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[Agency] Inkwell Management

artemis

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There are worse things than having agents fight over you. Congratulations!

Yeah, definitely not complaining.

In the end, I got 6 offers (which is a position I never, in my wildest dreams, imagined being in), but I've decided to sign with Catherine. She's absolutely incredible, wildly enthusiastic, and a fierce ally to have in your corner. I'm so excited, I kind of want to puke.
 

trocadero

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Artemis, that is unbelievably fantastic! SIX offers! Can I ask what your novel is about? Whatever it is, it is clearly amazing! Congratulations! Do you blog somewhere? I'd love to read the whole story! How on earth does one get six offers? Apart from, obviously, writing something absolutely irresistible:) Amazing!


Yeah, definitely not complaining.

In the end, I got 6 offers (which is a position I never, in my wildest dreams, imagined being in), but I've decided to sign with Catherine. She's absolutely incredible, wildly enthusiastic, and a fierce ally to have in your corner. I'm so excited, I kind of want to puke.
 

artemis

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Artemis, that is unbelievably fantastic! SIX offers! Can I ask what your novel is about? Whatever it is, it is clearly amazing! Congratulations!

Haha, thank you! It's about a seventeen year old girl who embarks on a quest to find the firebird, a mythical entity prophesied to end an ancient war between two magical species (one is distinctly avian, the other is descended from dragons, both are 95% humanoid).

Do you blog somewhere? I'd love to read the whole story!
I do have a blog, and I wrote about signing with Catherine here: http://www.melissa-grey.com/post/57827669071/now-that-the-fireworks-have-stopped-going-off-in

How on earth does one get six offers? Apart from, obviously, writing something absolutely irresistible:) Amazing!

I appreciate the kind words! The only thing I can say is write something you believe in, do your research, and query people selectively. I was worried because the scope of my book was pretty ambitious for YA (it was 7 total POV characters, 4 of which are recurring), so I wasn't quite sure how well it would be received. I saw several agents and editors frown on the idea of multiple POV novels in YA (anything beyond dual POV structures, really), but it just goes to show that you need to write the book you want to write. Worry about the rest later (or never).
 

NicolaD

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Got a big surprise this morning - a full request from Kim Witherspoon via her assistant (queried April 19).

Never say never! :)
 

NicolaD

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Thanks so much, trocadero and J.B. Kantt. :)
 

Cel_Fleur

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Any news as of late on people querying this agency? It seems they have a lot of agents, but not much specifically about each, in terms of likes, dislikes and clients. I shall research further...
 

ap123

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I was able to find info btw their site, query tracker, here and general googling, queried and got a full request from them recently.
 

Liz_V

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Here's another one for the stats collectors:

Queried to the attention of David Hale Smith 11/22/13.
Form R from "staff" 9/5/14.

(I'd like to believe the long wait means they were deeply torn over it, but probably the MS was just trapped under somebody's used coffee cups. Oh well. On to the next one.)
 

lilmerlin

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Carlisle & Company literary agents, on their website, require writers who submit their product to agree to certain terms. Most of these terms seem fine with me, except this following stipulation:

"Carlisle & Company and/or any of its clients may have created, may create, or may otherwise have access to materials, ideas, and creative works which may be similar or identical to the Material with regard to theme, motifs, plots, characters, formats, or other attributes; and (v) I shall not be entitled to any compensation because of the proposed use or use of any such similar or identical material that may be or may have been created by Carlisle & Company and/or any of its clients or that may or may have come to Carlisle & Company and/or any of its clients from any other independent source."

Does this seem fishy to anybody else but me?

I would appreciate some input on this.

Thanks,
erich v.

Thank you for bringing this up. I have come across three agencies during my research who make you agree to these terms before you can even send a submission - and it always scared me away...
 

Cyia

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Thank you for bringing this up. I have come across three agencies during my research who make you agree to these terms before you can even send a submission - and it always scared me away...

Don't let it scare you. They're just telling you upfront that - as a literary agency - they might receive or already represent material that's similar to yours. It's not their fault, and they don't owe you if they happen to do so. If they sell a book a week after your submit to them, one with similar themes or characters, they still aren't stealing your work, etc.

You'd be surprised how many *very* similar books hit an agent's or an editor's inbox at the same time. It's also surprising how many writers automatically jump on the "they stole my idea!!!" bandwagon.

Inkwell is a well known and well respected agency.
 

Saphron

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Anybody heard stuff about Lena Yarbrough at Inkwell? Getting ready to query her and she's listed as "assistant lit agent" on some headings, "new agent" on literary-agents.com. I've just started the whole query process, so I'm unsure how to alter my query/ expectations accordingly for someone who is newish.
 

Thedrellum

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You don't need to alter your query for a new-ish agent. The only real thing to be concerned about with a new agent is whether they have the experience (by working at an agency) and/or the support of more established agents (at the agency they currently work at).

In short, a new agent at an established agency is usually a pretty good bet for querying and should be approached like you would any other agent.
 

jtrylch13

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EQ Catherine Drayton with YA Post-Apocalyptic on 10/13/14
Form R on 11/11/14
 

becphish

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Yes, I'm reviving this thread. Thanks to all of you who asked the question I was coming here to ask. All of that legalese hit my paranoia button. Total fear that I'd be giving permission to take my work and ideas. Thanks to all of you over the years who've asked the same question!!!!!
 

merlot143

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This must have been asked before but how do you query a specific agent at Inkwell? Their submission email is standard info@inkwell etc.

Thanks.
 

Chumplet

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This must have been asked before but how do you query a specific agent at Inkwell? Their submission email is standard info@inkwell etc.

Thanks.

Generally, if they have a general email, you can either put the agent's name in the subject line (Attn: agent) or simply make your salutation in the query letter: Dear Mr. or Ms. Agent. They'll figure it out.
 

merlot143

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Is Erin Morgernstern (Night Circus) still with Richard Pine of Inkwell?
 

HumbleScribe

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Anyone know how backlogged William Callahan is?

Query + synopsis + opening chapter sent 12/30/2014

Full Requested 12/31

Radio silence ever since (and yes, I sent periodic check-ins).

I've the temperament to wait half a year or even a year if I get a confirm an agent still has it under consideration, but lacking a single word during that time (including not responding to my check-in inquiries) tempts my suspicions that something else could be going on.
Such actually happened to me twice with other agencies (an intern at one agency leaving who was supposed to send R's, and her overseeing agent only discovering that months later and letting authors know) and another agency's intern leaving and they finally sent an oh, she left, but you can resubmit (from scratch) to any of other other agents you might deem a possible fit. So when things get past the 6 month mark *and* without a peep, yeah, I start to wonder. A check of the site shows him still listed.
At this point, ignoring my every-few-months follow-ups, I've sent a general inquiry to their main info@ email (his one-and-only email, requesting the full was from his own email box there). I suspect that will provide an eventual clue. But am curious if anyone else experienced such lengthy spans without a word from Mr. Callahan. Or did I miss some note that if one doesn't hear back to requested fulls, it simply means no thanks? Would be lucky to work with such a prestigious agency, but hard to guess what's going on with that much silence.
 
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ap123

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HumbleScribe, I had the same experience with another agent at this agency. I honestly don't know where the disconnect is, could be that no response = no has become their general policy, or maybe it's one particular assistant, but it was hugely disappointing.
 

HumbleScribe

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Thanks for your insight, ap123.

That earlier-sent email to their generic email addy didn't even net a response yet. At this point, I sent another (again to the generic info@ email) asking if they could at least confirm whether he's still with the agency (last time I checked, it listed him). Fortunately, a couple other agencies asked for a full of the same mss. and haven't totally ignored me while they're considering it. At this point, I figure it's 50-50 that my inquiries with Inkwell might've overdone it and result in a quick R without a meaningful/reliable feedback. That happened when I likely pressed another agent who'd sat on my full a whole year without a peep. Nearly a year backlog seems a bit much (again though, waiting that long if they're staying in even partial touch is a different situation that might be worth waiting for). Would be nice if the agents/site made it clear whether no-reply after a certain amount of time implies thanks but no thanks (though some agencies do specifically admit that). With such underwhelming responsiveness in the biz at some places these days wearing on me and my voicing such, I might have to change my handle to Not-So-Humble-Scribe, heh.
 
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atwhatcost

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Yeah, definitely not complaining.

In the end, I got 6 offers (which is a position I never, in my wildest dreams, imagined being in), but I've decided to sign with Catherine. She's absolutely incredible, wildly enthusiastic, and a fierce ally to have in your corner. I'm so excited, I kind of want to puke.
I had a nightmare like that last week -- literally, (except only five offers to represent. And it was a nightmare, since I hadn't queried any of my "dream agents" yet. :eek:) I'm still making my list and checking it twice, but would you mind telling who you went with and why?

I feel like someone cut out the last pages of this book I am reading.