Still querying

So, this is going to be another agent – the soul of a gnat – rant.

From last Sunday to last Wednesday (my birthday) I thought I had a real nibble from a real agent. She is someone my son referred me to – whom after hearing what my book is about and said yes she was interested, and whom after she responded to my follow-up query said yes we should talk and that she is extremely impressed with my material, decided to pass after all. And, the excuse she gave was, and I quote: “We are concerned about being able to find a publishing home for your memoir. Our past experience has been that very few books of this nature can make it through a publishing committee unless there is someone famous involved. Regretfully and after much consideration, we must take a pass at this time.”

Okay, I can accept the reason for the rejection. I can understand that in this publishing climate, upbeat subjects and famous people are a better publishing risk. However, what I can’t accept is that she didn’t tell me that during our first conversation. I certainly gave her the chance.. She knew then what she told me later, but what she chose to do was waste both our time.

And, now here’s the real kicker. I Googled her and found a 2004 article about an agent with the same name who had bilked a cookbook author of over $400K and then disappeared from the scene. Maybe that’s why her name isn’t listed in the two agent guides I have or on any online lists of agents. Even on the website for the agency she resides in now, only her husband’s name is mentioned – also the same as the husband’s name mentioned in the article.

Okay, I’ll be good and not name names here. What’s true is I have no idea how it all turned out with the cookbook author, so the article posted on the web could be completely bogus.

Let it suffice to say I probably dodged a bullet on this one. More reason to keep querying on.