LIVE Q&A: Ask Anything with Natalie Lakosil

LIVE Q&A: Ask Anything with Natalie Lakosil

Conference 2019, Live 2019 48 Comments

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​Natalie LakosilNatalie is an agent at Bradford Literary Agency. An honors graduate of the University of San Diego, California, Natalie holds a B.A. in Literature/Writing. After nearly four years at the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency and a brief dabble in writing author profiles and book reviews for the San Diego Union Tribune, Natalie joined the Bradford Agency in February of 2011.

Natalie is drawn to talented, hard-working new authors with a fresh, unique voice and hook. Her specialties are children’s literature (from picture book through teen and New Adult), romance (contemporary and historical), cozy mystery/crime, upmarket women’s/general fiction and select children’s nonfiction. Her interests include historical, multi-cultural, magical realism, sci-fi/fantasy, gritty, thrilling and darker contemporary novels, middle grade with heart, and short, quirky or character-driven picture books. She is always drawn to an open and positive attitude in an author, professionalism, good grammar, and fantastical, beautifully written, engaging and sexy plots.

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48 Comments

48 Comments

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  • Elza
    · Reply

    How should I approach querying a book with a co-author?

  • Hannah
    · Reply

    Hi Natalie,

    Do you prefer literary or commercial MG voice? Anything you’d particularly like to see in MG right now?

    Thank you for your time!

  • Kathy
    · Reply

    Please discuss the chapter book market. Thank you.

  • Maria Arthur
    · Reply

    I tend to notice more YA Romances centered around girls accepting and loving boys with physical differences (ie. the numerous Beauty and the Beast Retellings), but not so much the other way around. Why do you think this is?

  • Diane
    · Reply

    Thank you Natalie for appearing on WriteOnCon! I have often heard that prologues in middle grade and YA’s are a big no-no because of their info-dumping status. Is there ever a time when an agent or publisher would say ok? Maybe in a series where some background would be nice?

  • R. Lille
    · Reply

    Any thoughts on the YA market right now, specifically what publishers are looking for and also, what they don’t want?

  • Cynthia
    · Reply

    Hi Natalie, thanks for your time. If I’m querying a YA fantasy to an agent and my only published work is a nonfiction science PB (traditional publisher, 2011), do you think I mention it in my bio or leave it out?

  • Kathleen
    · Reply

    What do you think makes for a satisfying ending to a picture book?

  • JayKay
    · Reply

    What does your ideal query letter look like? How is it structured? Does it include comps?
    Thank you!

  • Heather A Harwood
    · Reply

    Do you have advice for those querying the “quiet” more literary, character-driven books? It seems most agents are looking for commercial stories that attract a big advance. Is there a market for YA Sci-Fi/Fantasy if it has a more character-driven bent?

  • Lee
    · Reply

    Hi Natalie,

    My WIP is a Contemporary YA with 2 #AA Muslims (f/f).

    As a Muslim woman of color who doesn’t identify as #LGBTQIA, is it problematic for me to write this story?

  • Diane Landy
    · Reply

    Hello,
    Who are your top 3 PB characters and why?
    Thanks!!!

  • Ryan
    · Reply

    I consider myself and NA/YA writer. Is there any hope for college-based or college-aged stories whether contemporary or SFF?

  • [email protected]
    · Reply

    I’ve read that certain genres, like fantasy and sci-fi, can get away with higher word counts, but how high is too high? Would a high word count be an auto reject or would you still look at pages?

  • Ryan
    · Reply

    What are some trends that you feel could be on the decline? Which ones are rising and is it possible to query books in genre or trends that might be “dead” but have an MS that has a unique quality to it?

  • Scott R
    · Reply

    When you consider representing a particular author, what’s your next step? What kind of research do you do, or what questions do you hope to answer?

  • Hannah
    · Reply

    Do you have any tips regarding villains? Especially about how to get their motive and characteristics across without monologuing?

  • Hannah
    · Reply

    What should a bio of a query consist of?

  • Elizabeth
    · Reply

    What are the most important words of advice you can give to aspiring picture book authors in today’s market?

  • Amy Beaman
    · Reply

    If a YA manuscript has three alternating POV’s, should each have their own paragraph in a query (to hit on motivation and conflict for each) or should it be condensed to give the overarching plot premise?

  • Keely
    · Reply

    If a PB is more of a concept book (family relationships), and the plot is fairly slow, how could I interest an agent when I can’t provide illustrations to help move the story. I don’t have that artistic gift!

  • Melissa Davis
    · Reply

    What type of stories do you think need to be written for the picture book category? What kind of stories do you see too much of?

  • Charlotte
    · Reply

    Are there tried and true ways to build emotional connections between characters and readers?

  • Sarah
    · Reply

    What are your thoughts on the word count for MG fantasy?

  • Genetta
    · Reply

    If there’s a unique twist to a novel that’s a big reveal, should the twist be included in the query to an agent or not?

  • Genetta
    · Reply

    In a historical reimagining novel, must the whole world be drastically different than history? Or can the plot hinge on one detail from the past that only changes history only by allowing the main character to be changed as opposed to all of society being changed? And if the change is not drastically different for society at large, would it simply be labeled historical fiction?

  • Ryan
    · Reply

    How would you market an MS written in a new genre something like Gulf Futurism, Kitchen Sink Dystopia, New Weird, -Punk and one I discovered called Jungle Opera? Is the industry kind to unknown or new genres, or must there always be a familiarity when marketing new genres?

  • Catherine
    · Reply

    If you reject a query and the author then does a significant revision over a significant period of time, would you look at a new query for that ms., and if so, would you want to know that context or not?

  • Tara
    · Reply

    I love your end-of-the-year querying statistics. Have you gathered any other statistics on the publishing industry (your submissions statistics, how other agents querying statistics compare to yours, etc) that you can share with us?

  • Ryan
    · Reply

    Is it okay to hire sensitivity readers even after having an agent? Esp for rep that’s hard to find?

  • Cynthia
    · Reply

    Is my ms that is a Chapter Book in subject matter and voice but is 18K in order to tell the story considered upper Chapter Book or lower MG?What do you think is the difference, if any, between these two labels?

  • [email protected]
    · Reply

    I write picture books that have been called quiet. Do quiet picture books get picked up and sell?

  • Helen
    · Reply

    What do you find exciting in the nonfiction picture book market right now? What would you love to see more of?

  • Casie
    · Reply

    What are your thoughts on unlikeable protagonists in YA? Are agents less likely to take on these types of books.

  • Martha
    · Reply

    How do you know if it’s time to leave your agent?

  • Diane Landy
    · Reply

    Brava! That’s the best definition of voice I’ve ever heard. Thank you!!!
    🙂

  • Flor
    · Reply

    I keep getting nudged to add agency right from page one to my sci-fi manuscript with an overly shy character. I’m wary of having to make my heroines overnight badasses every single time. What’s your opinion on this?

  • Cassandra Newbould
    · Reply

    Once you sign a client do you have a hands on editorial approach to get ms ready for sub?

  • Tamara
    · Reply

    Where can I find your blog and query stats? Thank you.

  • Genetta
    · Reply

    What’s the difference between historical fiction and historical reimagining?

  • Ryan
    · Reply

    When pitching new ideas if you have an agent, how does the process work and is a powerpoint presentation okay to present them?

  • Cynthia Way
    · Reply

    I wrote a picture book biography , and just saw that a book on this historical figure is coming out. Will agents still consider my book? is there room in the market for two pbbios on the same person?

  • Ryan
    · Reply

    Is it okay to have two agents even if they’re from the same agency or from different agencies?

  • Ryan
    · Reply

    When querying or pitching, would comps involving video games or music catch your interest. Do you know of many agents that would see it as a positive?

  • Tamara
    · Reply

    What does it mean when an agent says they enjoyed your pages, but they just weren’t connecting enough? Is that a general comment or something specific I can revise with?

  • Leeann
    · Reply

    Hi, Sometimes I hear that agents “don’t connect” with my PB character, even when I try to make them sympathetic. How can I write characters that connect?

  • Teresa
    · Reply

    Hi Natalie, I don’t think the title for my picture book is particularly exciting. How important are titles in a query or pitch?

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