Is there way to tactfully mention author's age in a query?

Mr. Anonymous · Jun 25, 2011

Others will (and have) counseled you otherwise, but as a 21 year old aspiring writer myself, I would advise you to include your age.

It does help. How do I know? Because my agent told me so (I was 20 when I queried.) Now, obviously, nobody is going to take you on just cause of your age. But age can make editors/agents more excited. Publishers like young writers with long careers ahead of them, and agents like what publishers like. And even the agents who reject you may be willing to take a little extra time, possibly give you some advice, etc, on account of your age (again, speaking from personal experience in this regard.) And, worst case scenario, a brief note citing your age can't hurt you in any conceivable way. (no editor/agent worth his/her salt would have his/her opinions of the book swayed by the author's age.)

All you have to say is something like,

My name is XXXX. I am 23 years old and recently graduated with a degree in philosophy from XXX college.

The fact is that just in the same way that we get excited about who an agent is once they've requested, start looking up their interviews, blog posts etc, agents also get excited when they read a query + sample pages that they think is good (always include 5-10 pgs with your query unless explicitly asked not to.) Their eyes might glaze over your biographical information on the first read, but if they like the first 5-10, you can bet they'll be returning to your query to see who the hell you are. lol.

Also, Zander, I would definitely mention having an MFA. Obviously, the weight this statement carries will depend on the institution you graduated from and it won't make up for the agent not liking the manuscript. But like with age, it can only help you, I think.

kellion92 · Jun 25, 2011

Mr. Anonymous's experience notwithstanding, leading with your age sounds not-ready-for-primetime. I'd slot it into the bio graf -- "I'm currently a X major at Y uni," "I graduated from X uni in 2011."

I think certain degree info (well-known schools, MFAs) is important to certain agents (the ones whose sites brag about their own credentials and those of their clients) and certain genres (obviously non-fiction, but also literary fiction).

quicklime · Jun 25, 2011

note mr. anaonymous was significantly younger...

Jamesaritchie · Jun 26, 2011

Mr. Anonymous said:
Others will (and have) counseled you otherwise, but as a 21 year old aspiring writer myself, I would advise you to include your age.

It does help. How do I know? Because my agent told me so (I was 20 when I queried.) Now, obviously, nobody is going to take you on just cause of your age. But age can make editors/agents more excited. Publishers like young writers with long careers ahead of them, and agents like what publishers like. And even the agents who reject you may be willing to take a little extra time, possibly give you some advice, etc, on account of your age (again, speaking from personal experience in this regard.) And, worst case scenario, a brief note citing your age can't hurt you in any conceivable way. (no editor/agent worth his/her salt would have his/her opinions of the book swayed by the author's age.)

All you have to say is something like,

My name is XXXX. I am 23 years old and recently graduated with a degree in philosophy from XXX college.

The fact is that just in the same way that we get excited about who an agent is once they've requested, start looking up their interviews, blog posts etc, agents also get excited when they read a query + sample pages that they think is good (always include 5-10 pgs with your query unless explicitly asked not to.) Their eyes might glaze over your biographical information on the first read, but if they like the first 5-10, you can bet they'll be returning to your query to see who the hell you are. lol.

Also, Zander, I would definitely mention having an MFA. Obviously, the weight this statement carries will depend on the institution you graduated from and it won't make up for the agent not liking the manuscript. But like with age, it can only help you, I think.

Your agent is seriously confused, and may well be harming your chances. The only excitement anyone I know gets from a twenty year old is when someone else reads the query so I don't have to.

Publishers like writers with books millions of readers will buy, and while a long career is a good thing, twenty has nothing to do with it. Writers who start in their forties often have longer and more prolific careers than ones who start at twenty. This is writing, not pro football.

Don't get me wrong, I love finding out a writer is twenty AFTER I find out he's written a great book, but not before. If I find out his age first, my expectations go way, way down. Experience has shown me that not one twenty year old in ten thousand yet knows enough about writing, or about life, to write anything original, anything I haven't seen five hundred times, even if he writes well.

I agree about an MFA. If you have an MFA, or even an English degree, you;re an idiot if you don't mention it. But the world is just chock full of twenty year old writers who simply can't write well, or simply don't yet know enough about life, even if they do write well, and a query that tells me your twenty is not doing you any favors.

When an agent or editor needs to know your age, they'll ask. Telling them beforehand is just not wise.

Mr. Anonymous · Jun 26, 2011

The only excitement anyone I know gets from a twenty year old is when someone else reads the query so I don't have to.

Right, but this can change very quickly if that person reads the first 5-10and thinks, wow, this is good. Moreover, if the query itself is engaging and well-written (a rarity, I know), how would a short note of the author's age after the mini-synopsis put you off?

Furthermore, mentioning this to agents, I should say, is different from mentioning this fact to editors (to address the concern that my agent could be hurting my chances.) Editors already know of my agent, know the kinds of stuff she's sent them before. I doubt they'd think she would send them the work of a 20 year old writer that she didn't believe 100% was good enough to be published.

I think the vast majority of people of any age can't write well or can't effectively use their life experience to write something worth reading. The problem isn't, I think, that 20 year olds haven't lived long enough. It's that not everyone has the time to write 3 practice novels and other stuff besides to figure out how to use what life experience they have to communicate a story worth reading.

I just know that I got a number of responses, even before I got picked up, that I probably wouldn't have gotten if the agents hadn't known my age. Those responses were part of what kept me going.

That said, I should probably make note of the fact that my novel is a YA, and there does seem to be some excitement among publishers about YA writing for YA.

suki · Jun 26, 2011

Mr. Anonymous' experience runs contrary to every agent I've ever heard/read answer this question. And I'd argue that 23 is very different than 20, even for a YA author. If you land an agent for this book, you will likely be 25 or maybe even 26 by the time it is on book shelve stores. And then your age is irrelevant.

So maybe find out who Mr. Anonymous' agent is, and mention your age for him/her, but for many agents it could make you look like an amateur not ready to be querying, if it has any effect at all.

~suki

bunderful · Jun 26, 2011

I always mention my writing degree - I'm proud of it. I studied with a lot of really amazing writers at Johns Hopkins - it was a big deal that I got into the program and it totally shaped who I am as a writer today. I think that when you have an MFA you should totally mention it. You would be an idiot not to. Even if some agents say they pay no attention to that - others do and I would rather be a nobody with a degree in writing from a really established writing program than a nobody with no degree, no publishing credits, nada.

So yeah, if you have the other credits then leave it out, but if all you have is an MFA - why the heck not include it?

Age is one thing, but I think someone would be crazy not to say they have an MFA...

Is there way to tactfully mention author's age in a query?

Mr. Anonymous

Just a guy with a pen & a delusion

kellion92

A cat may not look at a king

quicklime

all out of fucks to give

Jamesaritchie

Mr. Anonymous

Just a guy with a pen & a delusion

suki

Opinionated

bunderful