The Query Tracker Weekly Roundup

Industry News
2008 ended on a positive note not only for QueryTracker, but industry-wide as well. PublishersLunch Weekly reported approximately 530 publishing deals for the month of December.

Agent News
Foundry Literary + Media recently acquired its eighth agent; Stephen Barbara, formerly of Donald Mass Agency, has joined their staff. According to Guide to Literary Agents, Mr. Barbara "represents all categories of books for young readers (from YA to middle-grade to chapter and picture books) in addition to servicing writers for the adult market."

QueryTracker News
QueryTracker.net saw eight agents offer representation to its members in December. (In a moment I’ll reveal a top secret tip on how to land your own agent*).

Fellow QTer Gretchen McNeil’s first manuscript received 130 rejections before she shelved the project. Her second manuscript, The Witch’s Eye, garnered the interest of several agents. Within two weeks of beginning the querying process, she signed with Ginger Clark of Curtis Brown. You can read Gretchen’s success story on QueryTracker, which she used exclusively to track her submissions. She recently said in her most amazing blog, “I owe a great debt of gratitude to the wonderful folks at QueryTracker, to Patrick who gives so much of his own time to maintain this Mecca of Databases, and to Mary and Elana who diligently work the QT blog. Thanks, guys.”

Link Lottery Winner
The first winner of our Weekly Link Lottery is Maggie Lynch. I hope she enjoys her year of free Premium Membership and that the additional tools help her to land her dream agent. Congratulations Maggie and good luck.

Maggie's link was on her blog at maggies-meanderings.blogspot.com

We'll pull another link out of the hat next Friday, so get your links up there.

So, how can you win? Place a link to QueryTracker.net anyplace on the Internet. To make sure we find the link, send an email to links@QueryTracker.net and tell us where it is and who you are.

Full details on the lottery are available here.

Increase your odds by placing links in multiple places. The more links, the better your chance to win.

Already a premium member? Not a problem. You could win an additional year of membership or give it as a gift to someone else.

Contests of Interest
The fifth "Secret Agent, Are You Hooked?" contest has been announced by the lovely Authoress on Miss Snark’s First Victim. For aspiring authors of children’s books, the contest will include everything EXCEPT poetry and picture books. It will open on Monday, January 12th and is limited to fifty entries, so be sure to submit early.

*Now I will reveal the little-known secret. The Query Tracker Forum opened its doors to the public on June 16, 2007. Since that time, nearly all the original forum members have signed with agents. How is this amazing feat possible? The folks at the QT Forum all pitch in to help each other polish both query letters and manuscripts, making a finer finished product, which improves your chances of catching an agent’s attention. The tight-knit community of friends is always happy to welcome new members. Be sure to say you found us via the QT blog!

Suzette Saxton is a freelance writer with both fiction and nonfiction publishing credits. Besides writing for the QueryTracker Blog, she loves to write books for children of all ages.