Dashboard Literary Agents Success Story Interviews M.D. Kerkhoven

Success Story Interview - M.D. Kerkhoven

An Interview with M.D. Kerkhoven (MDKerk on QT) upon receiving an offer of representation from agent Matthew Valdez of Megibow Literary Agency.

03/03/2025

QT: Can you tell us a little bit about the book for which you've found representation? What inspired you to write it?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
My book is called WHERE THE WICKED LIE, and it's an upper YA dark fantasy with horror elements—kind of a mix between THE WICKED DEEP, MIDNIGHT MASS, and EXTASIA.
QT: How long have you been writing?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
I've been writing stories since I was 15, and I'm 27 now. I took a break for a while, but I got back into it about 4 years ago, in 2020.
QT: How long have you been working on this book?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
I came up with the idea in early 2023, but I let it sit for a while since I was still working on another novel (the first one I queried), and I have a hard time juggling multiple projects at once. I finally started drafting in April 2024, and finished the first draft by the end of October 2024. I then sent it to my critique partners for developmental feedback, and they got back to me with their notes by mid-December. After that, I took about three weeks off from my day job to focus on editing full-time. I had planned to start querying in January since I'd gotten quite a bit of interest from agents during Twitter/X pitch events in November and December, so I wanted to send it out as soon as possible.
QT: Was there ever a time you felt like giving up, and what helped you to stay on course?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
I never really considered giving up, even after receiving a lot of rejections for the first book I queried or when I got stuck on particularly tough chapters. Writing and pursuing traditional publishing has been my dream since I was a child, and there's honestly nothing else I'd rather do. Whenever I started to feel discouraged, I reminded myself that I’d feel worse if I wasn’t writing or working toward publishing.
QT: Is this your first book?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
WHERE THE WICKED LIE is my third book. I wrote my first in 2021—it wasn't great, and I never took it beyond the first draft. My second one I wrote between 2022 - 2023.
QT: Do you have any formal writing training?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
No, I don't. I don't even have a high school diploma. I spent a long time being afraid no agent or publisher would ever take me seriously because of that, especially since English isn't even my first language! For years I told myself, "who would ever take a high-school drop out seriously?" But looking back, that was pretty silly.
QT: Do you follow a writing routine or schedule?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
I have Fridays through Sundays off from my day job, so I usually spend that time writing or editing.
QT: How many times did you re-write/edit your book?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
I did one round of edits for WHERE THE WICKED LIE, which included line edits and adding/removing several large scenes based on feedback from my critique partners. I should note that I edit a lot as I draft, so my first drafts are usually pretty clean.
QT: Did you outline your book, or do you write from the hip?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
I start with a rough outline, then create a more detailed chapter outline. Having a 'roadmap' of sorts before I begin writing helps me feel more secure.
QT: How long have you been querying for this book? Other books?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
I spent 22 days in the query trenches before receiving my first offer on WHERE THE WICKED LIE. The first book I queried, I spent about 8 months querying with no luck.
QT: About how many query letters did you send out for this book?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
I sent 29 query letters.
QT: On what criteria did you select the agents you queried?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
I mostly looked at their wish list and, if applicable, the clients they represented.
QT: Did you tailor each query to the specific agent, and if so, how?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
I only personalized my query if the agent had specifically requested to see it through a Twitter/X pitch event. Otherwise, I didn’t personalize. I found that, more often than not, personalized queries for my previous book were rejected, while non-personalized queries were the ones that got me full requests. This could be a coincidence, but it led me to favor non-personalized queries.
QT: What advice would you give other writers seeking agents?: M.D. Kerkhoven:
Don't give up and cast a wide net. Oftentimes I received requests from agents who, based on their MSWL, I didn't expect to be a good fit for my manuscript. Also, if you can, participate in pitch events on Twitter and Bluesky. I got a lot of requests through pitch event interest, and it can really help get your foot in the door!

Success Story Interview - M.D. Kerkhoven

Query Letter: