Murphy’s seventh Walker Papers urban fantasy (after Spirit Dances) shakes things up nicely. Shaman Joanne Walker has resigned from the police force after being bitten by a werewolf. Feeling called to Ireland, Jo trades in romantic interest Mike Morrison and Seattle’s cityscape for her old pal Gary Muldoon and encounters with the Morrígan and wild banshees, slowly learning about her new werewolf abilities as she goes. Some fans might be frustrated that Jo and Mike are separated so soon after finally getting their romantic opportunity, but it’s a crafty decision on Murphy’s part, forcing Jo to focus on immediate threats and the continuing revelations about her heritage. A few twists lead to a cliffhanger ending to set up book eight. Fans of the series will enjoy this chapter, while new readers should be able to put together enough of the backstory to jump on board. –Publishers Weekly

# of queries responded to week ending 2/10/2012: 126
# of partials/manuscripts requested: 0
genre of partials/manuscripts requested: n/a

# of queries responded to this week: 158
# of partials/manuscripts requested: 0
genre of partials/manuscripts requested: n/a

Sometimes when I send a response to a query declining to read more, I get a reply asking for more details or for help improving the query or something along those lines or a plea to “just give it a chance.”

My regular policy is not to respond to these. It’s simply due to the volume of queries received. I haven’t been keeping track of what the other agents at DMLA are receiving but I’ve already had over 1000 submissions this year. Even if agents wanted to read all the manuscripts and send personal replies to everything they simply wouldn’t be able to. By necessity, this approach has to extend to engaging in continued correspondence, especially if anything other than queries is to get attention.

But this month, there are exceptions. Earlier this month, I started participating in The Month of Letters Challenge by offering to accept queries via post and randomly responding to at least one per business day with a personal reply and at least some feedback on either the query, the novel concept, or the pages. To participate they MUST follow my guidelines. Read the details here.

Congratulations to Kameron Hurley, winner of the Kitschies Golden Tentacle Award. Such an appropriate award. Read her acceptance here.

Chris F. Holm, author of the coming-to-a-store-near-you-soon Dead Harvest interviewed at Grift Magazine

Library Journal Q&A with Saladin Ahmed, author of Throne of the Crescent Moon

C.E. Murphy has a series of posts on her experience with crowd-funding. Start here.

Many of my clients have offerings in The Con or Bust auction, which helps fans of color/non-white fans attend SFF conventions. Bidding ends Sunday, February 25, 2012 at 11:59 p.m. EST.

* signed copies of The Cloud Roads and the Serpent Sea by Martha Wells
* trade paperbacks of Boneshaker, Dreadnought, and Ganymede by Cherie Priest, offered by Tor Books, who will arrange to have them signed by the author
* an ARC of Glamour in Glass by Mary Robinette Kowal (sequel to Shades of Milk and Honey), donated by Tor Books, who will arrange to have it signed by the author if desired
* a signed copy of Heart of Iron by Ekaterina Sedia
* also, a signed copy of The House of Discarded Dreams by Ekaterina Sedia
* signed copy of Throne of the Crescent Moon by Saladin Ahmed

Set in a quasi ­Middle Eastern city and populated with the supernatural creatures of Arab folklore, this long-awaited debut by a finalist for the Nebula and Campbell awards brings The Arabian Nights to sensuous life. The maturity and wisdom of Ahmed’s older protagonists are a delightful contrast to the brave impulsiveness of their younger companions. This trilogy launch will delight fantasy lovers who enjoy flawed but honorable protagonists and a touch of the exotic. –Library Journal, Starred Review

Ahmed’s debut masterfully paints a world both bright and terrible…Unobtrusive hints of backstory contribute to the sense that this novel is part of a larger ongoing tale, and the Arab-influenced setting is full of vibrant description, characters, and religious expressions that will delight readers weary of pseudo-European epics. –Publishers Weekly, Starred Review

As you might expect, the Arabian Nights theme dominates, and in language, style and approach, Ahmed carries it off with only minor slips into American vernacular. Equally impressive are characters who struggle not only against their opponents but against their own misgivings and desires, and accept that victory may be achieved only at great personal cost. An arresting, sumptuous and thoroughly satisfying debut. –Kirkus, Starred Review

In support of this endeavour, I am offering a special query letter #LetterMo. Due to the nature of this proposal, the kind and beneficent Mary Robinette Kowal has given me a variance on rule #2 (see official site here and sign up to participate in the challenge). I will only be responding to the queries received once and not engaging in additional correspondence (unless, of course, I request your manuscript).

So, here’s the restructured challenge to allow for my participation:

1. Mail your query via post to this address:
Jennifer Jackson / #lettermo
Donald Maass Literary Agency
121 West 27th Street, Suite 801
New York, NY 10001

2. The query MUST follow my guidelines, which means it MUST include a one-page query letter, the first five pages of the novel manuscript, and a 1-5 page synopsis. It must also include an SASE (self-addressed stamped envelope) for reply.

3. I encourage the submission of new projects. If the project has been previously queried to me, it must be significantly revised and have been more than six months previous.

4. Submissions must fall into genres normally represented by me. Novel-length fiction ONLY. The novel being queried must be completed and polished and ready for submission. Query for one project only.

5. From among these queries, I will randomly choose at least one (1) query per business day in the month of February which will receive a personal response, mailed back via post. This response will include some feedback on either the query itself or the concept of the novel.

6. Any queries not receiving a personal reply will still receive the standard response as per my usual policy of replying to all queries that follow my guidelines.

Please leave any questions in comments.

For electronic editions see the listing on Baen ebooks.

“A tourist town in Maine hosts a war of faerie magic in this engaging urban fantasy. The fireworks begin when Kate Archer returns to Archers Beach, Maine, to search for her vanished grandmother, Bonny Pepperidge, and to assume Bonny’s role as Guardian of Fun Country, an amusement park whose carousel animals are actually exiled fae criminals. Almost immediately, Kate runs afoul of neighbor Joe Nemeier, a drug smuggler who sets his assassins after her. Then she learns from the local earth spirits that Bonny may have discovered the whereabouts of Kate’s mom, newly escaped form a pursuing demonic captor. Lee brings these disparate subplots together in a pyrotechnic finale that plays out magically behind the ordinary facade of smalltown Maine life, evoking much of the romance and magic of her popular Liaden series.” — Publishers Weekly

“Sharon Lee weaves fantasy into reality so deftly that you scarcely notice when you slip across the edge. And once you’re there, the story’s own magic won’t let you turn back from the strong characters, deep mysteries, and even deeper danger.” — James A. Hetley, author of Dragon’s Eye, Dragon’s Teeth, and Dragon’s Bones.

* Last week, Mary Robinette Kowal proposed the Month of Letters Challenge. This week she offers to have Jane from Shades of Milk and Honey take up additional correspondence. The letters will be written with a quill pen and from Jane’s timeline in February 1815. More details and the address for mailing here.

* Kameron Hurley on the Self-Sabotaging Writer.

* Client Jay Lake’s commentary on client Saladin Ahmed’s coming-really-soon-now debut The Throne of the Crescent Moon.

# of queries responded to this week: 151
# of partials/manuscripts requested: 3
genre of partials/manuscripts requested: contemporary fantasy, urban fantasy, YA-steampunk

I don’t subscribe to the “no response means no” policy. I attempt to reply to every query sent to query.jjackson@maassagency.com

In an ideal world, the queries received include a query letter (with pitch), a short synopsis (1-5 pages) and the first five pages of the novel.

Frequently, the account also receives what is categorized as a pre-query. Example: “Are you accepting submissions?” (See above. Self evident. Also as indicated by submission guidelines.) Or inquiries like: “Do you accept [insert genre here]?” (Both cases this week are listed as areas currently of interest on our website.)

Bluntly, these are nearly always questions that could be answered by visiting our website or doing a google search. However, in the interests of improving said results, what common information does not appear that could perhaps be included in the guidelines?

* Ashedit interviews Chris F. Holm about his upcoming debut novel Dead Harvest with his commentary on the day he got the offer on the book along with some background on the snazzy vintage style cover.

* Listen to Jason Heller’s interview on NPR about his recently released Taft 2012.

* via Jay Lake’s own link salad: “Die Räder der Welt — Check out Mainspring’s cool German cover.”

* Mary Robinette Kowal proposes The Month of Letters Challenge, inspired by her month off from the internet.

Heller, a contributor to The A.V. Club, makes a stellar debut with his satirical alternate history. The premise is audacious: President William Howard Taft disappears on the day his successor, Woodrow Wilson, is to be inaugurated in 1913, and he inexplicably shows up on the White House lawn almost a century later. After scientists and scholars confirm his identity, he begins the daunting process of understanding a radically different America, which, for all its technological advances, desperately needs direction. This surprisingly poignant novel will find an eager audience in the months leading up to the 2012 presidential election, but it deserves a longer shelf life. Heller’s numerous historical insights and observations regarding Taft as president, husband, American, and human being will have more than a few readers wishing Taft really could be a third-party candidate in 2012, to be a rational voice in the “din of all this twenty-first century madness.” –Publishers Weekly, Starred Review