Just saying to AlThornton:

BRAVO!
ICM'S website is one of the MOST difficult webpages I've browsed. You have to screen multiple sites altogether to glean information and hope when sending a query that the little you have is accurate.

EQ: Oct 3/19
Re-sent query Nov 22/19, as per her pinned tweet on Twitter (before I send to another ICM agent)
ER: Nov 22/19 - I appreciate the speedy response!

EQ: 9/10/19
CNR: 10/24/19

87k Adult Fantasy

To be fair, as someone whose day job is IT and college degree is in business media, ICM's website is kind of poorly designed. They don't even have a customer support email - so I mailed them a physical letter about how hard it is to find the information you need to use their services on their website. Will this hurt my chances of working with them? Maybe. Do I feel better? Absolutely.

Update, to anyone curious as to what the letter said:

To whom it may concern,

I am writing this letter because, as an author seeking representation, and as a student of business media, I was very frustrated and disappointed with your website.

Usually when I go to a company website to research agents I could potentially query, the agents have individual listings. This allows authors to read about their preferences; in genre, themes, YA/NA/MG/Adult, etc. It also gives the agent a place to specify how they would like to be queried - I had to go to one of your agent’s Twitter accounts to find out how she would like to be queried. The only place I could easily find other agents at your agency is through QueryTracker - and considering not all writers use QueryTracker, you may be limiting the amount of customers actually applying to your agency.

In addition, this page can tell authors how long they should expect to wait before receiving a response, and when it would be appropriate to send a follow-up if they haven’t.

You also lack a customer support email, which is why I’m writing this letter instead of sending an email. A customer support email address would allow you to receive and resolve questions and issues with your company quickly, especially with issues that may be difficult to resolve over the phone.

As someone who has worked in the IT field for several years, the lack of these features in your website can make it seem less professional and reliable than your competitors - losing you more business. You also don’t list any of your success stories - in publishing, this would be books that you have gotten accepted by a publishing house. Most other agencies have the covers of their clients’ books on the landing page for their publishing - this way, querying authors can see if their book seems like a match for your company and that you have successfully represented previous works. Many other agencies also have a list of the authors they represent, for the same purpose.

You list your partnership with Curtis Brown, Ltd. for foreign rights - their website contains most of the features I mentioned. Their landing page has a rolling gallery of book covers for successful representation, they have an easy to find and search list of all their agents with separate pages for their bios and preferences, they have a specific submissions page with dos and don’ts, and a list of books they represented that have won awards in the past.

In summary, and to be frank, your website is poorly designed and very likely losing you potential business. I should be able to find all the information I need to query one of your agents in three clicks or less - that’s something I have picked up from my college courses in media and information design. Most people aren’t going to track down your agent’s Twitter profile, and - if they decide to query anyways - will likely send them the wrong information.

I am sending this letter in the hopes that you will take the suggestions herein under advisement and redesign your website for a more user-friendly experience. This will be a benefit to both you and your potential clientele, as it should increase the amount of people applying for your services.

Best of Luck,

ALThornton


P.S. It would have also been helpful if your “Contact Us” listed who is receiving the mail at each listed address, so I could have addressed this email to the appropriate person/department, rather than “To whom it may concern”.

Thanks, Madjack!

Padler, she has a pinned Tweet on Twitter that says query plus first five pages and it gives her email address. (her Twitter account is listed on the Main tab above in case you're not on Twitter, you can still click it and see her info).

Does anyone know her submission requirements? ICM's website gives nothing about it.

FR through Pitch Wars: sent 2/12/19
Nudged with revised version & sent: 3/13/19
Nudged with offer of publication: 8/17/19
CNR: 9/2/19

Been 5 months, should I follow-up?

EQ: 6/5/2019
Nudge w/offer: 7/1/19
Step aside: 7/29/19
YA soft SF, 81k

EQ: 6/7/19, 97,000 word SF

16/05/19: EQ
27/05/19: FR (!!!)

Adult epic fantasy. Heard good things about this agent so fingers crossed!

EQ: 3/5/19
Nudge: 4/27/19
ER: 5/1/19

EQ: 3/8
I'm sending a nudge before I close this one out.
She thanked me for following up and apologized for the delay.
ER: 4/29
YA Historical Fantasy

EQ: 2/08
(I read online she responds to all queries but did not receive a reply within her allotted six weeks so I resent my query on 3/26)

ER: 4/16; she thanked me for following up and apologized. It sounds like she's just behind on answering queries.