Success Story Interview - K. M. Fajardo

An Interview with K. M. Fajardo (kmfajardo on QT) upon receiving an offer of representation from agent Laura Rennert of Andrea Brown Literary Agency.

08/29/2023

QT: Can you tell us a little bit about the book for which you've found representation? What inspired you to write it?

K. M. Fajardo:
I queried a 100k Adult Literary Science-Fiction novel titled LOCAL HEAVENS. I was inspired to write the idea last year as an exploration of evolving technologies, late-stage capitalism and parasocial relationships. I think we're living through a really interesting (and scary) period where the wealth gap is widening and people are growing cynical about the future. Coming out of a global pandemic certainly heightens that. With the way technology is advancing, every day feels more and more like a BLACK MIRROR episode that won't end. That feeling is really what I wanted to meditate on with this book.

QT: How long have you been writing?

K. M. Fajardo:
Since I was very young, but I only started writing seriously (with the goal to publish) around late high school. I'm almost 25 now, so that's about 7-8 years.

QT: How long have you been working on this book?

K. M. Fajardo:
I wrote the initial concept for the book back in 2020, in the early part of the pandemic, but only got half way through the manuscript before feeling like the ideas weren't mature enough. I shelved it for a few years and came back to it in mid-2023 after writing a different book. In that period of time, I also spent a lot of time reading some classic cyberpunk works to deepen my world-building and I studied the writing style of a few literary writers I admired in order to hone my character's voice. From August to May 2023, I wrote draft one of what became LOCAL HEAVENS. I started querying at the end of May.

QT: Was there ever a time you felt like giving up, and what helped you to stay on course?

K. M. Fajardo:
Definitely. I think that's almost a part of the writing process for any writer. If I'm not being challenged by an idea, I usually get bored very quickly, so I have to write ideas that I find ambitious. In a strange way, the challenge is both what makes me want to give up some days and what inspires me to keep going on other days. It's all about perspective. When I want to give up, I just take a break. I talk to my writer friends. I reset and refresh. I remind myself over and over why I'm writing this book. The motivation always comes back eventually.

QT: Is this your first book?

K. M. Fajardo:
This was the third manuscript I finished.

QT: Do you have any formal writing training?

K. M. Fajardo:
I took a creative writing workshop in university, as an elective, which mostly taught me how to get comfortable with revision, not necessarily how to do the writing itself. This was important for me at that time because I had reached a point where my writing craft plateaued and it wasn't at the level I wanted it to be. Revision is really what elevates a story, so I'm grateful I had the chance to experience workshop at least once.

QT: Do you follow a writing routine or schedule?

K. M. Fajardo:
Not really. But I do try to write as often as possible and if I go several days without writing, I force myself to write, even if it's only for 10 or 15 mins just to keep the "muscle memory", so to speak. Sometimes I write for an hour on my lunch break. Other days I write at two in the morning. For me, it's all about finding the time and some days, I just don't have the time. I try to write 4-6 times a week, though when I'm in between books, like right now, I can go 2-3 weeks without writing anything and that relaxation period is important for me.

QT: How many times did you re-write/edit your book?

K. M. Fajardo:
What I queried was pretty close to a draft one. I'd say it was three or four passes of line-edits but not much in terms of developmental edits. I have an alpha reader who I bounced ideas off of a lot while drafting so I think this helped me produce a cleaner draft one than usual. I also passed the manuscript along to beta readers before I'd even finished the draft. So it was kind of like revision and drafting happened simultaneously.

QT: Did you have beta readers for your book?

K. M. Fajardo:
Yes. Beta readers are super important in order to catch things I might miss. I had my betas tell me the opening of the book had a lot of info-dumping, so I restructured some scenes. I also had another beta-reader make a comment about including more setting description in certain chapters - just small things that slip my mind because I get focused on the plot but are important because they deepen the atmosphere.

QT: Did you outline your book, or do you write from the hip?

K. M. Fajardo:
I outline meticulously. It's just my writing style. I need to know how a book ends or else I can't even start drafting. I map all the main plot beats out across 3-4 acts in order to get a sense of pacing. I also write a bullet point breakdown of what happens in each chapter. I'm pretty open to deviating from my outline once I start drafting, but if it's a significant departure (as was the case for this book), then I pause drafting and I re-outline. I think of it as always having a "compass" -- something that points me in the right direction, even if I take detours.

QT: How long have you been querying for this book? Other books?

K. M. Fajardo:
I queried LOCAL HEAVENS for 6 weeks before I got my first offer. Then an additional two weeks to consider the offer, reach out to the remaining agents, consult with the offering agents' clients, etc. So all in all, an eight week process. This was my first time querying.

QT: About how many query letters did you send out for this book?

K. M. Fajardo:
I queried a total of 35 agents. I got 8 full requests and 3 offers. The rest were rejections, step-asides or no responses.

QT: On what criteria did you select the agents you queried?

K. M. Fajardo:
I was interested in agents who wanted to represent stories that are genre-bendy. LOCAL HEAVENS has a literary voice with a commercial concept. That's what I like to write, across adult science-fiction and fantasy, so I was really looking for agents who had that element on their wish-list because I knew there was a higher chance that they would understand and be excited about my work. I also considered their client list and sales history. Laura in particular has worked with many writers I admire and has a passion for the literary/speculative mix so I was incredibly excited to query her.

QT: Did you tailor each query to the specific agent, and if so, how?

K. M. Fajardo:
Yes. I personalized the opening of all of my query letters by picking something from their wish-list that was relevant to the book I was querying. Usually something along the lines of: "I noticed you are interested in [reference wishlist] and hope my work might be a fit." Occasionally, if the agent had a client whose book I had read and felt was similar to mine (either because of genre, theme or plot), I would mention that. For example: "I enjoyed [CLIENT'S BOOK] for [xyz reasons]. In a similar vein, I hope my work might be a fit..." I tried to keep this personalization short since the pitch and sample pages matter most.

QT: What advice would you give other writers seeking agents?

K. M. Fajardo:
The process is imperfect and nonsensical. So much of this industry is luck and timing, so don't let yourself believe that your stories are worth giving up on, or shelving, or settling for an agent who's not passionate about you. Most of all, don't underestimate the power of a support system. For the first 2 weeks, I didn't tell anyone I was querying and I had no one to vent my frustrations to, no one to help me get out of my own head. I felt a lot better when I connected with my writer friends and leaned on them for support when the rejections got tough. Querying is a roller coaster. You'll never know when the radio silence will change in an instant. Thirty minutes after I received a blunt form rejection, I got my first offer. The number of rejections, though daunting in the moment, will soon just be a number. Never count yourself out!