How I Got My Agent! (Part 2)

Newsletter #13

May 08, 2024

The Call, the Offer, and the Signing

When I started this writing journey I knew right away that I wanted to have my picture books traditionally published and to do that, I needed an agent. Not any agent, but someone who truly understands my perspective, loves my voice, and shares similar values and vision. I wished for an editorial agent who could champion my stories with a passion that would lead to sales. To hear about my twelve-year agent search from 2012-2023, see part 1.

One way to meet agents is to attend writing conferences, which usually include an opportunity to submit to them. In 2023, I attended a Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI) regional conference called Oktoberfest, and there I participated in Pitch Speed Dating, where I met two agents and told them about the stories I write. They both asked me to send my work: a win!

Exactly 40 days after I had sent two stories to one agent, she wrote that she adored one story, loved the message of the other, and would like to see more manuscripts. Woo hoo!! For those of you not in the writing biz, this is BIG. It means I hooked an agent enough that they are interested to see additional work of mine. In part 1, remember how I spent six years working on my craft and most of 2022 getting at least 5 stories really polished? This is why. So I could be confident that I was sending strong samples to agents. Since I had already done that tedious work, I was ready. At this point, this agent was the fourth one who requested more work, so I knew I was heading in right direction and feeling closer to my goal.

And back to waiting again. Most of the time, looking for an agent is a very long waiting game. To handle that, once I hit send or submit, I think to myself that I’ve done my part, so now it’s the agent’s turn. I try to forget about it and work on something else instead. At the end of 2023 and beginning of 2024, this newsletter was where I spent my time and energy.

In the meantime, I continued to collect rejections. Have I told you yet that I had received about 72 passes at this point? It was the holidays and people in the writing industry frequently take time off, so I wasn’t expecting to hear anything for a while. But once January hit in 2024, agents must’ve gone right back to their inboxes because I received 3 rejections pretty early on. What a way to start the new year! I really do prefer to hear back than not to hear at all. No response = no is a fairly standard practice, unfortunately. Then came a pass that hurt a little bit more, because she already had requested additional work and didn’t connect with enough of it to represent me. Three other agents still had more work, and knowing that kept my hope alive.

In February, I received an email from the agent I had met at Oktoberfest, and she wanted to talk. I felt everything all at once: excited, nervous, scared, relieved, disbelief, pensive. I checked with my critique group to make sure I wasn’t imagining that she wanted THE CALL. Yes, that’s what we say when an agent is most likely wanting to offer you representation. They assured me this was it, and we scheduled the call for a couple weeks later. Incidentally, on the same day that I received that glorious email of my dreams, I got another rejection (#76), which is so indicative of this roller coaster ride we writers are on.

I prepared all my questions for this two-way interview to make sure our visions aligned, we could communicate clearly, and would make a strong business partnership. I wrote what I wanted in my agent, what my goals are, what I need from my agent to achieve them, and why I’d make a great client. I had some specific questions with answers I was hoping to get. The call happened to be scheduled during my winter break, so I felt very ready. And of course two days before the call, I received rejection #77 from an agent who had requested additional work. So now I was down to two agents considering my stories. But I knew all it took was one.

From the start of the video call, everything felt so right. I liked her energy, her thoughtful answers, the clarity in her explanations, her career goals of becoming a full-time agent, the approach she takes when prioritizing her workload, her submission strategies, commitment to transparency, and most of all, the way she couldn’t stop smiling when she spoke about my writing. The call went so well that it scared me a tiny bit—I racked my brain to see if I had overlooked anything. But the truth was that my intuition was leading me straight toward this agent. So when the official Offer of Representation arrived two days later, I posted a photo of joy on my Instagram.

After completing my due diligence of speaking with client referrals, reviewing the agency agreement, negotiating what I was most comfortable with, letting other agents know I had an offer (which led to another agent requesting more work from me), and a delay because of my own email snafu, I finally signed the contract, and 40 days after that offer of representation, I woke up as an agented author.

It’s official! I’m now represented by Stefanie Molina of Ladderbird Literary Agency, a boutique agency with a passion for bringing marginalized voices to the forefront.

I am thrilled to announce that I am now represented by Stefanie Molina of Ladderbird Literary Agency!! I feel incredibly fortunate to have made this write match and look forward to building our careers together.

My daughter made a rainbow mousse cake for me to celebrate at work, and many from my long-time critique group, the Cafe Invaders, joined me for a sweet treat.

Book Report: I AM AN AMERICAN: THE WONG KIM ARK STORY

Written by Martha Brockenbrough and Grace Lin

Illustrated by Julia Kuo

The Wong Kim Ark story is such an instrumental one that shows how a Chinese American man fought through the court system to maintain his American citizenship. Born in San Francisco, we learn that Ark obtained documents proving his birthplace before visiting his parents in China, but when returning, customs officials ignored them and imprisoned him for four months. This injustice motivated Ark to use the U.S. Constitution to prove his case that he is an American citizen. I appreciate the way the authors Martha and Grace write about these big concepts in a way easy for children to understand. I also love the refrain I am an American, an important reminder not only to Ark, but to all readers of this story, that no matter what cultural customs you have or what you look like, people born in the United States are indeed American. In the back matter is an excellent timeline from 1849 to 1965 detailing the life on Wong Kim Ark along with key events about Chinese immigration, schooling, and discrimination.

Themes: immigration, determination, history, justice

Discussion Ideas:

Why did some people at that time think a person from China could not be an American?
Why might Asian people today still experience this type of discrimination?

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