Blogger: Wendy Lawton
Just a couple weeks ago someone asked me if I see agents eventually going away. My answer may seem to be self-serving because I happen to be a literary agent, but no. I do not. I actually think it’s a shame more industries don’t offer agents.
We already know that if you want to buy or sell a house you need a real estate agent.
If you are seeking an executive position you need an employment agent, also lovingly called a headhunter.
Professional sports? Yep. Nearly all of the players and even the coaches have agents.
Actors? We know they have agents. Musicians have agents, illustrators have agents, comedians have agents.
Why do all these agents exist?
- They protect the client.
- They negotiate deals.
- They get work for the client.
- They handle legal details.
- They deal with problems that crop up.
- They solve disputes, leaving the client free to create, play, dream or work.
Just think of the other professions who ought to have an agent. The first one that came to my mind was pastor. Wouldn’t it be nice if each pastor had an agent to handle the messy financial negotiations when called to a new church? How about when there’s a dispute in the congregation? Making sure retirement benefits are there as well as medical, education stipends, etc.
Students need agents to help chart their educational careers, make certain they get the best instructors, to question grade inequities, to make sure their work is seen by those who need to be aware of them. Right?
Some of my clients are certified life coaches– much like an agent. Couldn’t we all use one to help guide us, push us sometimes and question decisions that could derail us?
Now it’s your turn. Help me come up with other careers or people who really ought to have an agent. (Tongue-in-cheek or not.) What the world needs is more agents. Right?
I need an agent, someone who would negotiate with Pain and Humiliation and Death on my behalf.
* I can take what’s thrown at me – so far. yesterday that included canine CPR, and now I have a couple of broken ribs, but I am still living, and I remain.
* For what might my agent negotiate?
– With Pain, I would ask that one system goes down at a time. Having chest pain along with pancreatic-malignancy-pain is rather over-the-top, and prevents me from savouring their essence individually.
– With Humiliation, I’d request that incontinence and vomiting be limited to when I’m inside the house. But some progress has been made…when I collapse outside the people who help me back to the house, of late, speak no English. No witnesses, so to speak.
– And I would ask that Death hold the scythe in abeyance until I’ve completed my witness to God’s Goodness even in the face of a nightmare.
* But in writing this, I realize that I already have an agent…though He does moonlight as a carpenter.
And He is the best agent, since who else is there who can negotiate with Death?
Spot on Katie and Andrew. We have the BEST agent we could possibly have. All he needs to say is, “He/She is with me.”
Praying for you, Andrew.
Thank you so much, Kiersti. Prayers are the updraft that keeps me on my metaphorical feet, and I very much treasure them.
As you know, I wrote this blog sort of tongue-in-cheek but the one agent that is essential IMO is a medical ombudsman. Dealing with the red tape of serious illness and hospitalizations requires someone who will question, demand, clarify and negotiate. And it’s too much to expect the patient to do this. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if insurance companies would fund this kind of advocate?
I sure wish they would, Wendy.
Again, right on target, Wendy. My wife and I have to do this sort of representation for my mother-in-law who is currently in skilled nursing care – which, in this case, is a bit of an oxymoron. If we do not hold the “skilled-nurses'” feet to the fire, the “care” falls by the wayside. We have become that “phone call no one wants to take” that Shirley talked about last week on Mary’s blog post.
I’m not sure about your area but many hospital networks and insurance companies assign an oncology navigator, coordinator or case manager to every patient being treated, usually through a team approach of physician, nurse, social worker, chaplain, volunteer. There are models which include this palliative care approach with insurance while on active treatment. Perhaps your doctor’s office can quide you? I see more of this modern approach included in works of fiction as well as back story.
Thank you Wendy.
What better way to get a subjective point of view in any profession than to consult a professional? My wife loves my writing but her point of view is to keep me encouraged and give her opinion to me. A literary professional will give me the straight up fact about my writing without bias. I can respect that. “Thick skin” to handle rejections isn’t necessary when you respect the unbiased truth.
“’Thick skin” to handle rejections isn’t necessary when you respect the unbiased truth.” So true, Terrance. Unfortunately the sensitivity it takes to be a writer often comes along with a tender heart. (I need to keep reminding myself of that– I forget and too often just give the “things to improve.”)
A patient needs an agent to listen carefully to all explanations (after all, the patient is sick and would rather sleep). The agent would decide on the best course of treatment and negotiate the financial details.
* Oh yeah, we already have that. We call it “next of kin.” A true agent would want the job and be good at it. Next of kin, unfortunately, may not.
Um, the financial details, sure, but I want to be the one negotiating the course of treatment. Had a NOK ok the use of psychotropic drugs for pain control, and that REALLY didn’t work. I went nuts, and tried to strangle a couple of security guys with an IV line. I could have told them, but I wasn’t in the loop.
* One does need an agent to negotiate memorial service music. Currently there’s “Wind Beneath My Wings” and “My Heart Will Go On” on one side, and “Walk Of Life” and “Dancing Queen” on the other. Clearly there is a lot of movement needs to take place…otherwise, with the saccharine stuff, I may just not show up.
Brilliant minds think alike. . . (see comment above).
Your post raises this question for me: for whom can I be the agent, the advocate, the protector? Maybe not for a whole career, but at least for a moment.
I’ll bet you are the agent for many in your church, Shirlee. Pastor’s wives are looked to for that kind of help all too often.
Moms need agents!
All that whining and complaining from Katie about how Chris never gets in trouble?
“Talk to my agent”.
(BTW, Chris is in law enforcement now, his epic good behaviour was a pattern…once he hit high school, he seriously never got in actual trouble from us.)
You want clean laundry? Talk to my agent. Have you met my spine? *I* refuse to shove solid oak beds aside anymore! Dig out your own socks!
(I moved Zach’s bed once, and found 25 socks. TWENTY FIVE)
You want apple pie for dessert? Call Mary Keeley and negotiate how many apples you’re gonna peel. I need at least 15. Hey, we have 4 kids, I make multiple pies.
You want to go with me when I go to claim my Pulitzer? Talk to my agent. But she may not answer, because her hands are sore from arranging all the flowers, and unwrapping all (or some…not judging) the chocolates I’ve sent her.
How’d he wind up with an odd number of socks under the bed?
Maybe the bed eats socks like the clothes dryer does 🙂
Zach tosses his socks wherever he feels like tossing them. I find them almost everywhere. Don’t even ask about his hockey bag.
Wish I’d had an agent when my kids were young. Sometimes my husband tried to fill that role, but it didn’t work.
Definitely moms!
Please, don’t get me started on socks! I’d love to know how some of my clean socks end up in my boys’ dirty clothes hampers . . . I already know how they end up under sofa cushions. They usually have a little help getting there. 😉
Zach steals my socks! He has size 12 feet!!
Interesting, fun post, Wendy. I would add moms. Sometimes they could use someone to negotiate the moods and behaviors of their children (NO! Of COURSE I’m not speaking from experience 😉 ).
*Sometimes teachers could use an agent to help navigate the rapids of communications with parents and expectations of things they are required to do outside the classroom.
*And, I’m sure my kids would say they need agents to help them get better terms in consequences for above mentioned behaviors. 😉
Teachers, yes. Too often underpaid for the amount of education required and over criticized for the “cushy” job. “Wow, you get the whole summer off?”
EXACTLY, Wendy. People just don’t know what they don’t know. 🙂
Teachers! Oh, mam, it would have been nice to have an agent when I was teaching.
Isn’t that the teacher’s union?
Agents work for the individual. Unions work for the whole, sometimes at the expense of the individual.
Uh . . . no, Damon. 😉 Not terribly often. At least not in my experience. They usually have their own agenda.
Valid point by both Wendy and Jeanne. I withdraw my silly question. 😉
For you and me both, Christina. 🙂 How nice would that have been when a parent came in to “talk” to us about how much we hated their kids. . . .
I would have appreciated having an agent when I attended a local community college. The agent could have pointed out certain things about the college that didn’t work toward helping me get the kind of education I thought I would get. In retrospect, the red flags were there, but I didn’t give them the consideration I should have. As a non-traditional student, I naively believed they wouldn’t really matter. A third party who had no stake in either the college or what I did would have helped.
*Currently I am seeing a certified life coach, and we are digging up attitudes and traits that affect everything else. It’s hard work, and I don’t like everything I see, but I believe it’s worth it. It’s nice to have someone who can encourage me and yet be “outside” to caution me.
You are right. Counselors are supposed to be that person, but. . . well, yeah.
I guess most parents are like agents to their kids … helping “train up a child in the way he should go …” I think of all the choices I’ve made for my kids, the guidance, the prayers … And I was so thankful for my daughter’s “success coach” her first year of college. She guided us on the classes to take, etc, really making it easier on our part. Sometimes I think we need an agent as we age … it seems like there are so many choices to make, and we usually just go by word-of-mouth, ask friends. 🙂
And that’s something I should have mentioned that agents do– pray for their clients.
And, Wendy, even though I’m not a client, I do pray for y’all at Books and Such, every day. This blog, and the community you’ve fostered, is central to my life and hope.
And if you knew how much this community prays for you, Andrew. . .
Wendy, the prayers are not only felt but experienced; y’all are the Wind Beneath My Wings. So that may be a pretty good memorial song after all, with the dedication from me to Books and Such and everyone here.
I love your take on us being agents for our children, Shelli. As mine dive into their teen years, I’m praying more than ever before. And being very intentional about when I talk to them about some of the “hard stuff.”
Yes, Jeanne … I time everything. It seems. When are they better able to handle this talk? This …? I sure understand that.
The CIA needs agents.
I’d say more, but it’s on a need-to-know basis, and you don’t need to know.
🙂
Well, Carol, Barb DOES call me her Secret Asian Man. Let the groans commence.
Groans and eye rolls.
Egg rolls, Carol. And some kung pao chicken!
ggrrrrooooooaaaaannn …..
prayers for you Andrew.
Cindy, thank you so much for the prayers. They are very much needed.
I have thought much about this subject in the past, and believe you have answered one of the questions I ask in searching for an agent. It is one of how you see yourself and your role. Do you represent me, or are you representing a book? I prefer the former. I have also wondered if there are agents who represent both the Author and the Speaker. That would be interesting! It seems to me that much of the same negotiating can be done in that realm as well, though speaking gigs are usually one-offs, and thre ROI is much lower there. It may not be as necessary to have an agent in that regard.
Several agents have tried to become speaker agents as well but it is a whole different set of tasks. A speakers bureau– if they are good should proactively take their clients out there, drumming up gigs for them. They need a whole “rolodex” of event planners, organizations, etc. and they need to market to them regularly. Unfortunately most CBA speakers bureaus are passive agents. If someone comes to them to request one of their speakers they negotiate the fees, etc.
> “Unfortunately most CBA speakers bureaus are passive agents”
I read an article just last week about this very subject, and you have just confirmed it.
Jockeys have agents – that’s how they get their mounts. We made several friends in the thoroughbred racing industry when my husband was a chaplain with the Race Track Chaplaincy of America. Now I find the auditory similarity between the two industries entertaining: riders’ agents, writers’ agents.
Fascinating!
Fun idea, Wendy! The thought of a pastor having an agent makes me laugh. But not a bad idea. 🙂 How about an agent for a lawyer? Even lawyers could use someone in their corner, negotiating for higher pay, fewer hours, and more love. 🙂
True. Even if you were a lawyer, experienced in negotiating, can you imagine doing your own negotiating toward becoming partner?
I’m certainly grateful there are still literary agents around. I would venture to say that those who don’t appreciate them haven’t been in the industry very long. I’ve greatly benefited from literary agents just through their blogs etc. They have a passion for teaching authors and I have learned so, so much from them. Especially those of you at Books and Such. THANK YOU!
As for what I wish there were agents for…
If there was an agent for Senior Care, they would be worth their weight in gold. Someone to look for nursing homes, negotiate with their ridiculous prices, handle disputes, check in on them to make sure they’re treating the patient right, and handle lawsuits if it came down to that. When a family has to make the decision to put a loved one in a facility, it isn’t easy at all. Having someone to handle all that would be amazing.
Spot on, Amber. Senior care advocates. That would be a ministry!
Fun post, Wendy. And good ideas from the community. I’d suggest adding ~
1. domestic violence counselors. “You don’t like me finding a shelter for your black & blue wife? Talk to my agent (who’d be 10 feet tall and appear like an avenging angel!).”
2. Preschool teachers ~ who would rather teach little ones, nurture their curiosity, and expand their skills and imagination than force them all to learn to write their ABCs before they’re ready.
3. Waitresses (and waiters, but diners don’t have that many). No matter who messed up their duties – cook, dishwasher, cleaning crew…. the person serving the platters catches the fallout. Would have loved having an agent to assist in negotiations with the late-night crowd. 🙂