And What Did You Get For Christmas?

I think the coolest present I got this year was Jeff Herman's Guide to Book Publishers, Editors and Literary Agents. If you're a serious writer or even a halfway serious aspiring writer, you'll know who Jeff Herman is and how valuable his book can be to your future marketability as a writer. This edition is what I've been hankering for ever since before it came out this past September 30th. Moreso than the Writer's Digest series, including their own guide to lit agents, Herman's book, written by a practicing agent, is more valuable in terms of cross-referencing. It can put you in touch with exactly the people you need to reach and it also provides informative articles on the book business that you won't get anywhere else.

If you're me, someone who's trying to get a damned good property placed with a reputable agency, it's a very cool fucking present. The only thing that worries me is the only agency to whom I've submitted sample chapters of American Zen isn't listed. That isn't necessarily a bad thing. As Herman says in the foreword to the literary agent listings, some of his favorite agencies aren't listed for the simple reason that they don't want to get swamped with new submissions. Only 10% of DGLM's client list are new authors. But their official website still invites submissions and I submitted three weeks ago. One of my novelist friends (Michael Prescott) is repped by them and Barack Obama is also on their client list.

But if you're not a writer, then I'm just farting in the wind. So, what was your favorite present this morning?

Hope you have a safe and happy Christmas, Chanukah, Kwanzaa or however you observe the holidays.