Caren Johnson Literary Agency

Here at the agency we’re always striving for new and innovative ways to get the word out about our authors books. Check out this video about a guy trying to do the same thing—without really knowing what’s going on. I feel like most of my authors are like that and just wanted them to know that it’s better to start from somewhere than nowhere.

We’re expanding here at CJLA. We’re proud to welcome Rachel Downes as the newest member of the agency. She’ll be acting as an assistant to me and as a junior agent. She’ll start signing a few authors to start. Check out her bio below.

Rachel Downes is a junior literary agent at the Caren Johnson Literary Agency. She has a BA from Manhattan College in international studies and minored in economics and philosophy. She graduated as a member of Sigma Iota Rho, the national honor society for international studies students.

Rachel began as an intern for CJLA. She assisted on the following projects: Once Again to Zelda by Marlene Wagman-Geller (Perigee, November 2008), Where Am I Wearing? by Kelsey Timmerman (Wiley, November 2008) , The Old Fashioned Guide to Modern Girl Life by Jordan Christy (Center Street/Grand Central Publishing, Summer 2009), You Are So Undead To Me by Stacey Jay (Razorbill, Spring 2009), The Ex-Games by Jennifer Echols (Simon Pulse, Fall 2009), Skin Deep by Annaliese Evans/Anna J. Evans (Summer 2009), and The Briar Rose Series by Annaliese Evans/Anna J. Evans (Tor Books, beginning February 2009). She is looking to represent commercial and literary fiction as well as nonfiction in the following subjects: narrative, history, pop culture, humor, science, women’s studies and social science.

Rachel is a voracious reader and writer. She wrote for an independently-run student philosophy journal at her school, Praxis. She works closely with Caren to develop and nurture CJLA authors.

By Caren Johnson

This entry is simply a laundry list of projects I’d like to see. Some are more developed than others, but feel free to use any ideas as your own if it inspires creativity. Of course the quality of the writing is the most important part of the equation. I feel like too many genre novels (this includes romance, mystery, science fiction, urban fantasy or anything that isn’t commercial/women’s fiction) are written without a thought to the quality of the writing. But books that have great hooks and that are well written really get more attention and make the reading experience more enjoyable. So pay attention to the words on the page as well as the story.

Contemporary romance/Romantic comedy: My favorite contemporary writers are Susan Elizabeth Phillips and Jennifer Crusie. I think both of the blend humor with strong story telling and I really want someone who can do this. I represent Kelley St. John so she’s a great example of what I read and love.

YA Romance: I represent Caridad Ferrer, Stephanie Kuehnert, Alex Echevarria and Emily Adler (they’re collaborating which is why they’re linked here), and Jennifer Echols. This should give some idea of the kinds of books I like. I want smart characters, strong plots and fun settings. In other words I want the sun, moon and stars. I have plenty of room for great writers in this area since I think editors and readers are still hungry for more fabulous writers.

YA Paranormal/Fantasy: I represent Stacey Jay and Terri Clark. Both are fabulous authors with a fun voice and happen to write about zombies, witches, mind readers, werewolves and other creatures that go bump in the night. For me, I want the focus to be heavily on the character and the story. I know world building is important, but I want a fully fleshed out story before this. We can always work on developing the world together before it goes to publishers.

I’m also looking for women’s fiction and commercial fiction. I try not to give examples here because I’ll inevitably get someone who writes exactly like X. I’m not looking for copy cats. I’m looking for writers who have novels that are well written and fun. Hopefully they’ll be commercial and would make good book club picks.

Hope this helps.

By Caren Johnson

As promised this post is devoted to all things pitching:  how to pitch at a conference, how to pitch by email, how to pitch in an elevator and how to pitch in general. I can only speak for myself about the details of the pitch and what I prefer, but there are general rules that work for all agents.

Be professional. I stress this the most because it’s the hardest to do. I realize that everyone is nervous when they pitch. I still get nervous when I’m pitching an editor I haven’t worked with. It’s not a bad thing. The trick is to remember that if you fall back on manners, you’ll impress the agent (or editor) by being so calm, cool and collected. This doesn’t mean you can’t allow your personality to shine through. It just means that you need to understand that this is a business meeting and always treat it as such. Personally I like to make a little small talk to put the other person at ease, but you can launch straight into your pitch on the offset.

Remember to identify the conference or place that you met me at in your query letter. So many people forget to do this and I end up with twenty emails that say, “So nice to have met you. Here’s the book, as requested.” Make it easy for me. Make sure that you tell me where we met (personal connections do make me read faster), what the book is and include a little something about yourself. It doesn’t have to be a full query, but give me something so it can jog my memory and let me know why I wanted to read this book.

Don’t read directly from your notes. It makes me think you’re not as familiar with your material as you should be and I know this isn’t the case nine times out of ten. You know your material. Just talk about your book and make me see how special it is. Chances are I’ll want to take a look.

Do your research. This is important because while some agents like being pitched by snail mail, others only want to be pitched by email (this is the category I fall into; don’t pitch me or send me anything by snail mail, please). Make sure you have the latest information about the preferences. And don’t send me an email asking me to outline my preferences either. There are too many reliable information sources for you to check before you send me an introductory email to the introductory email about your book. It becomes redundant.

Be concise. Leave white space. Don’t list accomplishments that have nothing to do with your writing unless they help your career in some way.

Be polite. I inevitably get the person who comes to introduce themselves only to let me know that I rejected them. It’s not personal. I only want to represent things that I feel I can sell. What good is it to have an agent who can’t sell your book? And just because I say no to one book doesn’t mean I’m going to say no to everything. I definitely leave the door open to future queries. Most of you aren’t going to only write one book so while the first book may not catch my eye, another might. Don’t abuse this open door policy and send me a note every three weeks saying you’ve written a new book. That’s going to frustrate both you and me because I’m going to keep saying no and you’re going to keep getting turned down.

Make sure every book you send out is your best work. Don’t email me a week after you send me your book to let me know that you revised it and want to send me the newest version. It makes me crazy. I have a limited amount of time and if I think you’re wasting it, I get cranky.

I’m really looking forward to meeting lots of great writers and hearing lots of great stories. See you soon…

by Caren Johnson

Later this week I’m going to be in Jacksonville, FL for the Southern Lights conference. It’s a great conference for romance writers to attend and I heartily recommend you do so if you can. Now this entire week I’m going to be in conference prep mode. That means I’m making sure that I get the bulk of my work done early in the week so that I don’t lose too much time with the hours spent at the airport and in transit. And in the spirit of getting ready for the conference I wanted to share some things I’ve learned to make the most out of your conference. 

Treat this like you would any business trip. Be professional, be courteous and be prepared. I feel like this is stating the obvious, but sometimes the most obvious points are overlooked first. The only iron-clad rule I have is not to pitch me in the bathroom. After that if you see an opening, feel free to come on over and talk to me.

Conferences are not only opportunities to meet agents and editors. They’re a chance to meet your colleagues. Don’t be afraid to make friends with other writers. Don’t be afraid to introduce yourself to others and to exchange contact information. Kelley St. John is a pro at this. I love being in an elevator with her (as odd as that sounds) because I know by the time I get to my floor, I’ll know everyone’s name. She’s just that friendly. You don’t have to go out of your way to meet everybody, but make an effort to get to know one new person. It expands your circle of writers and can lead to great promo opportunities.

Be objective when assessing your work. Please don’t tell me what you’re working on is completely original, reads like a Nora Roberts/Danielle Steel/Stephen King/James Patterson novel, or is sure to be a NY Times Bestseller. This is the mark of a newbie and I will squirm uncomfortably until I can get away. Rather, tell me that you enjoy reading writers such as Barbara Samuel, Rosamunde Pilcher, Lisa Lutz, and Plum Sykes and have written a great women’s fiction/romantic comedy/YA that would fit in comfortably on the shelf with them. Let me see that you’ve done your research and know your market, especially if you’re writing in really crowded genres such as romantic suspense or paranormal romance. Let me see that you are prepared to answer questions about your characters, your plot, your setting, etc. I’ll have a post tomorrow about pitching your work so I’ll address this topic a little more.

Have a good time. I like conferences because they’re a chance for me to get out of the office and meet some really talented, smart people. I like getting to hang out with my authors so we can plot books, plan careers or just talk about our lives. I like being around the energy of creative people. I’m a writer’s groupie. Take advantage of being around so much talent. Listen, learn and enjoy yourself.

See you there…