Pub Rants

Author Archive

How Agents Make Money—Hint: It’s Not By Attending Conferences

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: And no one ever talks about the late nights we agent keeps.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? CORNFLAKE GIRL by Tori Amos

I have to say I was highly amused to read a hypothesis from a writer that agents make their money from attending conferences.

If that were true, it would certainly be a poor way to make a living.

For the record, the good majority of conferences pay for travel, hotel lodging, and food. Occasionally, a conference will pay a small honorarium. I’ve personally seen remuneration of $150.00 to $250.00. Let’s say an agent attends 8 conferences at that level. That would be a whopping $2000.00. To put that into perspective, that would just about cover my business class internet for the year and maybe one-quarter of my yearly phone bill. As the honorarium stands now, it might cover our yearly office coffee budget for Starbucks and Common Grounds. Big grin here.

Now I have heard rumors of conferences paying anywhere from $500 to $1000 as an honorarium but I’ve never had the good fortune to participate in any of those conferences (although can someone tell me where I could sign up?).

No, agents don’t attend conferences to earn money. We attend conferences in the hopes of meeting an author and finding a project that will, in turn, earn us money.

It’s actually pretty simple. Agents make money by taking a percentage of what authors earn when an agent sells a project on that author’s behalf.

And there are a variety of revenue streams:
1. The initial sell to the US publisher
2. UK sale
3. Foreign translation sales to foreign publishers
4. Audio
5. Film
6. Other subsidiary rights such as first serial, book club, etc.

And trust me, I’m in my seventh year of agenting and this is certainly not the path to get rich quick. However, it’s a more than comfortable living—for which I feel extraordinarily blessed.

Exploding The “Must Have Connections Myth”—Guest Blogger Megan Crewe

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: For a Monday, it was actually fairly quiet. Only one major issue to solve.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? RASPBERRY BERET by Prince

I thought this a pertinent and timely entry in light of a lot of recent discussions I’ve seen in the comment section of agent blogs lately.

Megan’s debut hits shelves this week—all done with nary a networked connection.

I think every aspiring writer hears this message at least once: You don’t have a hope of getting published unless you’ve got connections. I saw it pop up on message boards and websites as I was preparing GIVE UP THE GHOST for submission to agents, and couldn’t help feeling nervous. After all, I’d never talked to an editor or an agent in my life. I didn’t even live in the same country as most of them! And my close writer friends were currently unagented, so I didn’t have a referral, either.

But I’d also read posts by authors talking about getting picked out of the slush pile, and agents mentioning their excitement at finding a gem in their inboxes, and that gave me hope. So instead of digging into my savings to fly off to every conference I could manage, I simply wrote a query letter, revised it, and started sending it out.

Three and a half years later, I have an agent, a publishing deal, and a book that just hit the shelves. I met Kristin in person for the first time this past May, two and a half years after we started working together.

I know now that there’s nothing to worry about–people receive offers of representation and book deals without any prior connections all the time. I did, many of my writer friends did, and I’ve happily told this to writers who’ve said they’re afraid they won’t be able to find an agent or get published because they don’t know anyone.

Unfortunately, I realized offering my experience isn’t enough. Why should anyone believe me over those claiming that it’s impossible? Maybe my case was just the exception.

Which is why, last month, I set out to collect solid data. 270 fiction authors from a variety of genres filled out a poll asking them about their experiences selling their first published novel. With the results now in, I say with assurance that the idea that you need connections to get published is nothing more than a myth.

62% of the agented authors who responded got the agent who sold their first book through cold querying–no prior meeting, no referral.

72% of the authors sold their first book to an editor they had no connection to (either by cold querying themselves, or submitting via their agent).

You can find my full discussion of the poll results here.

Can connections help you out? Of course! But if you don’t have them, don’t sweat it. I’m a Canadian author who signed with a Denver agent who sold to a New York editor without my having any prior connection to either of them, and that novel can be found right now in stores across both countries. If I can do it (along with more than a hundred other authors who answered the poll), there’s no reason you can’t, too.

A Friday Funny Sort Of?

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: TGIF. I cleared some contracts off my desk by finishing them up. I always feel accomplished after that.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? MACK THE KNIFE by Bobby Darin

I got a hilarious email via our query inbox today, but I’m thinking the writer didn’t mean for it to be funny.

The writer asked if I thought revising a manuscript was worthwhile in this current fiction market. Was it worth the time and effort for the writer to pare down a 200,000 word manuscript into 100,000 word manuscript?

And the writer was not writing fantasy either (where at least a heart-stopping book length could reasonably be argued).

Now what exactly could an agent say to that? I’m really curious as to how this writer thinks we would reply (and we only reply to queries so we won’t be responding actually but for the sake of argument). What are we going to say? For you, no, definitely not worth the effort.

Sheesh. If you’re passionate and serious about writing, wouldn’t any revision be a worthwhile one? And I know you guys will come back with the idea that the writer was only trying to gauge market viability but that is a moving target of a question. The market is forever shifting. Not to mention, there wasn’t any description of the novel the writer wanted to revise.

I know, I know. It shouldn’t make me smile when the writer is only trying to figure this all out but I just couldn’t help it.

Not Lost In Translation

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: Just working.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? I WILL FIND YOU by Enya

When writers are starting in this biz, they probably don’t think too much beyond that first US sale, but selling translation rights can be as equally important (which is one of the reasons I think that agents will always prove beneficial even in an all-digital publishing world).

I have an author who is selling tremendously abroad. So much in fact that the author’s foreign publisher was contracting for future books even though the US publisher had not committed to those same books.

We ended up being able to use the foreign deal as leverage to get the US publisher to reconsider this author’s series and buy the next book for US publication. Not only did the US publisher buy in, they decided to repackage the books to give them new life in the home market.

Borders loved the new look and decided to take a floor display. Needless to say, this is all helping to build new momentum for a series of books that could have easily been written off.

And all of this wouldn’t have happened except the author’s books were selling so well abroad. The foreign push reinvigorated the US stuff.

Agents Get Rejected Too

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: I’m ready for an exciting new project to come my way.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? POEMS, PRAYERS, AND PROMISES by John Denver

I know that writers don’t necessarily think of this but agents get rejected as well. Last week I offered representation to an author for a novel that was really really good.

Alas, I wasn’t the only agent who thought so. The author had several offers of representation and in the end, the writer didn’t go with me.

So how does an agent feel when this happens?

Does the agent feel disappointed? Of course! If you really like something, it’s hard when you don’t get a chance to go out with it.

Does the agent feel angry? Not really. You can’t win them all. At least I was seriously in the running.

Does the agent feel validated? Absolutely. It’s always nice to know that my taste isn’t off. If other agents are fighting for the same project, then I was right on how I felt about the manuscript.

Does the agent feel regret? Only when we see the “good” or “significant” or “major” moniker on the deal posting on deal lunch. Grin.

And what might be surprising to writers is that most agents wish the author well. Strange as that may sound it’s actually true. This may sound a little woo-woo but I do think that karma plays a big part in what projects come your way and what is meant to be.

Otherwise this biz could drive you nuts…

Does The Size Of The Advance Equal Success?

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: Blogging a bit late tonight. Busy day.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? MR. JONES by Counting Crows

The answer is yes.

The answer is no.

The size of the advance paid can increase the likelihood of success as the publisher is more likely to commit significant resources toward a title that a large advance was paid for.

However, the size of the advance is not a guarantee of success for any specific title.

I remember reading an article in Publishers Weekly last year (and I wish I had saved it). The article outlined two thriller titles being released by two different publishers. Both thrillers were in hardcover and the lead titles for their specific imprints. Both titles had a solid six-figure advance. Both titles had significant resources allocated for the marketing and promotional push. Both titles were from debut authors.

One title hit the New York Times Bestseller list. The other title had, in the publisher’s own words, “disappointing sales.”

So what happened?

Quite simply, no amount of money can force a public to want and buy a book. Sometimes it happens and sometimes it doesn’t. If the publishers knew what created that ground swell to catapult a title onto bestseller lists and a million copy sell-thru, they’d do it for every book.

It’s a dangerous to assume that the size of the advance paid is the only indicator of possible success. (Or that a publisher who has paid a large advance will always pay attention to that title rather than embrace a newly bought title that might sell even better.)

And every agent I know has a story of a little book that could. The book that was a hard sell, that didn’t have a big advance, that had almost no marketing or promotional budget attached and yet defied all the odds.

A great success story that exemplifies this exactly is agent Deidre Knight’s 90 Minutes in Heaven—a book that was not sold for a lot of money and certainly wasn’t released with a lot of hoopla. Initial print run was by no means huge. The hardcover sold modestly well but then when the paperback version released, an explosion happened. The book kept gaining traction. Word of mouth. The ground swell that money can’t purchase started to happen. In the end, I don’t know exactly how long the title stayed on the bestseller list but I do know that it was for more than a year. This book has now sold millions of copies.

So does a large advance equal large success?

The answer is yes and the answer is no. All the stars ultimately have to align.

Earn Out

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: Typical Denver. 75 degrees one day. 45 degrees the next. I actually wore gloves this evening while walking home from the office.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? RAIN by George Winston

Generally speaking, the statistics are rather grim when it comes to authors earning out their initial advances. Of course I don’t have actual numbers at my fingertips, so what I can safely say is this: the percentage of books that never earn out is high—over 50% of the books sold (and probably reality is more like 80% but without actual numbers, why be more depressing?).

Beyond the statistics, there are actual several factors involved with an author potentially earning out.

1. The level of the advance. After all, it’s a lot easier to sell-thru and earn out if you only received $5000 as an advance for your book than if you received $150,000.

2. The format of the book. Hardcovers have a higher price tag so an author can sell fewer books but make a higher royalty percentage and thus earn out faster than authors who are publishing initially in let’s say mass market format. (Although mass markets have a better price point and thus have more potential to sell more copies in general but I think you guys get the picture.)

3. Royalty structure. The higher your percentages are for the royalties, the easier it will be to earn out.

4. How long your book stays in print. Often authors can earn out their advance over time so long as the book(s) stay in print.

For example, just this week, I received a royalty statement for an author who just earned out the first advance for a book that was published originally in 2005. The author is solidly midlist and has consistently sold steady over the last 4 years. The advance was a nice five figures and since the book sold well over time and the title never went out of print, the author is now earning royalties.

Ah, this is how publishing is supposed to work. An advance that is representative of how much a book will sell and then grow from there. It was hugely exciting to cut the check for royalties earned and I imagine that the author was even more excited to receive it!

Editor Rant–Daniel Menaker

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: TGIF and I’m heading out of the office early to do a little reading.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? STORMY BLUES by Billie Holiday

Ah, I couldn’t get the Friday Funnies to work and since I’m heading out, I’ll just have to let Daniel Menaker rant in my place.

If you haven’t checked out his blog posting at the B&N blog, it’s really worth a look.

Warning—this article is not for the faint of heart.

It’s definitely the unvarnished inside perspective though….

Have a great weekend.

Why Agent Honesty Is Overrated

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: Today is about royalty statements, a submission, and a film deal in process.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? SHE DRIVES ME CRAZY by Fine Young Cannibals

Writers on submission always want to know the answer to this question: “Why aren’t agents just honest in their response to my sample pages?”

In other words, if we think the manuscript sucks, why don’t we just say so?

I’ll tell you why.

1. In my experience (and I can’t speak for all agents), any honest reply generates a response from the writer. Unfortunately, we simply can’t get in a dialogue with the thousands and thousands of individual writers who query us in any given day, week, or month. Better to send out the form letter.

2. Sometimes it really is subjective. I’ve passed on manuscripts that I literally hated. Thought the writing was terrible. Yet another agent has taken it on, sold it, and the book did well. Who was right and who was wrong? See? Subjective.

3. I know y’all will disagree but it’s not actually an agent’s job to tell you that your writing needs work. That’s why writer’s conferences can be important and why most writers need a good critique group. The key with critique groups is to find one with writers who you can trust to be honest but helpful with their feedback. I just did a critique workshop at Rocky Mountain Fiction Writers and it was amazing. I let everyone else in the room speak first to the writer being critiqued. More times than not, I simply said, “I agree with so-so” and didn’t have further comments to add. That’s how good the writers were in my group. I’d recommend them to anyone looking for real feedback.

4. It’s impossible to say something doesn’t work without explaining the why of it. And sometimes the why is so detailed (from grammar issues, to misplaced modifiers, to dialogue not working, to plot issues, to no character development) that my explaining of why would just take too much time. Simply easier to say NO via a form letter or via inclusion of one of the more generic response line. Sad but true. And sometimes, it’s really hard to figure out the “why” if the writing really isn’t ready

5. Where a writer is now is not where he/she might be a year from now. I’ve been to a lot of conferences over the years and have heard many a keynote speech from hugely bestselling authors. In their keynotes, they often will relay a story where an editor or an agent told them it was hopeless—to never write again. But here they are, X many years later on the bestseller list. Uh-huh. Where you are now is not where you may be in the future. Why should I discourage you if writing is your passion? If you’re planning to stick with it, then you’ll work on craft until you get it or until you discover that the cost of getting it isn’t worth it to you.

Granted, for some folks, it will be hopeless. They’ll never learn the craft but I certainly can’t know that from one submission read if the writer is one who can learn or one who never will.

Response Speak

by Kristin Nelson

STATUS: Heading out to dinner with an agent friend who is in town.

What’s playing on the iPod right now? HOLDING OUT FOR A HERO by Frou Frou

Form response:
Don’t interpret anything. It could mean just about anything under the sun.

Form response with personal comment
Submission was interesting enough for the agent to make a comment. Don’t interpret too much. It’s the nature of the comment that is important here. If it’s “I just didn’t fall in love” that could mean anything from concept isn’t right or writing isn’t quite there yet.

If comment is something along the lines of “see talent here but not right for me”, well that’s encouraging.

Letter with feedback
On to something here. Time is tight. If agents take the time to actually include feedback, they see potential.

Revision letter with request to submit again
Agents are interested. Now they want to see if you can take a potentially flawed work or something that’s not quite ready into something they can get serious about, offer representation, create a revision letter to make the work publishing ready.

Revision letter with offer
You’ve got talent and a great concept. We’re willing to take a risk by getting you on board and then working with you.

An offer
Nothing ever goes out unedited but when an agent just offers, we know that whatever revision might be necessary will only amount to small tweaks.