then, oddly enough, that publisher got a Limited Edition deal with Stephen King a few months later... how strange!) :)

And then, another small press publisher bought his novel, Heart Shaped Box, and printed absurdly high print runs for an unknown author (and these runs were special editions with color printing and all kinds of special features, the stuff this publisher only normally does for Ray Bradbury and authors like that!) all while not "knowing" who Joe was. And then, a few months later, they got a Stephen King Limited Edition, too! What a coincidence. :)

But hey, you have to give Joe serious points for playing the game right! Good for him! :)
 

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Queried January 12, rejected on the 13th. Says the form rejection: he is "overwhelmed with fiction submissions."
 

NorhernBook

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Dear Hraaja, he represents Joe Hill, the kings son, so he has to be pretty amazing!

Kathleen
 

CaoPaux

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Well, their website seems to have vanished off the face of the 'net, but other than that ....