Helen Lane is closed to queries
@HFLane_writing
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Junior Literary Agent @BookerAlbertLit . Developmental Editor @JerichoWriters
London
Joined September 2014
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My daughter stayed up late reading Song of Achilles. I woke to find a note on her door advising us not to enter because she’s processing her feelings.
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As I read through my final queries, here are a few thoughts on rejections:
1. I would guess about 40% of people are not writing query letters. A lot of those are vibes, telling us how good your book is, quotes from friends, or telling us how
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Just thinking about how much of publishing is luck and beating the odds.
You can do everything right and not get any requests.
You can do everything right and not get an agent.
You and your agent can do everything right and not get a publisher.
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I'm slightly nervous about posting this but I felt it was important for me to share after always telling my kids to embrace who they are. But also so that authors know I am a safe space. But I have just received my autism diagnosis at the age of 41.
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Being on query or sub is horrible. So if you’re going through it now, be extra kind to yourself. There are very few situations that expect you to go through so much long term rejection and still be resilient when all you want to do is cry. I’m sorry for my part in the process.
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Petition to cancel all pitch events for the sake of agents with no will power. (Me) 😭
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How you act on Twitter really matters. Sometimes a name is mentioned in a group and across the board everyone goes, ‘I know them, they’re so lovely. Gosh I hope you get to work with that person!’
Be the person everyone wants to work with because you’re lovely!
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Also, before anyone thinks I’m being too judgy with my reasons for rejections. Please know that 12 years ago, as a baby author, I sent a query for an unfinished manuscript, coming in at 180k, to the biggest agent around at the time, for biblical HF. Amazingly they did not want it
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Just found out we have enough books to have our house classed as a library 😭😂
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I love my autism diagnosis. I’ve never been happier than I now. No masking. My authentic self. Healthy. Whole. But still me.
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Sharing because days like this don't come around often in publishing. But today I...
Made a long awaited announcement on a deal.
Put a second client's book on sub.
And accepted an offer for a third client for 2 books.
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Authors, it is so important to check what is an appropriate word count for your genre. If you sub to an agent with a word count of 200,000+ you need to assume that unless you are very lucky it's going to be an automatic rejection from most agents.
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Sometimes I think I’m the only person in the world who doesn’t get anything out of mood boards. But I can’t process information on books that way. I need the words.
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This happened to a friend, not me. But threatening agents not only makes you a horrible and quite possibly dangerous person, but it also makes you a stupid one. Not only can we report you to the authorities, but we also warn all the other agents we know.
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@SussexHenryVIII
@TudorChick1501
You two should consider getting together. I have a good feeling about you.
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It's so frustrating when I have to pass on a book that I really like, because I liked it as a reader and not as an editor or an agent. There is a huge difference between a book I can see potential in, and a book that I can help reach its potential.
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Final, final thought: I had 974 queries in 5 weeks. If you got a request then you are beating the odds.
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Tomorrow is my two year agenting anniversary. Can’t believe how much has happened in this time. Some lovely deals (many to still be announced). I have the most amazing colleagues, friends, and clients. This really is my dream job.
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My kid just burst into the room to rant and made the mistake of starting with ‘I swear’
To which my husband and I sang ‘by the moon and the stars in the sky’ like sleeper agents who’d just been activated
We completed our full awesome rendition. She now has more to rant about
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I was someone deeply impacted by recent events. I, like many others, noted a destructive and manipulative pattern of behaviour too late. This person inserted themselves into your life, either to become your friend or offered "help."
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How the heck did I go 4 decades not realising I was autistic?
I mean...seriously! As my kids say, the tism is tisming. And I would use an eye emoji but I'm afraid of the contact.
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Just a reminder that I will be opening to queries for one month on the 1st August.
See pinned tweet for an idea of the type of things I love in books.
Agency website for genres and query details.
Looking forward to hopefully seeing some of your work soon.
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I have just messaged Pam Pho to tell her about my experience with Cardigan and that group. I'm not going into it on Twitter. If you know, you know. But many of us have things we’ve not spoken up.
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A new person being shown to be terrible, does not mean that other people are suddenly not terrible. This is not the time for a comeback or to pretend you're innocent.
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Things that always get my attention in books:
Oceans
Underground
Snowy settings
Isolation
Historical conspiracies
Science based thrillers
Romance with HEA and not too much trauma on the way
Monsters esp cryptids
Fighting competitions
Ancient curses coming to life
Zombies
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If you do have any questions about the querying process, I'll do what I can to answer them over the next day or so. (Not about specific queries).
It's 10pm here though, so it might be tomorrow that I look at most of them. But if you have any, line them up and I'll do what I can.
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For most writers, the writing will be close, the concept sound, everything heading in the right direction, but your book is up against 900 others. Luck is a huge part of this process. (And that sucks).
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That group is horrifying. Please assume if you are following it that we are not compatible professionally or personally.
Nothing else to say on this. Just blocking.
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When wooing an author, how soon is too soon to say you love them? 😂
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Weird fact but I had six queries back to back this morning about the demon Lilith.
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Please don't send agents material pretending that we've asked you for it when we haven't. Most of us keep records of requests. And it's the kind of terrible first impression that makes us delete your unsolicited email.
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I'm sorry I've had to give out so many form rejections, but with so many queries, this is the only way I can get through them. But I really do appreciate every single person who queried me.
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These manuscripts are so good I don't quite know what to do with myself. I have seven fulls that (based on what I've read so far) I could make a case for representation for any of them. I just read one partial that I kept holding my breath over because the writing was so good.
I'm in bed with my laptop reading partial requests.
My 11 year old has brought in her laptop and is also 'working' hard next to me.
(YouTube counts as work).
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I can’t stop liking pitch tweets. Someone help me.
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What am I supposed to do when I need to stalk an author and they don't have a website or twitter account? This is not ok people!
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Oh my goodness, somehow I’ve reached 20,000 followers. That feels like a lot. Erm, thank you for following me!
(Now watch as loads of people unfollow me and my numbers crash 😂)
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Just a quick note to say that when I do reopen for queries, I will be looking at YA Fantasy again.
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Editor note here. There are rules and guidelines that we always give around writing, especially around the openings of books. But there are also authors and books that are so damn good that they can laugh in the face of these rules and prove us wrong every time.
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A few stats, having been open for five weeks, with five days still to go). I have received:
869 queries.
I've requested 49 partials through QM (and 2 through referrals).
So far I've requested 16 fulls. Read 7.
Made 1 offer.
Taken on 1 new client (YAY).
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After the worst few months ever, I’ve just had several pieces of amazing news and I don’t know what to do with myself but it’s includes excited flailing and tears of relief.
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Less obvious reasons:
5. Your book is great but you might be getting rejections because your book is one of many pitching the same thing: pirate ships/ royalty/ fae etc.
I posted last week about getting 6 queries about Lilith the demon back to back. This can happen a lot.
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A reminder to anyone facing burnout, that powering through almost never works. Take some time off. Or at least move to the easier/ more fun jobs for a bit.
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To say I am proud of Savannah and this book would be an understatement. Savannah is one of the loveliest people I have ever met and deserves every bit of this, and future, success. And Witch Queen Rising is a masterpiece. I'm so glad the world gets to read it.
✨PUBLISHING NEWS✨
With joy in my heart, I'm proud to announce my debut WITCH QUEEN RISING will be published by the incomparable
@gollancz
Fall 2025. It features BIPOC paranormals, Southern Gothic flare, & decadent horror. Immeasurable thanks to
@HFLane_writing
&
@feeney_aine
.
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8. People are rude in their letters. If you're going to do this, consider why? If you don't like the agent, don't reach out to them. If you do, why ruin your chances? We also remember when people are horrible to us on twitter and then query us.
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10. The last one is the hardest and why it makes it difficult to give honest feedback. Sometimes the writing just isn't there. It may be something that develops with time, and sometimes it won't. But we don't want to be the ones to discourage you from trying.
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Let's see how many emails I can send today with the subject heading of 'checking in' 🙄
Publishing is truly an exciting and dynamic industry.
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Does anyone else put off reading a book they know will be amazing because they’re afraid of the emotions? I want to read them but I can’t handle it right now 😭 so instead I’ll read loads of average books instead. Make it make sense.
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Getting excited about opening to queries in a month and a half. No idea what I’m looking for….
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I have read about 800 pages today and I can't seem to stop. I may have a problem.
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A quick note about pitch events. They are fun and can be exciting but please remember they are just one small opportunity. The pitch that gets the most hype on the day may be one whose pages do not match expectations, or the comps that got people excited don’t fit the book.
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Continuing to query without feedback can be horribly difficult. I've done it myself for years. But there are reasons agents can't give it (time but also backlash is a huge problem). Where we can, we do, though.
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Ooh, I have query.
I don't know why they hit differently when they come through QM but they do.
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I am not calm right now. There is stuff happening.
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I'm in bed with my laptop reading partial requests.
My 11 year old has brought in her laptop and is also 'working' hard next to me.
(YouTube counts as work).
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9. We've had feedback from editors that something's no longer selling. Writing for current trends is always risky unless you write quickly as so many only last for a short time. If you've been influenced to write it a lot of others will have been as well (6 Liliths b2b)
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6. You pitched the agent because they rep something similar. But they rep something similar! Werewolves/ witches/ dark academia are problem ones for me in this category.
7. The agent was never going to like the topic. Nothing to do with writing, just personal taste.
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you wrote the book or how you feel about it. None of these are helpful to agents who make decisions based on letters.
2. A lot of people disregard trigger warnings. Some may be accidental, but often people acknowledge we don't want them and then say 'but my book is different'.
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I love this job because I love books and it brings me joy. But my authors are some of my favourite people in the world. And the best bit about this job is seeing their dreams come true.
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3. A huge number of people query in genres the agent doesn't represent.
4. Word count. Too small or big. Some were in the millions. But not all agents rep novellas either.
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Quick update: I will be opening to queries for the month of August.
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Going through a period of massive change in my life. Not the first time it's happened, but it's the first time I've been aware of it, and can see the changes in how I think and feel about myself and the world.
Not sure what the point of this tweet is. Just shouting into the void
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About to dive into my queries. I would have loved to have been able to give feedback to people, but I'm presently at 398 queries (in my QM- there's more, including fulls and partials in my emails). So I'm sorry for the standard responses that will be being sent out.
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This is the last week that I am open to queries. Possibly for quite a while. So if you would still like to query me and you haven't yet, this is your chance.
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18 requests so far. Some real talent in my inbox.
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I seem to be getting a lot of queries despite not being open. It feels very rude to ignore them when I open in a week, but I also don’t want my emails to be overwhelmed, so I’m just going to open my queries again tonight. I’ll still stay open until the end of August.
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#QueerPit
if I like your post and you’re happy to query me, please send the first 10 pages and your query letter to helen
@thebookeralbertagency
.com
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100 pages to go and this book is still perfect. Please, please hold out.
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It is Monday morning and I am feeling positive, my head is in the game, and this week is going to be epic.
Also, I have snacks.
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Oh my goodness...this manuscript...the voice....the story.
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Thank you to those who messaged me to ask today (you were very kind to remember). But public update is that my daughter did amazingly well in her exams and got into the school of her choice. So we are very proud parents.
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Just checked my QM and we're at 92 already. You guys have been busy.
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TWO. THERE ARE TWO THINGS. AND I'M JUST....WHAT IS HAPPENING
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Sundays are for fulls and beta reading.
And snacks.
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Downloaded lots of queries/ work this morning. Picked one at random....was one of the best openings to a book ever. Obsessed, I searched QM for the query. Turns out it's the opening to one of my client's new books. Happiest agent ever.
@ariannajaisey
you write pure magic!
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I may've bullied Kim into posting this but no regrets, because now I get to shout about the book I've been losing my mind about for a month.
There's monsters. Awesome women who hunt them. And hot men who do the sex good and are often silent but always pretty
Whispers *PERFECT
Beyond stoked to announce I’ve signed on with
@HFLane_writing
at
@BookerAlbertLit
!
Helen was on my list of dream agents even before I started querying. I can’t believe I get to work with her!
For those asking, no, I am not chill. And yes. This will become my entire personality.
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Some VERY good queries in these last 100 queries. I seem to be making request after request.
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Sending acceptance emails is my favourite thing to do
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Final partial figure: 84 requests out of 974 queries
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My beautiful baby went to prom this week. I am the proudest mummy ever.
(Photo posted with her permission but please no retweeting. This is my child!)
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I hope the author eventually works out that this is me flirting with them.
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There is a lot of neurodivergence in my family but I had no idea I was autistic. I thought I just had weird quirks and sensory issues. I'm now re-evaluating my history in light of this info. But ultimately, I'm who I always have been, I just understand myself a little better.
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Big week this week. Two big announcements coming and a huge third bit of news that can’t be announced but will be celebrated. And two amazing clients going out on sub.
Team Hel’s Angels for the win.
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So excited to be able to work with
@ariannajaisey
Her book is amazing. Literally on my manuscript wishlist! And I can't wait for people to be able to read it.
✨I HAVE AN AGENT✨
I am absolutely thrilled to announce that I am now represented by
@HFLane_writing
at
@BookerAlbertLit
! Helen's passion for my dark academia fantasy gave me full body goosebumps, and I could not ask for a better champion to have by my side for this journey! 🥰
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My husband just got an air fryer and I don’t think he will ever be this happy again. This is peak living, right now.
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So proud of Jarom. When I was a brand new agent I put out a mswl for monsters in space. I had some amazing queries sent to me, but the moment I read Jarom's I knew his was the one. His writing his powerful and emotional and makes my heart sing. Can't wait for you all to read it.
#NewAuthorAlert
! 🗣️
We’re so pleased to announce we’re publishing a science fiction trilogy from
@StrongJarom
!
Welcome to Second Sky, Jarom!
Find out more about this exciting news here:
Spread the word!
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Personally, this has been the hardest week of my life. It has sucked in ways I cannot even put into words. But professionally, this week has somehow managed to be amazing. Love my authors and I am so proud of them. Hel's Angels for the win!
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I just tried to write a note in an MS and give a verbal instruction to my son. So my son now knows that he needs to cut a scene earlier to avoid some repetition. And my client has a note asking if they could wash the dog because he stinks.
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Please be considerate with the language you use in your query letters. You don't know what issues or battles agents are facing in their personal lives, and sometimes the things that are said (even though they are about fictional people) still apply to real people.
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Right then,
@andiesmithbooks
and I are free to do an agent Q & A thread for an hour if anyone is interested. If any other agents want to jump on, feel free. Please ask your question in the comments and one or all of us will try and respond (hopefully it won't get too confusing)
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Taking three whole days off.
It does occur to me that two of those are a weekend and I should always be taking them off. But that’s a conversation for another day.
THREE WHOLE DAYS!!!!!
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Hearing quite a few stories about authors behaving inappropriately and it is making me mad. Agents talk. We warn each other. Some of you are not making agents feel safe and taking advantage of their kindness!
If we keep pressing the professional boundaries, we are bound to be blocked. Be respectful and kind, please.
*taps on banner photo*
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I am definitely open. QM just hasn't updated it's details because it's Sunday. It's totally fine to query me.
(This is to all the people panicking because of the different info all over the place and querying and withdrawing. Please don't withdraw).
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Huge numbers of monsters and cryptids books in the final batch of queries. I've just taken on one, so this will be the reason for the passes.
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I have announcements I want to make. I am not a patient person. Waiting is not my thing
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