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Topic: Literary agent switch
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| JTC905 | Posted – 10/3/2007 2:04:40 PM | show profile I have a question about literary agents. I'm a young author, currently unpublished. Two years ago, I completed my first novel. Through connections in the publishing world, I was fortunate to be chosen for representation by a well-known and successful literary agent. I feel privileged to be on her roster; several of her clients are top-of-the-list names in commercial fiction, and she's known for her tenacity and integrity. Still, I'm worried. My agent doesn't seem to go for "the hard sell." Her submission queries to editors are terse ("Here's a manuscript I think you'll enjoy...") and I worry that these letters, entirely without an agent's customary pitch, don't do me much good--she's got a great reputation, but I'm nobody. Also, she submits to two or three publishers every few months and doesn't always follow up with editors who don't respond. My novel is more literary, but she's made her name in genre fiction. And my agent and her assistant sometimes neglect to return my phone messages. I'm a small fish, and she's got a few whales on her list, so I don't expect her complete attention. Still, despite my agent's good reputation, I worry that being an unknown on her list hurts my chances of being published. I want to ask anyone here kind enough to respond: 1) Would I have an advantage being pitched by a more obscure agent if he/she campaigns more relentlessly for me? 2) Is reputation the most important feature of a literary agent to fiction publishers? 3) If I decide to switch agents, will other agents avoid me because I left my previous agent? Is doing so simply too audacious for an unpublished author? Thanks in advance for your advice. |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 10/3/2007 2:51:13 PM | show profile Ultimately, all you expect is for an agent to put your book in front of editors and get a fair read. The rep of your agent might get you read, but no one is going to buy a novel because of who the agent is. It's impossible to say whether a smaller, hungrier agent would be better for you than a bigwig who sees you as a small fish. After two years, your agent might have lost interest in your book and it's probably deep on their back burner, to be honest. In my experience, the quickness with which agents return calls tends to slow the longer a project takes to sell. It's OK to check in with the agent and be direct. At this point, do they think the book will sell? Have they run out of places to send it? Etc., etc. Good luck!! Writers leave agents all the time. That's no big deal. You might have trouble finding another agent to take this particular novel, if a bigwig agent has peddled it for two years with no takers. |
| bart23ny | Posted – 10/4/2007 7:49:35 AM | show profile Here's what you should do. First, talk to her and tell her your concerms. Second (and maybe this should be first), write another book. Make the second one better than the first. It's HARD to get an agent. Hold on tight. |
| stinking prague | Posted – 10/4/2007 12:07:41 PM | show profile I'd say bart's answer is spot on. Dribble's aint bad either. Agents are really hard to get. Fiction is really hard to sell. Literary fiction even more so. What you wrote was good enough to get her interested, but not enough to make her go balls-to-the-wall for you. Maybe your next one might make her do differently. go write another one, maybe you should try being more commercial. If you sell number two, number one might go later. Just my two cents. good luck |
| foodlit | Posted – 10/4/2007 12:16:03 PM | show profile Agents are not hard to get. Not when you have something they think they can sell. A big mistake writers often make is assuming that having any agent is better than not having one. I have several friends who were in similar positions, where their agent half-heartedly sent their stuff out, was slow to return calls and they essentially lost close to two years. Both of them signed with an agent who was wildly passionate about their stuff, and aggressive. Both sold within several months...good sales to top publishers. But, it still is the writing that makes the sale, not the agent's enthusiasm...that will simply get you a faster read. I'd suggest talking with your agent first. I wouldn't be overly concerned about the short pitches she makes for the book...if she has a good reputation, she doesn't need to gush, they'll read and make up their own minds. But, you do need to talk with her, make sure you're on the same page and that she is still enthusiastic about the book. You should also be working on your next book. Timing is everything! Pam |
| esmuymalo | Posted – 10/4/2007 1:26:45 PM | show profile Yes, do just as Prague said and try to be more commercial. After all, that's just what the world needs: more chick lit, more Jason Bourne clones, more knitting mysteries, and more cop dramas. Can't ever get enough of that. Why does anyone here think that if this agent isn't motivated to sell the first novel that she'll treat the second novel differently, even if it's a better book? Couldn't the issue be the author's inexperience? Agents aren't hard to get. They're a dime a dozen. Anyone can be a literary agent without training--you don't even have to like books. Getting an agent who fights for unpublished writers seems to be the tough part. |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 10/4/2007 5:47:58 PM | show profile That's not really true -- it is hard to get an agent with a good reputation who is regularly selling to editors. I also think you overestimate how much agent's fight. They pick material they like, perhaps shape it, and then send it out. Some send out books in mass, some to one or a couple of editors at a time. The editor will either like it or not -- and decide to take it to his editorial board, who will either buy it or not. Once an agent has put the book in front of an editor, there is not that much more they can do. -- Agents aren't hard to get. They're a dime a dozen. Anyone can be a literary agent without training--you don't even have to like books. Getting an agent who fights for unpublished writers seems to be the tough part.-- |
| westsidestory | Posted – 10/4/2007 10:43:32 PM | show profile I have to agree with dribble. It's incredibly hard for an unpublished author to obtain an agent in the first place - and most fiction publishers won't even open an envelope if it hasn't come from an agent. I'd say certainly have a talk, but don't walk. |
| foodlit | Posted – 10/5/2007 3:03:35 AM | show profile Agents are not hard to get. They're incredibly easy to get. Big IF though. IF you have publishable material, you'll have no trouble getting an agent. That doesn't necessarily just mean decent writing, it means a commercial or high quality literary story that the agent thinks will sell. So, a good agent is hard to get if your work isn't quite there yet. That's also the dangerous time, when the subpar agents and there are plenty of those, will take you on, and waste your time. However, that can easily be avoided with research. It's not difficult to find out what agents are good and who is selling regularly. I used to be an agent, for about a year and a half. You would be amazed how few queries came through that had both good writing and an interesting story, and then a manuscript that followed through. Though it may seem like everyone is writing a novel...most of them just aren't good enough to make the cut. One of the problems is that too many writers expect to sell the first novel they finish, and very few first novels are really ready for publication. I think the average is 4 or 5 novels before one sells, though there are always exceptions. I've had several friends who got agents with their first or second books, but didn't sell until book 4 or get an agent at that point. But then, they had their pick of agents, and their books sold at auction. Publishing is hard. Writing a book that is publishable by a big publisher is hard. Getting an agent once you have written that book is the easy part. :) Pam |
| foodlit | Posted – 10/5/2007 3:09:51 AM | show profile to Esmuyalo, While it's true that anyone call call themselves and agent, you don't want just anyone. You certainly don't want an agent who doesn't love reading books....they won't be able to sell them. They won't know which editor will respond to what, what their different tastes are, etc. All successful agents are avid readers, they have to be. And no agent fights for unpublished authors. That's just not what they do. There's nothing to 'fight' about. It's really simple, if an agent is wowed by a book and thinks that an editor will want to buy it, they'll take it on, send it out, and sell it. The writing is what sells the book. The agent just gets it into the editors hands...the right editors, and then negotiates an advantageous contract and helps the author build a career. That's what good agents do. |
| foodlit | Posted – 10/5/2007 3:10:43 AM | show profile ugh....sorry bout the typos. I really wish there was an edit function here. |
| Mr Media | Posted – 10/6/2007 1:43:59 AM | show profile I disagree that its "easy" to get an agent. Maybe in America but not in my country. In my country there are very few agents and most them "only" deal with people with big track records already. Its the reason why I decided I'm going to have to look for an American book agent. I do agree in the aspect its easy to find out if an agent is legit or not. I wish I had an agent. I've written some stuff and I'm looking for an agent. |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 10/6/2007 2:10:13 AM | show profile No offense, but this seems like a no-duh viewpoint: It seems to me you're only saying, if an agent loves you work and thinks he can sell it easily, it's easy to get an agent. --Agents are not hard to get. They're incredibly easy to get. Big IF though. IF you have publishable material, you'll have no trouble getting an agent. That doesn't necessarily just mean decent writing, it means a commercial or high quality literary story that the agent thinks will sell.-- |
| stinking prague | Posted – 10/6/2007 6:52:05 AM | show profile Mr Media, we have no idea what nation you're hailing from. But are you writing something for the local market or for the Big Table? If you're writing for a US or Intl audience, then find an agent in NYC or London. They all read their email. If what you got interests them, they'll bite. Publishing in most countries in an incestuous little group-grope. Here in the US or UK, there's always enough bastards on the make that if you got something marketable and present it properly, they'll be interested..... Getting fiction published is still a million-to-one shot. Even without running afoul of scam/bullshit artists, My experience getting an agent was brutal, I would seriously rather lose a testicle than go through it again. That said, it's all do-able good luck, troop! good luck |
| JeanMarie | Posted – 10/6/2007 7:34:16 PM | show profile Do you have another novel ready to go? |
| stinking prague | Posted – 10/7/2007 8:21:07 AM | show profile My other novel in on a flash drive and an uG-ly feeling tells me it goona stay there. for the good of humanity and all that |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 10/7/2007 7:09:03 PM | show profile I think her point is there's probably no point in looking for another agent until you have some material to sell. If the current novel has been widely sent out and rejected, it would probably be difficult to send an agent who wants to represent it at this point. |
| stinking prague | Posted – 10/8/2007 5:17:33 AM | show profile possibly the other point is that it is better to have a "B-list" agent who'll hustle for you than an "A-list" agent who won't. |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 10/8/2007 12:23:39 PM | show profile My experience is that most B agents don't hustle anymore than A agents. My take is there isn't all that much hustling in the book world, especially when it comes to a novel. You get your material in front of an editor, and he either responds or doesn't. If he does, he takes it in front of his sales committee and tries to sell it. I've heard stories of agents in the movie world being aggressive and making a difference -- lobbying stars and attach them to the script, getting funding from who knows where -- but not in the novel world. I was just a dinner with a bunch of writer friends, and everyone was complaining about their agents -- they don't do anything, they don't return calls, they don't know the market. One of the guys at the dinner was a NTY bestseller, too. --possibly the other point is that it is better to have a "B-list" agent who'll hustle for you than an "A-list" agent who won't.- |
| foodlit | Posted – 10/8/2007 2:36:26 PM | show profile Dribble, It does seem no a no-duh concept, that it will be hard to get an agent if your book isn't really good, but you'd be amazed how few people get this. They seem to think that the ticket to selling the book is landing the agent that just having the agent means the book will sell. So, in a sense it is hard, because inevitably the people having a really hard time getting an agent, just don't have a book that is good enough. Case in point, one friend of mine sent her first novel and then several followup novels out and was rejected everywhere. Then, her fourth book was so incredibly stronger that she received offers from all four agents she contacted, and then had offers from six publishers. So, when something is obviously good and exciting, you not only will not have a hard time getting an agent, you'll likely have multiple offers. It's just so rare that agents see really good stuff. They see tons of almost good enough. |
| dribbledrive1 | Posted – 10/8/2007 3:21:05 PM | show profile I get your point. The problem is that the good stuff vs. the almost good enough is entirely in the eye of the beholder, and with a first-time novelists most agents are leaning to saying no from the start. Bestseller lists are full of books that a lot of agents and publishers disliked or didn't think were good enough -- and they were wrong. --It's just so rare that agents see really good stuff. They see tons of almost good enough.... So, when something is obviously good and exciting, you not only will not have a hard time getting an agent, you'll likely have multiple offers.== |
| stinking prague | Posted – 10/8/2007 3:42:20 PM | show profile Guys, all I know is my agent went out and sold my goofball novel over a three day weekend. I don't know if he'd returns my phone calls, cuz I've never called him. He responds to my emails if he sees a point to it. Before he went out and hustled it, he kept me dangling and I didn't like it. Why did he treat me like crap? Because he was busy hustling other authors and he didn't consider my stuff ready. And I have to say he was right. I was steamed, but I didn't realize he was dropping my project to the right people over lunch and had a bunch of people already interested. Then when the time came..... he went out and hustled it and gave it his full attention and Boom! I'm coming out next fall as a debut fiction Hey, I'm nobody. I had no one recommending me, but my pitch letter got his attention. I'm damn lucky I found a guy with some sand in his gut and a family he needs to provide for. |
| foodlit | Posted – 10/8/2007 4:22:29 PM | show profile Prague, You're not just lucky. I suspect you're a very good writer too! Congratulations on the sale. What will the book be called? Will keep an eye out for it. Pam |
| stinking prague | Posted – 10/9/2007 1:36:52 AM | show profile IT gonna be called 'Germania.' |
| savini | Posted – 10/9/2007 9:43:38 AM | show profile Agents or lack there of I too have written a book, my first, and was fortunate enough to find that "high powered N.Y. agent." My problem lies in the fact that my agent has never read my work but insisits on selling it through a proposal. It is a non-fiction investigative true crime book. Is this the standard? It seems to me that what's read is better pitched... |
