Query Trackers Making Tracks, #18

Today is installment number eighteen of my "First Friday of the Month" series on successful authors from QueryTracker. Some of my guests have agents, others have found success in less conventional ways. But one thing they all have in common is the utilization of the QueryTracker website to help make their tracks in the publishing world.

My guest today,  Rachel Harris, signed with her agent Lauren Hammond in August of last year, and by January she had signed a two-book contract with Entangled Publishing. And now her fabulous book has an equally FAB cover:

Available for pre-order now at Amazon
And deeply discounted at B&N for $5.70

 Wow, things are moving fast for Rachel! Let's get the inside scoop on her journey.

AGH: Rachel, could you give us a quick summary of the book which snagged your agent?

RH: Quick, huh? Why is that always so hard to do? J Here’s a one-liner: When a teen walks into a gypsy’s tent and steps out into Renaissance Italy, she learns the only thing worse than an unwanted Sweet Sixteen is an unwanted suitor full of creeptastic amore.

But that does leave out gorgeous, aspiring artist Lorenzo….and sweet and innocent Alessandra…. And protective Cipriano…and the host of hilarity that follows Cat during her time travel adventure.  This book was so much fun to write!

AGH: Before you signed with your agent, how many books had you tried to query? 

RH: I queried one book before this, which is now actually being considered by my editor (*fingers, toes, and eyes crossed*)

AGH: What were the responses to those queries (stat-wise: fulls, partials, etc.)?

RH: For my first book, I sent 24 queries. Of those twenty-four, four asked for partials, ten asked for fulls, five passed with very personalized letters explaining why and giving feedback (which as a newbie, I so appreciated!), and five closed with no response.

For MY SUPER SWEET SIXTEENTH CENTURY, I sent my query out in batches of ten, and ended up querying thirty-five agents. Of those thirty-five, four asked for partials, ten asked for fulls, twelve passed with personalized letters back, and nine closed with no response. Four months to the day that I sent my first query, my agent, Lauren Hammond, emailed saying she received my signed contract and we were diving into revisions.

AGH: What genre(s) do you write?

RH: Right now, I write YA, though I just plotted out a fun adult contemporary romance. Within YA, my first manuscript is a contemporary romance, Super Sweet is a magical realism/historical/romance, and I also have a partial out with my editor that is a contemporary romance with a paranormal twist. I kinda like to experiment J

AGH: What inspired your very first book idea?

RH: I was first inspired to write after being completely sucked into the Twilight series—I just have to say that to begin with. I think the influence Stephanie Meyer has had on young people reading again has been amazing, and it also helped me remember how much fun it can be. But when I decided I wanted to try writing myself, it wasn’t paranormal that I was drawn to. I wanted to write about real life, a situation that any teen reading could relate to. I did pull some plot points from my own life as a springboard but it completely took off and morphed from there.

AGH: How do you come up with titles?

RH: Ha, my husband helps A LOT! I came up with the title for my first manuscript, 2nd Type of Girl, on my own and it just came from writing…. It was a term that the characters used a lot. But My Super Sweet Sixteenth Century was a complete collaboration with my husband, and the companion novel, A Tale of Two Centuries was all him. He likes to remind me of that often J

AGH: What books / authors have most influenced your own style and concepts?

RH: I read so much—I’m kinda/a little bit/okay a lot obsessed with it—that it’s kind of a huge eclectic mix, but I would say if I had to pick the authors that most shaped the kind of author I wanted to be, I would have to say: Stephanie Perkins, Holly Schindler, Sarah McLean, Sarah Dessen, Simone Elkeles, Susane Colasanti, Mandy Hubbard, and Gayle Forman. J See, even that list is huge!

AGH: How did you find QueryTracker, and how did it help you in your effort to get inside the publishing doors?

RH: I learned about Query Tracker from Mary Lindsay (Shattered Souls) who is in my local RWA and YA writers group. They were having a contest with her agent and she encouraged me to submit. Though I didn’t win, I did get an email from her agent asking for the first ten pages, and then a partial. Being my first attempt to send my work out, it was an amazing start to my writing career. Then using QT going forward, I learned of so many agents I would’ve have otherwise, and the most special part was the relationships built with the other writers in the trenches. Cheering each other on, lifting each other up. It helped me to see just how supportive and welcoming the writing community is, and was a complete blessing.

AGH: Do you have any current news to announce?  

RH: My editor just sent me the digital ARC, which has had me petting my screen for a few days, and we hope to have a handful of ARCS for the RT Convention in Chicago. I’ll be there and looking forward to meeting everyone! Then it is all about getting ready for the release in September and completing the companion novel, A Tale of Two Centuries, which will be released June 2013!

**Five for fun**

1)      Which would you rather do: carry an umbrella or sing in the rain?

Sing in the rain. Definitely. Not only do umbrellas bother me—half the time I can’t figure the darn things out, and I get wet trying to open and close them anyway—but there is just something fun and childlike about dashing between the drops and splashing in the puddles J

2)      What’s your favorite breakfast?

I’ll eat anything—cereal, left over pizza, yogurt, cheeseburgers lol—but I HAVE to have caffeine! Sadly, I don’t do coffee much, but I can drink my weight in Dt. Mt. Dew.

3)      If I were at your house right now, what would I find in your refrigerator?

Lots and lots of Dt. Mt. Dew, water, lettuce, spinach, yogurt, left over salmon, strawberries, salsa, and jalapenos. Makes me sound a lot healthier than I am, trust me.

4)      When would you go to if you had a time machine, and why?

He he, I feel like I’m cheating since I kinda wrote about this, but yes, definitely Renaissance Italy. I’ve always loved that time, one of discovery, and art, and beauty. The clothes, the art, wonder. And come on, it’s Italy! But I would also love to go to Regency London (again with the clothes, the balls, the hot dukes and rakes), or 1950s America. Not totally sure why the last one but the music is so fun and innocent, the clothes interesting, and I’ve kinda got a crush on young Elvis. I blame my mother.  

5)   Drinking tea … pinky up, or heavy on the Long Island?

Ha! Heavy on the Long Island, but still pinky up….even with a cold long neck beer, my pinky remains up while I drink. Hey, I’m all about the classy.

***

Thank you for the interview, Rachel. Your book premise sounds amazing and FUN. I'm already crushing on Lorenzo (I have a thing for artists). I may not be a gypsy palm reader, but I see great things ahead in your future, lady!

To our readers, please feel free to offer support and kudos to Rachel in the comments. Also, you can follow her publishing star on the internet:

Goodreads
Twitter
Facebook author page
Facebook friend page:
Blog
Amazon author page

Thanks for stopping by, and have a great weekend!