This query is part of the Be an Agent for a Day contest. Rules and Regulations here
Please post your rejection or manuscript request in the comment section!
Dear Agent for a Day,
She’s not your ordinary Australian country girl, even though she might look like one. She messes with the minds of animals, and sometimes people. She reads their feelings and tells them what to do. Nobody knows what causes it, least of all her. Her name is Jessica, but most people call her ‘freak’.
She’s about to find out who she is, or what she is, and why two men from opposing forces in the universe want her, desperately. Why one of them kidnaps her and transports her to another world, and why the other one invades her mind. Be warned: the truth will change your view of humanity. It ain’t ordinary. Or pretty.
Watcher’s Web is Science Fantasy, completed at 90,000 words.
I live in Australia. I am a member of the NSW Writers’ Centre and the SF-OWW online workshop for SF and fantasy. I have published short stories, most recently in the Fantastic Wonder Stories anthology (ed. Russell Farr, Ticonderoga Publications), Byzarium (November 2008), Ticonderoga Online (December 2008) and The Fat Man at The End of The World anthology (December 2008).
Thank you for looking at my material.
Regards,
Author
STATS: 3.5% request rate
Carradee says
Dear Author,
Thank you for your submission, but this story isn’t for me. Another agent might feel differently.
I wish you success in your writing endeavor.
Carradee
(I’m afraid to mention reasons for fear of angering you, but mainly: it’s bland. You might have a fresh idea, but your presentation/style needs work. You also could use practice with grammar and which rules are okay to break where.)
Krista says
This is a tough one, but I am going to have to reject it.
Maybe if I had a better feel for the characters it would be more interesting.
Sara Darling says
Dear Author,
Thank you for submitting your query for consideration. However, I’m afraid that I cannot ask for a partial. Your story isn’t for me, but do keep trying.
Perhaps you may want to add in more about your character’s inner thoughts, as that tends to make characters seem more relatable and thereby increases your chances for a partial request.
Good luck and keep up your search!
Best wishes,
Sara Darling
Jill says
Dear Author,
Thank you for thinking of me as a possible representative for your novel.
While your query held my interest, I’m sorry to say I’m not enthusiastic enough about the novel’s premise to request additional materials.
Best of luck in finding the right home for your novel.
Agent Du Jour
Anonymous says
Dear Author,
Thank your for your interest in our agency. However, I’m afraid this isn’t quite right for us. Best of luck in your future endeavors.
Sincerely,
Agent.
(I would have liked more sense of what the story / characters are actually about.)
TecZ aka Dalton C Teczon - Writer says
Dear Author:
Thank you for your query and for allowing me to consider your work.
While your novel sounds exciting, I feel I’m not the right fit for your project. Therefore, I must decline on this project right now. But I do want to encourage you to continue submitting. Just because a project isn’t quite right for me, doesn’t mean the right agent isn’t just around the corner.
I wish you the best of luck with all your writing endeavors and in the querying and submission process. Persistence pays off, so don’t give up!
Best regards,
Dalton C. Teczon – Agent
Lorin says
Dear Author,
Thank you for your query. I very much enjoyed reading it. Unfortunately, this isn’t a good fit for me at this time. Please submit to me again in the future.
Thank you,
Lorin
MarkM says
Dear Author,
Thanks very much for sharing your story with me. Unfortunately, it’s just not a good match for me at this time. I encourage you to keep writing and querying.
Best of luck,
KatieB
Liz says
Dear Author,
Thanks for your query, but I’m not the right agent for your work. I apologize for the impersonal nature of this response which is due to the large number of queries I receive every week. I wish you the best in your search for representation.
All the best,
Liz
Jeannie says
Thank you for querying our agency. Unfortunately your project is not what we’re looking to represent at this time. Best of luck.
– Jeannie
00Pisces says
Dear Author,
Thank you for your query. I will not be able to represent your work. Best of luck to you in your publishing endeavors.
Sincerely,
00Pisces
SGF says
Dear Author,
Thank you for your query. I read it but unfortunately have to pass on it.
I wish you the best of luck in finding representation.
Regards,
SGF
TFree says
Thank you for considering me. Unfortunately, this piece isn’t right for me at this time. Good luck with this and future endeavors.
TF
Marilyn Peake says
Dear Author of WATCHER’S WEB:
Thank you for your query. I regret to inform you that I cannot offer you representation at this time. Please do not in any way interpret this as meaning that your book doesn’t have merit or that you should give up on writing. Follow your dreams. I wish you all the best in your search for a literary agent.
Sincerely,
Writerly Angst Literary Agent
RainSplats says
Dear Author,
Thank you for your query. Unfortunately, it isn’t a good fit for me. Best of luck,
Rain
(It didn’t hook me. I’m not sure why. I didn’t like that you started with “she.” I felt detached from your protagonist.)
Hallie says
Dear Author,
Thank you for submitting your query to My Imaginary Yet Successful Literary Agency. I receive many queries each day, and I request only a small percentage of manuscripts that I’m interested in representing. I have decided not to request one for your book because I don’t feel that I’m intrigued enough to be its best representative.
Should you need resources for querying, finding writing resources and groups, or if you’d like to know more about how I choose manuscripts, please visit (this section of my agency’s website) for more information. I wish you the best of luck in finding a home for your writing. Thank you again for giving me the opportunity to consider your work.
Warm regards,
Hallie
________________________________________________________________
And if I were fortunate enough to be able to give some feedback for each and every author I declined, I’d note the following:
I didn’t feel that I had a good idea of how the big ideas in this book would play out.
Exir Kamalabadi says
Dear Author,
Thank you for considering our agency. You have a strong voice, but I’m afraid I have to pass on this.
Best of luck,
Exir Kamalabadi
gypsyscarlett says
Dear Author,
Thank you for your submission. Unfortunately, your story is not right for me.
I wish you luck finding a suitable agent.
ros says
No, sorry. I’m a little bit curious about the book but I want you to tell me more of the story in the query, not make me read the manuscript.
Ego says
Dear Author,
Thank you for submitting your work. I regret I am not sufficiently enthusiastic to represent you at present. Note that this is a personal reaction and you may have success elsewhere.
Regards,
Ego
Thermocline says
Thank you for your query. I do not have a clear enough picture of your characters or story so I am going to pass on it.
(I can’t tell if Jessica is good or bad and whether I’d be sympathetic toward her as the protagonist. You lost me at warning me the truth will change my view of humanity. That’s such a big claim that it immediately turned me off to your query and I stopped reading it.)
Anonymous says
Dear Author,
Thank you for your query. I’ll pass on this one. Good luck in your endeavors.
Regards,
Lindsey S.
Marybeth says
Dear Author,
I regret to inform you that I am unable to represent your manuscript. Although it sounds interesting, I feel the description does not compel me to read further. Best of luck to you in the future.
Sincerely,
Marybeth
Cristy at Living Donor 101 says
Dear Author,
Thank you for your query, but unfortunately I’ll have to pass at this time. I don’t have a clear picture of whether this is an adult or YA manuscript or the particular conflict driving the story.
Agent Yard Oaf says
Dear Author,
Thank you for submitting your query. You have some interesting ideas, but you didn’t tell me enough about the main character’s central conflict to interest me in the story. Please re-write your query and try again.
Best wishes,
Agent Yard Oaf
rainsinger says
Dear Author,
I’m afraid I’ll have to decline Watcher’s Web at this time. While I feel that there are interesting elements to your story they do not grab my attention as a cohesive whole.
Best wishes.
Tyler says
Dear Author,
Thank you for considering me in your quest for publication; unfortunately, I do not feel I am the right agent for your project. Best of luck in your future endeavours.
Sincerely,
Agent T
Anonymous says
Dear Author,
I read through your query and I’m not interested in representing you at this time. Your piece isn’t quite what I am looking for right now. I hope you receive the critiquing you need and be sure to keep submitting and writing.
Agent Emily Jean
Anonymous says
Dear pursuing author,
After reviewing your query, I feel that what you have presented to us is just not going to fly in our market right now. Sorry but keep up the good work.
Sincerely,
Pepe Habanera
Anonymous says
Dear Author,
I’m sorry, but this story is not right for me. Thanks for sending me your request, I really appreciate it. Please continue writing.
Veronica Lovette
Anonymous says
Dear Author,
I regret to inform you that I am not interested in representing your story. I hope you have better luck in the future.
Best of luck,
Jack Uroboros
Anonymous says
Dear Author,
I appreciate you sending in your work, but I don’t think its right for us.
Best of luck,
Keith Champaign
Mega says
I thank you for sending me your query but it isn’t right for me at this time.
-MV
Anonymous says
I’m sure you tried very hard on this, but it’s just not what I need.
S. Pancake
Anonymous says
Dear Author,
I really didn’t like it.
Backdoor Trojan
Anonymous says
Dear Author,
I appreciate your time and efforts, but I am sorry to say that I do not wish to represent your story. If you have another story idea, please send it to me in the future, and I would be happy to look at it.
Best Wishes,
Quintus Blackburn
Anonymous says
Dear Author,
Your book is interesting and I feel it has potential, but it’s not for me, thanks for the attempt though.
Sincerely,
Mitsubishi
Kristin says
Dear Author,
Thank you for submitting your query; however, I am sorry to say that I will not be pursuing it any further. It does not fit my list at this time, but there are many agents out there and I would encourage you to continue submitting to those who rep your genre.
Regards,
KM
Professor I.M. Diphthong says
Thank you for your submission. Unfortunately this is not what I am looking for. I wish you the best of luck.
Kathy says
Thank you for your query, but I’m afraid it doesn’t work for me.
Sincerely,
Kathy
Diana says
Dear Query #1:
Thank you for your query. Unfortunately, I am no longer representing science fiction/fantasy.
Best wishes,
Diana
Rubenesque Writer says
Dear Author,
Thank you for thinking of me, but I don’t think I am the right agent to represent this manuscript. Best of luck.
Sincerely,
RW Lit
jnantz says
Dear Author:
I appreciate the opportunity to consider your work. After a lot of thought, I’m afraid I’m going to have to pass. I just don’t feel I can represent this project with the kind of enthusiasm it would require. However, this business is very subjective, and I encourage you to query widely as many agents may feel differently.
Thank you again,
Jnantz
Demelza1 says
I think this has potential – an unusual idea and some previous track record. I’d like to see an extract from the book before proceeding. Demelza1
Kaiscomet says
Thank you for your submission. I regret to inform you that I am passing on your project at this time. However, I was impressed by your letter and your experience. I would be interested in seeing other projects that you have in the future.
Sincerely
Leis says
Dear Author,
I am intrigued by the premise, as well as the setting — does Jessica talk to and control the wild beasts of the outback? She sounds like a feisty, strong character.
Would like to see where this story goes, and how you handle the transformation of Jessica. Please send me the first fifty pages.
Looking forward to reading you,
Kind regards,
Leis
rantonson17 says
Dear Author,
Thank your for your story. Unfortunately, I am unable to represent your work at this time.
Best of luck,
Rebekka
Anonymous says
Thank you for your query. Unfortunately, I do not feel I am the right agent for your project. I encourage you to query other agents and wish you the best of luck.
Thank you,
Agent C
(plot was not clear)
Perle_Rare says
Dear Author,
Thank you for your submission but this isn’t right for me at this time.
Best wishes,
Perle_Rare
Reasons:
– Not enough information about the story.
– How does the author know what are my views about humanity?
NotJana says
Dear Author,
Thank you for your query. However, I’m afraid that at this time I am unable to offer representation for your project.
All the best,
Agent For A Day (Or Two)