Querying in the Time of Covid-19
- By: Jessica Faust | Date: Mar 20 2020
Since we’ve gone into isolation the most common question I get from authors is whether they should be querying now, during the time of Covid-19. Are agents really reading?
The answer is yes. Absolutely! Agents and editors are working in isolation at home, but it’s otherwise business as usual. I know for a fact editors are reading faster and hungry for something to lose themselves in. Agents feel the same.
Now more than ever we need books and agents want to give them to you.
I know I’ve been raiding my Query Manager in search of the next great thing. If I added five clients during this time I would be thrilled. I need a great book to lose myself in. I need to dig in and work on revisions with an author and I need to get something into the hands of editors who are also hungry.
So yes, query us, please.
To learn more about what the Agents of BookEnds, and to find the links to query us, review our submissions guidelines.
For more information, check out this video on our YouTube channel:
The BookEnds MSWL
A few of us recently did blog posts on our MSWL–manuscript wishlists. If you missed them, I’ll include the links below. I also suggest you subscribe to the BookEnds Literary Agency YouTube channel. There will be an MSWL video posting soon.
I did two posts recently. One for my fiction wishlist and one for my nonfiction wishlist.
And James posted his wishlist as well.
Stay safe and stay well. I’ll watch for your query.
Thank you for this!
THANK YOU SO MUCH! I have been hoping that would be the case. I queried Kim Lionetti recently. 🙂
I hope you are all well and staying safe.
I love reading MSWLs, they are always brining with new ideas and suggestions. surprisingly I’ve found that the lists of agents that don’t represent my genres are more exciting.
I’m always asking myself how something would work as MG/YA or romance. Could it be made into a fantasy or paranormal?
The mid-teen paranormal I’m doing back ground research for now started from Jessica’s food and magical realism. Although it’s a million miles from that now.
[…] lots of people are wondering whether it’s okay to send out query letters right now, and agent Jessica Faust gives a definitive yes. My own conversations echo this. A lot of agents are at home and catching up on their reading right […]
Thank you for this timely information!
I have been wondering about this and was ecstatic to discover your blog. Now that it’s on my radar, I will be sure to stay tuned for any other advice you have to offer.
Stay safe!
Regards,
Mj Grossmann
Hey BookEnds – Thanks for another great post, as usual! I have a question if you guys might have time to answer it on a video or even just here on the blog… I’m a few weeks out from querying my latest book, but still have several queries out for my last book. What’s the protocol with those particular agents? Especially the ones with requested material?
Thank you!
It’s really up to you. You can leave them out there and see what happens or if you’d prefer to withdraw and query the next book instead you can definitely do that. There aren’t any rights or wrongs to this situation.
Jessica, I know you’ve said before that if you query someone in BookEnds they will sometimes share with other agents. If you do query, and receive a rejection from that BookEnds agent, do you assume it hasn’t been shared and query another BookEnds agent?
[…] encouraged authors to continue submitting and querying during the time of Covid-19. We are doing it as agents and we are selling books. We are also receiving and sending rejections, […]
Jessica, thank you for letting me know that it’s welcomed to send a query to you during the Covid 19 pandemic. I appreciate your interest. I will check the link you sent me via Instagram (chrishallauthor) in a moment. All the best to you, Chris Hall Anderson, pen name Chris Hall.