I think I’ve just been introduced to the fastest literary agent in the world — Nathan Bransford.
After spending a couple of weeks reading through Mr. Bransford’s blog and wading through everything I could find online and off concerning Curtis Brown, Ltd., I queried Mr. Bransford about my novel, T.W. Seven minutes after my query left my outbox, I received a form rejection.
Hmmm. I thought about that for a moment. So…he received, opened, read, assimilated, and decided on my query, then copy and pasted in his form rejection and hit send in…how many minutes? That’s right. Seven minutes FLAT.
Wow. I’m a speed reader, but Nathan has to be some sort of record holder in both speed reading and comprehension. I’m impressed!
Getting a wild hair, I decided, okay. Since he also accepts [genre], I’ll see if he likes “this novel” better. Now “this novel” is a hugely intricate, powerful story. Still, I’ve spent a good deal of time reducing the whole premise down to a one sentence, very intriguing “high concept.” Then came my ”pitch,” also quite tasty. 
…And?
This one took him thirty-nine minutes to process, but, by checking the server logs, I could see the server times of sending and receiving, and it looks like this one was also literally an open and shut case — about 9 minutes flat. The other thirty minutes were a lag due to electronic communications between one spot in California and another spot in California. So…VERY IMPRESSIVE! You have to admire a guy who takes the time and care to take a dedicated look at your novel query, then honor you with a swift, succinct reply. He’s definitely on the good guy list for any author seeking an immediate answer. Bravo, Mr. Bransford! Even my book editor is impressed. Can I borrow a bit of that speed reading and comprehension ability? I could certainly use it when working through a manuscript belonging to others in my author group.
Of course, part of me wonders if he just didn’t like my email address and subject line. Or maybe he’s just not looking for fiction…or maybe he doesn’t want new clients…or….
Recently:
- Moving is Tough on Writing Novels
- Move complete & back online…when the DSL doesn’t falter
- Offline for a week.
- The ‘I’ Proposition
- No, I didn’t get eaten by my novel.
- Scott Heim reads We Disappear at last reading at Chelsea
- Hunger in the World
- What a Beta Reader Can & Cannot Do
- A Gift for Eternity Finds a Home
- Today’s Giggle: SE vs Employee, the Benefits — Not.
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