I finished my first agent letter today. I tried, I really did try, to stay within their submissions guidelines, but it was tough. How can you fully describe a recovering alcoholic, with a gay BFF who's the reigning Drag Queen Diva, two best gal pals that don't know her biggest secret, an attorney that makes her skin crawl, an evil boss, too many men interested in her friends, and a little girl's murder to solve in one paragraph? Okay, so I made a horribly long sentence as an example, but really, sometimes one is just too few.
I did manage to cover most of it in two paragraphs. I really hope he doesn't mind. And I'm targeting one agent first for a very valid reason. He represents one of my current favorites who's in the same genre (approximately) and works for a woman. Who doesn't love a man who works for a woman and who's interest is in women's literature? We'll see. I'll have to wait to hear anything for at least 6-8 weeks. I'm hoping for something good, but expecting a rejection.
But my husband has had a suggestion that I'm seriously considering. Put out the first 3 chapters on a website. Let people decide if they want to read the rest, charge $4-$5 for an electronic copy of the whole book that they can download from the same site. It's a possibility. I'm still contemplating it. All the formats and securing those files means I have to learn more tech stuff and I'm not 100% certain I want to go that way yet. (Or perhaps I'm just being really lazy).
In the meantime, I'll be considering posting a few tidbits here that are PG-rated. (Jess swears so badly a lot of it would be considered adult content).
And I'll let you know when I actually click on the "send" button. I'm thinking perhaps I'll wait until this weekend, so it's fresh in his mailbox on Monday. Really, I just need to get up the nerve and send it already.
Good luck!
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