Back from Killercon

Every now and then an agent goes to a convention and gets inspired. This usually happens for me at Necon. It happened at Killercon too.

Killercon was awesome. Imagine your favorite horror, thriller and paranormal romance writers let loose upon Las Vegas? I don't think the city will ever be the same.

Now, you have to realize my biases here (my heart belongs to horror - especially vampires - I've sold more than 200 vampire novels in 22 years - although the zombies are trying to seduce me), and then my second love is erotica and paranormal romance, so this was an orgy for me. I went to every single panel and reading I could - I mean Joe Landsdale, L.A. Banks, Heather Graham - it was almost too rich for my blood.

And then we judged an erotic horror contest at midnight one night, and the submissions were so good, that I think we're going to buy the first place story for Ravenous Romance!

I dragged Lisa and Tommy Lane to Bite!, the vampire burlesque show that's been running on and off on the strip for the last two years and we had second row seats. Great concept, costumes, and dancing, although it could use more story and hotter men. But what fun!

And I even witnessed Brian Keene get inspired on the zombie panel. He now has the ending for his comic book series, and we all were amazed as Hal Bodner realized the underlying themes of his M/M zombie novel, FOR THE LOVE OF THE DEAD.

If you love these genres, mark your calendar for next year's Killercon. Brian Lumley and John Skipp have already agreed to attend. I think it's going to be in August next year. I can't wait.

I have a new Intern - Please Read her Blog

As if I don't have enough to do - two full time jobs, three junior agents, a teen-aged son and a grown-up relationship - I got an email from a local journalism school graduate inquiring if she could intern with me this summer.

Now those who know me know that I believe in mentoring, because I was so poorly mentored when I was a young woman in my 20's by the icons of feminist journalism - they just made me feel so small and insignificant - and I vowed that when my turn came, I would give back. So I said yes.

But I take interning seriously, and always make sure that I have something to teach.

It turns out that Vanessa is a horror fan - she actually worked for someone I had just met at Necon - so there is much that I can teach her.

And I've asked her to keep a blog, so please visit, and comment, and encourage.

She'll be interning at the agency through the summer, and then begin a six month internship at RR while she goes for her Masters in Publishing.

http://vanessayvette.blogspot.com/2009_07_01_archive.html

Agent EK is Avidly Seeking Middle Grade and YA

I'll post about Necon and RWA shortly, but while you're waiting for my reports, I thought you'd be interested to know that one of our junior agents at L. Perkins Agency has declared her love of YA and is aggressively seeking new authors, so tell you friends and family!!

Below is EK's description of what she's looking for:

"I’m tired of getting queries from authors who don’t currently read YA, never read YA, say books published today are terrible, but they heard that Harry Potter lady made more than the Queen, and hey, they can do that! Writing for kids is easy, right?

I love YA books. I loved them when I was a kid and I still love them now. I want to see manuscripts from people who love it as much as I do. I want to find the books that kids are going to remember with fondness. I inhaled Lois Duncan, LJ Smith, Babysitter’s Club, Sweet Valley, etc, etc. These days I’m excited by the writing done by Suzanne Collins, Kristin Cashore, Claudia Gray. I’m also into the teen novels by people like Sarah Dessen, Deb Caletti, Barry Lyga and others. I’m looking for smart middle grade and teen novels. (No picture books, please.) I like fantasy and paranormal, and other odd things. Zombies are pretty big at the moment, and I’d also like to see witches, psychics, time travel and superheroes. As far as non-genre, I like strong, female heroines and books with fresh voices and a quirky sense of humor. I’m really sick of knock-off “Harry Potters’ and “Twilights.”

Lori told me to list some of my favorite TV shows to give a better sense of my taste. I liked Buffy, Gilmore Girls, Veronica Mars, How I Met Your Mother, Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles, Justice League, Firefly, True Blood, Project Runway, Top Chef.... As I kid I loved Jem and the Holograms (magic earrings = always good) and Get Smart."

Send queries directly to EK at EKlperkinsagency@yahoo.com.

R.I.P. Charles Brown

I started going to Horror, Fantasy and sci-fi conventions two decades ago, and every time I went, Charles Brown, the founding editor of Locus, was there. He was everywhere and knew everyone. I guess I thought he'd be there forever, because I was certainly a bit shocked to learn that he had died.

When I read his obit, I was even more impressed. He had started Locus as a means to secure Boston as the site of the annual World Science Fiction convention and then continued publishing it, turning it into a major voice for a genre. As someone who has started her own share of niche publications, that was quite a feat.

He'll be missed.

http://networkedblogs.com/p7362040

Trend Spotting, and Bosom Heaving

I love it when I can read the New York Times Book Review when I get it (instead of the middle of the next week). This issue is also very thin, but interesting. Professor Christopher Benfey reviewed 4 lit bio novels and declared that "if these books are any indication, the biographical fever in current fiction has yet to run its course." And that statement ran three pages after a review of a novel based on the life of Charles Dickens' wife. So dust off your notes for that novel about Bram Stoker's mistress or Mae West's Secret Diaries.

The reason I was able to read the NYTBR was because I was at finally at the pool this weekend, where I was also reading BEYOND HEAVING BOSOMS. A friend came by and asked, "Is that your autobiography?" Makes me wonder what people think about me?