Lisa Iriarte has recently signed with agent Amy Boggs of Donald Maass Literary Agency. Lisa, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Congratulations and good luck.



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

Lisa Iriarte: VICIOUS CIRCLE is a science fantasy/romance featuring a strong, female assassin protagonist. Think Xena Warrior Princess in space. I can say it was inspired in part by a dream. I woke up with a main character and a scene in my head, and wrote outward from there.



QT: How long have you been writing?

LI: I've been writing since I was about seven years old. I started with short stories, mostly fan fiction featuring my favorite film and television characters, then expanded to create my own worlds.



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

LI: This one surprised me. It rather poured out of me over a three month period and required little editing afterward. It's the shortest time I've ever spent on a manuscript.



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

LI: If you're talking about this book, no, I never felt like giving up. I enjoyed writing VICIOUS CIRCLE every step of the way. However, if you're speaking of the road to publication in general, then yes, I felt like giving up many times. The first time I tried to find an agent, I gave up after 75 rejections and stopped writing for about five years. Biggest mistake I ever made. I'd had several requests for the full manuscript, but back then I didn't know what that meant or how close I'd come. I often wish I could have those five years back. Imagine how much farther along this road I might be!

Then, the second time around, I landed a wonderful agent, Colleen Lindsay, after receiving 90 rejections on that manuscript. If I hadn't continued to query, I would never have found her. And after having her as my agent for less than a year, due to unforeseen circumstances (and a great job at Penguin Publishing), she ended up leaving the profession. Believe me, a part of me wanted to quit again! But I didn't.

I'd written two more manuscripts by then, and I knew how this process worked, so back out on the query trail I went. And here I am!

I also will say that having a husband who writes and is currently querying agents, kept me going. We are very competitive with one another. There was no way I was going to let him get representation before I did. :-) In addition, I have a fantastic writers group that encouraged me, and many friends who are published or soon-to-be-published authors who kept me on the right path. Writing in a vacuum is never a good idea. You need that support group when the rejections come rolling in and the setbacks happen.



QT: Is this your first book?

LI: This is my fifth completed manuscript.



QT: Do you have any formal writing training?

LI: I was a creative writing major in college, and I have a good chunk of an MFA, but I left the MFA program when they told me that writing in such frivolous genres as science fiction and fantasy was unacceptable. I also attend conferences whenever I can afford to, and I've taken an online class through RWA. I highly recommend their classes.



QT: Do you follow a writing 'routine' or schedule?

LI: When I'm querying, it's all about the querying, and I'll admit, I haven't written anything new since November. However, when I'm working on a manuscript (and I'm diving back into a half-finished sci-fi/superhero novel soon) I write a minimum of a thousand words a day. My husband and I make a point of getting away from the house to write. An alternate environment like a coffee shop or park takes away household distractions and makes my words flow more easily. My writers group also meets once a week, so I submit my work and critique others regularly to keep my skills sharp.



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

LI: As I said, VICIOUS CIRCLE came out pretty much final draft the first time around. But that's unusual. It did come in a bit short in first draft, so I added about 14K to it over an additional couple of weeks, but edits and rewrites were minor.



QT: Did you have beta readers for your book?

LI: Yes. My writers group critiqued the first couple of chapters. My husband and an author friend beta-read the entire manuscript for me before I sent it out to agents. And my husband does NOT go easy on me. :-)



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

LI: This one I wrote from the hip. The one after it, I actually outlined from beginning to end, but that's not my usual style. I'm usually a seat-of-the-pants writer.



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

LI: I've been querying for this book since November of 2010. I was querying another manuscript at the same time, to different agents, which got an offer as well. The manuscript that landed me my previous agent I queried for about a year and a half.



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

LI: I sent out about 150 queries for this manuscript, heard back from maybe half of them, and got six offers of representation (and one offer on the other manuscript I was querying).



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

LI: I began with agents who represented science fiction. Since it's actually a science fantasy/romance, I then moved on to query those who represented these two genres as well. Then I queried agents who represented commercial and general fiction. I also researched agents who represented authors I read, and who had good reputations on websites like Preditors and Editors and AbsoluteWrite.



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

LI: I tried to, especially if an agent represented someone I like to read, or if I followed his/her blog.



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

LI: Query widely. I know we are told not to "blanket query," so try to personalize as much as possible, but query every agent you think is reputable and might want to represent your work. Also, when you do get an offer of representation, nudge any other agents with whom you have an outstanding query, partial, or full. Yes, even those who only have a query should get a nudge. I ended up getting something like twelve full requests over the span of four days, and seven offers of representation between the two manuscripts. Five of those offers came as a result of nudging agents who only had my query letter.



QT: Would you be willing to share your query with us?

LI: Due to the somewhat racy subject matter of my plot, and the fact that I'm a teacher, I'd prefer not to share my query letter. However, if individuals are interested and contact me through private message, I'd be happy to share it with them. I can also be reached via my blog at http://vickcorrenagencyfiles.blogspot.com/