It’s especially sweet when one of our 12 x 12 Scholarship recipients lands an agent. Today, we get to celebrate Brandy Bellittera and her new partnership with Morgan Hughes of Fine Print Literary! Congrats, Brandy!

How long had you been writing before seeking an agent, and what made you decide it was time to look for one?
I have been writing all of my life, but due to children and life, I put it on the back burner for quite a long time. I started seriously writing again summer of 2020. By the end of 2021, I felt ready to start putting myself into the query trenches.

What kind of research did you do before submitting?
I checked everything I could find with a connection to the agents I was interested in: social media, Query Tracker, MSWL, Google, you name it! I left no stone unturned to learn what I could about their interests and what they were looking for…trying to determine if we could be a good match.

The dreaded questions: How many queries? How many rejections?
My stats:
✨ Started Querying: December 2021
✨ Agent Submissions: 115
✨ Requests for more work: 12
✨ Rejections: 114
✨ Offers: 1

Was it difficult to find an agent who wanted to represent an author focusing on picture books?
It did feel difficult, especially after a few years went by for me with no success. And it seemed as though several agents seeking picture books only wanted author/illustrators. That made the list of agents I could consider querying very short. It was discouraging to keep crossing names off of my list due to that requirement. In 2023, I decided to broaden my writing scope and started working on a Chapter Book series. I am thrilled to share that Book #1 will be releasing this summer! As I continued to make a list of agents, I cast a wider net, to include agents looking for chapter books as well. I do feel like this helped make me more ‘valuable’ so to speak. More and more lately, I see agents wanting to see authors who are willing to write across genres. As I never intended to be fully picture books, I knew I had made the right decision to broaden my writing scope.

Who is your new agent? Tell us about getting the news.
I am thrilled to be represented by the MARVELous Morgan Hughes with Fine Print Literary. After sending her my manuscript, she quickly sent back a message letting me know that she had received it, which I appreciated—as it was hard not to let doubt creep in (Ex: what if I typed her email wrong?). I went to bed, my tummy full of nerves, but when I woke up the next morning, I had another message waiting for me in my inbox. Even though I expected a gentle rejection, I couldn’t open it fast enough. To my surprise, it was a request to set up “The Call”. I quietly danced around the house (at 4am), trying to not wake anyone up, but succeeded in completely scaring my menagerie of pets who just wanted their breakfast. We set up the call for that very night!

How did you know your agent was “the one”?
Within a few minutes of our call, I knew in my heart that Morgan was the one for me. Her enthusiasm for my work (and a certain Yeti) was utterly refreshing. She was so excited about my story that she immediately shared it with her VP at Fine Print! After years of champagne rejections and feeling good—but just not quite good enough—I knew without a doubt I had finally found my person—my champion!

If 12 x 12 helped you in any way during your agent search/development of craft, can you tell us how? (P.S. It is TOTALLY okay if the answer is no. I am not trying to “lead” you 🙂 )
It absolutely did! Last year, I was a recipient of a GOLD Scholarship. I used every opportunity I could that year to grow as an author. Yeti’s story went from decent, to good, to SPARKLING! Every time I participated in a webinar, I looked over the manuscript with fresh eyes, looking for new ways to strengthen the story. I also fully immersed myself in the Complete Picture Book Submission System, which helped me grow EVEN further. I can now go back and refresh on a few modules I didn’t use before now that I am agented!

Has your writing process changed at all since signing with an agent?
I am shifting it just a teeny bit, now that I am working with Morgan. Instead of a Query Board, I will upgrade to have a Productivity Board. Essentially I plan to use it to help keep my projects organized, able to keep track of tasks I need to complete to ensure projects move across the board from development to submission ready. When I sit down to write, I can have a clear idea of which project I might want to focus on during that chunk of writing time I have available.

What advice would you give to picture book writers looking for agents today?
Set goals and keep moving towards them, even if that means “sloth-mode” (little by little). Never stop moving forward. Keep going. Keep creating. Be YOU!

Do you think your platform (blog, social media) helped you find your agent?
I honestly don’t think so. I keep up a decent social media presence, and have built a website, but at the end of the day, my platform wasn’t a big consideration…I think my work spoke for itself—and finally found the right champion.

Tell us something that is on your “bucket list.” Something you’ve dreamed of doing all your life but have yet to accomplish (besides publishing a book, which is inevitable at this point 🙂 )
I would love to travel to Costa Rica, and meet the wonderful staff of the Sloth Conservation Foundation. Seeing sloths in their natural habitat would be incredible. The Conservation is doing incredible things to help these creatures thrive amidst the deforestation that is happening around them. I would love to spend time helping them with their cause, and meeting some of the sloths I have been tracking. Check them out here: https://slothconservation.org/donate/

What’s up next/what are you working on now?
I am completing final edits before we officially send my picture book series out on sub! I am also creating ideas for marketing my first chapter book, releasing this summer, in addition to outlining Book 2!