Literary Agent — Kesia Lupo, The Bindery Agency
Days querying — 23 · Days from query to offer — 16 · Queries sent — 50 · Full requests — 15 · Rejections — 28 · Ghosted — 7 · Offers — the only one that matters is the one I said yes to.
Stats for the signed agent — Query sent: May 1 · Full request: May 2 · Offer: May 17 · Number of calls: 2 · Signed: June 1.
It’s taken much longer than I thought to write this blog post, even though it’s one I’ve been looking forward to writing long before I completed my manuscript. Somehow it feels both real and unreal at the same time. To remind myself it’s real, I go back to my agent’s first note to me while she was reading my manuscript, then I read the email asking for the call, then I read through our chat, and then I tell myself, ‘No way I’m making this up’ LOL. It’s that unreal.
PRE-PANDEMIC TIMES
I'm starting here because all our lives are now simply pre and post-pandemic. Let’s go back to the beginning. Writing has always been a form of therapy for me. One day after a pretty traumatic event in my childhood, I started writing poems and filling out journals with words that soothed and, most importantly, helped me create new worlds I desperately wanted to get lost in. I started my first long-form novel at thirteen but didn’t get past 10k for nearly a decade.
The year I graduated, my mum gave me one of those pep talks where it's like, ‘Finish this book or stop saying you’re a writer’. To be fair, it was more encouraging than that. Needless to say, my mum believed in me becoming a published author long before I did. And to show how much she believed in this dream, as I raced towards my final submission deadline, tired from full-time work and sleepy at dead hours of the night, my mum sat on the floor of our family library, keeping me company as I typed away. She’s the best.
I wrote 80,000 words between January 2017 and June 2017, edited furiously for a month, and sent off my first completed novel to the publisher. Back then, at 21, living in Nigeria, I didn’t know that my deal was with a vanity publisher (I’ve since cancelled this and republished it). Even with the hiccups along the way, I made the most of the situation and went on to have the best book launch, with over 400 guests, sold over 400 copies, had two more author events across the country, and had my book stocked in cafes, bookstores, libraries, and online retailers.
POST-PANDEMIC
While in a writing slump between 2018 and 2021, I lazily wrote and rewrote the first few chapters of my fantasy novel. I also returned to my first love, poetry, and started the Poetry For A Thousand Days series. In January 2022, I picked up steam and began an intensive deep dive into the world of fantasy writing and traditional publishing. I did A LOT of research. Six months later, on June 30, I finished the first draft at 120k.
A few things that kept me afloat during the despairing months of editing: knowing that this was a good and original idea, positive beta reader feedback, attending the Jericho Writers’ York Festival of Writing (where I got three full requests) and getting shortlisted for the 2022 Friday Night Live Competition, the 2022 Kit de Waal Bursary, longlisted for the 2023 REVPIT competition and winning the 2023 Jericho Writers’ Self Edit Course Bursary. The most exciting opportunity was getting shortlisted for the 2023 Future Worlds Prize for Fantasy & Science Fiction Writers of Colour.
I had my top 10 list, a mix of the top agents in the UK and US who had multiple bestsellers and newer incredible agents, all of whom felt so out of my league. 8 out of 10 asked for fulls. (I mention this to encourage you to reach for the stars.) One thing about the high of getting a full request is that it makes the anxiety and panic that comes with a no so much worse.
THE EMAIL
I had a list of all my fulls and adequately stalked each agent on the list waiting for the first to say something. My darling agent messaged to say she was enjoying the story. I got a note from her around the 50% mark, and by the 75% mark, she said there was nothing that would change her mind, so I got the email asking to speak to discuss representation. It was nearly midnight. I was watching something on TV to calm my nerves, and I nearly passed out.
THE CALL
I was so nervous! I’ve never subscribed to the idea that an agent was doing me a favour. I’ve always understood it to be a business partnership where we both work hard to make the most money possible and maybe even be best friends. The call went better than I’d dared to hope. Kesia answered most questions before I even asked. Her eight years of experience as an editor in a publishing house made me confident in her vision for my book, and I knew I could trust her to make it the very best version possible.
THE AFTERMATH
The rejections came rolling in. Rejections don’t get easier even when they are valid. The consensus in replies, however, was that this was something big. It came down to the final eight — two days before the deadline. With every passing day, I couldn’t find a reason to say no to Kesia. Honestly, I knew from the moment we ended the first call.
I prayed for my querying process to be quick and easy and to be led to the right person. I’m grateful that it worked out perfectly. Kesia is my dream agent, and together we’re reaching for the stars. ✨
Querying tips: Don’t send in batches — response times are so slow, it’s just not worth it. There’s no need for extra personalisation. And rejections: try, sulk, try again.
I’m grateful to everyone who supported me all the way. My husband, who made dinner every night when I couldn’t get my head out of edits. To my critique partners and friends from the querying trenches — thank you.
— xoxo, Marve
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