Literary agent
Encyclopedia
A literary agent is an agent who represents writer
s and their written works to publishers, theatrical producer
s and film producer
s and assists in the sale and deal negotiation of the same. Literary agents most often represent novelists, screenwriters and major non-fiction writers. They are paid a fixed percentage (ten to twenty percent; fifteen percent is usual) of the proceeds of sales they negotiate on behalf of their clients.
from becoming strained by disputes about royalty statements or late checks.
Legitimate agents and agencies in the book world are not required to be members of the Association of Authors' Representatives (AAR), but according to Writer's Market
listings, many agents in the United States
are. To qualify for AAR membership, agents must have sold a minimum number of books and pledge to abide by a Canon of Ethics. Effective professional agents often learn their trade while working for another agent, though some cross over to agenting after working as editors.
. Both these practices may indicate that the author is dealing with a scam agent. Traditionally representation agreements between agents and clients were simply verbal; however, an increasing percentage of agents are offering written contracts to make the terms explicit. Another questionable practice consists of referring the author to a so-called "professional editor" or "book doctor" who is in collusion with the agent. The ensuing edit may or may not be appropriate, or of professional quality, and is almost always expensive.
If a written query is rejected (which happens to the majority of queriers), the response is sent in the self-addressed stamped envelope. Typically the rejection is a form letter; getting a rejection which is not a form letter or has hand-written comments (especially a message to the effect of "query me for other projects") is typically taken as a very good, even if disappointing, sign.
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
s and their written works to publishers, theatrical producer
Theatrical producer
A theatrical producer is the person ultimately responsible for overseeing all aspects of mounting a theatre production. The independent producer will usually be the originator and finder of the script and starts the whole process...
s and film producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
s and assists in the sale and deal negotiation of the same. Literary agents most often represent novelists, screenwriters and major non-fiction writers. They are paid a fixed percentage (ten to twenty percent; fifteen percent is usual) of the proceeds of sales they negotiate on behalf of their clients.
Advantages
Authors often turn to agents for several reasons. Quite a few well-known, powerful, and lucrative publishing houses do not accept unagented submissions. A knowledgeable agent knows the market, and can be a source of valuable career advice and guidance. Being a publishable author doesn't automatically make someone an expert on modern publishing contracts and practices, especially where television, film, or foreign rights are involved. Many authors prefer to have an agent handle such matters. This prevents the author's working relationship with his or her editorEditing
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
from becoming strained by disputes about royalty statements or late checks.
Diversity
Literary agencies can range in size from a single agent who represents perhaps a dozen authors, to a substantial firm with senior partners, sub-agents, specialists in areas like foreign rights or licensed merchandise tie-ins, and clients numbering in the hundreds. Most agencies, especially the smaller ones, will specialize to some degree, representing authors who (for example) write science fiction, or mainstream thrillers and mysteries, or children's books, or highly topical nonfiction. Very few agents will represent short stories or poetry.Legitimate agents and agencies in the book world are not required to be members of the Association of Authors' Representatives (AAR), but according to Writer's Market
Writer's Market
Writer's Market is an annual resource book for writers who wish to sell their work. The publication is released by Writer's Digest Books and usually hits bookstores around June of each year...
listings, many agents in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
are. To qualify for AAR membership, agents must have sold a minimum number of books and pledge to abide by a Canon of Ethics. Effective professional agents often learn their trade while working for another agent, though some cross over to agenting after working as editors.
Cost
Legitimate agents do not charge reading fees, demand retainers, bill authors for operating expenses, or otherwise derive income from any source other than the sales they make on their clients' behalf. They also will not place their clients' work with a vanity or subsidy pressVanity press
A vanity press or vanity publisher is a term describing a publishing house that publishes books at the author's expense. Publisher Johnathon Clifford claims to have coined the term in 1959. However, the term appears in mainstream U.S...
. Both these practices may indicate that the author is dealing with a scam agent. Traditionally representation agreements between agents and clients were simply verbal; however, an increasing percentage of agents are offering written contracts to make the terms explicit. Another questionable practice consists of referring the author to a so-called "professional editor" or "book doctor" who is in collusion with the agent. The ensuing edit may or may not be appropriate, or of professional quality, and is almost always expensive.
Querying
A client typically establishes relationships with an agent through querying, although the two may meet at a writer's conference, through a contest, or in other ways. A query is an unsolicited proposal for representation, either for a finished work or unfinished work. Various agents request different elements in a query packet, and most agencies list their specific submissions requirement on their Website or in their listing in major directories. It typically begins with a query letter (1-2 pages) explaining the purpose of the work and any writing qualifications of the author. Sometimes a synopsis or outline are requested as part of the query. Often, the author sends the first 3 chapters (equivalent to 50 pages) of their work. Lastly, for paper queries, a self-addressed stamped envelope must be included to receive a response, though email submissions are becoming increasingly popular.If a written query is rejected (which happens to the majority of queriers), the response is sent in the self-addressed stamped envelope. Typically the rejection is a form letter; getting a rejection which is not a form letter or has hand-written comments (especially a message to the effect of "query me for other projects") is typically taken as a very good, even if disappointing, sign.
Literary agents of the past
The first literary agents appeared around the year 1880 (Publishing).- Gerald Drayson AdamsGerald Drayson AdamsGerald Drayson Adams was a former business executive and literary agent when he began writing for films in the 1940s. The Oxford University-educated Adams specialized in action/adventure and western films...
- Dido Armstrong
- George T. ByeGeorge T. ByeGeorge Thurman Bye was the Literary agent of Frank Buck and Eleanor Roosevelt. A prominent figure in the literary world before World War II, Bye rose to fame as the agent of people in the news and amateur authors with something timely or sensational to say, so called “stunt books”.-Early life and...
- Barthold FlesBarthold FlesBarthold Fles was a Dutch-American literary agent, author, translator, editor and publisher. Among his many clients were Raymond Loewy, Heinrich Mann, Joseph Roth, Felix Salten, Ignazio Silone, Bruno Walter and Arnold Zweig.-Life and career:Barthold "Bart" Fles was born in Amsterdam into an...
- Rod HallRod HallRoderick Thomas Berringer Hall , literary agent who represented several successful British writers.Having worked for London agency A.P...
- Kurt HellmerKurt HellmerKurt Hellmer, d 11 May 1975 was a literatus who, as a New York literary agent represented Max Frisch and Friedrich Dürrenmatt, amongst others.A widely experienced director and playwright in Germany and Austria, Hellmer, having fled Nazi Germany in the 1930s, was a prominent figure in the German...
- Morton L. JanklowMorton L. JanklowMorton Janklow is the primary partner in Janklow & Nesbit Associates, the largest literary agency in the world. Clients include Barbara Taylor Bradford, Judith Krantz, Danielle Steel, Sidney Sheldon, Thomas Harris, Barbara Walters, Anne Rice, four U.S. presidents, and Pope John Paul II.After years...
- Otis Adelbert KlineOtis Adelbert KlineOtis Adelbert Kline born in Chicago, Illinois, USA, was an adventure novelist and literary agent during the pulp era. Much of his work first appeared in the magazine Weird Tales. Kline was an amateur orientalist and a student of Arabic, like his friend and sometime collaborator, E...
- Harold OberHarold OberHarold Ober was an American literary agent.In 1907 — two years after graduating from Harvard with a degree in literature — Harold Ober became a literary agent at the Paul R. Reynolds Literary Agency. By 1908 he was representing such authors as Jack London and H. G. Wells. In 1929, he opened his...
- Larry ShawLarry Shaw (editor)Lawrence Taylor Shaw was a Hugo Award-winning science fiction fan, author, editor and literary agent who usually published as Larry T. Shaw....
- Toni StrassmanToni StrassmanToni Strassman was an authors' representative based in New York City. Her clients included Charles Harris Garrigues, John and Martha Clayton, William Goyen, Harry Mark Petrakis and Friderike Zweig, the first wife of Stefan Zweig....
- Virginia KiddVirginia KiddVirginia Kidd was an American literary agent, writer and editor, particularly influential in science fiction and related fields. She represented some of science fiction's most important authors, including Ursula K. Le Guin, R.A. Lafferty, Anne McCaffrey, and Gene Wolfe...
- Stephen SlesingerStephen SlesingerStephen Slesinger , was an American radio/television/film producer, creator of comic strip characters and the father of the licensing industry...
- H.N. SwansonH.N. SwansonHarold Norling Swanson was a literary agent who represented Frank Buck, F. Scott Fitzgerald and many other well-known American writers.-Career:...
See also
:Category:Talent and literary agencies- Preditors and EditorsPreditors and EditorsPreditors and Editors is a website started in 1997, managed by Dave Kuzminski. The site was designed to be a reference source for the writer, composer, and game designer...
- PublishingPublishingPublishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...
- Guide to Literary AgentsGuide to Literary AgentsGuide to Literary Agents is a book that compiles hundreds of listings for literary agents and writers' conferences in the USA. The book is an annual resource for writers who wish to find an agent and sell their work to publishing houses...
- Writer's MarketWriter's MarketWriter's Market is an annual resource book for writers who wish to sell their work. The publication is released by Writer's Digest Books and usually hits bookstores around June of each year...
Further reading
- Curtis, Richard (2003) How To Be Your Own Literary Agent: An Insider's Guide to Getting Your Book Published. ISBN 0-618-38041-8
- Herman, Jeff (2005) Jeff Herman's Guide To Book Publishers, Editors & Literary Agents, 2006. ISBN 0-9772682-0-9.
- Fisher, Jim (2004) Ten Percent of Nothing: The Case of the Literary Agent from Hell. ISBN 0809325756
- Glatzer, Jenna (2006) The Street Smart Writer. ISBN 0974934445
- Williams, Sheri (2004) "An Agent's Point of View". ISBN 0974825255
- Reiss, Fern (2007) "The Publishing Game: Find an Agent in 30 Days". ISBN 1893290832
External links
- Association of Authors' Representatives
- http://www.creative-writing-techniques.com/literary-agent.html: A guide to finding the right literary agent
- Preditors and editors: A guide to literary scam artists
- Bill's List of Literary Agents and Their Authors' Books
- Writer Beware: A watchdog site that exposes scams directed at writers
- AgentQuery: A site that allows writers to search for agents
- QueryTracker.net: A site that allows writers to search for and track submissions to agents