If you’re querying (like I talked about in this post) and pretty sure your writing is publishing quality, but you’re still not getting requests…

Make sure the type of novel you’re querying is selling in the current market. What agents are signing is eighteen to twenty-four months behind what’s hitting today’s shelves. So they may know the market is saturated well before you do.

I personally don’t like the idea of writing for the market. It stifles originality and takes some of the joy out of the process for me. But some writers love writing for the market. If you can write a novel within a few months, you can give it a try and see how it works for you.

Either way, this information will make you a better judge of whether it’s your writing that needs improving, or whether you simply aren’t going to find a home for it because it’s the three-hundredth dystopian novel the agent has seen that month. (No, that’s not an exaggeration.)

Publishers Marketplace

From their website:

Welcome to the biggest and best dedicated marketplace for publishing professionals built on the foundation of Publishers Lunch, read by 40,000 industry insiders and considered “publishing’s essential daily read.”

Become a Publishers Marketplace member today and get the enhanced Publishers Lunch Deluxe newsletter plus all the benefits that come with membership.

Available for a simple monthly fee of $25.00, registration is month-to-month, requiring no long-term commitment. Register now.

For a free newletter from Publishers Marketplace, go here.

This service is something you can use and then cancel. So if you’re querying, it’s one of the best places to find agents, editors, and the book deals that are being announced today. These are deals that agents or authors have sold to editors/publishers within the last month or so. You can do a search for deals specifically in age categories, genres, and also using key words.

Not everyone posts their deals on PM, but enough of them do that you’ll be able to see trends.

Pitch Contests

If you search the hashtags during any pitch contest and begin scrolling, you can see the pitches agents are liking. Conversely, you’ll see the pitches they aren’t liking. Note the premises, the worlds/settings, the age categories, and the genres or types of novels. Sometimes, you’ll see a pitch that gets several likes. You’ll know that’s a premise worth thinking about or building on.

Some of you might say this would make you leery of putting your pitch out there. My answer to that: Give the same exact premise to fifty people, you’re going to get fifty completely different novels. What we write is influenced by our experience, perceptions, and imagination. No two will be the same. And often, several agents will pick up similar premises, because book sales ride on trends, which means the premises are similar and they still sell. They actually sell because they’re similar until you reach a saturation point. Publishers use the huge wave of a popular book like Twilight (2008) to springboard other books with similar premises or genre/age groups like The Vampire Diaries (2009).

Ask an Agent or Editor

Agents often get on the #askagent hashtag and offer to answer any of your questions for an hour or so. Ask them if your specific genre and age category and perhaps even premise is something that’s likely to sell in the current market. Don’t pitch them unless you’re asked, but if they’re interested in it, I’m sure they’ll say something.

When you’re at a conference, it would be appropriate to politely approach and agent or editor and ask them this question. Remember to be polite and respectful of their time, but most agents and editors offer round table discussions at lunch or don’t mind chatting after presenting.

Publishers Weekly

From their website…

Publishers Weekly – Since 1872, Publishers Weekly has been the common ground where book people at all levels, in all roles, learn and share news about what’s new and what’s next in every aspect of publishing the written word—in book, audio, video and electronic forms.

Publisher, bookseller, agent, librarian, media member, author, or book lover?

Publishers Weekly is your indispensable guide to what is happening in our fast-changing industry. Best of all, you’ll receive your first 4 issues, absolutely free and save up to 33%! View all subscription offers.

They have podcasts, trade show daily info, and a lot of information for staying in touch with what’s happening. If you don’t subscribe, they have a much smaller list of weekly deals. If you subscribe, you can find a lot more deals and lists that they provide. It’s a treasure trove of information on the industry.

If you belong to SCBWI (Society of Book Writers & Illustrators), as a member once a year you can usually get PW for $99 for the whole year. It’s a great deal. Other organizations (like Kobo Writing Life Authors) also have a similar offer.

If you have other ways you follow current deals in the publishing market, I’d love to hear about them.