In search of a literary agent..

Well...a lot is going on here. I have been working so much. I have had quite a few sales meetings this week and within the last few weeks we have signed 2 new clients and I have at least three other promising clients. One I am hoping to sign today. I have put so much time into the mock-ups for his restaurant and he is kinda picky. We are going so cheap for him too, which thoroughly annoys me since he has turned out to be so picky. Oh well...Hopefully todays meeting will be more successful. I have more appointments scheduled for the coming weeks as well. Things are going pretty well for ExpressTech.

As a side venture, I have completed the manuscript for my first children's book. I have begun work on the second book in the series. I hope to complete 4 to submit all at the same time to a publisher. I have considered going forward without a literary agent (which is easier to do with children's books) but have at this point decided against it. I really want to get published by Harper Collins subsidiary for childrens books, Greenwillow Books. I think they are the best fit for my storyline. Kevin Henkes and David Kirk are two of our favorite authors and are somewhat similar to the style of my series. They are both published through Harper Collins. Anyway...I need to find an agent. I don't want to get taken for a ride...I don't want my manuscript stolen. I have to make sure I get an agent who is certified and just be really careful about who I give the manuscript to. I am thinking that I shouldn't have to pay them. If my book is good enough for publishing they will know it and if not they should know that too. Money should not have to be paid. At least, I do not think so. I have done a lot of research on this whole thing. Kenzie has begun to do illustrations for the 1st book. I am hoping that her illustrations will be exactly what I want but I am not sure. Her talent is very raw and immature at this point but I think in future she may grow into it. I am not sure if she is ready to take on a book at this point but I wanted to give her a chance. We will see what she comes up with. It would be a great selling point though, I feel, if a 12 year old girl illustrates the books. Who knows. Most probably my books are not good enough to worry about any of this anyway but this is my dream and I have to go after it until I am sure I gave it all I had. Wish me luck. My girls love the 1st book, but they are not exactly impartial judges. I can't really go by their enjoyment since I am their mother! The first book is about a Hedgehog, Hannah, who dreams of becoming a TV star. It follows her on her journey from a Pet Store in any city, USA to a NY TV station and she realizes her dream. I want kids to glean the fact that they can do anything they dream if they want it with all their hearts, Determination pays off. It was fun to write and if nothing else I will self publish for my kiddos to have!

My back is killing me again the last two days and last weekend! I am just soooo not having fun with this whole herniated disc thing. I have two herniated discs in my low back and sometimes they are alright (never gone) and sometimes they hurt like the devil. I never know what to expect but I take the good with the bad and go a day at a time. There is a new show coming out in the fall called The Doctors. Dr. Phil and his son Jay McGraw are producing it and a few weeks ago they contacted me doing research for shows dealing with plastic surgery dilemmas. I did what they asked and I doubt they will contact me further but I can dream. In the end, Oprah passed so Dr. Phil may as well but it is kinda cool to even be considered. I have three doctors that have all agreed that a lot of my back problems are aggravated significantly, if not somewhat even caused by, or a factor in the back pain. I wish I was rich and could just fix all this stuff myself!

Comments

Chels said…
Good luck with your book. That would be really cool if you could get published. Hey, I just tagged you. Check out my blog for details!