I Lost An Agent!

This title first of all is a little misleading but since it links to my previous post I Found An Agent! I thought it cute to make them match lol

I say misleading because while I no longer have representation, I did not lose an agent, but rather no longer have ties to one. That's the same thing Charli, I hear you say which in many important ways, of course it is. However, the more you learn in this industry and begin to understand that you cannot always connect with people in the way you wish or initially thought, this means that while I no longer have an agent, I'm actually at peace with that because with hindsight, this relationship was not the right one for me.

I personally don't like posts that are intentionally vague in an attempt to be mysterious for click baits sake, but in the interest of professionalism, there are things I simply can't and won't say. What I can comfortably share is that as disappointed as I am to have taken a step back in the publishing space, I've learned that it was ultimately for the best. Not everyone is as genuine as they would have you believe and that above all, you must always be true to yourself and go with your gut. Had I done so at the start, maybe I could have avoided this set back in the process, but it is what it is now and we simply have to move on.

Some key things I have taken from this experience are:

• Trust your gut/instincts

• Ask questions of your literary peers (if you have them) before agreeing to anything

• Make sure your communication styles align.

• Keep your 'receipts'

• Don't rush into anything

• Believe in yourself

I added the last one because as confident as I present to the world, having taken some time away from writing/self publishing, looking back, I feel like I rushed into an agreement that didn't feel 1000% right, simply because I didn't think the opportunity would come around again. I was initially not writing/querying so there was a sense of not kicking a gift horse in the mouth; to accept the blessing as it were, because what if this was the moment that I look back on in years to come and think what if?

This is not to say that I was not appropriately sold a dream and that for some, this particular type of agent/author relationship may work out. But, had I listened to myself and held out for now admittedly missed opportunities, and truly believed that they would happen for me again, I might have been in a different position now.

In my initial post about signing with an agent, I mentioned the things that made me sign with them and while all those things remain true, it came to light after the fact that when things had the possibilit of becoming difficult or required certain levels of maturity, those initial positive attributes did not carry across. What I thought was clear communication and collaborative questioning was seemingly taken as being combative and I don't have the energy to navigate environments that aren't transparent within an already dense market for marginalised authors. Making sure your agent understands you as a person is so important and also, phone calls are always better.

All that being said and no ill intent, with the support of some wonderful friends including my editor/proof reader friend Stephanie @theabundantword, I've decided to query SHADOW SEER. This story has been through so much in the last eighteen months, that I think I owe it to Sanaa, Elias and Amir to try and get their story told.

Elias, Sanaa and Amir

From a serial on Inkitt with dozens of comments and securing a paid feature on Wattpad, to feeling as though it wouldn't even be comple, to character removals and additions, SHADOW SEER is a fun ride and I hope that people get to read it some day. Romantasy is taking up a lot of space recently but mainly because its only Romantasy through a very white lense that is being picked. Having a Black and brown led Romantasy set in a world of rolling sand dunes with shadow magic and shamanism and seers and broody leading men is what we need, so fingers crossed that it finds its way to shelves one day...

You can check out the first chapter of Shadow Seer here and if you read it, let me know what you think. Is it even worth querying? Let me know!

C x

Shadow Seer_Chapter One.pdf

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