Anna Zagar (purpleprose on QT) has signed with agent Lucy Carson of The Friedrich Agency.
Lucy has already brokered a two-book deal for Anna to Feiwel and Friends, an imprint of Macmillan specializing in children's fiction.
Total, I sent 60, but I recently found out not all of them made it to their destination. For some reason, about 8 or so ended up in the agent's spam folder or not arriving at all, and they were surprised to find that the opportunity had already passed for them to review the project. This is why I LOVE when agencies have an auto response so you know your query at least arrived; especially for the agencies whose policy is "no response means no". So, total:
60 queries
*Just a small victory point---one of those rejections came the day after Lucy sold my MS in a two book deal to Feiwel and Friends, a children's imprint of Macmillan! I did refrain from shooting back an email teeming with the gist of "BOOO-YA!" . No need to burn bridges...
For a total of four offers of representation (the fourth, though, was kind of unofficial and contingent on major changes, so I don't really count that)
Sure, but take it with a grain of salt. I don't know what worked, or why it was successful. I don't pretend to be an expert at query writing. The Query Shark would probably eat me alive. But here goes:
Dear Ms. Agent,
I'm hoping to interest you in my YA Fantasy, Of Poseidon, complete at 82,000 words. A hybrid of mythology, fairytale, and hormones, Of Poseidon could be the modern, twice-removed cousin of The Little Mermaid:
Syrena prince Galen trades his fin for high school, hairy legs, and flip flops in order to help human girl Emma change into the fish he knows she is. Her Gift of Poseidon—the ability to talk to sea life—proves her descent. More importantly, it destines her to mate his older brother, the Triton king, to ensure the survival of the Gift for generations to come.
But Emma's not so sure. She hates seafood. She doesn't have the dark Syrena coloring—she's Canadian-tourist white, for crying out loud. Sure, she can hold her breath for hours. But even if she can sprout a fin, what then? Does he expect her to give up everything she cares about—her mother, college scholarships, strawberry cheesecake—to go live in a sea shell off the Jersey sea shore? Nofreakingway. Especially since he's too chicken-of-the-sea to kiss her…
But the almost-kisses affect Galen too. Not to mention her blushes melt him like a sandcastle in the rain. Still, keeping his loyalty to his kingdom means keeping his heart—and his hands—to himself. It also means keeping Emma's fate a secret from her—for now. When his conscience becomes a whirlpool of affection and guilt, betrayal seems his only lifeline. The question is, who should he betray?
And—what's taking Emma so long to change into Syrena form, anyway?
Ms. Agent, please let me know if I may send you a sample of Of Poseidon. Thanks in advance for your consideration.
Sincerely,
Eager Writer