4 : Number of agents at NLA (same as in 2018)
354 : Number of full manuscripts requested and read (down from 442 in 2018) (Largely due to my closing to queries for several months of 2019)
127 : Number of manuscripts we requested that received offers of representation, either from us or from other agents/agencies (up from 110 in 2018)
14 : Number of new clients who signed with NLA (1 for Kristin, 4 for Danielle, 5 for Joanna, 4 for Quressa) (same total number as in 2018!)
26 : Number of book deals done (12 for Kristin, 6 for Danielle, 4 for Quressa, 4 for Joanna) (up from 21 in 2018)
45 : Number of career New York Times bestsellers for Kristin (up from 44 in 2018)
11 : TV and major motion picture deals (8 for Kristin, 2 for Danielle, 1 for Joanna) (up from 9 in 2018)
1 : Major motion picture released (Netflix’s BIRD BOX by my client Josh Malerman—technically in the last week of 2018 but hey, spotlighting it here)
45 : Books released in 2019 (up from 35 in 2018)
14,000+ : Queries read and responded to (estimated) (Down from an estimated 20,000+ in 2018 largely due to my being closed to unsolicited queries and open to referrals only for several months of 2019, as well as to other agents closing intermittently)
106 : Foreign-rights deals done (up from 64 in 2018)
6 : Conferences attended by Kristin, including Bologna Children’s Book Fair, Book Expo/BookCon, World Horror, Lighthouse Writers, Kachemak Bay Writers, Colorado Writing Workshop (down from 7 in 2018)
180 : Physical holiday cards sent (up from 155 in 2018)
838 : Electronic holiday cards sent (up from 835 in 2018)
Not telling it’s so embarrassing : Eggnog chai lattes consumed during November and December
Lots : Late nights reading on my living-room chaise with the very senior and snuggly 16 and half year old Grand Dame Chutney
All : Great days loving my job!
Creative Commons photo credit: Lainey Powell
Tags: end of the year, statistics
Ha! Love the holiday card count! Way to go!
I found your stats helpful. It’s a transparency I haven’t seen before. I was interested that out of 127 offers of representation you only got 14 new clients. That surprised me. It also seemed like you liked a third of all the manuscripts you requested. That seemed great. Now I did see the total number of queries and so yes I know it’s still like getting struck by lightning. Enjoyed it, thanks
Some of the disconnect here probably comes from the hassle-intensive, user-hostile Query Manager system , which prevents an author from submitting either a well-crafted query or a simple sample chapter without playing Simon Says all over the map. That’s why my latest WIP will be going everywhere but here, even though I sort of like these guys. I don’t mind acting like a lightning rod, but I refuse to tap dance and do back flips while I’m doing it…