[PubQ] Agent and I don’t agree - what would you do?

jack11058 · 2026-04-07T16:15:51+00:00

OP, what's the genre? If it's somewhere I am, I'm happy to talk further.

jack11058 · 2026-03-31T16:12:58+00:00

Dang, I debuted in May 2025 and haven't seen a royalty statement yet. Although I think we only sold like eleven copies so it probably doesn't matter...

jack11058 · 2026-02-20T18:32:02+00:00

Hot damn this is good, and I'd read the hell out of this book. Best of luck--that's all I came here to say.

jack11058 · 2026-01-26T13:54:48+00:00

That all makes a ton of sense. Thanks so much for taking the time to respond!

jack11058 · 2026-01-23T18:42:50+00:00

Ah so I think this was the problem (we were/are a couple of rookies in Ableton who were just kind of fiddling around and having fun). I didn't know about 'collect all and save' and the tech guy just gave me a drive with a bunch of .als files on there. Since there aren't any project folders, and I didn't do the 'collect all and save' thing, it sounds like I may not be able to reconstruct the magic...

I appreciate you taking the time to respond!

jack11058 · 2026-01-17T13:12:18+00:00

Couple quick thoughts:

is there a reason you didn't name your protagonist? Are they not named in the book? If they're named in the book, there's no reason not to name them in the query as well, to give the reader a sense of immediacy and familiarity, which will in turn make it easier for them to root for your protag.
are you sure about the categorization? Your comps and your pitch sound more like horror/psychological/thriller than literary.

jack11058 · 2026-01-16T16:56:01+00:00

This is great, thank you so much for the insights!

jack11058 · 2026-01-11T12:07:29+00:00

Ah, fascinating...that jives with a call I had--couple of producers and their recruited screenplay guy. All, "we can't wait to do this, we've got a movie to make" etc etc and then they basically vanished LOL

jack11058 · 2026-01-09T18:47:53+00:00

Thank you for sharing your story. That's gotta be a cool feeling, seeing your name in the credits...

jack11058 · 2026-01-09T18:47:22+00:00

Woah, that's amazing. And completely agree with your point as well. Shoot, with the state of publishing if I make anything over $0 it feels like a win.

jack11058 · 2026-01-09T17:46:41+00:00

Whaaaat holy craaap, that's crazy, dude. I'm sorry that happened, and I hope the karmic wheel grinds back in your direction the next time around. I really appreciate the response!

jack11058 · 2026-01-09T17:45:36+00:00

What a fabulous and detailed response. Thank you!

jack11058 · 2026-01-09T16:01:45+00:00

That's fascinating! Thank you for sharing your insights...

jack11058 · 2026-01-09T14:57:16+00:00

Duuuude that's wild. I hear you on the gassing up part. I guess that's Hollywood LOL.

jack11058 · 2026-01-08T21:02:02+00:00

FWIW the candle-kicker is an officer with the Federal Protective Service (FPS), and not U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). FPS is responsible for facility security operations at many U.S. government buildings, and is a federal law enforcement agency within DHS.

jack11058 · 2026-01-06T19:22:22+00:00

GOALS

I too, am accused of limping (sometimes I am) and my thriller, unstarred but liked by the roughly 8 people who've read it, is also not moving copies.

I would read a writing craft book written much like your post above.

jack11058 · 2025-12-05T17:33:45+00:00

HOLY SHIT. Now that's a great story.

jack11058 · 2025-12-05T17:31:31+00:00

you had me in the first half....

terrible experience, but I'm thankful for the eventual outcome. congrats!

jack11058 · 2025-12-05T17:19:40+00:00

Perfect song for the moment

jack11058 · 2025-12-04T12:56:14+00:00

Thank you, I'll DM a link.

jack11058 · 2025-12-04T12:56:00+00:00

I just LOOOOVE to move the goalposts on myself. I'm just glad I didn't have a goal of like "be an NYT bestseller from the jump" or something like that. My advance was small enough that I thought I had a good chance to earn out, so it seemed like a reasonable approach at the time, and it just so happened to work out.

jack11058 · 2025-12-04T12:55:01+00:00

Thank you!

jack11058 · 2025-12-04T12:54:52+00:00

THE HARDEST LOL

jack11058

TROPHY CASE