Agent’s feedback
Asked by Jason Ashwood on November 12, 2020
Dear Jerry,
I trust you and your family are safe and well in these difficult times.
I received this response from an agent at a well-established US agency after she had asked for my imagery and narrative samples following my query and proposal.
'… And while its beautiful imagery and I am so looking for something new and exciting I have to step aside as I truly don’t have the contacts in the space that you would need to elevate this title to the appropriate parties for acquisition.
Thank you again for reaching out and for sharing your content. I wish you much success in finding a better suited partner. I do believe there’s an audience for this book, I just don’t know how to find it as its too far afield from my expertise.'
I don't understand why they are referring to the 'audience' (marketer's role?), or do they mean not knowing which publisher would take this on?
I would welcome any advice on what I could learn from this response.
Regards and thanks, Jason
Jerry's Answer
Audience (readership) is the currency the publishing world trades in, Jason. That's the bottom line for an agent, because he needs to land you a contract with a publisher based on his confidence there will be a wide readership for your book.
His response is actually encouraging, because if he did not see promise in your writing and the story, he would have simply sent you a form letter telling you your proposal "does not meet a current need here."
He didn't have to say he believes there's an audience for the book, so take that to heart. It sounds to me like he's saying the genre is not his area of specialty. So study agents and their interests and try to engage one who does specialize in yours.