Hearty thanks to Kate Schafer Testerman for her time, effort, and expertise!Kate's bio:
After nearly ten years with industry powerhouse agency Janklow & Nesbit Associates, Kate Schafer Testerman formed kt literary in early 2008, where she concentrates on middle grade and YA fiction as well as diving into some adult commercial fiction and narrative nonfiction. Bringing to bear the experience of working with a large agency, she’s looking forward to concentrating on all aspects of working with her authors, offering hands-on experience, personal service, and a surfeit of optimism.
Her clients include Maureen Johnson, Alyson Noël, Ellen Booraem, S. Terrell French French, Lili Wilkinson, Josie Bloss, and Matthew Cody, among other exciting newcomers. Kate is a graduate of the University of Delaware’s Honors Program, a former cast member of the New York Renaissance Faire, and an avid collector of shoes. Her interests cover a broad range including teen chick lit, urban fantasy and magical realism, adventure stories, and romantic comedies. She is an active member of the SCBWI.
What Kate is currently looking for:
"As always, I'm a sucker for a good romantic comedy -- my first choice would be one for a YA audience, but I love women's fiction as well. Some editor friends and I were lamenting the lack of a good Veronica Mars-esque teen detective story, so I'd love to find one of those, and as a former theatre geek, ice skater, and gymnast, I'd love to find YA novels that truly delve into those worlds as well. Beyond that, my interests get more general: adventure stories that keep me up too late reading, especially for middle grade, romances that make me swoon, and anything that makes me laugh out loud. I concentrate on YA and middle grade fiction, women's fiction, and do the very rare popculture narrative nonfiction -- something like Around the World in 80 Dates or Round Ireland With a Fridge."
And there you have it! As always, feel free to leave a personal thank-you for Kate in the comment box.
Coming up: This round's winners!
Thanks so much for taking the time to do this. And, although you weren't too keen on my submission, #22. I'm always anxious to hear what my words sound like in someone else's head.
ReplyDeleteThanks for being a Secret Agent Kate. I always find it helpful to see my MS through the eyes of someone else. This is a great forum for me to grow as a writer, develop a thicker skin and dance around like a giddy fool when I do get a compliment ;o)
ReplyDeleteKim #37
Thank you for the time and (incredible) effort you put into this. Your comments on my entry (#42) were very thoughtful and informative (constructive criticism is ALWAYS a good thing to me).
ReplyDeleteThanks, again!!
I wasn't playing this time around, but I always like seeing what agents think, so thanks!
ReplyDeleteThank you Kate, for taking the time to be a Secret Agent. I was an entrant, and I appreciate the comments you gave me. #36
ReplyDeleteThanks Kate for taking the time to share your thoughts on my entry
ReplyDelete#13. I appreciate your candor and suggestion.
Thank you for the feedback, Kate! I know it takes a huge amount of time and effort to be a Secret Agent. I'm grateful for your willingness and honesty.
ReplyDeleteThank you for all your feedback. I know we are all busy, and I wasn't able to critique nearly as many as I would have liked to. (I did read all of them.) But you took the time to read all 50 and comment in a meaningful way. Thanks again.
ReplyDeleteThis exercise has me reworking my first page, and I wasn't even in the contest.
ReplyDeleteGreat feedback, love the honesty. I'll be trying to get mine in the next go-round (as long as it's my genre).
I read them all, but didn't critique as much as cheerlead a few. I will be more involved next time.
Thanks to Miss Snark's First Victim and Ms. Schafer!
So it was Kate!
ReplyDeleteShe already rejected my partial, but she did give some great feedback that resulted in major rewrites to the whole ms. I moved on, and it is now out with three other agents. Yeah, Kate, for not just sending out a form rejection.
And thanks for being this month's agent. I'm looking forward to see who the winners are.
Kate,
ReplyDeleteThis was an invaluable help - a peek inside an agents mind as she reads 50 first pages. I learned a great deal from all of your comments. Thanks again.
Laurie (#38)
I didn't participate but love the inside look at an agents thoughts. Frankly, it scares me - and that's a good thing.
ReplyDeleteI'm wondering if Kate can give a good answer to this ... what I write sort of borders somewhere between YA and adult fiction. Is there any hard and fast answer for where exactly that line is?
ReplyDeleteThanks for all your feedback! As a result I've already gone back and revised! Great having you here!!!
ReplyDeleteRebekah
Good question Klo! I would also like to hear Kate's answer to that.
ReplyDeleteAnd thanks Kate!And Authoress. It's so nice to be able to know the "why" behind the no.
Thanks, all! It was fun to be here and read your comments on the same material! Klo, would you mind sending me your question in an email to Daphne.unfeasible@gmail.com? I'd love to answer it, and if it goes to that address, then I most definitely will -- on my blog at http://www.ktliterary.com/daphne
ReplyDeleteCheers!
Kate
It got a bit tough in the trenches here and there, but I'm glad I made it through. The tips to tighten up that ever-important first page are priceless! Thanks to Kate for your time and consideration of all 50 entries, and to you Authoress, for being such a gracious hostess. (Hugs from #27)
ReplyDeleteThank you Kate! Your feedback was incredibly helpful and we were lucky that Authoress and yourself take the time to do things like these :)
ReplyDeleteThanks again!
Kate and Authoress, thanks for hosting the contest. The time you put into the writing community is a true service.
ReplyDeleteFellow writers, thank you for all the comments and suggestions. I'm glad most readers were able to get a mental picture of a totally impractical swimsuit. Also, thanks for making me feel young again with all the fun YA pieces.
AK - #3 - SPIN
Just wanted to thank you for your time. You comments on all the posts were very insightful.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Kate. You have such great things to say on all the entries. I know that takes tons of time. So thanks again!
ReplyDeleteThanks for your thoughts. It was helpful cause now i learned exactly new information about kate schafer. I think you shoud post this information on Twitter where a large amount of users could see it and don`t forget to buy twitter followers and quickly boost their number.
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