By Patricia Mulcahy

Annie Hwang, Wendy Sherman, Renée Zuckerbrot

A record number of participants showed up for 5E’s June 11 Office Hour session with guests Wendy Sherman of Wendy Sherman Associates, Annie Hwang of the newly established Renegade Literary (website coming soon), and Renée Zuckerbrot of Massie, McQuilkin & Altman. 5E’s Jane Rosenman and Patricia Mulcahy co-hosted; Anne Horowitz and Judy Sternlight joined for the Q&A.

The three agents started with details of recent sales that rewarded the hard work of getting writers set up with a congenial editor who really “gets” the book. What was abundantly clear was that no two sales are quite alike: In Annie’s case, it took eight years from the time she sent a simple mash note to a Korean translator to the very exciting sale of her novel (“I bided my time,” Annie said).

Each agent also provided valuable guidance on ways to approach them with solid queries and commented on the ways in which the industry has changed. And yet some things are eternal: The marketplace is always challenging. And the received wisdom in the book business is often wrong: “They say there is less demand for historical fiction. And then you sell one,” Wendy pointed out.

Renée loves short stories, often said to be a very tough sell; yet she has succeeded in selling collections, multiple times. “Publishers may want a two-book contract that includes a novel, but there is still an appetite for a collection of well-crafted stories, especially ones that echo each other. They can be published as ‘linked.’”

You may also want to check out this informative interview Renee just did for PEN.

If you couldn’t Zoom in on 6/11, you can listen to their valuable insights in the recording below. Subscribe to our newsletter to learn about future Office Hours sessions.