Caren Johnson Literary Agency

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…

by Jennifer Echols

Lots of people tell me that I seem to be everywhere on the internet. That’s funny. I don’t feel like I’m everywhere. I would love to surf the web all day, but I just can’t do it and still work my job and write my novels.

That said, I’ve been online long enough, and I’ve participated in enough writing communities, that I do have a lot of pages set up for myself in different places. And I think this is very important for writers—especially new writers whose publishers might not have huge advertising budgets set aside for them, or prepublished writers who are networking and learning.

I’m not aggressive online. I don’t go out and try to recruit new readers. I actually can’t remember the last time I friended someone on MySpace who didn’t friend me first. But whenever I go about my business in the cyberworld, I make it very easy for someone to follow my trail back to my web site, where they can find out more about my books. Build it and they will come.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve enjoyed a book and tried to look up the author online to find out more and view the backlist, only to discover that the author had no web site, no MySpace page, no nothing but perhaps a few mentions on a review site or two. In this day and age, what are these people thinking? Truth is, lots of readers will never come looking for me on the web. But if they do, I’m here with all the info they want. If I weren’t, I would be passing up an almost-free advertising opportunity.

Here’s a run-down of my little planet in cyberspace.

My web site: www.jennifer-echols.com. If it looks like I built this page myself, I do not want to hear it. You will find much prettier web sites that have been professionally designed, but you will not find a web site with easier access to pertinent information about the author’s books.

MySpace: www.myspace.com/jenniferechols. Basically I just have a description of my books here, and a link to my web site. I have blogged and run contests here before, and I do get a lot of private messages from readers. I think a lot of YA readers find messaging an author on MySpace less intimidating than sending an e-mail.

LiveJournal: jenniferechols.livejournal.com. This is where I feel most at home, posting comments about trying to be a writer and live a life at the same time. Most of my friends here are writers too. My profile page provides a description of my books and a link back to my web page.

Blogger: I’ve started two group blogs for authors in the lines I write for: www.simonpulseromanticcomedies.blogspot.com and www.mtvbooks.blogspot.com. Group blogging is a great way to make readers aware of you and your books without having to post very often. Again, my profile page tells people what I want them to know and invites them back to my web page.

FaceBook: www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=619987057. Unlike the other pages, I’m pretty sure you can’t view this one unless you log in. I’m new to FaceBook and I’m not sure exactly how it works yet. People keep friending me and inviting me to be a vampire. But hey, if they want to bite me, I’m available. That’s how I play this game.

Note that for all my blog profile pictures, I use my latest book cover. Every time someone sees my icon in a post or someone else’s friend space, they become more likely to pick up my book when they encounter it in a store.

Also, when I make a comment on someone else’s blog post in any of these worlds, I always log in so readers of the post will see my book cover and possibly follow me back to my own blog or my web page. Unless I forget.

See, I try not to take all this cyberstuff too seriously. Some people can post a hilarious blog every single day and still have writing energy left to expend on their real work. I am not one of these people. To me, blogging is a lot easier than writing novels, and if I’m not careful I’ll waste a lot of time on this. Like cross-stitching. I had to stop cross-stitching cold turkey. So I only post on my Blogger group blogs once per month each. I post to LiveJournal when I have something to say. And I comment on other people’s blogs because I consider them friends, even if I’ve never met them.

Last but not least, I’m participating in my publisher’s blog event through March 24 at www.pulseblogfest.com. Wow, Simon Pulse has really been advertising this event. When they asked how many questions I’d like to answer between one and seven, of course I maxed out with seven. I am no fool. I get to be on the same blog as Judy Blume! Through no special effort on my part.

That’s my laissez faire introduction to the internet. So friend me, link to me, post on my posts. I’ll get back with you…eventually. But I will get back with you.

Tell us about your experience in online communities. Are you a member of any blog groups that I haven’t mentioned here? Any there any you recommend we join or avoid?

Jennifer Echols

By Catalina Alvira

(Note from Caren: Be sure to check out the first post here before reading this awesome post.)

I work for a publicity and marketing firm that specializes in arts & entertainment clients. It’s a new world for me, and it’s fascinating to witness the parallels that exist between the publishing industry and the PR/marketing industry.

Publicists “pitch” feature story ideas to newspaper and magazine editors in much the same way that agents “pitch” their clients’ books. Advertising reps generate advertising budgets and campaigns in much the same way that publishers generate advertising budgets and campaigns for their book releases. Marketing executives coordinate with printing & distribution companies to disseminate marketing materials in much the same way that authors market their own book readings through fliers and postcards. And at my company, we’re always brainstorming new promotional ideas—2-1 deals, discounts; contests; partnerships with other organization for free give-aways—in order to come up with fresh, inventive ways to generate word-of-mouth “buzz” about our clients and their events.

However, despite the similarities, I quickly learned that each department at my new job—publicity, advertising, marketing, and promotions—has very specific responsibilities that aren’t interchangeable.

For example, don’t ask a publicist about advertising rates. Don’t ask a marketing exec about how to pitch to a magazine editor. And don’t ever ask an advertising rep to brainstorm creative ways to get the word out for “free.” Free? Advertising reps are used to dealing in increments of thousands. “Free” isn’t in their vocabulary.

So whether you’re discussing promotional ideas for your book with your publisher’s publicist, or you’re considering hiring your own publicist, it’s important to understand the distinctions between PR, ads, marketing, and promo. And even if you’ve resigned yourself to the homemade “do-it yourself” marketing campaign, I hope you’ll follow along.

Once we’ve hammered out the differences between PR, advertising, marketing, and promotions, I’ll be dishing out some specific trade secrets in my next blog posts – specifically for all you renegade guerilla marketing fans.

Public Relations – PR is the catch phrase for “dealing with the press.” Most publicists are exclusively interested in gaining press coverage for their clients in the various media outlets: newspapers, magazines, radio, and TV. This is free coverage—articles that staff reporters and freelance stringers write about you—the debut author—in their magazines and newspapers. Newspapers and magazines are always hungry for fresh story ideas. It’s the job of your publicist to “pitch” to these media editors as a means of gaining free press coverage for you and your book.

Most publicists have established relationships with the same newspaper/magazine editors and TV/radio producers. Much like agents, who pitch the same publishing editors over and over, publicists pitch to the same newspaper editors and radio producers over and over. Maybe it’s a feature article with a great photo and the perfect tie-in (see more about “tie-ins” in my earlier post). Or maybe it’s just an inside blurb. Either way, PR is the art of getting media coverage—and getting it for free.

In the next blog post, I’ll cover specific ways that you can generate your own grass-roots PR campaign, including who to pitch at your local newspaper, the “art of the pitch,” and the importance of a stellar author photo.

Advertising – This is an easy one. Ads.

Advertising reps develop effective advertising campaigns on behalf of their clients. Advertising reps know the exact price—net and retail—of every print ad in every size in every newspaper and magazine in their market. They can tell you the spread in price between a black and white 2” listing in the Chicago Tribune weekday edition versus a 3” x 5” listing in color in the Chicago Sun Times Sunday edition. They know which radio spots to run during which hours of the day in order to reach the appropriate demographic. They know how to develop online campaigns for half the cost of print campaigns. And they’ll be the first ones to tell you that TV advertising is way out of your budget.

Media buying is big business. Advertising agencies get a commission on every ad placed, and they usually work with advertising budgets in increments of thousands. And that’s on a weekly basis. That said, it’s a fascinating time right now in the advertising industry. The internet is literally wiping out Goliath print conglomerates like the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times by stealing away its readers and its advertising dollars. Now, more than ever, even poor little authors with shoe-string budgets can create effective advertising campaigns all on the web. Next blog post, I’ll give you some tips on how to create your own advertising campaigns with a few hundred dollars—and in some cases—for free.

Marketing – Marketing focuses on reaching intended demographics through targeted strategies. Advertising is one form of marketing. But marketing also involves the production and distribution of fliers or posters to specific locations and organizations. It can also include email or mailing “list” rentals, which allow you to obtain the contact information (email and mailing addresses) of a specific group of a desired demographic.

If you’re printing fliers and dropping them off at local coffee shops to market your next literary reading, you’re already engaged in a marketing campaign. Next blog post, I’ll give you some creative tips on other guerilla marketing techniques—as well as ways to effectively market yourself on the internet.

Promotions – Promotion can be a broad term that encompasses all of the above. But usually, promotions deal with marketing a product through rewards, discounts, rebates, and free give-aways.

2-1 ticket deals. Half-priced products if purchased before a deadline. One-day sales. Charity events with tie-ins to client’s events. Contests in which the winner receives an all-expense trip to Cancun. All examples of promotions.

The good news is that you don’t have to cough up a free trip to Cancun to get people chatting about your new book (although it never hurts). If you’ve got a blog and some free time, there are tons of creative promotions you can offer to help generate “buzz”.

But that’s all in my next blog post… stay tuned.