EQ: 3/26/18
ER: 3/26/18
YA Fantasy, 97K

Submitted following SCBWI conference in LA. Received personalized, very encouraging rejection (due to genre fit). If her response is any indication, anyone would be lucky to work with her.

Queried her following Prairie Writer's & Illustrator's Day in Chicagoland, 1/1/15
Full request 1/2/15
Sweet rejectionon 1/3/15 saying it was "a matter of like and not love and someone else will take it soon."

Very nice lady with a very unusual story in the publishing world!

Although this agent is closed to submissions, I took a Webinar from Danielle Smith and received a positive response on the picture book I submitted. Ms. Smith told me that while she liked the book it was not different enough from what was on the market. I can work with that! She also said that she is open to seeing other of my work. NOTE: She is closed to submissions from those who have not met her through a conference or seminar.

I have asked the moderators of query tracker.net why Red Fox Literary is not on the list of agencies for picture books. I will with permission share their response.

In this case taking the Webinar through Writer's Digest was well worth the reasonable expense and time. I strongly suggest looking into their Webinars, particularly those that will provide feedback on your manuscript.

Good luck!

EQ: 9/4/13 (rhyming picture book)
ER: 11/4/13

A nice, customized rejection. (Note that I was able to submit to Ms. Grencik despite her "closed to queries" notification here because I had attended the NESCBWI conference in Springfield, MA, earlier this year, which she provided critiques at.)

Congrats WriterMC!

9/28/2013:
A while ago back in 2011 I submitted to her and she was very kind in her rejection. She loved the story but it was just too long and she said she would not be able to find a buyer for it, but she also mentioned that she would be the first to buy it when it hits the shelves! So with that said, I hope to be able to query her again someday. I just sent a pitch for a character driven PB and she is actually offering one of the four prizes: the chance to submit your PB manuscript to her. I hope I get it!

I think putting the word "Query" in your subject line will keep your email from going into the spam folder. I checked for status of my query (MG adventure) after about 10 weeks (adding the word Query to the subject line) and she graciously looked at it and sent back a personal and heartfelt reply. Even though it is not the story for her, it was still encouraging to get a personal response. Anyone who gets an offer for representation from her needs to jump on it! I have no doubt she would be an excellent and attentive agent.

Just popping in to say I accepted rep from Ms. Grencik this week! I met her at two SCBWI conferences, and am beyond impressed by her knowledge, work ethic, and passion for the business. I ended up receiving 6 offers, but I knew Karen was the one.

Query tracker has been SUCH an amazing tool through my querying journey. I love you guys! Thank you, Patrick, and the team for all the work you do. I've used you guys since my first querying book and you are a life saver!

Met Abigail Samoun at an SCBWI conference this past weekend. She had some very nice comments about my first chapter, and requested the full MS!

Sent 5/20/12

YA Psychological Thriller

Profile Update: Closed to queries.

(Thanks bradichek)

FYI, per their website:

With regret, due to the volume of submissions received, Karen Grencik and Abigail Samoun can no longer accept unsolicited queries. Submissions will only be accepted from attendees at conferences at which they present, or through referrals from their clients or from professionals in the industry.

@wordrendezvous That is a wonderful rejection! Good luck with whatever next step you decide.

EQ: 11-07-2011
ER: 11-07-2011

Very kind, helpful, semi-personal form rejection. I knew my word count was lengthy for a PB, but I am hoping the longer PB's will make a comeback soon.

Here is her response:

Thank you so much for sending this exceptionally lovely manuscript my way. I truly loved spending time with Daniella and Abuelita in this heartfelt tale!
Unfortunately, though, (my name), I've had no luck in placing these kinds of longer story picture book manuscripts, as editors are calling for shorter and shorter texts every day. I think it's a shame, and I wish it wasn't so, but it's the way things are. As a result, I cannot send out manuscripts that don't meet the editors' specific needs, and I just don't know who might be looking for this kind of manuscript. For that reason, with regret, I must pass. I'm so sorry.But I am honored to have had the opportunity to see this, and I hope you'll find an agent who knows just who to send this to to get it to the bookshelves

Yes, congratulations, iwrite! Will you be posting your success story on your blog?

Congrats, iwrite! :^]

I wanted to update you all. Karen is a sweetheart and I appreciate her offering to represent my work. However, I decided to accept Jennifer DeChiara's offer instead and have signed with her.