[Agency] Barbara Braun Associates

They are not the same people.

Why so worried, anyway? It's just a query.

Crank, a lot of the legit ones are saying that now, to make it clear that they ARE legit.

I looked her up on Agent Query -- she seems fine. You might want to check there and Publisher's Marketplace, though.

Agent Query: http://agentquery.com/search.aspx

And, clearly, someone with a lot more know-how may have more info to be able to say "relax" or "run".

What did you submit? As long as you haven't signed a contract, there is no reason for panic.

CrankItTo11 said:

I didn't like the way the website described the agency as "full service" either. A lot of things seem shady. I should be clear, though, that this is all just speculation on my part. They may be a great agency... but I doubt I'll persue them any further. I'm just too paranoid. I shouldn't have queried them. (And, yeah, I haven't signed anything or even been asked to sign anything. I'm just being dramatic.)

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You would not consider an agent because her agency is full service, and her name is similar to another agent's? That's rather bizarre. In any case, you should go to agent query. If you're that concerned, only search for agents that are members of AAR (of which Braun is one).

Crank, I'm with Julie. Agents' websites tend to look crappy because the agents are putting more work and time into their clients. If Braun is legit, and if she's part of AAR, she's legit, her being interested in your work is a reason to be excited, not paranoid.

Take a few deep breaths, and just consider whether you'd like your agent to be spending her time blogging and making her website just spectacular, or whether you'd like her to spend that same time selling your book to a good publisher.

Note: There are some awesome agency websites out there. They are awesome because these agencies make SO much money that they can afford to pay real dollars to have fabulous websites, or they have someone on staff who's a web wizard. I am not insinuating that a great website means a bad agent -- but I am saying that a crappy website does not automatically equal a bad agent. Charging fees automatically equals a bad agent. Saying you are part of AAR and NOT charging fees equals an agent safe to query.

CrankItTo11 said:

I didn't like the way the website described the agency as "full service" either. A lot of things seem shady.

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Like what? The list of recent commercial book sales? The successful authors this agency represents? Ms. Braun's AAR membership?

Barbara Braun Associates is an established agency with a solid track record and a good reputation. Yes, her name is similar to Barbara Bauer's, and there's the coincidence of them both mentioning PhD's--but it's pretty easy to confirm--for instance, by checking their addresses--that they aren't the same.

- Victoria

Barbara Braun

Hello all. I just thought I'd chime in since Barbara Braun is my agent.

Don't know what you found objectionable about her website. Please check some of her clients' websites, which are linked to her own, including Susan Vreeland, Marsha Moyer, and others who are doing quite well. (Ms. Vreeland has been on the NYTimes bestseller list a time or two).

You should also note that Barbara Braun's office is on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan (you have to be fairly successful to have an office there). And with a little googling you might have discovered her associate, John F. Baker, was editorial director/managing editor at Publisher's Weekly for 30 years.

Also, if you subscribe to Publisher's Lunch, you might have noticed that she sold two books in the last month to major publishers.

It's ok to be nervous about agents, but please be careful before saying negative things about an agent on a public forum simply because her name is similar to that of a known scammer. Barbara Braun is extremely hard working, highly ethical, and, in my opinion, a great person who is dedicated to her clients and gives them a lot of personal attention. She really does not deserve these uninformed comparisons.

Good luck,

Louie

Hi Louie, welcome. Thanks for the good info on your agent.

Remember, this is both a Bewares and a Backgrounds Checks forum. Donald Maass has a thread, too. In his thread, just like in this one, most of the posters have come on to reassure that the agent is both legit and very good.

These days, you can't blame a writer for panicking when names and such sound similar. It seems every time you turn around, another scam is going on. Also, only one person found the website lacking, not the entire forum. Again, based on panic.

Please be assured that your agent is held in high esteem and that the forum is actually confirming her reputation, as your post did, not trying to degrade it.

Hope we get to hear more from you!

Hi Jeanne -- and thanks for the welcome.

I hope I didn't sound too cranky, I didn't mean it that way. I do know how nerve racking the agent search can be, and it can be a regular mine field with the number of vultures out there looking to make a buck off the dreams of writers. Really, in this business there's nothing more offensive than that. This is why I couldn't help but react when it seemed my agent was being categorized in that way -- because I know that the opposite is true.

Thanks also for letting me know that this error about Barbara (the good Barbara!) has been addressed and corrected here before.

No hard feelings, I hope, from the lady who wrote the initial post.

Best wishes from New Orleans,
Louie

Welcome, Louie. Stick around, there's more than background checks here.

(Coincidentally, my latest novel features features voodoo shops in the French Quarter and Algiers.)

Hi Julie -- Are you from New Orleans? If you have any Voodoo questions, send them my way. My wife is a hounsi kanza initiated in Haiti. She used to own a botanica, Scully Elly's Voodoo Joint, in the French Quarter.

Best,
Louie

lmaistros said:

Hi Julie -- Are you from New Orleans? If you have any Voodoo questions, send them my way. My wife is a hounsi kanza initiated in Haiti. She used to own a botanica, Scully Elly's Voodoo Joint, in the French Quarter.

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Yes I have a question! What gris-gris did you use to get Dr. B as an agent?

Ha! I'm sure Elly was working the lwa behind my back, but I still cling to a hope that it had something to do with the manuscript. ;-)

I've started threads on plenty of legitimate agents. This forum also serves to let people state their experience with the agents, or discuss whether they ever receive responses to their queries. For some people, agents who ignore initial queries (or partials or fulls) are not agents they want to work with, so these threads serve a worthwhile function.

Hi Crankitto11 -- No hard feelings. The name similarity is definitely unfortunate, but, trust me, that's where the similarity ends. I wish you well on your agent search, I know it can be a real nail-biting experience. I hope you find a good one!

There are an awful lot of legitimate agents out there, so I guess not all of them can have their own thread on this forum. Some of the better ones aren't even listed in writers' marketplace (which is why I subscribe to Publisher's Lunch - among other things, it really gives you a good idea of who's selling what to who. Very useful information when trying to find an appropriate agent for your work.)

Good luck and best wishes from New Orleans,
Louie

Hi! I am considering submitting a mss to Barbara Braun. Does anyone have any tips for me? Thanks! I'm especially concerned about the request for a 1 page synopsis. I usually place a synopsis in the body of my query. Is that sufficient? Or should I repeat the synopsis on a separate page (will she get cranky if some sort of format isn't followed)?

Any other tips on writing a short synopsis?

Thank you!

DustyFeathers said:

I'm especially concerned about the request for a 1 page synopsis. I usually place a synopsis in the body of my query. Is that sufficient?

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No.

You should write a more detailed synopsis, of 200 to 250 words, than the brief synopsis in your query.

Yes, I agree with what icecreamprincess says: a full page synopsis is significantly different from the one paragraph "hook" that is included in the typical query letter.

Plus, as a general rule, it always pays to follow an agent's directions Particularly since Barbara Braun has changed what she requests in the way of submissions sometime within the last year or so (no more e-mail queries) so it's fair to assume there's a reason for the guidelines.

(She is my agent, by the way, and I would not characterize her as "cranky!" She is very easy to work with.)

Good luck!

For nonfiction, did any of you send a full proposal or just a query? Her website makes it seem like you should send the whole proposal. Is that right?