Category Archives: Submission Guidelines

February 22, 2018 · 3:33 am

My yearly post

Hello my one reader out there! As you know, I don’t post blogs often. Not because I don’t think they have value, but
because I really don’t have time to keep people up to date with the world of being a literary agent. My life is all about hustle
and when I’m not doing that I’m enjoying an evening of mental rest with an episode of the Mentalist or The Office. With an occasional scotch and cigar. Oh, and enjoying a walk with my wife and dog. A heads up to all of you who keep ignoring my submission guidelines. Guess what? Your email will be deleted immediately. My  brother Doug doesn’t have time to read queries about yoga, puppies, or anything else that I don’t represent. ( Although if it’s about puppies then feel free to send it to my wife Rachel and our dog Pumpkin over at www.gal-fridaypublicity.com ,they love those books).

“Yes, send them to us- we love puppies!” Pumpkin.

For those of you who read poetry I was pleased to release my second book of poetry last year- Weekend Getaway at Generic Hotel.
The blurb is as follows: Once described as “the real thing” by a professor of English at the University of Ottawa, Brian Wood’s new book is an attempt to stand apart from much of the poetry written today. This collection of prose and poetry pays homage to many of Wood’s favorites—Larkin, Dante, Frost, Auden and Donne—while striking a voice of his own—quiet, subdued, but sometimes unsparing. Some pieces are about history, others about the modern church, others about faith and belief, but the best poems are probably the ones about love itself.
If you quote a line from one of my poems you AUTOMATICALLY get a review of your work by me. Seriously!

So this year is going to be another one of great change and I’m looking forward to it!
Best to all of you!

 

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February 17, 2014 · 8:09 pm

Starting off 2014 with Tie Domi

domi-236x300

Hello everyone, and I hope you had a great New Year and are trying to get through the February doldrums. For me the year started off with a bang selling the new Tie Domi Memoir to Simon & Schuster and I hope to sell three more books in the next few months. Here is some information for you on that deal: http://www.quillandquire.com/blog/index.php/industry-news/deals/tie-domi-to-publish-memoir-with-simon-schuster-canada/ 

Some of you may be wondering why I have a big football on my blog when all I seem to do is sell hockey books. Well that’s a simple answer. I love the NFL and someday I hope to sell a book about the NFL to a top American publisher. As of right now I haven’t found that particular property but I’m sure it’s out there! But until I find it I will continue to follow my passion for hockey and sell those great books!

I don’t update my blog that often, but if you do come here then I thank you! And remember, if you are submitting a proposal to my gatekeeper Doug, please be respectful not only of his time ( because he gives it freely) but also in the manner in which you communicate. We won’t tolerate bad manners around here and it’s one sure way of getting your name out into the public the wrong way. Thanks everyone!

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October 17, 2013 · 1:42 am

2013 so far a year to remember!

As you can tell I don’t post nearly enough blogs to answer questions that come through this website. And that’s because I lead a very busy life. Being an agent means shaking a few trees everyday and constantly keeping in touch with clients and publishers. If you don’t do that you don’t make deals which essentially means you aren’t paying rent this month!! Many people think the life of a literary agent means you make a whole lot of cash and dine in all the best restaurants. That is not accurate for non-agencies. Freelance literary agents like myself have to source clients all the time and go through a lot of hell when it comes to submissions. I opened up my page again this year to see what I would get in terms of people following the rule. And lo and behold people STILL don’t read. How do you expect publishers to read your work if you can’t? I received 4 pitches through the comment section. Guess what. I don’t read pitches when they aren’t submitted properly. And to emphasize this I recently gave an interview in Writers Digest. Here it is. READ IT

http://www.writersdigest.com/editor-blogs/guide-to-literary-agents/agent-advice-brian-j-wood-of-brian-j-wood-literary-agency

That being said, I have added some great books to my sold section so far this year including my own- Winter Walk and I will have a separate page for that little item. And no it’s not a sports book. It’s actually poetry. Very good poetry if I do say so myself. And NO I do not sell poetry to publishers for anyone so don’t send me poetry submissions.

However if you like poetry that is a little different, then here is a sample.

http://contraposition.wordpress.com/2013/08/17/and-can-it-be-by-brain-wood/

http://www.madswirl.com/content/poetryforum.html

http://contraposition.wordpress.com/2013/09/12/undercover-boss-by-brian-wood/

Oh yes, and I got married to my publicist Rachel Sentes- http://www.gal-fridaypublicity.com/  So that was pretty exciting. Here is a photo below- so yes it is a busy year.

July 27 2013 at the Beach House in Vancouver, B.C

July 27 2013 at the Beach House in Vancouver, B.C

So what am I doing right now? Well I’m currently in Toronto scoping out new projects and new book deals and meeting with publishers. So if you have something you think that I might be interested in looking at please follow the submission guidelines to the LETTER. ( Read link above again) and perhaps you will hear from me.

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August 8, 2012 · 9:00 pm

What to do during the summer months

Well, I see it’s time for my yearly blog update. Summer is a quiet time in traditional publishing. For the most part, editors and publishers go on vacation like other business people do, and proposals and manuscripts sit quietly waiting to be read and discovered.  So for the month of July I usually work on proposals, sourcing new clients and I take a few days off to enjoy the sunny weather at the beach  in Vancouver. If you have a manuscript or proposal that you want to send out to an agent for representation, July is the month to do it. That’s when we have the most time to review work and when we are looking for the next big deal.

On that note I would like to reiterate my submission requirements because for some reason I keep getting people submitting to me in the comments section of this blog. If you do that it’s a big fat NO.  It’s really clear on my page  who you need to send your work to, and HOW you need to send it. If I can’t trust you to read that small part on this website, then what makes you think I could sell your book? And if I get one more submission with my name misspelled I am going to have to shut this sucker down. My name is BRIAN- B-R-I-A-N  not BRAIN- B-R-A-I-N. Do everyone a favour- throw out spellcheck and read your work manually for mistakes. If you have an error in the first line of your manuscript – I toss it!

Yes, that sounds cruel, but remember. Agents don’t get paid until they sell a book. And then it’s only 15% . We do a lot more behind the scenes than most people think. It’s not just pitching, selling and doing contract negotiations. We act as a mediator when problems come up, distributors when you need help getting your book in the stores or online, and yes, in some cases a therapist when you need some support.

So this summer polish up your manuscripts and proposals (make sure they are typo free) and then follow my submission guidelines. And who knows maybe we might work together in the future.

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April 16, 2012 · 3:11 pm

Visiting Toronto

Just got back from a quick trip to Toronto. It is not easy to see everyone in 3 days, but I did ok:
Wed–spent the whole day at TSN, meeting clients and potential clients
Thurs–Penguin, Mclelland and Stewart, Knopf, Doubleday, then two clients of mine at Sportsnet, then a Leafs game
Fri–HarperCollins, Anansi, Wiley, then a potential client at CBC, then a fellow agent (Rick Broadhead).
Sat–potential client, meeting at the Ritz Carleton.
Then I flew to Ottawa to meet some clients of mine, then flew back to Vancouver.
I sometimes wonder whether these trips are worthwhile, because they seldom result in a sale. Generally I pitch stuff and publishers tell me if they want a look or not. And I do personal follow-ups on pitches in progress (offer, counter-offer, signing, etc).
But most of my sales are an indirect result of these trips. In fact, since 2009, all of my sales have been to Toronto-based publishers. So I think they do pay off….eventually.

I’d like to close with some advice for people who are considering me as their agent.

Please follow the submission guidelines TO THE LETTER, and please double-check your work. You would be astonished by the mistakes I see, even people misspelling my name, which isn’t easy.

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February 22, 2012 · 2:46 am

It’s 2012, has the world ended yet?

Now that’s a tricky question to answer. Why? Because in this last year it seemed like the world of publishing had indeed started the  slow march to extinction. They are being faced with changes that are now starting to effect their bottom line and they are going to have to really dig deep to stay viable. So what does that mean for us agents?

Well, it means we are going to have to change the way we do business as well. We need to source the best manuscripts we can to sell. So if you are thinking of submitting a book, it’s now more important than ever to produce the best work you can. And look at all your publishing options.

Remember, just because you want to self-publish doesn’t mean there isn’t a contract involved. There is. And that’s where  agents are valuable. We are here to negotiate the terms so that you don’t get screwed out of sales. After all, if you are going to spend money on producing a book- why not make sure you get the best deal you can?

Last week I sold a book directly to Kobo- a digital edition of a book that had been out of print for a long time and now has a chance to be read and bought on e-readers. It’s a great opportunity for all of us to embrace change and sell the best writing we can to all the publishers out there. As much as I dislike a lot of the technology out there ( Cell phones) there are some good opportunities for readers and writers to get their work into print.

Agents aren’t just around to sell books. We are top negotiators on the side of the writer.

So, that’s my short blog about stuff. Just got back from L.A and I really wish I could have stayed longer. The rain is sure coming down in Vancouver right now. SIGH.

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November 1, 2011 · 6:49 pm

Catching up

As the smell of the fall leaves comes through my window, I thought I should catch you up on a few items. As you can tell I almost never get onto my blog because I am so busy making book deals! In the last few months I travelled to Toronto for my twice yearly visit, and met some great editors and publishers, as well as caught up with a few friends from Ottawa and Montreal. It’s always great to travel back east and take in the sites and sounds of Toronto, but I’m equally as happy to come home.

This year has been an interesting one for me and in general for the publishing world. In the media we are seeing more and more stories about authors going the self publishing route but then having issues when their books don’t sell, and then we see ones that breach their contracts without realizing it- and wondering why they just lost their 20,000 dollar advance.

That’s one of the reasons agents are valuable -for their knowledge and expertise in the industry. Too often I hear complaints after the fact about why an author lost out on a deal. My first question is always “Did they have an agent?” and if they didn’t then I tell them “That’s why your author is losing out.” Agents act in the interest of the author first, publisher second. Without an agent a writer has a higher chance of being cut out of profits and second book deals because they simply don’t know what they are signing- or they don’t think a point can be negotiated.

The next thing I hear is ” But Brian, it’s not that easy getting an agent. My work sits in a pile for months before they even respond- if they respond at all.”  My answer to that is
”  A) Did you read their submission requirements down to the letter? Did you follow them? B) Did you research the agent you are contacting? Do they even publish your type of book? C) Did you actually include the bottle of scotch and cigars or did you just say it was on the way? and D) Is your book any good? Not- friends and family good, but actually good- good grammar, good story, good subject. Is it interesting and exciting? Why would I want to sell this?

Remember- once you finish writing the book it moves into the business of selling. It’s not about how great you think your book is, and what ‘people’ say about it. It’s about how it’s going to do in the marketplace. How is your marketing, advertising, publicity going to be put together- what is your platform- does anyone know who you are? That’s what it’s about now, and that’s what you have to show to an agent. And if you do all that then who knows- you may end up with a great agent and a book deal.

And on that note, this Christmas please consider buying one of my newest releases Where There’s Smoke – Musings of a Cigarette Smoking Man by William B Davis– he’s a great guy so go and buy his book!!

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July 11, 2011 · 3:23 am

BLURBS

So….this week I thought I would address all of you out there who are very close to finishing your outline/sample chapter to submit, whether to me, another agent, a publisher, whomever, really.

You have labored for months. You are just about ready.

And one day when you are thinking about something else…..it occurs to you: “Hey, my uncle knows Steven Spielberg! I wonder if that would help.”

Answer: it might.

An editor at Doubleday once told me blurbs were like icing: nice, but not essential.I would agree with that statement….but I would add this: if you are an unknown author building a career, blurbs can help you skip over piles.

That is, if the top of your submission has this:

“I could not put this down!” Steven Spielberg, Hollywood, CA

you stand a MUCH better chance of being looked at, esp. if you do not have an agent.

My point? Go ahead & line up blurbs BEFORE you submit. Make sure they are visible–believe me, it can’t hurt.
p.s. the same goes for intros/forewords.  Say you are writing a book on the history of the Canadiens; it will not hurt your chances if the intro is by Jean Beliveau.

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