HeyJaredJust Reading All Day
What does a literary agent do? Thoughts on book publishing & advice for writers.
- Indexed issues, last 90 days
- 16
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- Sep 30, 2026
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- Jul 22, 2026
Latest issues
10 Books Read in Q3 2026 (opens the original)
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Before I get into what I read… may I suggest you read 2026 MacArthur “Genius Grant” Fellowship recipient Bryan Washington? He has published three novels and one short story collection: Lot, Memorial, Family Meal, and <a href="https://bookshop.or
Autumnal Answers: how many agents to query; selfpub comps; co-representation (opens the original)
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I haven’t done a Q&A in awhile, focusing that energy on my SubClub column, but I received a few directly that felt worth answering: how many agents to query; using self-published books as comps; how do agents read for fun; how it works in practice if you’re represented by two agents at the same agency; and more.How many agents do you think are worth querying in total for a literary novel?Depending on the specifics of your literary novel, there are probably 40 reputable agents/agencies for a firs
Debut Blues (opens the original)
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I scheduled this for Tuesday, which is New Book Day, but also see Sean just updated his post I reference below!A frequently cited statistic from Laura McGrath’s Middlemen (in her Debutiful podcast episode and again in this recent Devon Halliday post) is that “60% of debut novelists never publish a second book
9.14.2026 a week in the life of a literary agent (opens the original)
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Summer’s end. With certain details deleted or obscured to protect my clients’ privacy, here’s one week in the life of a literary agent (me.) Here’s my July WITL for the nosy.MondayI ran 2.5 miles along the Brooklyn waterfront, here’s proof:<a class="image-link image2 is-viewable-img" href="https://substackcdn.com/image/fetch/$s_!opdW!,f_auto,q_auto:good,fl_progressive:steep/https%3A%2F%2Fsubstack-post-
Querying when your book isn’t “trending” (opens the original)
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Thank you for being a paid subscriber! I’m gathering questions for a Fall Q&A, if you want to ask them in the comments below, or my DMs are open if it’s something you want to ask anonymously.Catching on to a trend can be great. When a specific type of book is taking off, if you and your agent are ready to submit your similar-but-different book right when editors are looking to capitalize on the trend, you can have a fun, competitive situation with a clear comp where maybe six months ago, editors
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