Book Release Alert

Now Available from Blackstone Publishing!

Cecilia Aragon’s riveting memoir..

One woman's exhilarating journey from shy, fearful daughter of immigrants to champion pilot for the US Aerobatic Team

A message of inspiration for those seeking to break free from societal norms." - Kirkus Reviews

"You don't have to be a math whiz or a science geek to learn from her story. You just have to want to soar." - Hip Latina

"If you are looking for some inspiration right now (and aren't we all?), look no further! You'll fly through the empowering story of the shy Midwestern girl who grew up to be the first Latina on the United States Unlimited Aerobatic Team." -Karla Strand, Ms. Magazine

Buy

Cecilia Aragon is an award-winning author, airshow pilot, and the first Latina full professor in the College of Engineering at the University of Washington in Seattle. She's worked with Nobel Prize winners, taught astronauts to fly, and created musi… — Cecilia Aragon is an award-winning author, airshow pilot, and the first Latina full professor in the College of Engineering at the University of Washington in Seattle. She's worked with Nobel Prize winners, taught astronauts to fly, and created musical simulations of the universe with rock stars.

Today we are thrilled to have our own associate agent Maria Rogers here to discuss her agenting style

How did you get into publishing? Walk us through your journey.

I had a hard time choosing a major in college because it seemed like every department had fascinating fields of study. That same interdisciplinary aspect drew me to publishing, so when I was offered an internship in the editorial department at W.W. Norton I jumped at the opportunity. From there I interned at Writers House, which taught me that the general perception that “publishing = editors” is far from accurate, and that so many different types of work (like agenting!) contribute meaningfully to the lives of books. I spent a few years in editorial roles at Norton and Scholastic before I joined TLA and started building my own list.

How many queries do you receive per week?

It can vary widely, but anywhere between 50-85.

What are some of the most common mistakes you see in a writer’s opening pages?

A few things I see all the time that are immediate turn-offs: procatalepsis; extended and unwarranted descriptions of the weather and landscape in the first paragraphs; foregoing drama in favor of melodrama.

I also get a lot of queries with no sample material that just say something like, “I’ve got this great idea, can you help me turn it into a book?” At this point, it is too early to start reaching out to agents!

What do writers get wrong most often when they query?

Competitive titles are something editors and agents find very useful, but writers often bristle at the term. And I get it! A lot of queries say “my manuscript is wholly unique, and there are no other books on the marketplace that compete with it.”

The term “comp titles” is something of a misnomer, so it can be helpful to think of them as “kindred titles.” While we all can appreciate a manuscript’s singularity, when writers don’t including comp titles, they miss opportunities to demonstrate their market savvy and position their book among other published works that, in style or content, might capture the interest of the same audiences.

You’ve mentioned in past interviews that writers should know their work is part of a conversation — what do you mean by that?

No matter the genre, I can’t overemphasize the importance of doing your research! In writing a book you are taking on the responsibility of being something of an expert in your field. In order to speak with authority and find points of engagement with readers, having an understanding of your genre and subject’s landscape—the works and writers who have made contributions to your field—is imperative. And this goes for anything from ancient Rome to rom-coms.

Agents and editors have staked their professions in knowing the book market, so in order to really catch our attention you have to do your due diligence and figure out how your work fits within that market.

What advice would you give a writer pitching you face-to-face at a conference?

I love it when writers can go beyond plot to articulate the central question their book is grappling with, and also when they have a few bullet points of their book’s best/most marketable details to pique my interest.

How do you prefer to work with clients in the editing process?

My clients and I usually go through a few rounds of edits, from massive reworkings of structure to line-by-line edits. Especially with structural edits, I need a lot of time alone with the work to pinpoint problems and come up with potential solutions. My edits starts to look like a detective’s “crazy wall” before I have an aha! moment and everything starts to fall into place.

In your opinion, what separates writers who “make it” from those who don’t?

Beyond luck, raw persistence and the ability to really synthesize feedback.

What are a few things you wish you saw more of in the manuscripts you receive?

I get a lot of queries from nonfiction writers have nailed down their subject, but not their story. From Saidiya Hartman to Craig Brown to George Packer, there are a lot of nonfiction writers who are reinventing the genre in exciting ways and I’d love to see similar works of playful, daring, deep-dive nonfiction!

Thanks for sharing with us, Maria!

Agency

Book Release Alert

Now Available from Blackstone Publishing!

Cecilia Aragon’s riveting memoir..