Agent Friday: Holly Root

Holly Root, like most agents, is addicted to the thrill of discovery. In her work at the Waxman Literary Agency, her best days are those in which she unearths a query that draws her in. 


In Root's words: "I’m drawn to well-told commercial novels in a variety of genres. I’m much more likely to keep reading if I know from that perfectly-executed first page that this character (or author, in the case of nonfiction) is someone who interests me, someone whose story I’d like to get lost in for the next two hours. I know I’ve found a winner when I encounter writers whose skills on the page make me know beyond any doubt that I’m in excellent hands."


Holly Root blogs in tandem with her fellow agents at the Waxman Literary Agency blog. Here's a sampling of Root's posts that taught me some things.


In the vein of my Tuesday post on The Seven Deadly Sins for Writers, Root gives us The Seven Deadly (Publishing) Sins and its companion,  The Seven Publishing Virtues.


Do you stress over all the query advice you've heard? Worry that an agent will reject you for a single typo? Root sets your fears at rest (as far as she's concerned) in her post With a Mountain of Salt.


And on that note, you'd probably be interested in Root's list of Why I Say No.


Root advises, that once you've received ten "no's" from agents,  to ask yourself these ten questions before you continue querying.


If an author friend recommend their agent to you, Root has a few tips on how to write that in your query, without turning her off.


Don't miss the great list of writing books the Waxman Literary Agency recommends. There were several I had not heard of before.


And here's an interview full of agent advice from Holly Root herself.