You know what I want to see? I want to see the family tree of publishers. Who are the Grandparents (and what do they do), and who are their kids (and what do they do), and who are their grandchildren, and what do those children do?
I just feel like there’s so many imprints and stuff out there, and my impression is they’re all actually owned by, like, four main houses. I want someone to break those down for me.

Luckily, Publishers Marketplace has just the thing for you! Now, before you click on that link, I’ll warn you that it requires a subscription. Which, if you’re an aspiring author on the hunt for an agent, you very well may already know, and have one for yourself. Why? Well, Publishers Marketplace is a great resource for authors, with individual web pages for many great agents, plus links to recent sales, so you can see what those agents are selling, and to whom. I don’t normally recommend that authors part with their hard earned money when there’s a lot of great resources out there that are free, but if you have the spare $20 a month, I think it’s a great investment — just like joining SCBWI or RWA, or, if you qualify, SWFA.

So, if you do have a Publishers Marketplace subscription, that first link up above goes to a great listing of all the major publishers, broken down into their divisions, and then further subdivided into imprints. And for each imprint, you can see the last few deals reported. It’s a great resource!

Readers, what other sites do you find invaluable on your hunt for representation and publication?

ANNA AND THE BOY MASTERPIECE by Stephanie Perkins, in which American Anna Oliphant spends a year in a Parisian boarding school and falls for her multi-national classmate, plus a companion novel, LOLA AND THE BOY NEXT DOOR, to Julie Strauss-Gabel at Dutton Children’s Books, in a very nice deal at auction, for publication in Fall 2010, by Kate Schafer Testerman at kt literary (World English).

Some of you may have already read Stephanie’s announcement of this deal on her own blog, but this is the official release, with the new, sooner pub date and the fresh off-the-grill new title.

So huge gratz to Stephanie and to Julie!

And you wanna know something else? There’s even MORE great news coming soon…

Julia Karr’s XVI, a near-future thriller in which 15-year-old Nina uncovers the mystery surrounding her mother’s death and her missing father, while dreading the coming of her sixteenth birthday and the government-mandated tattoo that references her sexual status, to Jennifer Bonnell at Penguin Books for Young Readers, for publication in Spring 2011, and a second, untitled novel, in a nice deal, at auction, by Kate Schafer Testerman at kt literary. (World English).

Gratz to Julia, and to Jen!

Kiki Hamilton’s THE FAERIE RING, an urban fantasy set in Victorian London, in which a streetwise pickpocket steals a ring from Buckingham Palace, then has to try to return it in order to keep a peace treaty between the British and Faerie courts, to Susan Chang at Tor, in a nice deal, by Kate Schafer Testerman at kt literary (World English).

Congrats to Kiki!! If you’re not following her already, check out her blog and her gorgeous website.

It’s tough to get the full impact of the story in one of PM’s run-on sentence deal reports, but I must add — there are not one but TWO delicious love interests, plus more gaslit action and drama than you can shake a stick at. I’m thrilled.

Hey, I don’t know what to do here. This guy is asking to see my MS, he has published six books, and says he runs the publishing company that published the books. His name is [Redacted], but…we’ll he’s not really an Agent, and I guess he’s sort of a publisher…his publishing company is [Redacted] Books. Your in the business, WHAT SHOULD I DO???

Ryan, I’m not here to do your research for you, but I since you’re writing to me with your concern, I think you can trust your instinct, and ask more questions. Now, there are legitimate, well-respected small publishers out there, and you may have found one. But there are also self-published authors who think the way to bring respect to their books is to publish other authors’ works as well. Again, I can’t say for certain which type of person this is, but I highly recommend you do some more research about this guy and his publishing company.

Search for more information on Absolute Write, Writers Beware, Predators & Editors, the Blue Boards, the SCBWI, and anywhere else you find authors talking about their interactions with publishers. Check him out on Publishers Marketplace — has he listed any recent sales or acquisitions?

You’re right to be leery — not every house or agent is going to be a household name, so do your research and figure out for yourself if this guy is legitimate or not.

And since I’ve been whinging lately about everything I need to do, I thought I’d share some of that with you, to give you a sense of what happens at the fair.

First of all, over the last few weeks I’ve been putting together my rights list, which contains pages on each of the books I’ll be featuring at the fair and talking about with foreign publishers. This doesn’t include all of my titles, but does have a page or more on recent releases (like Evermore by Alyson Noel) and upcoming titles (like Operation Redwood by S. Terrell French and Powerless by Matthew Cody). Because many scouts read deal reports on Publishers Lunch, I’ve also got a page for my recent deal for Hunted by Sara Beitia, though that book has a Fall 2010 pub date. Each page contains an image of the cover (where available), an author photo, a brief description of the book, an author bio, contact information for translation or dramatic rights, and any other necessary pieces of information to help make a sale. For The Unnameables by Ellen Booraem, for instance, I included an excerpt from the starred Kirkus review and an icon indicating it had been picked by the Junior Library Guild. For Scarlett Fever by Maureen Johnson, there’s also reviews and information for Suite Scarlett and Let It Snow. Evermore’s page includes a burst celebrating it as a #1 New York Times bestseller, as well as a growing list of international sales.

So, that went out a couple of weeks ago to scouts and my subagents, but there’s still updates to be made. Eventually (as in, before I leave on Thursday, but probably not too much before), I will take the file to my nearby Kinko’s and have it printed out in full-color to put in a binder I can use for show and tell in my meetings in Italy.

Because I don’t want the editors I’m meeting with to spend too much time looking down or reading the material I’ve prepared, I’ve also put together a powerpoint presentation with three or four bullet points on each title, so they can see the cover of each book, get the most pertinent details, and we can have more of a conversation about them.

Then, I printed out all my submission logs so I can see where a title has sold or been submitted, hoping that I’ll have my computer with me most of the time, but knowing sometimes it’s easier to just have the information I need on a piece of paper right in front of me, rather than having to look it up each time. I’ve also got a status report on all of my titles, an extra thick stack of business cards to give away, and a brand new little notebook to make notes on all my meetings.

Again, though I’ll have them all with me on my computer, I’ve also got submission copies of the manuscripts that are ready to send out on a little 2GB flash drive. i know some of my colleagues bring CDs with teasers of manuscripts or even fulls to give out to people they’re meeting with — I’m hoping to do most of my followup when I get home, although the flash drive gives me the opportunity to get something to someone right away if need be.

There’s always the hope of a fast, frantic sale happening at a fair, though that’s less likely in today’s internet age. But still — a girl can dream!

Tomorrow, a little bit about what my days at the fair will look like. Unless you have specific questions about what goes on in Bologna?

Have you ever heard of an author finding a publisher or agent by posting on the Publishers Marketplace right board? Do you ever search them or glance at them? I’m trying to decide if that’s worth doing.

Honestly, Bill? No, I haven’t. I can’t speak for other agents, but I barely have time to get through all the queries that are sent to me, never mind seeking out postings of material on Publishers Marketplace or in other locations. Which isn’t to say it doesn’t happen, but I wonder if it isn’t like that old Hollywood story of the girl getting discovered at the counter at Scraff’s Drugstore — it happened once, so everyone hopes it may happen again, and they just keep showing up.
I have found authors online, but usually through blog links or via websites I’m already reading. Sorry for the dismaying answer, but hey — pretty shoes!

Since you’re just getting started with your own literary agency now, are you looking around for any hired help to assist you around the office? If not, do you have any other ideas of where I could potentially look for publishing jobs that exist outside of New York City?

Ah, J.B., I kind of wish I was! I’m afraid though that for now, kt literary remains just me and my alter ego, and we do our best to get to all the work that comes across our desk. You’re on the right track for seeking publishing jobs outside of NYC, though. Find those agencies or publishers that operate outside New York, and contact them! At the same time, keep an eye on the job boards at Publishers Marketplace and Media Bistro — I’ve seen postings from all over the country, although the bulk are in New York. And maybe my readers have other suggestions. Good luck!
Gogirl writes

I’ve queried several agents for my novel and received several requests for fulls and partials. One agent called me a few weeks ago to talk about my novel and what types of changes this agent would like to see. The agent didn’t offer representation at that time. Since then, I’ve made the changes and the agent said she liked what I did. Now she wants more changes–and still no offer to rep. In the meantime, I don’t know whether I should say something to the other agents reading my novel or not. I don’t have an offer or anything tangible to discuss or do I? I also had another agent ask for the full last week based on a large partial, and she asked me if I’d accepted representation “yet.” What is the appropriate protocol in this type of situation?

Gogirl, while you’re in an enviable position, at this point, it’s still a waiting game. Without a firm offer of representation, I don’t believe you’re under any obligation to inform other agents of your dealings with the first agent — unless they won’t look at anything unless it’s exclusive, but then, you wouldn’t currently be in touch with them, would you? You could ask the first agent point blank if an offer is forthcoming, mentioning that you’ve had other interest, but seeing as she’s already requested additional changes, you might not get the answer you’re looking for if you press her. I would recommend making the revisions, if they interest you, and waiting to hear her reaction then. If an offer is forthcoming, at that point I’d recommend you tell the other agents reading your material, and try to give them a reasonable amount of time to get back to you with a decision. I hope that helps!
And finally, OneBittenTwiceShy asks

What do YOU define as “middle grade novel”?

Roughly, I’d call it a book aimed for an audience of 8-12, although there can be low middle grade books for readers on the younger end of that range, and high middle grade books that may feature older situations.
OK, that’s it for today! Keep those questions coming.

Trish Doller’s UNBECOMING, a roadtrip across America that starts as a punishment and becomes a romantic adventure, to Claudia Gabel at Delacorte, in a nice deal, by Kate Schafer at kt literary (NA).

This is the first official deal for kt literary, and Trish and I are super-excited. No pub date yet, but I’m sure we’ll have lots of news to share as time goes on.
In honor of the sale, I’m hosting an all ska music day at kt literary (It’ll all be explained in time). My iPod is tuned to No Doubt, Mighty Mighty Bosstones, and Reel Big Fish. I’m sure Trish would have other suggestions, and I hope she’ll add them in the comments. What’s your celebratory music?