For five years, my books were represented by a big agency out of New York City. While I don’t want to name any names, I think I can safely say that this agency has a long history and has been associated with such writers as Harper Lee, John Steinbeck, and John Irving. (Yeah, I have two degrees of separation between my books and Scout!) Their clients are a who’s who of writing over the last one hundred years and as a writer and literature buff I could not have been more thrilled.
Thrilled? No, let me correct that.
I bragged! I gloated! I patted myself on the back every chance I got! I was big man on literary campus and it was only a matter of time before everyone knew my name. Start preparing the Booker prize trophy now… Wait, do they do a trophy? Or is it a medal? I have no idea (if it’s just a certificate that would be lame).
There is this wonderful Hollywood dream for artists that when someone of importance finds their work that suddenly everything is going to be streets of gold from then on and all the hard work is over. (Remember “The Standard Rich and Famous” contract in The Muppet Movie?) Well, I fell for that dream hook, line and sinker; and over the five years I was signed with this agency my career was stagnant.
Those five years are never going to come back.
Trust… but do it in moderation
See, the fact is while we both (the agent and me) signed the contracts, it did not mean I was going to be on their front burner at all times (or even some of the times).
I had no idea what the agent did every day; heck, no writer could know that! (But wouldn’t it be awesome if we could? They could have those monitoring cameras like some day cares have and we writers could log in online and see what our agent is doing now. Oh, look! They’re taking a lunch!)
See, there is a level of trust that is created there out of a shared hope that your book could find success, but how much you want to trust is the question. And let me admit this, I was an idiot for quite a few of the years that I was with the agency.
Why?
Because I allowed myself to believe, to dream, that they were fighting for my books every hour; I had to be their 9-to-5, right? Naive. Naive. And even more naive, I allowed myself to imagine that I was just as important to them as their New York Times bestselling authors. The ones with the million dollar book deals and screaming fan bases. Yeah, I’ll say it again, I was an idiot.
It’s still your career
That is not to say I recommend not signing with an agency. That would be idiotic too! If an established agency (And I wrote here about what to look for with an agency because not all agencies are equal) wants to represent your book you should always jump onboard, that’s not a question. Heck, if an agency was to contact me I would sign as well again, even with this experience behind me. I just wouldn’t be as innocent as I was the last time.
See, the big mistake I made is I turned off the marketing part of my brain and just focused on my writing for five years.
What is that cliché about “assume?” Yeah, that was me.
I didn’t enter writing contests, I didn’t start my blog (and, hello, thanks for reading!), etc. I didn’t do any of the things that I should have done. So when that day came and my agent and I parted ways (think of it as that beginning scene in Grease when Danny and Sandy go their separate ways after the summer… without the singing), I was back to square one.
Wait! I was not just back at square one, I was negative five at least, because all of my contacts and the name recognition I was building in the writing community was gone.
The fact is your writing career is always your writing career. Don’t ever forget that. It will never be another’s, never. It is only yours. Even if you have a big agent or publisher supporting you, it is still your career. At the heart of it is still you alone at a keyboard or with a notepad in your hand, don’t lose sight of that.
In other words, don’t assume that anyone out there cares as much as you do for your work and your future. They don’t.
Frankly, your agent is not your mother.
Communication is key
No one wants to be a nuisance. No one wants to be that kid after class each day bothering the teacher. Begging the mailman each does not make a package arrive any faster, and the same goes for agents.
However, and I have said this before, we writers usually are introverts, and the idea of bothering anyone (especially someone that promised to make us rich and famous), is just too nerve-racking an idea to consider.
What if I said something that ruined everything? What if I make them change their minds? Our creative minds will reel with horror possibilities that could all occur because of one simple phone call or e-mail.
Take a breath.
The fact is it is one simple phone call. That’s it… Or better yet, an e-mail. And agents are busy people. To keep the money rolling in they have numerous books in the wings to support and sell, so in a way opening that avenue of communication may actually help your book! Reminding them you are there and are waiting.
So consider this, make yourself a calendar, (don’t share it with your agent!). How about e-mailing once every month to two months or so? Maybe even consider a phone call every three to four months?
And when you do contact them, don’t be afraid to ask for an update. Ask for copies of responses or to hear what editors/publishers think. That paperwork, if they send it to you or share it with you, can be a helpful insight not only to what publishers/editors think of your work but also on how your agent it actually describing your work to publishers… But be prepared, if you do learn how your agent is describing your work don’t be surprised if you are shocked.
(Example: I had my first agent when I was a teenager and that agent told publishers my collection of short stories was like a Judy Blume for the next generation… Yes, I said Judy Blume. Now I liked Judy Blume growing up! Who doesn’t, but when you are a 17-year old writer who is thinking that they are breaking some kind of literary ground with a collection of shorts stories about relationships and fantasy/science fiction, the last thing you want on your shoulders is Judy Blume!)
It’s a relationship
Writing a book, in my opinion, is only 10 percent of this gig. The rest is marketing or PR. It’s what we do to get an agent or a publisher, it’s what we do afterwards in trying to get people to buy our books (Hey, did you know about my new experimental book A Jane Austen Daydream? You see what I mean!). It’s all part of the job, and it is not usually something you learn about in creative writing courses.
While agents are, and will always be, the gatekeepers to the big publishing houses; remember, they are only human too. They can forget, they can get things wrong and they can even break your heart.
It’s a relationship and like all good relationships it is one you will have to work on. The second you sign with an agent, that agency begins to lose money. And they will continue to lose money until your book is sold.
Take comfort in that fact that someone believes in you that much to take the risk, but remember, you are still part of the fight. Build that relationship, listen to their comments, make the changes that they may request in your work (if it makes sense, of course), but give-and-take throughout it. Just like dating you will know if something isn’t working, and you will also know when it does.
For me?
I still dream of Pulitzer and Booker, but I will always miss those five years.
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If you liked reading this post, why not check out one of my books? I’ve had four novels published in the last few years, A Jane Austen Daydream, Maximilian Standforth and the Case of the Dangerous Dare, My Problem With Doors and Megan. You can find them via my amazon.com author page here, or as an eBook on Google eBooks here. Thanks for reading!
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Need an editor? Dream of finishing that book but need some help? Learn about my editing services by visiting this page on my site. Or you can contact Rebecca T. Dickson and request to work with me by clicking the image below.
The Musings & Artful Blunders of Scott D. Southard 
Thanks for the post! It’s very helpful. I’m always interested in other people’s experiences with important aspects of the publishing realm.
I clicked that little button that says ‘notify me of new posts via email.’ =D
Thank you and thank you for joining my blog! I hope you like my posts.
I have written quite a number of posts on my writing experience and things I have learned along the way. I have sorted my posts via topics and on the side bar I have something like a table of contents where previous stuff can be found. Over the next year, once I finish my online new novel Permanent Spring Showers, I’ll probably be sharing my experiences editing and trying to find an agent or publisher for it. The battle is never over.
Again, thanks for reading!
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Great post, Scott. I’ve always envied anyone with an agent (whether that be a literary house or Phineas J. Trustworthy’s Talent and Plumbing), but this helps put perspective on things. There is no guaranteed path to success, I suppose.
Sadly true… Glad you enjoyed the post.
Thank you for sharing. I had heard about that but this is honest first hand experience.
Glad you liked it. I’m pretty straightforward in my experiences as a writer (I try to weigh all my advice in my own experience). Hopefully, my mistakes and missteps can help others. Cheers!
A most interesting and honest post which confirms what I’ve suspected for years that agents, while potentially a great help, can’t be a substitute for marketing your own work. The only shortcuts are fame or infamy which generate their own publicity! I’m going to subscribe to your blog. All the best.
Wonderful! I hope you like my blog. I write about a lot of different stuff and there is fiction on here as well. How good it is is always debatable I am sure. Cheers and thanks!
Oh, and agents are a great tool, my problem is I just trusted them to take over. I sat on finished screenplays, finished books, finished stageplays for years when I was with them. Again, I assumed wrong.
Thanks for a great post, Scott. It just reconfirms my commitment to social media and marketing of me as a brand even before my book is published. I have a network of followers and a strong support system of fellow writers helping me promote. When my book comes out in the Spring, I hope that proves to be worthwhile to launch it properly.
It is certainly a brave new world in publishing today and I have no idea what the enterprise will look like in a few years. Agents are definitely part of the old at this point (as are the traditional publishers). Sadly, I do think the classic structure did serve a valuable literary purpose, but who is to say what the future holds for any of us or them. Fingers crossed for your book! Cheers and thanks for reading.
Great post and on the mark! Going to check out your pubs now:)
Wonderful! I hope you enjoy my books. The new post “What will you be reading in 2013” (on main page, down a bit) gives descriptions and links for my current three.
Great post! You’re so lucky that you got an agent at such a young age. Do you recommend to young writers to get an agent?
The story of my first agent is a separate tale altogether. I talked about it a bit in some other posts, but what happened there is I (as an arrogant young writer will) finished my first collection of short stories and immediately sent it to one of the big publishing houses in New York. Of course, they would want it right?
LOL.
Well, knowing my age (since I referenced it in the letter with the book), an editor from the house sent it back with a very nice letter. He read the book, liked it, gave it some notes, but stated that houses like his only work through agents. He then gave me a list of agents to try. I photocopied the heck out of that letter and sent the book out to the agents on the list with the letter. And that is how I landed that first agent. They represented me for about two years.
In regards to my recommendation… The thing is how big do you want to be? Do you want to have a big publishing house or do you want to be self-published? Do you want your work in all the bookstores or just online? Yes, self-publishing (and smaller indie presses) are probably the future, but right now it is very difficult to get a bookstore to take a book like that seriously (Trust me, I know. I have three books that were published by indie presses- one in England and one in Canada). Also, if a young writer wants to impress an English department at a college, saying you have an agent means a lot more than being self-published. So, in the very least, I would recommend any author (no matter age) to at least try to get an agent for a year. If it doesn’t work, at least you know you did it. After that, go the other route.
Cheers! Thanks for reading!
Very interesting and helpful! I have a question, though: What aspects of marketing are the publisher’s responsibility, and which are the author’s? Obviously, authors are going to write their own blog posts and market to their own social networks, but what else? Do authors send themselves on book tours, couch surfing with tolerant relatives and friends? Arrange their own media appearances? Take out their own ads? Do agents and publishers advise authors about which parts they need to take responsibility for themselves? Thanks for any insight you can provide.
That’s a difficult question to answer since, in many ways, each agent/agency is different in their role in a writer’s life (and then there are managers and that line all blurs together).
Typically, an agent’s main role is to find a publisher for a book (this might also involve editing and helping prepare the manuscript for that marketing).
It then becomes the role of the publisher to market the book, and in connection to that the author. That is how the book tours, interviews, etc. Fall into place. Of course, in today’s online world writers can take part just as much as the publisher. It’s rare for an established author to do their own ads, for example.
In regards to the agent I refer to in the post, they were very clear with me on which works they wanted me to focus on and which they did not want me to. For example, I have an MFA in writing from USC, where I studied film writing. But my agent told me they were going to work on my screenplays AFTER my novels and they asked me to focus on them. So I have five screenplays that became, in a way, lost works of mine (recently, I used one as the basis for my online writing experiment Permanent Spring Showers; but they are both very different from each other now). They also were very clear about which books they thought were worth pushing first and which were to come later. So in away, that agency impacted my writing life a lot more than they probably realize.
Thanks for reading!
Thanks for the info.
Anytime. I always try to reply to questions and comments here. Actually, if you are interested in learning more about writing, on my sidebar I have a “table of contents” for my tags and you can see my other posts on writing. I have a few other editorials about agents (for example, what to look for, etc.).
It appears we (like so many others) enjoy the same authors.
Cheers! The idea I was speaking to people that have also spoken to Harper Lee really made my day… for five years.
Scot — Monster post, man. We all want to lay our troubles on a nice, polished marble doorstep and then return to our first love. We also all need to be shaken and kicked until we grasp the fact that we have to be our primary advocates and our primary marketing wonks. If there’s time left over for writing, take it or wait until there is.
BTW, I’m still impressed that you were picked up by a major player. Good work!
Thanks! Glad you liked it. It was a fun five years when I was with them, daydreaming that everything was set in my writing life.
Thanks again for reading!
Yeah, that makes sense — especially when authors are responsible for their own publicity these days.
Well, big publishing houses will still handle all that, it’s the indie and self-publishing where authors have to step up. Whatever the case, that’s not really the agency’s gig, now a manager, maybe…
Thanks for reading!
Thanks for the post. I’ve mentioned it in a post of my own at http://publishingsensefromaliceorr.blogspot.com/ I hope you don’t mind.
I’ll have to check it out. Thanks!
Just read your post. Scott the truth sayer. Awesome. LOL. Thanks for reading (and writing!).
“If an established agency wants to represent your book you should always jump onboard, that’s not a question.”
I disagree – there’s no point unless you are certain of what the agent can do for you, and certain that what she can do is what you want. No, an agent isn’t your mother – but she damn well needs to act like your agent, i.e. get you published. There’s a bit of Stockholm Syndrome in this post; that agent trifled with you for five years, achieved nothing, and you’re making excuses for him/her.
The main question to ask a prospective agent is: What can you do for me? And the answer needs to be good.
Stockholm Syndrome? That is kind of harsh.
Possibly, and it may not be germaine to your specific situation, but Lexis’s underlying point is solid (it’s also what I took issue to in my comment over on The Passive Voice).
The part of your post she snipped reads like you’re telling new writers that any deal you can get from an established agency is better than anything else you can get if you are patient, and that’s most likely not the case. A writer should weigh any agency offer carefully, check with a lawyer, research other publishing contracts, understand what they’re giving up and what they’re getting in return, research the self-publishing option … “always jump onboard, that’s not a question” is just awful advice.
I feel like from comments like this, and from what I am reading in the Passive Voice, I am touching a nerve with people, which was not my goal. And really, I am not saying anything differently than what you what you would read in a typical writer’s handbook; I’m just using my own experience as a basis for the discussion.
I’m not criticizing the decisions you made, or anyone else had made in self-publishing, everyone’s experience is different. I definitely wish you the best with your books, but for me it is hard to escape the dream of New York Times Bestsellers and cardboard displays for my books in bookstores; and agents are a step on the ladder. I dreamed big with my writing, and, yeah, it is silly, I know that. And that is why I will always consider a big agent that contacts me, no matter what I experienced in the past. (I did write a post a bit ago where I give some advice for what to look for in an agency.)
That is not to say I won’t self-publish someday in the future. I might have to with my current book since my publishing house just closed. But again, everyone is different. If you don’t like my advice (awful or not), that is fine, no one is forcing you to take it.
Maybe it was a little harsh, but you spent the first half of the post saying that your agent didn’t do a thing to help your career. Then you went on to say it was probably your fault for not doing enough to keep them interested in you. Then you conclude that you’d do it all over again if you had the chance because you got to drop some really cool names at parties.
Imagine what you would tell your daughter if she described her ex-boyfriend like that.
Again, I am little surprised how personal this article is getting in a response. So, I’m going to start by asking that we draw a line in the sand between personal and professional. Really, those are very different kind of relationships.
Dropping cool names at a party is fun, but it was not my main goal with signing with the agency. An established agent has contacts, experience. They have an “in” with publishing houses that I will not have. Is it my fault that the agent didn’t work harder for me? Maybe? I don’t know…
I’m actually not speaking about self-publishing vs. traditional at all (I, of course, have an opinion), and I don’t think anyone else is, either. I just think you either a) gave bad advice, or b) were attempting to give good advice but phrased it poorly. You implied that an author should thank their lucky stars and jump at the first agency offer they get, instead of taking some time and weighing if the offer (and the agency) is the best option for them. If that’s not what you meant, that’s cool, but it’s what you said. As stated, it’s not a good thing to tell a new writer.
The paragraph in question is: “That is not to say I recommend not signing with an agency. That would be idiotic too! If an established agency (And I wrote here about what to look for with an agency because not all agencies are equal) wants to represent your book you should always jump onboard, that’s not a question. Heck, if an agency was to contact me I would sign as well again, even with this experience behind me. I just wouldn’t be as innocent as I was the last time.”
So, first I refer to an article where I list some of my advice on what to look for with an agent (a good agency vs. a questionable one). Yes, I would recommend a writer sign with an “established” agency. And I noted (as I do throughout the article) I would not be innocent in the relationship like I was before. I didn’t say a person should jump and thank their lucky stars (you are assuming something there). If anything I am saying that “I jumped and thanked my lucky stars and I was an idiot!” The rest of the article describes my experience and what I learned from it. Those lessons are the takeaways I want the reader to have. Yes, sign with an established agent that has strong connections in the world, but don’t be as stupid as I was.
“That is not to say I recommend not signing with an agency. That would be idiotic too!”
This doesn’t exactly hurt my argument that you’re encouraging others to rush into an agency deal as soon as it’s offered, based upon nothing but your experience. But I can see we’re not going to agree on this, and it’s cool. At least I have another blog to read.
LOL. Well, if you liked my reading and will continue to read my blog; that is awesome!. To be honest, I don’t mind a debate, and I wish I had more people calling me on this stuff when I was with the agent! (I had to stop looking at the comments on Passive though.)
I don’t think Dan was dissing what you were saying about your own experience–but I read a disconnect between your view of that experience and what you advised other authors to do. The list of tales in the folder labeled “I had such and such reputable agent for xxx years and they did NOTHING” is as thick as my file full of rejection letters. Better far to assess each agency who’s willing to take you on as a client, with a sober view of what they’re prepared to do for you at this stage of your career.
I, for one, will not make that mistake a third time.
Well, I definitely won’t allow myself to hide in a bubble the next time around, that is for certain. It felt great to not have the pressure of the PR stuff off of my shoulders and just focusing on my writing, but it was an illusion.
And I will be honest, after having this blog for the last year, the idea of getting an agent again sounds exhausting. I’m still debating what to do with my new book which I just finished on this site last week.
Reblogged this on Robin Writes.
Great! I hope your readers enjoy it. Cheers!
I read this on Robin’s blog and will sign up for your blog, Scott. I appreciate your candor in sharing your experience. I self published with Abbott Press. Would I sign with an agency now? Maybe, maybe not. I’m a control freak at heart.
Excellent! I hope you enjoy my writing and site! (I’ll try not to suck too much.)
Scott- It appears that you’re pretty wedded to the traditional model and that’s ok. Others have brought up other options and said it better than I can. The point I want to make is that I didn’t find any of your books available on Amazon as ebooks. Putting on my reader only hat-
1. I read fiction only on an ereader or an app.
2. I buy ebooks from only two stores.
I would have purchased one of your books after reading through your site but I’m not able to because you’re not in the biggest ebook store. Amazon knows what they’re doing when it comes to making things easy for readers. I totally gave up on other stores for various reasons about two years ago. Amazon makes my fiction reading life better and I don’t look anywhere else these days except for a company that I wish to support directly because they do a fantastic job on formatting classics.
If I were you, I’d be talking to my publishers to find out why you aren’t available digitally from Amazon, Apple, B&N and Kobo. To the best of my knowledge, all are bigger than Google Play.
Hi Anne,
A JANE AUSTEN DAYDREAM should be out on amazon in eBook format in a few months (I just lined up a publisher for it).
In regards to DOORS and MEGAN… Well… I just forwarded your comment to the publisher. Yeah, I am using your words in my argument for making the change. Hopefully, I can get the books up there soon.
If you want to read any of my work electronically before then, please consider some of the ficition I have on the site here. Permanent Spring Shower is a novel I just finished writing and Upon the Ground is a collection of short stories I had shared on a literary site last year.
Thanks again!
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Great article Scott. I’ve been writing my novel series for the past thirteen years and have had nothing but rejections from agents. At times they made encouraging noises, “it sounds great, send us the full manuscript”, and so on. Then nothing.
I was invited along to an interview with an agent who went further; “well-written and commercially viable” were music to my ears. Then a week later he changed his mind and rejected it, without even having the decency to give me a reason, saying only that it was presumptuous of me to ask that since he wouldn’t be representing me anyway. Needless to say I wanted to deck him, but that’s never a good career move, even in crime fiction!
I’m now learning the right way to do it; making contacts and trying to make a name for myself before I approach them, attending conferences and book launches, etc. Agents must be impressed by someone before they are inclined to read their work and, with a thousand manuscripts a week piling up on their doorstep, I suppose I can see why, even if I don’t like being thought of as being just another unsolicited submission.
Consider entering your work in competitions, it will build your resume and judges are usually people established in the fields.
Your line about crime fiction really made me laugh.
Cheers!
Scott, wonderful post for a newbie writer, it appears to me in today’s world of social media based on endless posts I read, ( and yours was one of the best), who really needs a literary agent unless you are a big gun in the literary world, a Grisham, Rowling, Sparks, – if you are a nobody like me hoping to maybe be noticed for my writing effort chasing down the dream of a literary agent seems like a waste of time, although if an agent thought me worthy of signing, I am sure it would be a boost to my ego. Do I really need that; I have enough self-confidence. I have read more negative blog posts about literary agents then positive ones, maybe the coin will flip and agents will soon realize they need writers more than writers need them. And as a writer, I don’t have to be begging agents with endless queries to “pick-me!” – Thanks for the blog post – well written and a joy to read. – H Thomas Gillis
The advice I always give writers after finishing a book is to first try for an agent. Give yourself 6 months to a year. If you can get one, great; if not, at least you tried.
I am going to self-publish, if my work is any good I will let an agent chase me down. Or I will send out a handful of copies to agents I think would best benefit me. I will let my reader stats tell me the story of my worth. It appears based on all I read many writers make decent income from self-publishing and selling the books (paperback and e- format) on Amazon and other sites if they can write with any talent. I am sure you are a true writer, where as I am hoping I am a writer while, (getting all the help I can,) but still chasing down an agent for an unknown appears to be an Olympian task.
-thanks for your comment. HT Gillis
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How refreshing to read an article which doesn’t tell me the writer is a bestseller and that all I have to do is set myself the goal to succeed. Refreshingly honest too, admitting a bit of failure along the journey to success. Well done.
Thanks!
Your thoughts on whether to call your agent are exactly mine! I’ve only been agented since March–nothing much happening–and I’m very reluctant to call. I did e-mail twice since March. Answers are terse, but friendly. Glad to hear it’s not just me. Thanks! (PS I checked–Man Booker is a trophy.)
LOL. That is awesome! I’ll take a trophy! LOL
How terse is terse? One thing you might consider is asking your agent what their schedule is for updating you on their work. It might be a neat little trick to make sure you are on their calendar.
Reading this I am nodding my head throughout. I also scored a fairly decent agent a few years back (he had and currently has some best sellers under his belt). I’d be trying for a long time and always getting close, but no one actually offering representation. When it finally happened, I also waited for those bookers, and pulitzer, and national book awards to come traipsing in – as soon as he sold the book that is.
After touring through the big 6, we went to some lessers, and then independents. Some very good comments, but a lot of “not for us”. Having a novel on submission I found even more depressing than sending out queries. Over a year went by, and still nothing. I did what I thought any pro would do – wrote another book. About two years in, I finished my second novel, showed it to my agent (hey, no querying for me!), and he said he couldn’t sell it. I asked, so you want me to rewrite? Nope. Try another one.
I won’t go into detail for the rest of the tale, but it deals with other agents, and shopping things around, and then at the end being right back where I was a few years before. No agent. No book deal. And as you mentioned, I felt like I’d let my whole profile slide.
For the last few months, I’ve been finally climbing back in – released a couple of books on Amazon (including the first novel), working on another, blogging, taking part in an anthology and other such projects. Still looking for a new agent, but I know when I get one (if), that is guarantees absolutely nothing.
Thanks for posting – great blog.
Thanks for reading and commenting. It’s nice to know we are not alone in the experience. The experience left my creativity and drive damaged for a few years. Having this blog has really been a lifesaver for my creativity.
The trick for me now is I have a new novel I want to get out there, but every time I write a query to an agent, I get a queasy feeling in my stomach.
I did self publish one book but its not the same….
Cheers.
I loved it when I had an agent, finished a novel, and didn’t have to query – what a feeling! Until he turned it down. I’ve had lots of agents ask for partials and full manuscript – and each time, I get less excited (and more real). But I know so much that sick feeling in your stomach when I write a query Ugh.
Agreed – self-pubbing is just not the same.
I also blog as a lifesaver (and the self-pubbing helps to a degree – I sell a few books, I give away a ton) – but I am back on the query agent trail. It’s a long trail, and a ragged one full of rejection and emotional lows. But I keep on it. I’ll be sure to follow your progress – it is very nice to know that we are not alone in this experience.
See Craig says “After touring through the big 6, we went to some lessers, and then independents” now personally I just don’t know that I would be impressed if an agent did that since I sent my first novel out to 5 independents with great reputations myself, and received 3 contract offers out of 5, within 3 months. If I were to get an agent it would be to try and break in to the big 5/6? Or maybe I just don’t know enough? But I’m suspicious of the value of some stuff I have heard. They say a bad agent is worse than no agent. I’ve read about some fabulous sounding agents but I don’t know if I’d have the patience for the query go around I keep reading about.
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I appreciate your insights shared. I will keep in mind that my agent is not my mother. 🙂
LOL. Glad to help!
Great post, Scott. Thanks. With us writers, it’s gotta be “All In” or it’s not gonna fly. Then again, those five years taught you things that made you stronger and much more effective in your marketing and networking, so they were very useful to you and to us!
It does sound cheesy to say this, but I do feel a lot of things happen for a reason when you look back at an event. Yes, I would have rather that agent find success for my work (of course), but I have this site now and I seem to reach a pretty big audience with it and Twitter. Plus, it is very satisfying to me as a writer. I think it is because it is so immediate. I put up a post or link to it on Twitter and soon after I see views, comments (like from cool people like you), favorites, retweets, etc. Last year, I wrote my new novel online, one chapter a week and while the story was evolving (literally I would finish a a 25 or so page chapter on Thursday and it would be up on Friday) I was getting my reader reaction to every step I took. Such a new experience. I never would have attempted that if I was more established.
I would still love to have an agent, but the open, free-for-all style of the new social presence feels right for my work. I’ve found readers and gotten encouragement from amazing sources that would have never heard of me if I’d been mid-list. BTW, it’s not cheesy if it’s real.
As an author with a publisher but no agent, I find this post really interesting and informative. I am forever being told that an agent would take care of PR, but have never quite believed this, so thanks for clarifying. I would still love to have an agent. Thank you for posting this.
As an author with a publisher but no agent, I found this post interesting and informative. I am forever being told that an agent would take care of the PR for my novel Mesmerised but have never quite believed this, so thanks for clarifying. However, I would still love to have an agent I can have a good relationship with. You can never have too many people fighting your corner.
Sometimes people confuse managers with agents. A manager would definitely have a say in the PR and the like, for agents it is a little more hit or miss. Some take part in it, some don’t have the time.
I do hope to have an agent again for my new book. But there is so much luck and timing around this enterprise, so the trick is not to take anything too personally.
Cheers!
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