Sleuthfest Conference
Last week there was some discussions about Jill Marsal's new agency. I just returned home from Sleuthfest and met Jill there. She was very generous with her time and answered many questions for me after a cocktail party by the pool. Yes, it is still warm enough to swim outside in Palm Beach, Florida.
Her new office is about five miles from her old one and she will be busy this week setting up shop. I miss this area. I learned to surf close to there.
She is interested in thrillers and her partner is interested in romances. She told me she had many contacts in New york and being in
California is not a problem in placing her work with major publishers.
I have talked to many agents and she is one of the most friendly and intelligent agents out there. She took the time to hear what I wanted in a career instead of just what I had written recently. She asked to see my work and I have my fingers crossed. she wold be a pleasure to work with.
The conference was great and I also received request from four other agents. Donna Bagdasarian has a fantastic sense of humor and full of energy. She pulled into a meeting room and asked me about my work. She asked for a full on the spot. More fingers crossed.
Nicole Kenealy is with the Aaron priest Agency and very hungry for new authors. She also wants thrillers. She asked for a partial. She is a lot of fun to be around.
Josh Getzler is with Writer House. He is a super nice guy and very easy to talk to, especially if you like baseball. He also asked for me to send him something.
The two editors,Neil Nyren and Toni Plumer, were fantastic. I had lunch next to Neil. He asked what I was writing and showed interested in me. However, I know he never handles anything without an agent. Hopefully, one day that will change and I hope he remembers us meeting there. I can tell it would be fantastic to work with him. The same is true about Toni. She showed an interest that I found very refreshing. Her company, St. martin would be one of the publishers i would love to write for.
In other words, listen up everyone, next year you need to make this conference.
Johnny ( Sir John) Ray
www.sirjohn.org
Welcome to my writing blog. My name is Johnny Ray and as the writer of many novels, short stories, poems, blogs, screenplays, speeches, commentaries on breaking news, etc. I hope this blog will help to show the frustrations and joys of the work behind the scenes, and hopefully attract many people that will become friends, and maybe even fans of my work. Like all of life, it will be an adventure none the less. Thanks for joining me on the ride, and being a part of my life.
2 comments:
Congrats on the requests and good luck!
Wow! That is exciting. I get a little nervous at conferences in the pitch session. Other than that, I'm able to hang with the big boys.
But back to you, besides being pulled aside, were you in a formal pitch session or just using your natural charm everywhere?
And, thanks for sharing those looking for new authors.
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