Response to Madame Murphy
Bonjour, Madame!! I appreciate so much you stopping by and leaving a comment. But my stupid comments program ate it in such a way that I can look at it, but not post it. Grrrr! So apologies for that. I wanted to respond to your kind question:
Hi Lola, may I ask why you went directly to publishers instead of seeking an agent? Of course the sex work community is so supportive that self-publishing may lead to great success for you...but if you still want to publish traditionally, I have some experience in this department and may be able to help.
Great question-- Turns out I did try. I reached out to the two agents in my wider social circle. The first one turned me down flat because of the sex worker aspect-- she was very nice about it, but said she didn't have any contacts that could help me. The second guy was a little more optimistic on the prospect, but then passed, without giving me much of a reason.
So then I felt like I was in the same boat as submitting to the publishing houses-- cold calling -- so it seemed to me that if I was going to put myself out there like that pitching cold, I might as well do it directly, rather than the extra step of finding a middleman.
And, to be honest, I got impatient with the process. I am very eager to have this book out already. Even if I had been offered a book deal, I doubt I would have accepted one that would have required that I wait much past the second half of this year for the book to be out.
So, I appreciate very much your offer to go the traditional publishing route, but I'm just not willing to wait any longer. I'll try this first one on my own, and who knows? Maybe next one, I'll get a deal...
Thanks again for stopping by!! xo--LolaD