πŸ’ŒπŸ“« Newsletter: My Agent Search Experience and Query Letter

Hey, y’all! It’s March. Which means February is over. (That was fast.) Annnnnd I didn’t send out a newsletter in February. Yikes. But hey, life around me kind of blew up (in a good and bad way), and I’m just now getting my head above water. I sure hope y’all can forgive me. I’m here now and that’s what’s important, right? Plus, I think I’ve got a good one for today’s “My Writing Journey.” (Or so I hope you think it’s a good one.) It’s about my “My Agent Search Experience and Query Letter.” Isn’t that like finding a pot of gold, when you can read a successful query letter?!? I sure thought so when I was new in my journey. And I hope my advice/tips/tricks help you out in your agent search.


MY WRITING JOURNEY


While I wouldn’t consider myself a query expert by any means, I have gotten three agents over the last ten years. And my query letter for In the Hour of Crows landed me an agent who got me a six-figure deal (for one book) at auction with a big publisher. So I’d call my query letter a success. Everyone’s experience in the query trenches is different. This is my story. This is what worked for me…three times. (If you want to hear more about my experience working with three different agents, you can check out my November newsletter “Navigating Through 3 Agents” here.)

AGENT SEARCH

There are so many agents and agencies out there, it’s hard to know who is legit, who is good at their job, who is a go-getter, who is a heavy-hitter, who is a right fit, etc. etc. etc. Just because an agent is at a big agency, doesn’t mean they can sell your book. And just because they are at a boutique agency, doesn’t mean they can’t sell you big. All that to say, know what you want out of your career.

When I first started, I just wanted to get published. The second time around, I wanted someone who take my career to the next level, which for me meant an agent at a bigger, well-known agency.…Agent #2 couldn’t sell a book for me though. By the time I got to my third agent, I was tired of fucking around. I had wasted a lot of time, and I wasn’t getting any younger. I wanted someone who could get me a big deal with a “Big 5” publisher, period. (Yes, I know it’s not five now.) That also meant I had to write a really fucking good book they couldn’t resist. (I’ll write more about that in a future newsletter.)...

To read the full newsletter, head on over to my Substack where you can read my actual query letter, see examples of my personal notes to agents, and view my query stats.  

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✨COVER REVEAL✨

 ✨COVER REVEAL✨ for IN THE HOUR OF CROWS 😍

Isn’t she gorgeous!!?? I absolutely love it. Mira books did an incredible job capturing the hauntingly beautiful atmosphere of the book. I love the misty Appalachian mountains, the sparkling hints of magic, the beautiful crow you will meet in the story, and the gorgeous purple and orange of the setting sun…in the hour of crows when the day is no longer but the night is not yet.

And a HUGE thank you to Serene Heiner (@magicalbooknook) for doing this goofy video with me!!! She is simply the best!!!! (Falling over the chair is epic! πŸΏπŸ«ΆπŸ»πŸ˜‚) If you haven't seen the cover reveal instagram reel you have to check it out!  

Can you believe it’s only 6 months until IN THE HOUR OF CROWS hits the shelves? June 4, 2024  I can’t wait to share it with you all. And if you want, you can add it on your Goodreads TBR list, It’s also available for pre-order!  

Book Description: 

In a small town in Appalachia, people paint their doorways blue to keep spirits away. 
Black ferns grow where death will follow.
And Weatherly Opal Wilder is a Death Talker. 

When called upon, she can talk the death out of the dying and save their lives; only once, never twice. But this truly unique gift comes at a price, rooting Weatherly to people who only want her around when they need her and resent her backwater ways when they don’t. 

Weatherly’s cousin Adaire also has a gift: she’s a Scryer and can see the future reflected back in dark surfaces. Right before she is killed in an accident, Adaire saw something unnerving, and that’s why Weatherly believes she was murdered—never thinking for a moment that it was an accident. But when Weatherly, for the first time, is unable to talk the death out of the mayor’s son, the whole town suspects she is out for revenge, that she wouldn’t save him. 

With the help of clues Adaire left behind and her family’s Granny Witch recipe box, Weatherly sets out to find the truth behind her cousin’s death, whatever it takes. 

Imbued with magic, witchery, and suspense, Dana Elmendorf’s In the Hour of Crows is a thrilling tale of friendship, identity, and love.

Author Blurb from Paulette Kennedy


Wow! You guys!! Thank you so much to Paulette Kennedy for this incredible blurb! I am absolutely in love with her writing and southern voice, and I could not be more flattered she enjoyed my book as well. Her blurb captures the essence of my book so beautifully. I am so grateful she took the time to read my story and offer her words for me to share with all of you. 

THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!

And if you haven’t read Paulette’s THE WITCH OF TIN MOUNTAIN, you should. It’s witchy, rich with southern voice and absolutely fantastic! Her next novel THE DEVIL AND MRS. DAVENPORT will be March 5, 2024, and I cannot wait to get my hands on it. Don’t forget, IN THE HOUR OF CROWS is available for pre-order. And be sure to add it to your Goodreads TBR list!

ICYMI: Publisher's Weekly Book Announcement


In case you missed it, I sold a book! Publisher's Weekly announced the sale of my book IN THE HOUR OF CROWS this week, and I couldn't be more excited! I haven't stopped celebrating since. Stay tuned here for more news and updates. 

Elmendorf’s ‘Crows’ Circle Mira
Dana Elmendorf’s adult debut, In the Hour of Crows, was acquired at auction by Mira’s Meredith Clark. The world rights agreement was brokered by Jill Marr at the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency. Mira compared the Appalachia-set novel to Where the Crawdads Sing and Practical Magic, describing it as an “atmospheric story that follows young Weatherly Wilder as she uses her unique gift to solve her cousin’s mysterious murder and prove her own innocence.” In the Hour of Crows is slated for summer 2024. Elmendorf is the author of the contemporary YA novel South of Sunshine.


READ THE FULL ANNOUNCEMENT HERE:

Announcing: IN THE HOUR OF CROWS Coming Summer 2024

I'm so excited to announce my next book IN THE HOUR OF CROWS, projected to publisher Summer 2024. My new agent, Jill Marr with Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency, is incredible! She has been amazing to work with, and I could not be more grateful to her for putting my book in the right publisher’s hands. I’m so thrilled to be working with my new editor Meredith Clark at MIRA (a Harper Collins Imprint.) She has incredible vision for my book and will make it ✨SHINE✨.

IN THE HOUR OF CROWS is projected to come out summer 2024. (Title and publishing date could change.) Here’s a brief description:

Dana Elmendorf’s adult debut IN THE HOUR OF CROWS, for fans of Where the Crawdads Sing and Practical Magic, an engrossing and atmospheric story that follows young Weatherly Wilder as she uses her unique gift to solve her cousin’s mysterious murder and prove her own innocence, set in the beautiful wilds of Appalachia and imbued with magic realism.