CLUES | Mystery Writers of America

September meeting report

November 2nd, 2009

By Michael Dymmoch
The September meeting of MWA/Midwest was held at Centuries and Sleuths, Forest Park, Illinois, on September 23.
It began with announcements: Jim Doherty has a new short story out, a pastiche on Dick Tracy. Steve Phelan has a new book out. Luisa Buehler’s next series book will be out in January of 2011. Naomi Smith’s publisher has picked up the third book in her series. Diane Piron-Gelman’s first novel, No Less Than Blood, will be published in 2011 by Five Star. President Julie Hyzy asked for volunteers to man (or woman) the MWA table at Bouchercon.
Wednesday’s speakers were Danielle Egan-Miller, President, and Lauren Olson, of Browne & Miller Literary Associates (formerly Multimedia Product Development, Inc.), founded by Jane Jordan Browne in 1971. Ms. Egan-Miller worked for the agency early in her career, returning as a partner in 2002. When Ms. Browne died in 2003, Ms. Egan-Miller became the agency president. Lauren Olson joined Browne & Miller in 2007 as an intern, and achieved her present position, Assistant to the Agents, in 2008. Browne & Miller is a full-service literary agency currently representing 200 writers, 75 of whom are actively writing. Most of these are mid-career authors, on their fifteenth book rather than their first. The agency handles print, audio, film/TV, and foreign rights, and sells 25-35 books annually; 85% of sales are fiction. Browne & Miller looks for: well written fiction, particularly substantive women’s fiction, historical fiction with strong romantic elements, narrative non-fiction, classy true crime (like Devil in the White City, but not Chicago Mob books), and young adult fiction. The agency does not deal with large print rights, poetry, screenplays, short stories, children’s illustrated books, Christian living (although Christian-themed novels are OK), Sci-Fi, horror, or works that cannot be classified at all within a genre. They say “Westerns are a hard sell.” Browne & Miller’s current wish list is posted on the Publisher’s Marketplace website (http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/members/mpdinc/).
The last four years have been very challenging. Contracts frequently come with no check; the check may come thirty days later. Some publishers divide the advance into quarters and pay on signing, on acceptance, on publication, and six months after publication (which used to be called the first royalty check). The agency doesn’t get paid until the author is paid.
Finding the right agent to represent your work is crucial. Established authors are often looking for something different from what debut authors need. “Some people think they need a New York agent. I respect that,” Ms. Egan-Miller said. “But I’m never going to be a New York agent. It has to be a match. We like to work with authors we like. I’ve had my share of authors who are difficult, but how much of me can I devote to handholding or talking people off the ledge?” Browne & Miller has taken on only four debut novels in the last three years. “The problem with debut novels is that they have no traction. We can’t make a living selling only debut fiction, so we’re very careful these days. Clever ideas and fun titles are okay, but most important is the quality of writing and storytelling. It has to be something we really believe in for us to commit to sticking with it.”
Querying is the primary way for an author to introduce his work to an agent; having an agent is still the best way to get a mainstream publisher. Some agents receive 600 book queries per week—30,000 per year! Brown & Miller gets approximately 200 queries per week, twice as many as last year. With a staff of only four, the agency cannot have much sympathy for poorly written queries, or for writers who have not learned their craft or done some basic research.
“We’re not that mean, but if you spell my name wrong….” Queries are read by three staff members before they arrive on Ms. Egan-Miller’s desk. Only five or ten make it through the screening process.
Ms. Egan-Miller distributed and discussed Browne & Miller’s “10 Tips on Query Letters” (which can be found at http://www.browneandmiller.com/Query.html). In querying, it’s most important to follow the guidelines. Query by letter or in the body of an email, whichever medium is the most comfortable. When querying by email, write your letter as a word document, spell check and proof it, then cut and paste it into the body of your email. Ms. Egan- Miller’s advice: “Email gives some people license to be casual or even rude. Err on the side of being conservative and professional.” For security reasons, email attachments will not be opened. Unsolicited material will not be read.

Categories: CLUES, Meeting report, Meetings | Tags: Centuries & Sleuths Bookstore, Mystery Writers of America | No Comments

May meeting report

June 14th, 2009

Via Michael Dymmoch

The meeting on Sunday, May 17, was small—attended by MWA members Raymond Benson, Tim Broderick, Luisa Buehler, Michael Dymmoch, Julie Hyzy, Helen Osterman, Irene Pederson, Tom Surdenik, host Augie Aleksy, and reader/fan Dick Waterbury—but we had a great conversation on topics ranging from identity theft to what makes mystery conventions great.
Julie Hyzy announced that MWA’s Midwest Chapter would have a booth at the Printers Row Book Fair, June 6 and 7. (We’ll have a festival report up soon!). Julie also announced that MWA will have a presence at Bouchercon in Indianapolis. A number of best-selling authors have been recruited for a special program. Ten fans will get tickets for a private forty-five minute visit with a big-name author hosted by lesser-known MWA writers. Only one ticket for one event will be issued to Bouchercon attendees. (Further details as they become available.)
Julie Hyzy announced that she has started a new series featuring Grace, the curator/manager of a great estate.
Graphic novelist Tim Broderick will join Crimespree Magazine’s Jon Jordan at Wizard World, the Chicago Comic Con, August 6-9, 2009 at the Rosemont Convention Center. Raymond Benson, Sean Chercover and other local authors may join Tim at the convention’s Crimespree Table.
Raymond Benson has renewed his contract for Dann & Raymond’s Movie Club—free, “lively film genre discussions” presented this fall “by Daily Herald film critic Dann Gire and awardwinning author Raymond Benson” at the Schaumburg Township District Library and the Arlington Heights Library.
Luisa Buehler announced that there will be a Love Is Murder planning meeting at the Schaumburg
Library, time TBA, August 20. Those interested in adding their input into this popular local conference are urged to attend.
Which led to a discussion of what makes a great conference. The recent Malice Domestic’s Author’s-go-round, was cited as a popular innovation. Other much-appreciated event/panels: How to look for/set up a writer’s group; endless conversations (informal discussions with authors rotating in and out at scheduled times); Beer and Wine panels; How to use Twitter, Face-book, blogs, etc., to market your work; and Time management for writers. Luisa also lobbied for time between panels to
catch your breath or continue discussions with panelists.

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Meeting in Milwaukee

May 3rd, 2009

April meeting report by Michael Black:

Our April meeting was held at the Mitchell International Airport in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Jerry Peterson arranged for this special tour of the airport and it turned out to be a fascinating evening for all in attendance. Members met at the Mitchell Air Museum inside the terminal and were ushered into a meeting room by Mitchell Airport PR Director Ryan McAdams and Airport Security Director Mike Keegan.
After a brief overview of the airport and its various areas, members were shown a large photographic map of the facility and each location was explained. The Mitchell International Airport has two major runways servicing commercial aircraft as well as subsidiary runways for smaller aircraft. The airport also has its own fire department and a contingent of Milwaukee County Sheriffs who handle law enforcement duties on the facility and grounds. Mike Keegan says during a typical week they arrest five or six people for various offenses. The electric bill alone for the airport is about $12 million a year, and there are over 2200 acres that must be secured and patrolled constantly.
The Mitchell International Airport contributes 8.2 billion dollars to the local economy and provides over 18,000 jobs.
The members were then escorted through the TSA Security Checkpoint and into the main terminal for dinner at Nonna’s restaurant. At dinner, chapter President Julie Hyzy thanked the airport representatives for their hospitality and Jerry Peterson for his work in arranging this event. The customary member introductions and news items were reviewed. Julie mentioned the continuing plans for Printer’s Row in Chicago in June. Ted Hertel talked about his participation in an Elderhostel writing seminar in Green Lake, Wisconsin, June 7 through 12. This event will include MWA members Jerry Healy, Sandy Balzo, and Gary Niebuhr, among others. For more information go to www.elderhostel.org
After dinner the perambulation began with a presentation by the TSA supervisor regarding procedures and safeguards taken by the organization. The tour continued through the baggage claim areas, and the members got a bird’s eye view of how luggage is dealt with once it’s been checked in at the counter.
After a fascinating walk through what was termed “the bowels of the airport,” the tour was completed with a trip up to the observation deck. This deck is the highest point of the airport excluding the control tower. The view was magnificent and the stalwart members who made the trek up the tower stairs were treated to the sights of the lighted airport and several planes taking off and landing.
The enormous responsibility and Herculean tasks became evident as Ryan McAdams explained the amount of maintenance work required for such things as snow removal, grass cutting, perimeter security, animal control issues, and continuous training of personnel. At the conclusion of the evening the members had a better understanding of how a major airport works and got to glimpse some fascinating behind- the-scenes areas that are normally off-limits to the general public. Everyone raved about how informative the tour had been and there is little doubt that the writers in the group were given many new ideas and details for their future writing projects.

Categories: CLUES, Meeting report | Tags: Milwaukee, Mitchell International Airport, Wisconsin | 1 Comment