Today we’d like to introduce you to Amy Tipton.

Hi Amy, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
First, a little bio/background:

I graduated from Naropa University with a B.A. in Writing and Literature and received my MFA from New College of California in Writing. I worked as a literary agent for years before going freelance in 2018. Prior to beginning Feral Girl Books, I was a literary agent at Signature Literary Agency. I have previously worked at JCA Literary Agency, Diana Finch Literary Agency, Gina Maccoby Literary Agency, and Liza Dawson Associates, as a book scout for Aram Fox, Inc., and as a freelance editor for Lauren Weisberger (author of The Devil Wears Prada). As a literary agent I represented authors such as Edgar-Award winner (and NYT Bestseller) Courtney Summers, Stonewall Prize winner Kirstin Cronn-Mills, as well as prolific authors Amy Reed, K. Ancrum, and many others.

But honestly in 2009, I had a stroke, lived (obviously), and worked as a literary agent for about 9 more years but…

I had always thought about opening up my own agency, but a friend who runs her own agency said you can’t be creative, or as creative as you want, since it’s more paperwork/business stuff. Being a boss is hard! *stamps foot, fake pouts HAHA* So I just decided to go the freelance editor route. Yes, I’m a boss, but it’s creative, so it feeds my punk rock/anarchist/progressive soul.

I mean, I was super into reading the work—reading queries, requesting books, offering to rep, getting to revise (I love revising!—not surprising, I mean, considering I’m a writer at heart, I get to put a creative stamp here as an editor), but being an agent is also business-y work like contracts and royalties, and I’m just not a suit. I went to school for writing, I’m not a lawyer or number cruncher.

And look, it wasn’t an easy decision. The feeling of guilt was heavy (the guilt of failing authors—not getting their books published or not getting a higher advance for their book, which you know they deserved). It was all too much. I am only one person, and tracking down editors (who just ignore follow-ups) or arguing about higher advances with editors or scrambling to find an audio publisher or a film/TV agent (garnering their interest is almost another full time job!) and keeping track of foreign rights—who has what where (another full time position)—was an insane workload. Most of the stuff I represented was not easy—the subjects were not big, splashy, blockbuster/fun reads—so it’s very easy to be frustrated. With every pass I, honestly, felt like a failure.

But at the same time, admittedly, I was at the top of my game. Courtney Summers was a New York Times Bestseller, and Amy Reed had just done a New York Times interview on her book The Nowhere Girls and the Me Too movement was happening. And my first MG horror series (similar to RL Stine’s Goosebumps) was just being published (with a glowing review by the master of horror himself, Stephen King). But this success was a looooong time coming. As they say, too little, too late, right?

At that time, I had been reading a lot of writer/editor Kristine Kathryn Rusch‘s blog, and while I sometimes disagreed/it (sometimes) induced eye rolling, there were things I agreed with, like maybe—not saying “definitely”—maybe you should compartmentalize your career: have a lawyer look at contracts, have an accountant do your royalties, get a foreign rights agent, film agent, have an editor (or someone like me). Maybe you shouldn’t rely solely upon your agent. Your agent maybe should just submit/sell your book.

But in this fast-food/one-stop-shop culture, the writer-agent job grows, and so stress is greater. I figured I had a stroke at 30—I wasn’t about to have a heart attack at 40!

So, I created Feral Girl Books.

Feral Girl Books (my editorial service) was born from 2 quotes–1 from Beverly Cleary (“If you don’t see the book you want on the shelves, write it.”) & 1 from Idris Elba (“Diversity in the modern world is more than just skin color—it’s gender, age, disability, sexual orientation, social background, and most important of all, as far as I’m concerned, diversity of thought”). (& 1 from Courtney Love–“‘I found my inner b*tch and ran with her” HAHA… But that one is neither here nor there…)

Basically:

I just don’t want anyone to feel excluded–which is really why Feral Girl Books exists. It was born out of this necessity. It’s for all women (women-identifying & NB/GNC) writers. I want the publishing industry to rep us, ALL OF US. I don’t want these stories erased. Representation does matter.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I wouldn’t say it’s been a smooth road…though, it wasn’t particularly hard, either. (I mean, I did a lot of editing as an agent–I was extremely hands-on and one client’s blog post about me as a great agent made me realize I am pretty great! Humblebrag, here—did you know I came up with the Courtney Summers book title This Is Not a Test? And my mom’s advice to me about boys showed up in Courtney Summers’s All the Rage? I also encouraged Amy Reed to edit the Our Stories, Our Voices anthology and helped shape the 2014 Stonewall Award winner Beautiful Music for Ugly Children by Kirstin Cronn-Mills. I’m not here to take credit away from anyone, either—these books are incredible—I just think I also deserve some credit!)

It was that blog post made me realize I would make a great developmental editor/gave me the confidence to switch from agenting to editing. So, voila! Offering editorial services seemed like a good fit. See? Smooth ride…

However, the freelance life is very feast or famine—which can make things hard.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
I have been told I have a keen and discerning eye for potential, and I am committed not only to new voices, but to literature as a whole. My interest is in being a key player as the literary landscape continues to expand and diversify.

I want to get writers before the agent stage, though. I want to whip them into shape so an agent won’t overlook them/won’t say no. (This certainly happens—which is why so many straight/white/rich dudes get published before anyone else.) The same thing happens when writers work with a less hands-on agent and get requested rewrites/revisions from an editor but end up rejected. I want to help! (Yes, some agents are more than capable of revising, but they’re busy, and their clients feel ignored. I want to help them be/feel heard!)

I believe in the power of communication and collaboration and I am sickened and saddened over writers complaining they paid good money for an editor to edit their book, only to find out their book was edited by AI and/or riddled with mistakes. A lot of writers don’t have money–or don’t want to spend the money–it takes for a good editor. And, hey, I get it…but sometimes (and I hate to say this, I really do), you get what you pay for. (It stinks, I’m sorry, it’s awful, it’s totally unfair…)

Honestly, I just want to help you put your best book forward. I believe writing is an act of resistance (the personal is political) and as they say the future is female, so welcome to my fempire, ladies. (Thank you Lifetime [Television] for the word “fempire.” I use it all the time!)

What does success mean to you?
I strongly believe being happy is success… I know that money can’t buy happiness, either, but it can buy things that make you happy… And for me, I’m pretty simple–I like not worrying about rent or bills or random expenses like taking my dog to the vet or putting my car in the shop… (I like knowing I can do all that AND go out to dinner–like going out for pizza and beer!)

I also value my independence (hence I stopped working “corporate” and went out on my own) and being able to do what I love makes me extremely happy therefore successful!

Pricing:

• I work on a flat fee (up to 90-100k words) for all projects so…
• Developmental Edits (including line edits & revision ideas/suggestions in Track Changes) are $1287.
• Editorial Assessments are $1027.
• “First Impression” Edits (a very basic/quick read–notes in an email) are $520.
• I also help with queries. Query letters are $125.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://amy-tipton.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/feralgirlbooks/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FeralGirlBooks/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amy-tipton-09414223b/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/FeralGirlBooks

Image Credits
Ed Glazar