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Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency

RenaissanceWriter

Do any of you have experience or know about the Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency? I'm not even sure I want to go looking for an agent. I'm still reading the pros and cons and making up my mind. The main issue I have is that I know some agents prefer to only work with X type of book while others want all of the work you have. I am looking at querying for some children's books first, but I have one non-fiction project that I'd like to do (sometime in the future), and I have adult fiction as well. The children's work is fiction. Anyway, EELA said they accept all types of work, even children's books, so I'm not sure if an agency like that is the way to go. Any advice?

Brandi
 

Kempo Kid

Re: Ethen Ellenberg

I queried them but got rejected. They're on the up and up, I believe. I've never heard anything said against them.
 

Risseybug

Re: Ethen Ellenberg

I think that Mr. Ellenberg is actually one of the biggies. At least that's the impression I got from others.

I queried him back in Aug., never got a response. Maybe I'll get that rejection by Christmas. LOL
 

callalily61

Re: Ethen Ellenberg

I queried them last Thursday. I'll let you know if I hear anything.
 

Kempo Kid

Re: Ethen Ellenberg

Took 23 days for them to reject me with a form rejection.

At least they responded.
 

Princesstilly

Re: Ethen Ellenberg

I queried here on October 12 and haven't heard anything yet. Will keep you posted too.
 

allion

Re: Ethen Ellenberg

Took them about two months to turn me down - they were professional about it, though, so I can't complain.

(Well, I can, but it's late and why bother...)
 

Pellegrina Leoni

Re: Ethen Ellenberg

Another Ellenberg rejectee chiming in. I queried him on October 14 and received a form rejection on October 30. Oh well. Noted and logged; keep on keepin' on.
 

katdad

Re: Ethen Ellenberg

First of all, it's Ethan Ellenberg.

I hope you spelled their name right when you queried them.

Ellenberg is a legit agency. They have a good reputation.
 

RenaissanceWriter

Re: Ethen Ellenberg

Thanks for the advice everybody. I think I'll query them and maybe 1-2 others but then go it alone if I get rejected.

Katdad, to whom are you responding? I re-read the posts, and everyone from the ones I caught spelled the name exactly like you did.
 

RenaissanceWriter

Re: Ethen Ellenberg

Ah, I see what you're talking about now. I had a typo in my thread title. If you'd read my post, you would have seen that not only did I spell it right in my post, but I haven't queried them.
 

SimonSays

Re: Ethen Ellenberg

Ren:

"I think I'll query them and maybe 1-2 others but then go it alone if I get rejected."

If you are serious about a career as a writer, then you need to be aware of the reality of the road to this career. The road to publication is not often short and is filled with lots of rejection. If your goal is to avoid rejection, then chances are you will not get published legitimately.

If you're serious you will not just query two or three agents, you should prepare a list of dozens - maybe 100 or more. Most agents and pubs will reject you off your query letter. If you are batting 0 after sending out the first dozen, you might want to tweak your query. A query letter is your sales tool, and if you're not interesting anyone than chances are you are not selling effectively. The large majority of those who request a full or paritial ms from your qurery, will probably reject you as well.

The acceptance rate for most agents and publishers is 2-5%. With the reality of those odds, you need to have a large pool of agents to approach to give yourself a fair shot.
 

James D Macdonald

Re: Ethan Ellenberg

Thanks for the advice everybody. I think I'll query them and maybe 1-2 others but then go it alone if I get rejected.


If by "go it alone" you mean "submit to legitimate publishers" this might work. If by "go it alone" you mean "self-publish," I wish you the very best but I can't hold out a lot of hope.

Your best bet is to keep querying, and work on your next book while you're waiting to hear back.

Meanwhile, remember that you aren't being rejected. What's being rejected is a particular arrangment of words on paper.
 

bellmawrpark

Ethan Ellenberg

Hi all. I used this forum to avoide a scammer before and figured I'd come back and try again! I got a call from Ethan Ellenberg yesterday saying he wanted to rep me and a childnen's book.

He's listed as "recommended" on Preditors and Editors, a memember of the AAR and has a calendar on his web site showing what he's got coming out soon. Everything sounds great so far. I did some indepth browsing and found a site where someone claimed he stole his book ideas from him.

Is there anyone whose dealt with him before or has any horror stories? He sounds pretty good so far, but after almost getting burned last time, I think safer is better.
 

Christine N.

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Um, if Ethan Ellenberg wants to rep you...
DO THE DANCE OF JOY AND THANK THE WRITING GODS! He's a big one. One of THE big ones. I can only pray that someday he gives me the time of day. I sent a sub to him and never heard back.
 

victoriastrauss

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What Christine Said. If I were looking, he'd be one of my top choices. Congratulations!

I did some indepth browsing and found a site where someone claimed he stole his book ideas from him.
I've seen that site. Reading between the lines, I suspect that something quite different was going on, and I'm certain that Ellenberg had nothing to do with it.

- Victoria
 

CACTUSWENDY

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:Clap: Congrats and the sky looks to be the limit. :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana:
 

bellmawrpark

Thanks to Everyone

Thanks, everyone. Great responses.

Last fall I tried to sell a fiction book and amassed 25 rejection letters. Instead, I tried another tactic. I created an illustrated non-fiction book called "The Complete Guide to Drawing Dinosaurs."

He sent 3 emails to the email address I list on my web site (that I can only check every 3 or 4 days b/c of junk mail) to call him. When I didn't respon, he called my work number, searched through our directory, and called me on my work phone. I'm so excited after hearing everything you guys have said. THANKS SO MUCH!!!

Here's my website. Follow the link for the drawing book:
www.jmwebcenter.com
 

victoriastrauss

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Tara, here are some resources for you:

  • A list of agents who represent SFWA members: http://www.sfwriter.com/agent.htm. You'll need to do more research on each of them, but it's a place to start.
  • Speculations is an excellent monthly e-newsletter with articles and market information--http://www.speculations.com/.
  • If you aren't already, you should be reading Locus Magazine, which reports each month on who's selling what to whom. It's one of the best ways to learn about agents and publishers in the field. There's subscription information at its website: http://www.locusmag.com.
  • A recent interview with some major agents in the SF/fantasy field--it's very informative: http://www.computercrowsnest.com/sfnews2/03_april/news0403_1.shtml.
Good luck!

- Victoria
 

Leid: X09

Thanks guys, those URLS deemed interesting and at the same time, helpful. I'll work on the list of sci fi agents tomorrow. Since it's quite obvious that you all are knowledgeable in different Literary Agencies, I would like to ask about several of the ones I have already Queried to:

1) Bloominghouse Literary Agency
2) Henshaw Literary Agency
3) Fann Literary Agency

And finally,

4) Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency.

Are these legit? I'm aware some of them are small, but perhaps it's wisest to begin toward the bottom and work your way up.

Contacting the Agents that support my favorite novelists was an excellent idea; however, you'd think one would write the same genre as their favorite writers, wouldn't you? For some reason, I am compelled to write in an entirely different field altogether. I read Stephen King and Dean Koonz and occassionally Peter Straub. However, I really can't place a genre on my book at all. It's scientific, religious, factual in Ancient Civilizations, as well as fantasy due it taking place in a mystical world on the outskirts of our known Universe. I'm not sure if a science fiction agent would accept it, nor am I certain if a fantasy agent would either. It's pretty "out there" in terms of storyline.

But since I am a novice and I could very well be terribly wrong (which is usually the case. Lol) I will start working on trying to find an agent once again tomorrow. So far I have all of the materials that the majority of agents are looking for. Though I'm a little discouraged due to the fact that this is the first attempt at ever trying to publish anything at all. I'm sure I don't have more to offer than someone who has several doctorates in God knows what and has had short stories and journals published. Alright, I'm babbling. Nonetheless, your help is greatly appreciated.

- Tara Newberry
 

JennaGlatzer

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Victoria, thanks for the new thread. You already saved a man from signing with them yesterday because he found this page. :Clap:
 

Susan Gable

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Leid: X09 said:
4) Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency.

Yes, Ethan's legit. I've met him and also know several people who've worked with him. One thing Ethan said at a conference that impressed me was that he had no problem at all with having split checks with his clients and he didn't understand why some agents might take that as a personal affront.

Susan G.
 

victoriastrauss

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Tara, you asked about:

1) Bloominghouse Literary Agency: Its website has been online since 2000. In that time, I can't discover that it has made any sales at all. As a general rule of thumb, a successful agency will start making regular sales within six months to a year of starting up.

2) Henshaw Literary Agency: This is a small agency with what looks like a midrange track record. (Midrange = solid sales, but nothing spectacular.)

3) Fann Literary Agency: See my post in this thread. The short version: avoid.

4) Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency: As others have noted, successful and well regarded, with an extensive track record of commercial sales. If I were looking, I'd definitely approach him!

I'm aware some of them are small, but perhaps it's wisest to begin toward the bottom and work your way up.
Let me echo Uncle Jim: Begin at the top, and work your way down. Wouldn't you rather be repped by a top agent? What do you have to lose but postage?

You may have heard that common myth, that successful agents aren't interested in new writers. It really is a myth. Agents are well aware that the future bestsellers and literary stars often come from the ranks of the previously unpublished (think J.K. Rowling). No agent worth his or her salt will turn away an interesting manuscript just because the writer has never published before.

However, I really can't place a genre on my book at all. It's scientific, religious, factual in Ancient Civilizations, as well as fantasy due it taking place in a mystical world on the outskirts of our known Universe. I'm not sure if a science fiction agent would accept it, nor am I certain if a fantasy agent would either. It's pretty "out there" in terms of storyline.
Not knowing anything about your book, it does sound to me as if it trends toward fantasy. Try marketing it as a fantasy and see what happens; if the responses you get indicate that it's too "mainstream", you can switch to a more mainstream approach.

Agents who represent science fiction usually also rep fantasy, and vice versa. It all fits under the umbrella of "speculative".

- Victoria