Red Sofa Literary Agency (Dawn Frederick)

I had a long post, AW's timeout ate it, so I'll condense. Whether query or full, treat it as 'no response means no interest' after 5 or 6 months, and just move on. If they didn't find the 'Wow!' from the start, they're not the agents you want representing your work.

Filigree--completely agree. I've closed it out and have no interest in hearing back at this point. I do however still think it's pretty disrespectful to abstain from sending even a form rejection to a requested full when the submission guidelines promise a response.

emjayfree said:

Just want to share my experience with Bree Ogden at Red Sofa. I queried her back in early January and received a full request within the hour. I sent the full, waited patiently for four months, and then sent a polite, non-pushy follow-up e-mail to confirm receipt at the beginning of May. All the while...crickets. I updated my post in the comments section on QueryTracker reflecting her unresponsiveness, then had four other writers message me to say they've had almost the exact same experience with Bree over the last year. To me, it seems incredibly rude and unprofessional to abstain from responding to requested material, especially since the Red Sofa website boasts a response time of 4-6 weeks. After hearing that this is apparently par for the course with Bree, I would definitely NOT query her again.

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I queried Amanda at RSL back in July 2015. I got a request for a partial less than 2 weeks later. Good turnaround time there. 3 months went by with no response. I followed up just asking about the status in September, October, and January 2016. After all those went unanswered, I figured "Okay. She's passing on this."

Then randomly last week she emailed me asking to read the full. She apologized for the long silence in between, but 1 year from partial request to full request is a little off putting.

I'd be troubled. It speaks to disorganization.

True. It really depends on the caliber of the agent and agency...are they worth the extra wait? As I've said, my interactions with Jennie have been prompt, professional, and personal. If I wrote what she's looking for, I'd be happy to wait a few extra months on a full read. But it would not be an exclusive, and I'd be making other plans.

Emjayfree, I can testify to what happens if you sign with an agent who's already known for having bad response time at the query stage. I recently let go of Bree Ogden as my agent after about a year of frustration, long response times, multiple nudges, having to call the agency to reach her, etc. I asked her to please send me a list of the publishers she pitched my adult coloring book project to so that I can go pitch it on my own and avoid conflicts. She promised to send me the list... and that was back in June. The lack of responses and lack of attention is the reason I let her go to begin with.

My question is: what should my next step be to get that sub list? Should I go to Dawn herself in an email requesting Bree offer up her list? Should I call the agency? Should I just let it go and forget about it? ... this is so frustrating, I honestly have put off thinking about it because of how hard it is to get a reply from her.

Did you give her a deadline? If not, perhaps one more email to Bree saying you haven't received the list yet and could she please send it to you by X day. (I wouldn't give her long. Monday? The longer you give her, the more likely she is to put it off until, whoops, off the radar again.) If you don't get a response, then go up the ladder. You are absolutely entitled to that list. If you intend to keep pitching your coloring book, you need it.

I sent Bree a fresh email, giving her a deadline. I also mentioned if she doesn't respond by the date I gave her, I'll use other means to get the list. (made me sound like the mafia, but at this point... *shrug*) Deadlines are a good idea in any case. Hopefully I won't find myself in this situation again, but I've definitely learned from it!

ElaineA, giving her a deadline worked like a charm! She responded with a short email by Monday with the editor pitch list attached.

Yay, I'm glad it worked out. Sometimes agents are just so busy it's easier for them if we're specific. At least a "by" date is something to put on a calendar.

Is there any potential problem with an Agency also acting as a publisher? I had thought this was usually frown upon, though this isn't the first Agency I've heard of offering this.

ctripp said:

Is there any potential problem with an Agency also acting as a publisher?

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Yes.

An agent's job is to get the author the best deal with the best publisher. If the agency is also a publisher the question always has to arise whether there's a conflict of interest and whether a publishing offer from the agency is truly the best deal for the author.

There are some instances where the agent has exhausted her list -- and the new editors -- and new publishers -- it goes on and on, and the author asks to be part of an agency's publishing arm. There's nothing shady about it and the contract clearly lists what royalties or advances are to be given to the author upfront. The author is apprised of all of their options (keeping the book out is the first one) and both parties go into the agreement with their eyes open. Fuse Literary was the first who proposed the publishing arm of their agency and others have followed suit.

As always, the author makes the final decision on where she'd like her book published. Ask questions of your agent, ask questions on forums like AW, and do your research before signing any contract and you'll be fine.

ETA: I thought new sig was on here but I'm an associate agent for Red Sofa Literary (and longtime AW member, former mod) so will be happy to answer any questions you have.

It's also useful when an author wants to republish a backlist.

eqb said:

I am very pleased to report that I have just signed with Amanda Rutter at Red Sofa. One week from query to request for the full. Another week to an offer of representation. *does the happy author dance*

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I've got a potential offer from her. How's it going with you? Everything working alight?

This is so funny because I was literally just looking at Red Sofa Literary when I saw this thread, like I literally have a tab open with the website.

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Does anyone know if Red Sofa has repped any NY bestsellers?

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I know being a bestseller isn't a "be all end all", but I'm having trouble figuring out how to choose an agency, and judging them by their number of bestsellers seems as good a place as any to start

One way to judge an agency is by the number of sales they've made and who they've made those sales to. If you have a Publisher's Marketplace account you can check agencies and individual agents there. It's $25 a month, and both times I was agent-hunting I subscribed while I was sending out queries so I could evaluate agents. Another way is by looking at who the agents/agencies represent already. If you know the names of the authors there--and they are doing well, book-wise--then that would be a good sign to submit.

Thanks for the advice!

I've just signed with Jennie Goloboy at Red Sofa.

Fab news, Pete!

Great news, Pete! I've been impressed with Jennie.

Any thoughts on Erik Hane? Can't find much information.

I've not spoken to Erik, but the categories he represents are listed on the Red Sofa page: https://redsofaliterary.com/representative-categories/ - I think he mostly handles non-fiction.

Rumelo said:

Any thoughts on Erik Hane? Can't find much information.

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He and fellow Red Sofa agent Laura Zats host the weekly Print Run Podcast. Might be worth a listen just to get a feel for his personal tastes--particularly the November Query and First Pages shows.