Dashboard Literary Agents Success Story Interviews T. L. Coughlin

Success Story Interview - T. L. Coughlin

An Interview with T. L. Coughlin (t_l_xanthion on QT) upon receiving an offer of representation from agent Sheyla Knigge of High Line Literary Collective.

09/19/2023

QT: Can you tell us a little bit about the book for which you've found representation? What inspired you to write it?: T. L. Coughlin:
When a cursed half-fay jester overhears a plot to kill the human crown prince, she must reconcile with her powerful mixed-race identity to stop the assassin...or let the kingdom fall, so SHE can rise.

I was inspired by own heritage (Chinese/Italian) and namely the phenomena of Fata Morgana, a real-world optical illusion on the horizons of Sicily where it’s thought that Morgan le Fay has a floating castle in the sky. I love taking a story we think we know well and flipping it on its head, pulling in multicultural aspects and adding multiracial characters who are stuck between different worlds. My inspiration also lies in my research, investigating how a mythical character came to be, and what could be potentially written on the other side of that coin.
QT: How long have you been writing?: T. L. Coughlin:
I’ve been casually writing for as long as I can remember, but it was a Creative Writing class I took in high school that really gave me the confidence to try writing my first manuscript. (Ended up being a mess, but that’s okay!) My teacher even wrote in my yearbook, “You have what it takes.” And since then, I’ve held onto the phrase for inspiration.
QT: How long have you been working on this book?: T. L. Coughlin:
I started working on this book in 2021, completing the first draft in a few months.
QT: Was there ever a time you felt like giving up, and what helped you to stay on course?: T. L. Coughlin:
Absolutely! It was actually in the last few months. I had sent a bunch of queries before having a baby, and when I returned months later, I saw that the industry hadn’t budged since I “left”. I had an incredibly high request rate that I thought was unheard of, but many of my fellow writers were in the same position: high request rate, lots of ghosting, no offers, and no actionable feedback.

My writing support network was absolutely key. My friends told me that the high request rate meant my query and sample pages were successful, and the fact that I had no actionable feedback meant I simply needed to keep going to find my champion! When imposter syndrome took over, they helped me see the reality of current publishing and that I had to persevere. Knowing that they believed in me helped me get out of my head and keep trying since I now knew I was on the right track.
QT: Is this your first book?: T. L. Coughlin:
No, my debut, OF US AND THEM, was published by a small press. It’s a YA science fantasy novel featuring reinterpretations of global dragon mythology, saviour aliens, a high-stakes murder mystery, and a formidable multiracial cast!
QT: Do you have any formal writing training?: T. L. Coughlin:
Other than that high school class and picking up craft books, I haven’t had any formal writing training. But I did do a double major in Humanities and Biology, so I did A LOT of academic writing.
QT: Do you follow a writing routine or schedule?: T. L. Coughlin:
I write whenever I can! I don’t like having a schedule as I find I lose my passion and excitement if it’s so regimented.
QT: How many times did you re-write/edit your book?: T. L. Coughlin:
Goodness, I would say there are three significantly altered versions, but I had a ton of smaller edits. To be honest, I could never leave it alone!
QT: Did you have beta readers for your book?: T. L. Coughlin:
Yes, and they were wonderful! They gave me the drive to keep going. Friends, screenshot the compliments, save them in an album, and return to them whenever you’re feeling down. Trust me.
QT: Did you outline your book, or do you write from the hip?: T. L. Coughlin:
I love writing from the hip, but for this book I followed Jeni Chappelle’s reverse outline technique! My outline absolutely changed as I wrote though. Sometimes, you need to follow where your characters take you…and then edit the heck out of it.
QT: How long have you been querying for this book? Other books?: T. L. Coughlin:
I was querying for about two years, but again, to get any responses or feedback nowadays often took months! My debut, OF US AND THEM, was less than a year before I was picked up.
QT: About how many query letters did you send out for this book?: T. L. Coughlin:
Haha, well, the publishing landscape has changed. Batch queries are great at the beginning to see if your query letter and sample pages are doing well. But once you know they are? And especially for YA fantasy? You need to keep finding good matches and sending them off!

I sent over 150 queries in those two years with a 22% request rate.
QT: On what criteria did you select the agents you queried?: T. L. Coughlin:
Those who represented my genre, specifically those who were open to BIPOC, high fantasy, reimaginings, and decolonization themes. I also had a lot of agents approach me when I pinned my pitches to my Twitter profile.
QT: Did you tailor each query to the specific agent, and if so, how?: T. L. Coughlin:
At first, I did. I would always put a line at the beginning of the letter. Then I tried not doing a personalization, and to be quite honest, I didn’t see much of an effect on my request rate. If anything, both versions received an equal number of requests. I would say that that’s because I chose the right agent to query, though. For when I did personalize, I would see who they represented, what books I could comp, and anything that stood out from their MSWL that was a perfect match.
QT: What advice would you give other writers seeking agents?: T. L. Coughlin:
Keep going.

The querying trenches have changed ever since the year of you-know-what. The industry is stressed, and agents are inundated. This means longer waits for query responses, partial and full reads, etc. (And minimal feedback…ouff.) Even when I had my offer, I was ghosted on a LOT of resulting full requests. I would highly suggest finding those who respond quickly—and are a good fit—to see if your query letter and pages are effective, then keep researching, keep querying, keep trying, and keep going. You’ve got this.

Success Story Interview - T. L. Coughlin

Query Letter: