I know you're just one agent, but in your opinion would you say the "no answer means no" response is now standard in the industry? By my statistics, I'm getting about 7 out of 10 "no answer" rejections as opposed to forms. Not that a form rejection is wonderful, but at least it takes the guesswork out of scratching that particular agent off your list.
Ask Lane Heymont of The Tobias Literary Agency
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Because of this, does a writer have to worry when listing their address in a query, that an agent might mistakenly believe them to be conservative, based on where they live (if it's known for being predominately conservative)? I wouldn't want agents to reject my query based on where I currently live, with the mistaken assumption that I might be conservative and that they wouldn't get along with me.
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Online behavior is a concern, absolutely; you don't want to be on either extreme. You want to be courteous.
But. Don't be overly distracted by the concern that your political leanings will determine your chances of publication. I don't think (and I'm sure Lane will correct me if I'm wrong) that Lane meant to emphasize the political aspect quite as much as this question seems to suggest.
One of the most conservative and extreme writers in a political sense, Orson Scott Card, is published, and happily, by Tor. Tor also publish David Weber and Charlie Stross and Cory Doctorow. Tor publishes books by these authors because these authors wrote books that sell.
Mostly, just don't be a jerk, of any political stripe. Don't pick fights. Just as with any job, you want to be careful about reputation online.
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Yes. It's just that I've grown up in different states and have always found out, later--despite being the quiet, new student who never said anything racist or negative to anyone--that some local residents/students would incorrectly make negative assumptions about me behind my back, due to local, historical racial tensions and controversies (a student making a "joke" to everyone about me being a descendent of southern, slave owners, even though my relatives weren't southern, nor slave owners in the U.S. because they didn't even live here during that time; even though I didn't have a southern accent because my family wasn't from there).
So, I'm aware that only listing my current address doesn't let agents know that I'm not originally from there and didn't grow up conservative, and that there's a possibility an agent might make an incorrect assumption about my political beliefs, based on where I live, because most of the population is conservative.
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Hello Lane,
This is probably a very easy one. But is there a specific reason (most debut authors do not know) when it comes to why an agent doesn't give a reason for a rejection. Is it simply to spare their feelings and give hope? Surely a one line off the cuff gut feeling couldn't be too burdensome to reply with: bah, too many big words for the age group; overly complicated
I was just wondering if I was noobing out big time on this point.
This is probably a very easy one. But is there a specific reason (most debut authors do not know) when it comes to why an agent doesn't give a reason for a rejection. Is it simply to spare their feelings and give hope? Surely a one line off the cuff gut feeling couldn't be too burdensome to reply with: bah, too many big words for the age group; overly complicated
I was just wondering if I was noobing out big time on this point.
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Hey Lane!
Thanks a whole bunch for taking the time to answer our questions.
I recently had my first short story picked up by a professional publication. I also recently finished the draft of a fantasy novel. The short story is sort of a proof of concept for the magic system I used in the book (Or at least that's why I wrote it initially.) It's just the magic they share, not characters or other stuff.
My question is-- When I start querying , should I draw attention to the fact that the magic has appeared in a publication already (Since that could show there's a market for it)? Or would that be off-putting because they aren't getting the first crack at the full concept? Or is it wholly irrelevant and nobody is going to care either way?
As a followup question, how much of a boost is a pro short story publication when you're looking through a query pile?
Thanks!
Cal
Thanks a whole bunch for taking the time to answer our questions.
I recently had my first short story picked up by a professional publication. I also recently finished the draft of a fantasy novel. The short story is sort of a proof of concept for the magic system I used in the book (Or at least that's why I wrote it initially.) It's just the magic they share, not characters or other stuff.
My question is-- When I start querying , should I draw attention to the fact that the magic has appeared in a publication already (Since that could show there's a market for it)? Or would that be off-putting because they aren't getting the first crack at the full concept? Or is it wholly irrelevant and nobody is going to care either way?
As a followup question, how much of a boost is a pro short story publication when you're looking through a query pile?
Thanks!
Cal
It appears to me that there are a huge number of writers in the field of fantasy. Scanning the posts across this forum every other one seems to concern fantasy.
Is that because it is popular with agents like yourself or a fad amongst authors?
What in your opinion is the type of book that is easiest to sell and most in demand by readers?
Thanks once again for your help here
Chokdee
Is that because it is popular with agents like yourself or a fad amongst authors?
What in your opinion is the type of book that is easiest to sell and most in demand by readers?
Thanks once again for your help here
Chokdee
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Looking for a second opinion. 
If you're querying a book that's been burned with a single publisher (for example, offered as a proposal and refused), do you mention this in the query? Or is this something to be brought up when an agent shows interest?
Thanks!
If you're querying a book that's been burned with a single publisher (for example, offered as a proposal and refused), do you mention this in the query? Or is this something to be brought up when an agent shows interest?
Thanks!
Feels a bit like telling an agent that another agent passed on your work. Complete amateur when it comes to these things, though...so...
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To clarify: it wasn't an agent, it was a publisher. The contract included an obligation to offer the publisher the next full-length work, which was done in the form of a proposal. The book hasn't done the agent rounds via query.
ETA: I guess the more concise way of asking the question is this: How do you query a book that's been partially (if minimally) shopped by another agent?
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