Success Story Interview - Haleigh Hypes

An Interview with Haleigh Hypes (hayhypes11 on QT) upon receiving an offer of representation from agent Laura Pink of SBR Media.

04/09/2025

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

Haleigh Hypes:
It's a romantasy! It follows the life of a princess who's been wronged by her family and is arranged to be married to another kingdom, as long as she doesn't die from a dragon first... It's violent and raunchy and has a female main character who isn't afraid to speak her mind. I've always loved reading and had the itch to try writing something of my own for awhile. The prologue to this book actually was a dream I had one night, and I finally decided to put it on paper.

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

Haleigh Hypes:
Since March of 2024

QT: Is this your first book?

Haleigh Hypes:
Yes!

QT: Do you have any formal writing training?

Haleigh Hypes:
No, I don't.

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

Haleigh Hypes:
I've changed the ending to this book three times. Each time caused a lot more than just the ending needing changed.

QT: Did you have beta readers for your book?

Haleigh Hypes:
Kind of? I'm fortunate to have a very talented friend who read through it before anyone else and she gave me a lot of good feedback.

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

Haleigh Hypes:
I write from the hip. I seem to have a general idea of where I want the plot to go, but sometimes I don't know what's going to happen until my fingers start typing.

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

Haleigh Hypes:
45!

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

Haleigh Hypes:
I made sure to look at each author's website and bio before submitting. I searched for anyone in both romance and fantasy, romantasy if I was lucky enough to find one who matched that specifically, as my both is a mix of the two. For example: sometimes an agent might match your genre, but maybe in their bio they specifically say they're only looking for fantasy with werewolves (when my book has dragons) so I wouldn't want to waste their time with my book.

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

Haleigh Hypes:
Stay organized! I kept a spreadsheet of everyone I submitted to and how long their response time generally was. It's easy to forget which agencies you've already reached out to.