Dashboard Literary Agents Success Story Interviews Millie Abecassis

Success Story Interview - Millie Abecassis

An Interview with Millie Abecassis (millie_abks on QT) upon receiving an offer of representation from agent Shawna McCarthy of The McCarthy Agency, LLC.

04/16/2025

QT: Can you tell us a little bit about the book for which you've found representation? What inspired you to write it?: Millie Abecassis:
A LEGACY OF BLOOD AND BONES is an adult historical fantasy with a sapphic romance subplot set in France during the Belle Epoque. Historical fantasy is a genre I love reading, so I've wanted to write one myself for a while. I also wanted to write a book that felt authentic, which is why I chose a setting in France, my birth country. My main inspiration for this novel is Charlie N. Holmberg's historical fantasy novels. I wanted to write a book with sweet romance and a strong magic system like she does so well, but make it queer and French.
QT: How long have you been writing?: Millie Abecassis:
I started writing in French (my first language) in high school, so about twenty years ago. Attending university and moving abroad forced me to put writing aside, but I eventually picked it up, and made the switch to writing in English in 2020.
QT: How long have you been working on this book?: Millie Abecassis:
Almost 3 years, but that included a lot of brainstorming, taking notes, and putting the project aside for other shorter manuscripts. I eventually wrote it in ~8 months in 2024.
QT: Was there ever a time you felt like giving up, and what helped you to stay on course?: Millie Abecassis:
Though this book did very well when I was querying it, I still received a lot of rejections and it was sometimes disheartening, especially when it was so close to being a yes but ended up being a no. What pushed me to continue was my confidence in this book. I knew it was good, especially compared to my earliest manuscripts, and because I had received a lot of positive feedback from passing agents or editors. I knew it was just a matter of finding the right person for this book. It could take a while, but I was confident it would happen. My writing friends were also there when I needed to vent or to get a little motivation boost. I am very thankful for that!
QT: Is this your first book?: Millie Abecassis:
No. I wrote a lot of novellas and novelettes that I sold to independent publishers before querying this novel. This is the third novel-length manuscript I wrote, and the second I queried.
QT: Do you have any formal writing training?: Millie Abecassis:
No. I learned everything about creative writing on my own, by reading free articles online, writing and getting feedback, reading other books and analyzing how the authors build the plot, etc.
QT: Do you follow a writing routine or schedule?: Millie Abecassis:
I have a full time job so I can only write in the evening or on the weekend. When I am working on a manuscript, I will try to write every day, with the goal to write at least 10,000 words per month. I will write whenever I have the time, energy, and motivation to do so. One day I may write 2,000 words, and the next three days only 100. I just make sure that my monthly progress is steady.
QT: How many times did you re-write/edit your book?: Millie Abecassis:
I didn't rewrite this one, and did just a couple of rounds of self-edits. Because I approached this book as a plotter, the overall structure was solid, so there was no need for a major rewrite. My agent wants us to tighten the pace in the middle and flesh out the romance a bit more, so I am going to edit it a bit with her before we go on submission.
QT: Did you have beta readers for your book?: Millie Abecassis:
Only one: my spouse, who beta reads everything I write and is an amazing critique partner (though he is not a writer himself). I had the opening pages critiqued by my local writing group to ensure they were convincing enough, but my spouse is the only person who read the entire manuscript before I started querying agents.
QT: Did you outline your book, or do you write from the hip?: Millie Abecassis:
I outlined this book. As a former pantser, I occasionally came up with new things as I wrote, but I stuck to my outline and found ways to incorporate the new elements without changing my pre-defined structure.
QT: How long have you been querying for this book? Other books?: Millie Abecassis:
I queried this book for 6 months. I queried another manuscript in 2022-2023 for about a year, before giving up and shelving it. In between, I submitted my novellas and novelettes to independent publishers, so even if it is different than querying agents, I've been querying/submitting non-stop since 2022.
QT: About how many query letters did you send out for this book?: Millie Abecassis:
Over 200 queries. I received 9 full requests and 2 partial requests.
QT: On what criteria did you select the agents you queried?: Millie Abecassis:
If they represented adult fantasy and were open to queries, I queried them. In the case of agencies with multiple agents taking fantasy, I would start with the fastest responder and/or the one that appeared to be the best fit based on their MSWL.
QT: Did you tailor each query to the specific agent, and if so, how?: Millie Abecassis:
No. I did tailor a few queries for some agents who had a particularly fitting MSWL, but all these personalized queries turned into form rejections. Meanwhile, all my requests came from a standard, non-personalized query. Do whatever you want with this information, but I'm not personalizing anymore, or very rarely.
QT: What advice would you give other writers seeking agents?: Millie Abecassis:
Don't focus too much on personalization. Don't over search agents. It's not worth spending your time and energy on that when you have a 99% chance of receiving a form rejection. Instead, focus on crafting a good query with a captivating pitch. Polish your opening pages and your synopsis. Then, start with agents who respond fast to get a sense of how well you're doing with your package. Once you receive a request, query more and query widely. Do not self-reject. Unless your book has an element that's on the anti-MSWL of the agent, and as long as they represent your genre and audience, shoot your shot. Don't be scared to query big agents either. You never know what they will like.
QT: Would you be willing to share your query with us?: Millie Abecassis:
Of course! Here it is:

Success Story Interview - Millie Abecassis

Query Letter: