Nathan Bransford - The Forums

Hopefully May.

I am writing this because I want to be part of a movement to bring short story collections back as a first-degree literary form, on equal footing with, if not superior to, novels, so I thought I would share my experience as a first-time writer finding a publisher for my collection, especially with t...

Hi Nathan, If a full novel or ss collection manuscript is being considered by an agent or editor (ie nothing agreed to or contracted yet), and the writer is continuing to get excerpts or individual stories of the manuscript published in periodicals (limited or non-exclusive rights), should the write...

Thanks for the reply. I don't know about name, but my essays have been published in well-known outlets, and some have won awards. They were written over a few years with no specific 'theme' from the outset, but they definitely have a 'preoccupation' and even a progression as I've now arranged them. ...

Hi Nathan:
On the advice of several agents, I've been querying publishers (mostly small and university presses) directly while continuing to query agents. What are your thoughts on this?

Am I obligated to disclose this fact, to either the agents OR the publishers I'm querying?

Even if not, should I?

Thanks so much, Nathan. A follow-up question: In the market analysis/competing titles section, are agents looking for numbers, eg how many copies of a similar book sold, how many editions were printed etc (if so, where would you get this info?), or are they just looking for a demonstration of your f...

Hi Nathan: How do I query a book of personal/literary/creative nonfiction essays? Do I pitch it more like fiction, or more like a nonfiction proposal (platform, market analysis etc)? They're not food, travel, solely memoir, or other kinds of 'platform-based' essays per se (but more like everyday obs...

Dear Nathan: Thank you for the very informative FAQs. I've written a literary 12-short-story collection and have a few more questions on how to query agents: 1. Should I write a hook (2 sentences or less) for each of the 12 stories, in addition to an overall hook for the collection, in the query? Th...