A Writer's Notebook, Day Six-Hundred-And-Nineteen

I have not mentioned it here in quite some time, but I have been thinking quite a bit about my novel and the best way to present it to an agent.  I have a query letter that I believe is strong, but I know it is still in need of work, and part of the issue is attempting to explain my book in a way that would make sense to an agent.  The fact is, I am not writing traditional fiction, but most of my work has a more experimental quality, and the novel itself is intended to be an unconventional experience for the reader

  To offer a general summary, it is the story of a writer as they attempt to write the very novel being read, as inspired by a series of strange dreams.  However, as this continues, the dream world seems to be "real", and the act of writing the book becomes a dangerous act.  Their is a sense that perhaps the book is intended, by the beings of the dream world, to summon or release something.  The book itself is not an inert object.  The book itself is written to create the sense, for the reader, that whatever was happening to the writer is now transmitted by the book.  I know it sounds insane, but I have had feedback from those who have read that it felt, at times, as if the book had read their mind, for example.  This is, of course, all done through craft, is a trick, and much of what I wanted to achieve with the book relied upon being able to make those experiences real for the reader.  But, I also know, I cannot make such claims to an agent.  Even discussing it here on this blog is difficult, as I am certain many would read such a claim and think I am crazy, and I accept that.  It is a rather strange claim and I am not offering any proof of it here.  Be that as it may, my goal in that novel was to craft a book that, as the reader journeyed into it, the novel seemed to become a part of their world in an active way, not something that exists in the pages of the book alone.  When the writer is threatened that they must finish the book, it is implied that the threat extends to the reader as well, but there is also a sense of danger, that reaching the end might actually unleash something.  That sounds impossible and rather insane, if I am honest, and it was not something I was certain I could actually achieve, but the responses I have received from those who have read the book have been extremely positive.  This is not a list of friends and family, but includesone NYT best selling novelist who is not a personal friend, and some other professional contacts whom I trust , and they were all extremely positive.  One agent asked for the manuscript, and while they did reject it in the end, they made it clear to me they had read the whole of the book and said that they felt I should leave the manuscript as it is, at least until I find an agent who might want to work with me.  I believe strongly in this book, am certain that I have achieved at least some of what I intended, but I am still not certain how to make what it is clear in a way that might sell it to an agent or publisher.