I have an agent!

So it's good news Wednesday here on the blog.

I now have an agent.

For those of you who don’t know, I started querying back in mid-April (kind of like sending around a resume for a job). My query letter did really well, and I had several agents ask to see the full manuscript. Which was pretty awesome, and made me feel like I was doing something right.

Then I had a few offers of representation, which meant I had a very hard choice to make. And I’m so bad when it comes to choices. I talked with several agents on the phone, and they were all just so amazing. But talking with Nicole was like magic. Her enthusiasm for my manuscript, her ideas for revision, and her personality just clicked.

So in the end, I signed on with Nicole Resciniti at the Seymour Agency. She’s a self-confessed science geek, and I write science fiction. Not only does it sound like a match made in heaven, but I know she’s going to make sure I get my facts straight.

I had someone ask me why I chose Nicole over any other offering agent. And to be honest, a lot of it was just a gut feeling. But this is what I was generally looking for:

1. Good sales record: Nicole’s record speaks for itself. She’s a newer agent, but it’s like she's on fire when it comes to book sales. I did a lot of researching on Publisher's Marketplace, which I know some agents don't report to, but it does give a pretty good idea.

2. Great communication: I've heard the horror stories of authors who have agents who just won't respond to them. After a little initial confusion (I kept going to Nicole's spam...) on the email front, Nicole had perfect response time. And when I was looking at response time, I'm not talking about "answer me in 2 minutes or you've got a black mark." It's more if my email doesn't get a response after several days, or even a week.

3. Client praises: Yes, what their client feels about the agent matters. And if you happen to google Nicole's name, you'll get several glowing posts from her clients. It's like she's the magical fairy godmother every author wants.

4. Editorial agent: This was super important to me, because I want to continually grow as an author. And I want an agent who will push me--and ultimately my book--to become a million times better.

A bunch of agents actually fit that criteria, so the choice was harder. And ultimately it came down to Nicole was one of my top three choices when I went into querying. I love her agency, and she is so enthusiastic about my book, and I was blown-away by so many of her ideas for my career as a whole.

So there you have it! I’ll be posting about my querying process, and spend the next month talking about queries in general over on my blog. So stay tuned, and let me know if you have any questions.