Dashboard Literary Agents Success Story Interviews S.R. Lee

Success Story Interview - S.R. Lee

An Interview with S.R. Lee (SRLEE on QT) upon receiving an offer of representation from agent Liv Ivanov of Creative Media Agency.

12/16/2024

QT: Can you tell us a little bit about the book for which you've found representation? What inspired you to write it?: S.R. Lee:
My book is a 97K word YA sci-fi that’s right on the edge of being a New Adult crossover. Here’s my logline: To save her ableist, arctic moon colony from extinction, 18yo Ice Guard Mye Su risks life & status by using invisible disabilities to negotiate with sentient fungus—even if needing help from people, bots, spores, & giant tardigrades seriously chaps her ass.

I’d been writing fantasy, but wanted to switch to SF for a few reasons, one being that SF has always struck me as a place for stories of a real-world future filled with hope. I chose this particular story because I wanted to incorporate a few different elements: my experience with disability and chronic pain, my all too short-lived experience with rock climbing (indoor), socio-economic strata in conjunction with disability, and what sentience might look like in a non-human species like trees or fungi, which often have very interconnected and social lives even if their interactions don’t mimic human experiences. At the very top of my list, though, was that I wanted a disabled main character who was also an action hero in a very realistic way. The rest came into view as I started looking at how to bring all of those things together.
QT: How long have you been writing?: S.R. Lee:
I’ve been writing since I could string together sentences. There’s a photo of me as a 7 or 8yo reading a thesaurus for fun. I have experimented with a lot of artistic interests, but writing has always remained as a through line.
QT: How long have you been working on this book?: S.R. Lee:
I started ARCTIC RIFT around 2019, though I’d been noodling with the idea and the main character in my head since 2018. Between the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, some personal tragedy/recovery, and a big move from one state to another, it took about 5 years to finish.
QT: Was there ever a time you felt like giving up, and what helped you to stay on course?: S.R. Lee:
Absolutely! When I’m depressed, as-in clinically, it always hits me right in the creatives. You can imagine that all the things I mentioned above contributed to depression and me putting my writing away many times. I can never leave it in the proverbial drawer for too long, though. I like to write poetry to help process my emotions/trauma, and doing that will eventually shake the prose loose again. Practicing self-care, including therapy and medication, and having a supportive writing community and spouse also helped. And my 2 cats! It’s hard to stay depressed when there are too cute, fuzzy goofballs demanding your attention. Accomplishing small things around the house or creative goals that can be realized in a day or so, also help to shake the prose loose and get me back on course.
QT: Is this your first book?: S.R. Lee:
Nope. I wrote a YA fantasy before this, queried, got rejected, revised, queried, and then…I withdrew it! I’d worked on it on and off for years, but by the time I finished it, it just didn’t feel like it represented me as an author or my values anymore. I don’t feel like that time was wasted though—it was a master class in writing a novel and helped me to realize what works best for me as a writer.
QT: Do you have any formal writing training?: S.R. Lee:
Not really. I just read and write a LOT. I've have also attended a few different workshops and conferences that gave me valuable tools and critiques.
QT: Do you follow a writing routine or schedule?: S.R. Lee:
Being disabled with chronic pain, my energy comes at a premium. I have to dole it out carefully. For a while, I thought if I wasn’t writing daily, I was a “bad” writer. When I felt like a bad writer, I’d shut down and not write at all. Eventually I realized that as long as I was finishing chapters in a timely fashion—1 every 1-3 weeks—that was what worked for me. If I have more energy to write, then I take advantage. If I need to pour all my energy into physical therapy for a couple weeks, heal from an injury, or recover from a flare-up, then I do that and don’t worry about writing—but I’m almost always thinking about my current WIP in the background. This will probably have to change some once I’m under a publishing contract and have real deadlines, but I still plan to be as flexible as possible and remember that I’m not striving for perfection; I’m investing in the long haul and honoring my limitations.
QT: How many times did you re-write/edit your book?: S.R. Lee:
I did 2 full passes and then 3 passes to tweak smaller things.
QT: Did you have beta readers for your book?: S.R. Lee:
YES! I have a critique group who helped me throughout the writing process and then I had several beta readers. Both groups are invaluable and a must for anyone looking to thrive as a novelist.
QT: Did you outline your book, or do you write from the hip?: S.R. Lee:
I do a bit of both. I like to have a beginning and end planned, then spend time researching and outlining what my world will look like and who my characters are. I made a wiki dedicated to all the detailed science-y stuff in my book—from the galaxy down to the algae. I also spent time figuring out who my characters were: their personalities, their quirks, their weaknesses, their personal history, their wants/needs, and their misbeliefs. Once that was all sorted, I basically wrote from the hip because I knew where I needed to go and knew my world and characters well enough to let them take me there. I did have to stop here and there to make sure plot points I realized I needed were added into previous chapters or planned for future ones, but there wasn’t a chapter-by-chapter outline.
QT: How long have you been querying for this book? Other books?: S.R. Lee:
For ARCTIC RIFT, about 2 months. I entered the PitchDis pitch event and received two matches with participating agents. To take advantage of any full requests or offers they might give me, I sent out cold queries at the same time I sent them the materials they asked for. Their full and partial requests, I think, moved me up the slush pile for any agents who wanted to know what else I had out. From there I got an offer from a cold-queried agent at about the 1.5 month mark and got a few more full requests after the “offer nudge.” I think it’s important to note that I was very interested in the PitchDis agents, but things just didn’t work out with them. For my previous book, I think I queried for around 6 months total, but split up, before withdrawing it.
QT: About how many query letters did you send out for this book?: S.R. Lee:
Including the PitchDis agents, I sent out 12 total.
QT: On what criteria did you select the agents you queried?: S.R. Lee:
I looked for agents who represented YA science fiction, with adult science fiction as an added plus. That’s a very small amount of agents, so that narrowed it down quickly. From there, I looked at MSWLs, agency websites, social media, and Publishers Marketplace to decide who was REALLY into science fiction vs. using the SFF umbrella to mean they really only wanted fantasy. After that, it was all about who seemed to be looking for a story like mine, who wanted to elevate disabled voices and characters, and who seemed like we’d click on a personality level based on my internet sleuthing.
QT: Did you tailor each query to the specific agent, and if so, how?: S.R. Lee:
Absolutely. If anyone mentioned something specific in their bios, MSWLs, or socials that I could relate back to my book, I used it in the query. It was basically just one sentence at the top of each query, but that seemed to help a lot in the responses I got.
QT: What advice would you give other writers seeking agents?: S.R. Lee:
Make sure your book is polished and has been through at least one round of beta readers. If more than one person notes the same issue, it means you need to fix something. You choose how you fix it, but it needs fixing. None of us write a perfect book on the first try. Then, when that’s done, do your research. Pick agents who stand out to you and tailor your queries to them individually. Show them you’ve done your research by personalizing. It’s a numbers game, so don’t be afraid to query in batches. I got lucky, but I was fully prepared to send out another dozen shortly before I got my offer. Finally, if you receive a rejection, whether or not it’s personalized, move on. Don’t reply with anything besides a polite thank you, if that. Don’t ask for reasons why or try to debate your way in. I’ve been involved in books and entertainment long enough to know that this never helps you and can sometimes hurt you since agenting is a small world and people talk.
QT: Would you be willing to share your query with us?: S.R. Lee:
My query is below, but be forewarned there are MILD SPOILERS in it for the book!

Success Story Interview - S.R. Lee

Query Letter: