Claire Gerus Literary Agency

[priceless1]

I agree with Soccer. There are no exclusives, and you need to take care of numero uno; you. If Claire is interested, she'll get hold of you. In the meantime, you haven't lost anything by querying elsewhere as well. I haven't talked to her in a few days, but I know she's busy.

June, you're jumping the gun a bit. It hasn't been that long at all. Give it a couple months and continue querying to other agents as well.

 

[Juneluv12]

Thanks for responding, Priceless. I've got some other partials and fulls out, so I won't get too panicked. I'm just used to hearing from her so quickly it made me wonder if something had gone wrong.

Taking a breath and backing off!

 

[Barbarique]

Ms. Gerus asked for three chapters the day after I queried her. That was three weeks ago, but I'm keeping my lip buttoned and my fingers crossed.

 

[52greg]

Is Claire accepting fiction proposals again? She wasn't the last time I contacted her.

 

[SkipII]

Keeping all paths open

Here's my dillema.

I have been in limbo with her now for more than two months. She has my proposal and, initially, had hoped to get back to me within a week. That didn't happen. She responded to a couple of later emails saying she is interested, but that she needed just a few more days before she could get to it.

I don't want to bug her any more and, given the amount of time that has passed, I'm sure I should just consider it a rejection and move on, but I actually found myself feeling guilty sending the proposal to two agents who requested it this weekend.

My interactions with her have been positive and I would really, really like to sign with her, especially after all that I have read here and elsewhere. But I know it's not necessarily wise to just sit and wait. I just have this incredible fear that if I move on, I'll letting go of a good thing.

Am I crazy?

Claire is very conscientious and also very busy (successful). If has not said "no" she is still considering it. However, that does not mean it is an exclusive. You should continue to shop it to other agents. Soon, it is fair to pop Claire a note and ask her where it stands.

 

[Vermilion]

Is Claire accepting fiction proposals again? She wasn't the last time I contacted her.

I think she is. I e-queried her on May 8th and received a response from her assistant requesting for partial (May 15th)

 

[Bronte]

Claire Gerus Literary Agency Reply to Thread

I believe she is primarily an editor--that is her natural inclination.
She also lives in Arizona. My advice, if you are serious about publishing find an agent who is located IN NEW YORK CITY, and has the contacts and can hit the streets for you. You want an agent that can meet F2F with publishers when they want to talk.
Arizona location is not a plus.

 

[firedrake]

I believe she is primarily an editor--that is her natural inclination.
She also lives in Arizona. My advice, if you are serious about publishing find an agent who is located IN NEW YORK CITY, and has the contacts and can hit the streets for you. You want an agent that can meet F2F with publishers when they want to talk.
Arizona location is not a plus.

Huh?

There's this thing called 'the internet', you're using it now and communicating your thoughts to forum members near and far.

 

[52greg]

I think she is. I e-queried her on May 8th and received a response from her assistant requesting for partial (May 15th)

Yes, I got the same response from her assistant, but Claire herself emailed me shortly thereafter and told me she's not.

 

[Vermilion]

Yes, I got the same response from her assistant, but Claire herself emailed me shortly thereafter and told me she's not.

Oh that sucks... I didn't get an e-mail from Claire though.

 

[Senior Chief]

Claire is my agent here in Tucson and is working hard to get my book published. She moved out here after spending 30 years in NYC and is highly respected in the business. I know this from the emails that I am getting from senior editors of Penguin, Simon and Schuester, Random House and the like. I could not be happier and from all indications, expect a deal to be forthcoming -

Senior

 

[priceless1]

She also lives in Arizona. My advice, if you are serious about publishing find an agent who is located IN NEW YORK CITY, and has the contacts and can hit the streets for you. You want an agent that can meet F2F with publishers when they want to talk.
Arizona location is not a plus.

Where did you get the idea that only NY agents can make great sales? I work with agents who come from all over the US, and they do very well for themselves. Not all publishers are located in New York. Claire has been knocking around the publishing industry since the beginning of time, and she is extremely well known to editors. Many editors pick up the phone and establish relationships that way. Face to face is nice, but if I stopped to lunch with every agent who wanted to pitch to me, I'd never get anything done.

 

[waylander]

I believe she is primarily an editor--that is her natural inclination.
She also lives in Arizona. My advice, if you are serious about publishing find an agent who is located IN NEW YORK CITY, and has the contacts and can hit the streets for you. You want an agent that can meet F2F with publishers when they want to talk.
Arizona location is not a plus.

Tell that to Kristin Nelson

 

[priceless1]

And Andrea Brown.

 

[happywritermom]

You only need to look at Claire's sales.
She's amazing!

 

[dragonmedley]

Yes, I got the same response from her assistant, but Claire herself emailed me shortly thereafter and told me she's not.

I queried, Claire responded to ask for the first chapter (not her assistant). Haven't heard back since then... Her PM page says General Fiction, but maybe she changed her mind.

 

[Senior Chief]

Received a call from my literary agent today (Claire Gerus) telling me that I have a verbal offer from History Publishing Company who want to publish my book, Someone Like Me - My 20 Years in the Navy - With Cerebral Palsy.

The details are still being hammered out, but I should have a contract in my hand in the next day or two! I am very excited!

John

 

[firedrake]

Received a call from my literary agent today (Claire Gerus) telling me that I have a verbal offer from History Publishing Company who want to publish my book, Someone Like Me - My 20 Years in the Navy - With Cerebral Palsy.

The details are still being hammered out, but I should have a contract in my hand in the next day or two! I am very excited!

John

That's brilliant! Congratulations!

You have a very fine agent there too!

 

[happywritermom]

Congratulations Senior Chief!!!!!
I never did get a final answer from Claire (Somehow my proposal got killed from her computer and I had to resend), and I signed with another agent who is much more passionate about my particular project (and my novel). So, it's turned out to be a better match for me. But, as far as I can tell, she is an awesome agent with excellent sales.

I certainly wouldn't let her location get in the way of querying her or signing with her. One glimpse at Publishers Marketplace shows that location is no obstacle for her.

 

[rdgore]

I have never come across someone who is more caring and encouraging than Ms. Gerus. Although she rejected my novel, she did so after suggesting changes and giving me candid but very encouraging feedback. I regret not writing a novel she would have liked!

 

[ZeroMan]

I've had two phone conversations with Ms. Gerus and so far my experience is much the same as the others here.

Late last year another agent told me my manuscript was too short and I could very likely sell it if I added 25,000 words. So I worked really hard for several months expanding it and added around 30,000 words. When I recontacted that agent, they asked for the first two chapters, then promptly sent me a form rejection.

Anyway, Ms. Gerus got involved, read the entire manuscript and told me it needs around 20,000 words trimmed! You'd think it would be easy to take out all those words I added but it's almost as much work now trying to trim it back down.

Still, Ms. Gerus seems so knowledgeable, I'd really like to please her if I can.

So... back to work!

 

[Bronte]

Claire Gerus

Anyone know anything about Claire Gerus? Her listing on PM looks good -- lots of editing experience - but I wondered if there's a conflict since she appears to be offering editorial services as well as agenting services.

RE: Claire Gerus, I had a VERY bad experience with her and I do not recommend her. She was very slow moving and she is not based in NYC. Her "agency" is in Ariz!!! Not exactly the publishing mecca.

 

[firedrake]

RE: Claire Gerus, I had a VERY bad experience with her and I do not recommend her. She was very slow moving and she is not based in NYC. Her "agency" is in Ariz!!! Not exactly the publishing mecca.

Have you read the comments on this thread?

Have you looked at her PM page?

No, I didn't think so.

It.doesn't.matter.where.an.agent.is.based.anymore.

 

[priceless1]

RE: Claire Gerus, I had a VERY bad experience with her and I do not recommend her. She was very slow moving and she is not based in NYC. Her "agency" is in Ariz!!! Not exactly the publishing mecca.

Bronte, there are plenty excellent agents who aren't based in NYC. Ever heard of Kristin Nelson? She hails from Denver, Colo. Claire, for the record, spent a lifetime in NY and has very good contacts with the publishers both large and small. Check out her bio. She's hardly a neophyte in this business.

Check out her Publisher's Marketplace sales. She knows how to sell a manuscript. I know Claire very well, and know her to be extremely capable. I'm not sure what you mean by "slow moving," but I know that she is very communicative with her clients.

I don't know your situation, but based on your flimsy outburst that contains zero backup, I'm betting Claire is better off without you.

 

[ZeroMan]

RE: Claire Gerus, I had a VERY bad experience with her and I do not recommend her. She was very slow moving and she is not based in NYC.

That certainly hasn't been my experience. I sent a query in the morning and was on the phone discussing my manuscript with her that afternoon. It took her 10 days to read my manuscript, which in my experience is lightning fast.

Even more importantly, she then offered a number of suggestions on how to make it better.