Since I’ve decided to pursue traditional publishing with my manuscript for Whistle Switch, I need to find a literary agent. Obviously, I am new to this process, so I’ve started with research. I’ve tracked down examples for a query letter, found resources for lists of agents, and gone over some basic tips.
Unfortunately, I’ve found that one form of procrastination is to do an excessive amount of research on something. It’s always easier to keep gathering information and internally pondering ideas than it is to actually do the thing. As I tell my kids about doing anything challenging: you can’t think your way out of it.
In the interest of action over rumination, I’ve written up my query letter (which took several hours on its own). One of the things I’m concerned about is the genre. Whistle Switch is a thriller with supernatural elements, which does not exactly roll off the tongue. I’m worried that calling it an urban fantasy, or even a supernatural thriller will get the manuscript dismissed prematurely. I also don’t want any potential agent to feel like I’m not being forward with the genre. Ultimately, I decided to address this by referring to it as a thriller, but making it very clear early in the query letter that this story has superpowered characters.
For comps, I’ve opted for V. E. Schwab’s Vicious, and Marcus Sakey’s Brilliance, two novels I highly recommend if you like the genre. I recently read Hench, by Natalie Zina Walschots and found it to be a fun read, but a bit more sarcastic than what I’m going for. I’m also just wrapping up the very famous Storm Front (the first novel in The Dresden Files series) by Jim Butcher. This book leaned much more to magic than superpowers, and it reminded me of a bit of Harry Potter for adults, so not quite appropriate as a comp.
Now, let’s see if I can get myself to actually start the querying process, and you know, stop trying to think my way out of it. I’ll update this blog as I go, and maybe that will force some accountability!
Jonathan Mann 