Blogger: Wendy Lawton
Location: Books & Such, Central Valley, CA Office
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We already shattered the myth that you need an agent to get published, but myths persist. So it stands to reason that if you believe you need an agent to get your foot in the publishing door, a bad agent is better than no agent at all. Needless to say, I will be debunking that myth.
To understand the difference between a good agent and a bad agent, you need to know what agents do. Your agent will help plan your career, guide you in developing projects, present and sell those projects, negotiate a fair contract, shepherd that book through the whole process– weighing in on covers, back-cover copy, marketing and eventually reversion of rights. Your agent will help troubleshoot book content, put out fires and ride herd on your rights and your royalties. And that’s only for starters.
So what makes a good agent? She needs to be well-connected so she can make the introductions and keep on top of changes in the industry. She needs to be someone who can smooth troubled waters and keep everything humming along. A good agent must be organized, paying attention to detail. You want someone who is always scanning the horizon to get a bead on what’s new, what’s next. Your agent should be well-liked by editors and publishers.
Most of the agents in the industry are very good at what they do, but. . .
I cringe a little when I talk about “bad” agents because all of us fall short sometimes, but the difference between a good agent and a bad agent is the level of integrity, skill, communication and knowledge of the industry.
Integrity. An agent is bound by certain rules. For starters, you can read the AAR (Association of Authors’ Representatives) Canon of Ethics at http://www.aar-online.org/. It is unethical for an agent to ask a potential client for any money up front, whether reading fees, editing fees or a retainer. An agent only makes money when the client makes money. This is one of the easiest ways to spot a bad agent. An agent should not refer you to a publicist, editorial service or self-publisher in which he has any financial interest or receives any kind of referral fee. You also want your agent to be a truth teller, to be part of a financially secure agency and to have an excellent reputation in the industry.
Skills. A good agent is a skilled negotiator, has a well-developed eye for writing, and has that hard-to-define sense of what is appropriate. We talked about persistence yesterday and though an agent sometimes needs to be tough and persistent, he also needs an equal dose of subtlety, tact, diplomacy and discretion. This is where a bad agent can ruin your career. Publishers avoid certain agents. Unwitting writers connected to such an agent may be held at arm’s length by publishers only because of that agent’s reputation or past dealings.
Communication. A good agent communicates well with clients, editors and colleagues. Communication is ever more complex these days. Communicating well may require a combination of travel, telephone, email, a web presence, blogging and maybe even Twittering. It’s easy to imagine how a silent agent can damage a career.
Knowledge of the Industry. A good agent know editors and publishing houses. He knows who’s looking for what and understands how to match the perfect project to the perfect editor. He makes sure he presents the editor with all the information he needs to make a decision. A bad agent blankets the industry with proposals, sending everything to everyone. Editors know which agents handpick projects for them and which use the shotgun approach.
So how do you tell the good agent from the bad? Aside from the obvious–agents asking for money upfront or appearing overly hungry for clients– one of the best ways is to talk to fellow writers about their agents. If you work with an editor already, ask that editor for names of agents who might be a good match. They won’t be able to name names of bad agents but they won’t recommend them either. There are websites like Preditors and Editors http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors that list agents along with any complaints about them.
I’ve only danced around the edges here. There are stories that could be told, but we’ll leave those to the imagination. The important thing to remember is that a bad agent is worse than no agent at all.
So this concludes my week of myth busting. I’m still collecting publishing myths, so if you’d like to share any you’ve collected along the way or have heard some rumbling or rumors you’d like verified or debunked, leave a comment and we’ll tackle it in the future.
Teri D. Smith
Thanks for the myth-busting week! You did so with clarity and grace.
violet
I had no idea agents did all that! Very informative post – thank you!
jane g meyer
I truly appreciated all your insights this week. I’m so glad I’m mixed up with you Bookies!
Jill Boyd
Thanks for busting the myths and opening our eyes. I look forward to reading more of your blog!
Nika Dixon
I’ve just discovered your blog and wanted to say thank you for your myth busting this week! Being new to the industry I am starving for information and your postings this week were very much appreciated!
– Nika
A J Hawke
Thanks for the information you have shared.
It helps to know more of what an agent does and to understand what makes for a good one.
You are making my path through this publishing business easier to understand.
A J
ajhawke.blogspot.com
Lisa Lickel
Thank you, Wendy, for touching on this aspect. The two representatives I had working with me were not BAD, but they weren’t GOOD either, according to your definition. I about cry when I read what good agents do. I have patience, I understand that things take time, I am not demanding or unreasonable. I sat on my response for a couple of days, but as I read the comments from the other readers, I think it’s important to honestly let other potential authors know that situations like mine occur, hopefully not regularly.
My first experience five years ago involved querying an agent who was well known in the organization to which I belonged. He asked me to write back in six months; I did and he took me on. I was thrilled. He then proceeded to send out everything novelish that I ever wrote to everybody and her grandmother – apparently no rhyme or reason – with the cheerful words accompanying each rejection like “I have yet to place anything with this person.” When my first contract turned into a blazing stink of mile-high burning tractor tires with manure still coating them, he e-patted my hand and told me about how he’d had similar experiences. And did nothing else about it. Two and a half years later we parted ways amicably, after a fellow writer advised me to seek other representation and made a phone call on behalf. I thought I knew the right questions to ask, and this potential agent and I had several lengthy conversations before I jumped ship and signed with her. I have a pretty big backlog of finished ms and proposals by now, all of which she saw. I’m ready to move, but this agent stuck to the genre of her choice, and kept trying to get me to continue to rework a piece that had been rejected a couple of times for a company I told her I had no wish to continue to work with. In nine months she sent out one piece of work. I did not pester her or phone her or e-mail constantly, although I really wanted to move some of my work. Or at least try. After eight months of no progress and little further discussion about it, except that she couldn’t sell this or that, I began to quietly query other agents and editors on my own. A proposal that I had pitched at a conference before we signed fell through, the agent dropped me. I consider last year a year wasted, although the first agent I considered a learning experience.
Simply having an agent doesn’t mean your career will take off. Your friends aren’t always really enthusiastic about sharing agent information. Agents will occasionally change their minds about what they think they can do with you, and that’s okay, as long as they don’t hold your stuff hostage.
Wendy Lawton
Lisa, your path has been a tough one. Just for the record, it can be difficult for an an agent to know precisely where to start with a new client who has an extensive backlog of work he hopes to sell. An agent who is working to to direct your career, brand you and focus on you best area, may be slow to get you out there– in a sense testing with a little editor editor feedback to see where you are strongest. (Of course communication helps with these kinds of things.)
But you are right. Simply having an agent is not enough.
Don’t give up, Lisa. There are some great agents out there.
Lisa Lickel
Thank you…sorry to unload. Would I still go into writing even if I had known all this? Yes! It’s all about how you pick yourself up, isn’t it?
Irene Martin
Thank you for the great advice.
susanne lakin
I have two fantastic agents now. One is even taking me to NY to BEA to show me off to editors (and taking me to a show!). She has a great track record (27 years) of selling first novels at BEA this way. I have had a couple “bad” agents in the past. Of course, I didn’t know they would be “bad” until a year of nothing. But at the time I couldn’t land any other agents, so it didn’t really cost me, as I kept writing. Agents are really hard to get, so my thought at the time was as you said–something was better than nothing, and I thought it would help me get in the door to editors if they knew I was represented. I don’t know if that proved true or not.