Will iconic images recorded in the grooves of an ancient vase unite the Holy Land or rip it further apart?

THE VASE

A novel by Mark M. DeRobertis

Muhsin Muhabi is a Palestinian potter, descended from a long line of potters. His business is run from the same shop owned by his ancestors since the day his forebears moved to Nazareth. The region's conflict saw the death of his oldest son, and rogue terrorists are in the process of recruiting his youngest in their plot to assassinate the Pope and Israeli prime minister.

Professor Hiram Weiss is an art historian at Nazareth’s Bethel University. He is also a Shin Bet operative on special assignment. With the help of fellow agent, Captain Benny Mathias, he plans to destroy the gang responsible for the death of his wife and only child. He puts a bomb in the ancient vase he takes on loan from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.

Mary Levin, the charming assistant to the director of Shin Bet, has lost a husband and most of her extended family to recurring wars and never-ending terrorism. She dedicates her life to the preservation of Israel, but to whom will she dedicate her heart? The brilliant professor from Bethel University? Or the gallant captain who now leads Kidon?

Harvey Holmes, the Sherlock of Haunted Houses, is a Hollywood TV host whose reality show just flopped. When a Lebanese restaurant owner requests his ghost-hunting services, he believes the opportunity will resurrect his career. All he has to do is exorcise the ghosts that are haunting the restaurant. It happens to be located right across the street from Muhsin’s Pottery Shop.




Monday, March 19, 2012

Agents, Who Needs 'em? Not Me

KILLER OF KILLERS was initially represented by literary agent Anita Kushen. I mentioned just last Friday how she called me to tell me she loved KILLER OF KILLERS and that she wanted to represent it. But unfortunately, as I've chonicled on this blog, she retired soon after that.

The two agents who took over did nothing. Nothing that I know of anyway. I'm not even sure they read the manuscript. And soon one of them parted from the agency. And soon after that the remaining agent did not renew our contract. I'm still bothered that I never got a list of publishers to whom she submitted. I asked her for one. Never got one. So I was OK with not having an agent who wasn't getting anything done on my behalf.

After a bit I started to submit KILLER OF KILLERS myself, and you know what? The second publisher I submitted it to offered a contract. You read that right, but I'll say it again. The SECOND publisher I submitted it to offered me a contract. It's chronicled on this blog. (And when I advised the first publisher it was no longer available, he advised me that he hadn't had time to get to it yet, so it wasn't as if it was rejected.)

The lesson here is don't expect any agent to represent you as well as the agent who signed you. That's the person who loved your manuscript. That's the person who wants to go to bat for you. Not the person who inherits you. Sure there will be exceptions. Sure someone else might have a similar story with a different experience. But that was my experience.

As for how it all turned out? Well... KILLER OF KILLERS is getting published. But not for any agent's hard work. It turned out I never really needed an agent. When it comes to landing a contract, it's just as much about timing and luck as anything else.

But I've learned another lesson along the way. I've learned that contracts in and of themselves are NOT a journey completed. When your manuscript is published and in print... then you will have a journey to publication completed. So stay tuned. August is just around the corner.
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