Anyone heard of this agency? They requested some chapters and I can't find anything about them...
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Yoknapatawpha Literary Agency (Maria Covino)
- Thread starter Eussie
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Okay, I'm a bit hazy on what's going on here, so I'm going to give some general advice that should apply to all agencies and many writers.
First off, you should try to do some research on an agency before you even send a query letter, let alone a submission to them. There are web sites with agent information. There are Internet search engines. There are, of course, forums such as this where one can ask for opinions or previous experiences by other authors. However, without specifying more information about what you're submitting and what you already know about the agency, advice from other authors may not be applicable. For example, if author A sent agent X a fantasy submission, but agent X doesn't handle fantasy, then author A won't have much more to say than agent X's guidelines which both you and author A should have consulted first.
Secondly, if they're asking for nothing more than some chapters or a copy of the manuscript, that's a good thing. Again, the writer should know already whether the agency is any good and whether the agency handles what the writer has to offer.
You should never send out material in blind submissions, meaning you don't know anything about the agency. Why? Because it can be a complete waste of your time, your postage, and their time.
First off, you should try to do some research on an agency before you even send a query letter, let alone a submission to them. There are web sites with agent information. There are Internet search engines. There are, of course, forums such as this where one can ask for opinions or previous experiences by other authors. However, without specifying more information about what you're submitting and what you already know about the agency, advice from other authors may not be applicable. For example, if author A sent agent X a fantasy submission, but agent X doesn't handle fantasy, then author A won't have much more to say than agent X's guidelines which both you and author A should have consulted first.
Secondly, if they're asking for nothing more than some chapters or a copy of the manuscript, that's a good thing. Again, the writer should know already whether the agency is any good and whether the agency handles what the writer has to offer.
You should never send out material in blind submissions, meaning you don't know anything about the agency. Why? Because it can be a complete waste of your time, your postage, and their time.
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DaveKuzminski said:
Dave, I didn't want to post the whole story behind my asking the question as I didn't want to bog down the board with irrelevant information: a friend of mine in a writer's group signed with this agency recently and recommend I shoot them a query (which I did, via email). They asked for more sample chapters, but before I do that, I wanted to find out some more about them.
I realize that in your opinion, I should have researched the agency before I queried them, and that indeed might have been a good idea. But I thought the purpose of this board was to alert new authors (such as myself) to scam agencies? The reason I posted was not only for MY benefit, but for the other noobs out there who also can't find any information on the agency and when they enter the name into google they get nothing.
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I can't find out anything about them either, which doesn't inspire confidence. A good literary agent should be at least somewhat researchable.
- VIctoria
Can you ask your friend for information on sales and Mr. Dodge's professional background?Eussie said:
- VIctoria
Posting this as requested:
Dear Ms. Glatzer,
I recently looked to see where my agency is on the internet and found that I was mentioned on your site. My name is Maria Covino and my email address is [email protected]. Furthermore, one of your members said that a friend of hers signed with my agency. I haven't signed anyone with my agency to this point. I have asked for some manuscripts and it looks like I may sign a few people, but nothing to this point. I would appreciate it if you would change the information so that it is valid. Gerry Dodge started the business but has decided to turn it over to me.
Thanks,
Maria Covino
Dear Ms. Glatzer,
I recently looked to see where my agency is on the internet and found that I was mentioned on your site. My name is Maria Covino and my email address is [email protected]. Furthermore, one of your members said that a friend of hers signed with my agency. I haven't signed anyone with my agency to this point. I have asked for some manuscripts and it looks like I may sign a few people, but nothing to this point. I would appreciate it if you would change the information so that it is valid. Gerry Dodge started the business but has decided to turn it over to me.
Thanks,
Maria Covino
http://publishersmarketplace.com/members/Yoknapatawpha/
The only client I can find is the ex-owner: http://www.editred.com/gerrydodge
The only client I can find is the ex-owner: http://www.editred.com/gerrydodge