The Different Working Styles of Literary Agents
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 2 ต.ค. 2024
- Literary agents Jessica Faust and James McGowan talk about all of the different ways that literary agents work, and cover some of the most important things to consider about their working style when determining which agent might be a good fit for you!
BookEnds is dedicated to making publishing a book traditionally a more transparent process, and it starts with these videos!
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Jessica Faust’s love for books is what first brought her to open BookEnds Literary Agency. It is her desire to be an advocate for all authors that pushed her to create her blog, the BookEnds TH-cam channel and to maintain a vibrant presence on Twitter.
Jessica is proud to have grown BookEnds to an agency that represents authors of all genres for children and adults, allowing her to reach more readers and help more authors and illustrators achieve their dreams.
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James McGowan is a Literary Agent at BookEnds and writer for children. He began working with the agency as an intern in the summer of 2015, and basically never left. He represents a talented group of authors and illustrators working in everything from board books to middle grade graphic novels. He also works in adult nonfiction, and adult mystery and suspense projects. James is the author of GOOD NIGHT OPPY, which is available now.
Connect with BookEnds!
Twitter: bookendslit
Instagram: bookends_literary
Website: www.bookendsliterary.com
Connect with Jessica: bookendsjessica
Connect with James: jmcgowanbks
James' comment about meeting someone's communication style is key for any successful relationship! 📚
My favourite channel. Yes, everyone is different and has different ideas, that's why it's important to keep sending your Ms to various literary agents. I'm currently sending my Ms to literary agents, and hopefully one or more will love it and represent me. Good luck to all authors, don't give up after a few rejections, there are many agents who will like your book and make an offer.
Good luck hope you find your literary agent.
It would be fun to see how different the books would be if you both started with the same manuscript/author!
Sad to read that james is no longer representing children´s books.
Loved this episode. Saw it a month ago and again just now. Some good insight into the behind the scenes of author/agent relationship dynamics, told with your usual easy camaraderie.
😳 "Promo sm"
Hi guys, thanks! Quick question for you two that I'm fairly sure you've never specifically covered (I've watched all your videos). Can you explain the role an editor plays? I know the agent pitches/submits the manuscript to them and negotiated from there... But how does that work? When/how would my editor earn their portion of book sales? Thanks!!
I'll add this to our list of ideas, because there's a lot we could discuss! But as a quick answer: You'll go through a round of revisions with your agent before they start submitting to editors, but after the book sells to your editor, your editor will also go through revisions with you to bring it up to par with their publishing house's expectations. These revisions can be large scale revisions or revisions to smaller elements, and you should be able to discuss their editorial vision for your book after they offer and before you ever even sign a contract with them (if your editorial visions don't align, you don't have to sell your book to them).
As for "earning their portion of book sales," unlike agents, editors usually do not earn a percentage or commission of your sales. They are salaried workers paid by the publisher to edit books!
@@BookEndsLiterary , thank you! So who pays the editor then, the publisher? I thought we would work with an agent first, submit and sign with editor, work with that editor then submit and sign with publisher. But, it sounds more as though editors work for/with specific pub houses? Thank you! 🙏
The editors we're talking about work for publishers! There are also freelance editors who you can pay to copyedit, proofread, developmentally edit, etc. your book during the revision process, if you choose to (this is NOT required). But when you sell your book to a publisher, you're selling it to a specific editor who works for that publisher, and they will be the final round of revisions on your book before it gets copyedited and printed!
I'm new here...just leaving a line to say how much I love this channel and appreciate how amazingly supportive you all are to writers. I've been wildly interested in the process of getting an agent and what to expect once I do, but so many channels just gloss over the process. I appreciate the deeper dives into this part of the publication process. Thank you so much! I still have to finish my novel, but I absolutely am going to try to query with BookEnds when I do
Re: how long to wait when expecting a response: I always expect an ACKNOWLEDGEMENT quickly. If the answer will take longer than usual, then acknowledge right away and say the answer will be a while... and say how long that ought to be.
It's all about communication and trust. Setting expectations addresses both.
Thanks! can you explain what the role (or difference) is with an "assistant agent"? Thanks :)
Hi! Often a literary assistant/assistant agent is primarily assisting another agent or agents by doing their administrative work, screening their queries, and/or potentially helping them edit their clients' books. Their role can differ greatly depending on what the agent they're assisting needs.
Sometimes assistant agents are also building their own lists with the guidance of the agent they are assisting, so if you ever receive an offer of representation from an assistant agent, it's worth having a talk with them to see if they could be a good fit, and finding out what kind of support they'll have in working with you! :)
Thank you!@@BookEndsLiterary
Can you do a video on romance fantasy and what agents are looking for with this particular genre? Because I am very curious about the market for this genre
My women's fiction manuscript centers around female relationships, friendships and family, so Jessica's editorial vision would be a great match! One of the characters is a deceased literary heavyweight, a Penguin classic, who's, believe it or not, a friend of the heroine's family! There's so much more!📚
It sounds like communication and trust are the most important aspects of an agent/author relationship; much like a personal relationship.
Hello again!
Can you represent authors from outside the US, say the UK, France, or Mexico? How does it (if at all) alter the representation, submissions, rights, and getting paid if your client is non-US citizen living outside the US or an ex-pat? I’m currently researching agents to query and a bunch of the people I’ve found on Query Tracker for my genre are US-based and I don’t live there. When querying, should an author indicate if they live (or don’t live) in the same country as the agent?
Hi! Yes, we represent authors and illustrators from all over the world! You can watch our video "Do US Agents Take On International Clients?" for more info!
I know that diversity and inclusion has assumed high priority in published work, and that there are efforts to boost racial diversity in publishing itself. My question would be if there are similar efforts for inclusion of the neurodiverse in publishing.
All that is irrelevant; no one knows your race, gender, ethnicity, or neurodiversity unless you disclose it. They just see a manuscript... write a good book and a compelling story. Getting published because I am from a minority or a certain race is the biggest slap in the face to any author who values their talent-we need to get published because we are GOOD.
@@jpch8814 You mistake my intent. I would prefer working with an agent / editor that is neurodiverse, and wonder what if any initiatives publishing has made toward including neurodiverse people within their ranks.