Reading with Your Own Vision
- By: Jessica Faust | Date: Oct 17 2016
I’m not sure this happens to standard readers (those who never read novels for a living), but it is something that happens to me all the time, and something I suspect probably also happens to other agents and editors.
It’s not uncommon for me to sit down with a submission and, after reading the query, have a very concrete idea of how I want the plot to play out. Maybe the pitch itself shows potential flaws in the manuscript, but I think, if there’s a twist in there it will turn this book from blah to amazing. I want that book, the amazing book, so I requested it in the hopes that there’s a twist the author failed to tell me about.
Now keep in mind, I rarely plot out exactly what the twist should be, but I do know what the ending should not be, and that’s usually the ending hinted to in the query.
Oh good, queries and blurbs for starters today 🙂 Worked on a new blurb the entire weekend and I’m really happy with what came out, but . . This whole blurbing business is soooooooo hard. Now imagine in the end you have a super gripping blurb (even meet the less-than-150-words standard), send it out to your top five agents and then you realize there’s something in there . . . something very small that those-not-reading-novels-for-a-living would never notice, but someting a seasoned agent will sure as heck notice – halfway through the second paragraph it seems the plot implodes. It’s not like that in the book and not all is lost, but perfect will take even more work. And that’s because the blurb must mirror EXACTLY what the book is about from my point of view, while also being catchy at the same time. I’m off to polish it…
Your eternal optimism is one of the things that makes you such a good agent. People usually look at me strange when I see silver linings everywhere, you can make it work.
I do know what the ending should not be, and that’s usually the ending hinted to in the query
I didn’t think queries would mention a twist or hint at the ending? Aren’t they supposed to not divulge, so agents request? I know there are some “rules”, like romance should have a HEA and mystery/cozy a resolution to the mystery, but apart from assuming the book meets the requirements of the genre isn’t it left a query/blurb left on a hook?
Now wondering what amazing twist my ms needs so as to not disappoint agents 😉
A query doesn’t usually give away the ending but, like cover copy, it will give insight into the possible trajectory of the book.
Okay. Thanks for the explanation, Jessica.