Are you sick of your manuscript? 🤢
Today's guest is associate literary agent Christine Goss.
How do you know your book is ready to query?
Getting your book agent-ready requires dedication, focus, and a lot of (often tedious) work. Polishing your opening pages, refining your voice, and working through rounds of feedback with beta readers are crucial steps in preparing a manuscript that will stand out from the thousands of others in agents’ inboxes.
Keep going until you’re practically sick of your manuscript.
Read your book out loud. Study craft books and apply what you learn to your own work. Polish every sentence until it shines. And then revise one more time, just for good measure. You should be so thorough in your revisions that by the time you’re ready to hit "send" on a query, you’re almost sick of reading your own work — or at least, you would be if you didn’t love and believe in your story so much. That’s when you know you’ve put in the work to make it the best it can be.
In today’s interview, associate agent Christine Goss shares exactly what she looks for in a book’s opening pages and in her prospective clients, plus her tips for ensuring your manuscript is ready to stand out in a competitive and ever-changing market.
OUR SPECIAL GUEST TODAY IS…
Christine Goss
Associate Literary Agent
Christine will open to queries in 2025. Follow her on Instagram, X, and Threads at @cgossagent for updates!
How can querying authors ensure their sample pages are engaging and intriguing?
So many times I see first pages that rely heavily on adding backstory and info dumping. I really gravitate to stories that jump right in scene, with a character in action, making choices and showing what they want. Kat Foxx at The Rights Factory just had a great blog post about what to have in your first pages.
I also am someone that needs to be immersed in the pages immediately through interiority and physicality. I need to know *how* the characters are feeling. A lot of times the lack of these two things can be a result of telling versus showing, which I also see a lot of.
Lastly, as CeCe Lyra says of PS Literary and The Shit No One Tells You About Writing Podcast, there needs to be a surprise of some sort in the opening pages that helps with the curiosity established. At the end of the first chapter(s) you want the reader to be curious about what comes next!
What traits or qualities do you look for in a potential client?
When looking at a potential client, I first obviously only see the writing. I am drawn to people that have a strong voice, understanding of craft and have (in some cases) a lyrical prose. I also do look at their outfacing persona (social media) if it's available. I'm not saying social media matters, but if you're online I want to be sure you're a good literary citizen.
I also look for clients that are eager to learn, and really want to focus on their craft. I also want to work with people who are hoping to write more books. We know it can be hard to have a career that is only authoring (the dream!). But if that is a goal, I want to help them get there.
What is one piece of advice you would give to a writer who aspires to be published?
Keep on going. Those that persist in this industry are the ones that see success. It may not happen the first time, but it will happen as long as you keep learning, improving your craft and creating. Your story deserves to be heard!
What current trends in the book publishing industry should emerging authors be aware of?
I think what I want writers to be aware of when it comes to trends is writing to market, when the market is ever changing and you could write a horror, because that's whats hot, only for it to become oversaturated.
I believe you should write what you want to write. If it is in a oversaturated genre, be sure that you made your story the best it can be. Because at the end of the day, forcing yourself to write something just because it's "hot" will lead to burnout and something that maybe you're not as in love with as you would be if you wrote the story of your heart.
That's not to say ignore everything about what the market is looking for. There are certain things that are important to keep in mind, like how right now a high-concept pitch is what editors are looking for. The good news is you can write many genres with a good hook that's high concept.
What tips would you give authors who are trying to determine if their manuscript is agent-ready?
Things I hope authors do before they submit queries is the following:
Finish the manuscript (yes! Please don't query unless the MS is finished!)
Study the craft of writing while drafting, or while giving your drafts space. This can be classes, podcasts, reading a lot of books within and out of your genre, and studying craft books.
Beta readers! This is a big one that I know is hard for many, but finding good beta readers is so helpful! They will help you find the blind spot in your MS. Sometimes it may require a few rounds of feedback, but it's usually always worth it. Plus, you'll find some friends!
Read the manuscript out loud
Line-level editing
Once you are sick of your MS (I'm kidding....sorta), you are probably ready. As you can see, a lot goes into getting a manuscript ready. Do you *have* to do each thing I listed? No. But it's what I recommend to help be sure your MS is the best it can be for agent eyes! The quality of writing I'm seeing is so good, your MS really needs to stand out!
Approximately how many queries do you receive per year, and how many of those result in an offer of representation?
I've received just under 3,000 queries since starting as an agent in October of 2023. Currently I have four authors and have offered to someone who went elsewhere. So in total, five offers from the nearly 3k queries.
Looking for more writing and publishing tips?
I’ve got you!
👎 Why Do So Many BAD Books Get Published? (YouTube)
🗣️ One of my favorite self-editing techniques (X/Twitter)
🍿 3 essential elements of a compelling plot (Reels)
Follow me on X/Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok for daily bite-sized tips. 🍪
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