Q: Describe what you're looking for in 25 characters or less.
A: Distinctive story-telling
Q: Who are your favorite authors?
A: Henry Fielding, Laurence Sterne, Anthony Trollope, and anyone who can make the familiar seem fresh.
Q: What sets you apart from other agents who look at the same type of material?
A: We are prompt and we are candid.
Q: What is the best advice you can give someone who is considering submitting work to you?
A: Read the submission guidelines, be honest, and be brief.
Q: Describe the ideal query letter.
A: One paragraph describing the book and one describing the author, written with heart and wit but not trying too hard.
Q: Describe the ideal manuscript.
A: It starts by intriguing and goes on to be involving.
Q: What do submitters most often get wrong about your submissions process?
A: They send stuff we don't handle, like poetry, scripts, and stories for young children. They fail to include and email or a stamped addressed envelope that works in the UK. They address us as Sir/Madam or To Whom It May Concern. And for printed submissions, they're often hard to read because of single line spacing, a small font, and being printed on both sides of the paper. Not to mention being wrapped in parcel tape that means opening the package involves serious wrestling.
Q: How much do you want to know about the person submitting to you?
A: Enough to pique my interest. The most important things are their writing experience and their ideas for future books.
Q: How much of a manuscript do you read before making the decision to reject it?
A: We get around 100 submissions a week, every week, and we know within a sentence or two if the writing engages and enthuses us.
Q: Once you decide to represent someone's work, what is the process?
A: We sign a Letter of Agreement laying out what we expect of them and what they can expect of us (the agreement can be terminated by either party at any time). We help them, using our long editorial experience, to get their story (whether fiction or non-fiction) finely tuned, and make their voice as clear and distinctive as possible. Then we enthuse about their book to publishers, and go on trying, however many rejections we may receive, until we run out of road. We make deals that are fair to both parties, and we fight our authors' corner, so that they know we are there for them.
Q: What is a day in the life of an agent like for you?
A: I would say 10% of our time is spent in reading, 10% editing, 10% negotiating, and 70% nagging.