We start our morning thinking about certain aspects of the writing business. For example, the agent query. You know, where hapless young writers enter the void. We certainly applaud agencies that allow authors to query via email; it makes perfect sense to us (not to mention the number of trees saved!). What makes our skin crawl a bit is when an agency suggests they’ll respond to your email query if they’re interested. This leaves you, the hapless young writer, in a sort of limbo: did they get my email…did they hate my work? You simply don’t know if you don’t receive a response. If you are like us, you start to think, “I haven’t heard; perhaps I should resend.” Then you think, “Oh, what a fool! They hated it once — they’ll hate it againg. Plus I’ll be considered a clueless pest.”
Actually, the language we use when talking to ourselves is much stronger than we suggest. Sometimes we use four-letter words (and then we feel better about it). So what are we trying to say? MediaBistro has covered The Donald Maass Literary Agency as part of the “Pitching an Agent” series. As always, we recommend you read the full interview for insights about what each agent is seeking and the general philosophy of the company. Then, if you choose to query Maass via email, please let us know how you solved the dilemma we outlined above.
- Pitching an Agent: The Donald Maass Literary Agency (AvantGuild members only)
- The Donald Maass Agency
1 response so far ↓
Lorra // Jun 29, 2004 at 2:17 pm
It took several months to receive a snailmail reply from Maas Agency, but when I did (a rejection), the agent took the time to write several helpful comments.
We exchanged a couple of emails and I found the agent to be very helpful and open, even though she chose to pass on my manuscript.
This agency is worth waiting for if you have the right project.
Their email address is different from what is listed on most websites: [email protected]. Don’t forget to put the word query in the subject line. Good luck.