Sunday 27 July 2014

Agents vs the artist ... A long history of unwarranted blame.

Morning, afternoon, evening :)

Strangely enough, I'd planned to post a blog or vlog about the publishing world. This isn't it but here we are nonetheless.

This morning I saw a post on Twitter - an image taken from another site, I believe - that blamed publishing agents for many things; favouritism, nepotism, not loving my book and representing me-ism ... You get the idea.
It so happens that I had recently chatted to an agent about similar issues. After the conversation, and read this carefully, CAREFULLY, I do not believe agents deserve any of the hassle they receive ... And I have rejection letters and am an indie author/publisher. I should despise these people because I don't live in a Hogwarts sized mansion, swimming in a pool filled with champagne.
In many sectors of employment, there are agents, there are middle men/women/agencies. Some are the epitome of fairness and from the moment they step inside their office, they strive to improve their clients' lot in life. Some are money grabbing parasites. Now, think of this basic human act/behaviour for a second; bad news is remembered and spreads, whereas good news gets lost along the way most of the time. For every story you hear about a great agent, you'll hear ten about #!@?!!%#@!:? agents. Get it?
Let's continue.
You've typed 'The end'. Now what? Your book is the greatest piece of literature ever created. Of course it is, you wrote it...you aren't biased in any way.
You send it away and can't believe that agents from all over the universe aren't queuing outside your house, desperate for your signature. This is where the BLAME starts :/ You blame the agents for not understanding you  or your book. Then, unfortunately (and it hurts, I know) the rejection letters start arriving. How:#$!$#!**@ dare they?? More blame follows.
A crossroads appears at this point. The author improves, learns from the advice given and resubmits.
The author self publishes(a recent addition to the publishing world, don't forget) and immediately gives up on the traditional route. They hold a grudge against agents and publishers that only grows with every day/ week/ month that their book doesn't become a bestseller.
They self publish because the option fits for them and submit to agents WHEN THEY BELIEVE THEY HAVE A BOOK THAT IS GOOD ENOUGH. This is how I now work.

Lots of factors have to be considered by agents, remember that; financial costs, the current marketplace, excellent writing plus a million others I don't know about.

Okay, enough rambling from me today :)

Jay

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