Success Story Interview - Dion Beary

An Interview with Dion Beary (nbajam96swishsoundeffect on QT) upon receiving an offer of representation from agent Harvey Klinger of Harvey Klinger, Inc..

06/02/2026

QT: Can you tell us a little bit about the book for which you've found representation? What inspired you to write it?

Dion Beary:
THE BEST WOMAN is a twisty domestic thriller about a restless wife and mother who agrees to be her college ex-boyfriend’s “best man” at his wedding and bachelor trip. I attended six weddings in about fifteen months, including my own, and I became pretty obsessed with how gender presents itself in the wedding ritual. THE BEST WOMAN is a result of a lot of that.

QT: How long have you been writing?

Dion Beary:
I’ve been writing since I was in middle school. I was on a message board dedicated to Ned Vizzini before he died, and when I was fourteen he told me my writing was funny. I kept at it since then.

QT: How long have you been working on this book?

Dion Beary:
I started THE BEST WOMAN in mid December 2025 and started querying in March 2026.

QT: Was there ever a time you felt like giving up, and what helped you to stay on course?

Dion Beary:
Nah. I’m too stubborn. Plus, I just sort of knew I had something with this premise. I got my first two full requests my first few days querying, which encouraged me to keep going.

QT: Is this your first book?

Dion Beary:
No. I wrote an awful book during Covid lockdowns about an aging pop punk frontman struggling with his sexuality who returns to his hometown to try to craft one last masterpiece. It died in the query trenches. And I actually wrote another wedding story before THE BEST WOMAN about a runaway groom that I sent like 106 queries for that died in the trenches. That experience helped me understand querying a lot more, which is why things went much more smoothly with BEST WOMAN.

QT: Do you have any formal writing training?

Dion Beary:
I have a degree in literature and a minor in creative writing, so I took a number of workshops in undergrad. I also have an unfinished graduate school attempt that included quite a few creative writing workshops.

QT: Do you follow a writing routine or schedule?

Dion Beary:
I read for about an hour every morning, then I write as much as I can before my 9 to 5 starts. I also write a few hours after dinner a few nights a week.

QT: How many times did you re-write/edit your book?

Dion Beary:
I did a medium sized revision after the first draft. I’m an underwriter, so I needed to add about 13,000 words, which took me about a week. I did another huge revision based on notes from the agent I eventually signed with. It included a new POV, a new ending, and 30,000 words of new material. It took me about three weeks. I did a few line edits too, but apparently I’m bad at those.

QT: Did you have beta readers for your book?

Dion Beary:
No. I don’t think they’re necessary. I think people like beta readers because feedback is fun. But, again, I knew I had a premise that would raise eyebrows, and I wanted to model my book after published works I admired. If I personally knew the author of one of those books who was willing to beta read for me, I would have done it. But without that, I felt no urge to ask someone who hadn’t written the type of book I wanted to write for their feedback.

QT: Did you outline your book, or do you write from the hip?

Dion Beary:
I can’t write from an outline. If I know how the book ends, I lose my interest in writing it.

QT: What advice would you give other writers seeking agents?

Dion Beary:
Stop publicly talking about how many rejections you’ve received. I get that the trenches are stressful. I get that you’re trying to appear transparent. And there’s satisfaction in getting lots of likes and comments commiserating with you, but you’re adopting a posture of frustration, bitterness, and desperation. I promise you it leaks through in your query letters, because our posture is how we write everything. Emotional maturity, grit, optimism, and joy is a better posture to adopt. Or, say nothing. Adopt a posture of silence. “An artist respects the silence that serves as the foundation of creativity.” - Douglas Levison