Talking Agent Trash

Wow. My last post seems to have upset some people.

I had eleven authors write and ask a form of this: "You mean when the agent said to me, 'We like this, but we want you to talk with our editorial department in order to get your manuscript in shape,' he was scamming me?"

My response: If the agent was selling you editorial services that he gets a commission from, then yes. At best the agent was violating the Association of Author Representatives' code of ethics. At worst he was trying to make money off you when he knew he wouldn't be able to sell your manuscript. There's also been a slew of literaryagents who charge authors for media training, marketing efforts, and all sorts of other stuff. It's wrong -- but these agents don't belong to AAR, they don't have any training from an experienced agent, so they don't even realize what they're doing is improper.

Look, in recent years we've seen an explosion of people calling themselves "literary agents," though many don't have any sort of formal or informal training, nor were they mentored by a successful agent. They don't really understand the role of a literary agent. But the growth of certain genres (and Christian fiction in particular) over the past five or six years motivated them to hang out a shingle and announce they were now "agents." In other words, they saw it as easy money. And a lot of authors, who were looking for an agent to help them, signed on. Some even got their books published. But I'll tell you something: these folks don't know what they're doing. When I see a manuscript that is a good idea but not quite ready for prime time, I might send them to an editor -- but I won't be making money off the deal. If they need marketing help, I'll either provide it or introduce them to a good publicist -- but it won't be someone who secretly works for me, so that I get a kickback. If they need media training, I'll help them get it -- but I won't sell it to them myself. Being a literary agent isn't a fee-for-service business, and it's time everybody woke up to that fact.

I also had a couple literary agents who wrote to say, in essence, "You're being unfair."

Nope. I'm not. You just don't know what you're doing. You think agenting is a business where you make money from your clients. But a real agent understands that he or she is paid by the publisher. I keep seeing literary agents who offer "personal management" for a fee, and I'm thinking, "Isn't that what an agent does? Isn't that my job?" I did graduate work in career planning and placement, and I try to bring that experience to bear with the clients I represent. But if I was charging them a fee for that, there's a huge potential for problems. The temptation is to make extra money by selling them more and more services. Any time I refer the authors I represent to some other business I own, it's a huge conflict of interest.

Two readers, Don and Suzie, wrote to ask, "What about speakers bureaus?"

Some of us offer a speakers bureau as part of the literary agency. We do it simply as a service to help authors grow their platform and make some extra money. But there's no fee to work with our speakers bureau. For authors who also speak, the person running the speakers bureau gets a commission, just like a literary agent.

And I've had several publishers talk with me about this, asking, "What do we do if we like an author, but don't want to work with the agent?"

I always say the same thing: Don't say something to the author you wouldn't say to the agent. Publishers aren't dumb -- they know a lousy agent when they work with one. But it's not the publisher's job to take the author aside and whisper, "Um...I don't know how to tell you this, but your agent is a moron." Besides, they don't want to be sued for slander. But it would seem reasonable to say, "We think this was done poorly" or "I don't think you understand this process."

I know of two recent cases where a publisher went to an agent with an idea for an author, then the agent sold it to someone else. That should get the agent run out the door. I know of another case where an agent sold the same project to two different publishers, then tried to cover it up by changing one of the titles. If I were a publisher, I don't know that I'd work with that agent again. (And yes, I'd probably tell the author why.)

But I realize this is a slippery slope. Hey, we all make mistakes, and I've made more than my share of them. I've forgotten things. I try not to over-promise or fudge numbers, but I know of times I gave out sales numbers that proved to be inaccurate. I've said stupid things. A while back I co-agented a deal with a friend of mine, but when I turned in the information to Publishers Weekly, I failed to include the other agent's name. I was wrong. It happens. So I make my apologies, and try not to make the same mistake again. Still, there's a difference between making a mistake and intentionally trying to defraud people. Every good agent can do the former; none should be caught doing the latter.

And finally, a couple folks wrote to ask, "Is there an association of Christian literary agents?"

No, there isn't. Rick Christian and Sealy Yates (two of the originals when it comes to working with CBA authors) talked about starting a group like this years ago, but it never panned out. Recently a couple of authors talked about starting a membership group for CBA agents, but I saw too many problems with the concept (who vets members? who handles disputes? would they really have the balls to kick out a member and risk a lawsuit? and will agents respond to a group formed by authors?). It still may happen, but my guess is if a group is formed, it will be because a bunch of the legit agents decide to form it.

Comments

[Angela]

Thanks for going into a bit more detail on your reasoning, Chip! I appreciate your honesty.

[Rebekah]

Have you heard about the new Christian Literary Agents Registry that Jim Watkins, Sally Stuart, Cecil Murphy, and Reg Forder are starting? http://www.clearagents.org/index.htm. Other agents I've discussed this with think it's a great idea, and I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on the pros/cons of this.

[Angela Meuser]

Chip, I'm sure your posts have prevented many authors from seeking representation from the wrong person. When I first started writing, I had an agent offer to represent me if I paid for office fees (paper, postage, copying, etc.) upfront. It was hard, but I turned her down. Later I found out that there was a whole FBI raid on her place. Crazy.

[Demian Farnworth]

Thanks for the clarity...and I have to agree with Angela...this clarity makes you wiser. I can't help but compare LA's to real estate agents and the whole development of discount brokerages and fee-for-service. Sounds like people are wanting to put a minimum on mediocrity. Good stuff, Chip.

[chip]

Yes, I know about clearagents.org. And while I think the idea is noble, and the people behind it are great, I'm not a fan of it as conceptualized. Jim Watkins (who is a good guy, so I'm not picking on him) sent me some info on it, and I had a lot of questions. Is this the right group to "approve" agents? And would they be willing to give a bad agent the boot? Will they mediate disputes? I'm not sure it offers many tangible benefits -- so what I fear is that the result is the direct opposite of what they intend: lousy agents can join, show their "seal of approval," and let everyone mistake their immaturity for maturity. I guess I'm not convinced a group like this, though all good people, are the right ones to be vetting and offering a seal of approval to agents. Shouldn't that be done by other agents? (That's the way the AAR works.) I don't know... I had a hard time figuring out what the benefit to me was, Rebekah.

[jessica nelson]

I was just looking up an agent who's attending a Christian Conference I may go to, and lo and behold, the site says this agent only reps clients manuscripts he/she edited, and of course he/she charges for every manuscript to be edited.
I was like, WHA?

[Jeannie Campbell]

As a new person trying to enter into the world of agents and editors, this post was truly shocking to me! I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that there are sharks in every line of work, and just because an agent declares him or herself as "Christian" doesn't prevent this truth. I guess I will just have to be on the lookout for these types of "scams" and pray I don't run into anything like what you're been posting on. Appreciate the heads up...still reeling, though.

[chip]

Just so we're clear, I don't think everybody doing this is a bad person. I think some peoplel just don't have any experience, and they haven't thought it through, so they don't know.

[Lynn Rush]

I appreciated these honest posts about agents. And you know what? I used to be a counselor, and when I hit the nail on the head on an issue with my client, that's when I saw anger....so, if someone got angry, maybe it's because something hit true with him/her?

Keep up the good work, Chip. Some of what you say is tough to hear, but you speak the truth.

[Pam Halter]

I've heard it said that a bad agent is worse than no agent at all. Maybe you said that, Chip! :) Anyway, if an author without an agent sells their novel, can they approach an agent they know to have them look over the contract for a fee? I mean, some agents don't represent what I write, but I trust them. If I don't have an agent and I get a contract, how can I know if it's a good deal or not? I have information on what to look for in a contract, but the legal wording still confuses me. It wouldn't be shady for an agent to charge a fee to look over a contract and make comments, would it?

pam

[Colleen Coble]

This was a great post, Chip! I see it all the time. A bad agent (and not necessarily one charging fees) is worse than no agent, especially if the publishing house doesn't like working with him/her. Picking an agent is one of the most important things an author can do for their career. And that responsibility rests on the author and no one else. Just because an agent is at a conference doesn't mean anything. It doesn't mean the conference has endorsed that agent.

When I decided to get an agent, I asked five editors I knew who they liked to work with. I started with that list and got Karen Solem who has been a godsend to me. You were on the list too, by the way! Editors know who is good. If you have a relationship with any editors, that's a good place to start. Or if you belong to any writers organizations like ACFW, ask around. See who is happy with their agent. But even that's not always a good litmus test because an author might not know how editors view the agent and how they sigh when they get a proposal from one. The main thing is to interview a prospective agent and see how you mesh. That relationship is one of the most important in your career and a good one lasts a lifetime. I've been with Karen for 7 or 8 years now and hope she agents me until I'm too old to hit the keys on my MacBook! LOL

[lisa]

Well, it's no wonder Michael Hyatt put a Tweet out on your blog. Dang. I know it's easy for me to say it, but you ARE good. *blush*

You'll be putting bad agents out of work, Chip. Maybe they can start building government bridges, roads and things.

Good for you.

[chip]

No it wouldn't be shady if an agent were to charge a fee to review a contract for an author they don't represent. Many agents do that. It's a service offered to authors who don't have agents. In fact, there are a few people who do that -- I know that Sally Stuart (who puts out the "Christian Writers Market Guide") does a good job with contract evaluations. I think Susan Osborne (who runs an editorial service in California) also does this. And some agents will offer it as a service. (True Item: I once had an author walk up to me at a conference and tell me that HIS OWN AGENT had sent him a bill for doing a "contract review." The guy said he paid more for the agent's services than he earned on the book.)

[Sharon A Lavy]

Thank you for the words of wisdom. You are doing the writing community a great service with your blog.

[Lisa Lickel]

Okay. I feel better about not currently having an agent. Especially since my two polar experiences were rather...desolate. I'll just sit tight for a while and see which way the spirit blows. Whew.
Hope you're feeling better.
Lisa Lickel
livingourfaithoutloud.blogspot.com

[Jim MacKrell]

Excellent article. An agent and AN AGENT are certainly two different things. Having dealt with AGENTS all my life both in TV and writing/producing I know from experience that the AGENT is a professional with the welfare of both Clients and those who hire us as their main concern. An agent is a word that anyone at any time may attach to their moniker..

[Linore Rose Burkard]

Chip, you said,

"Still, there's a difference between making a mistake and intentionally trying to defraud people. Every good agent can do the former; none should be caught doing the latter."

So it's okay, Chip, if they're not caught?

LOL, sorry, my kids do this to me all the time. I couldn't resist sharing their weisenheimer attitude! (And no, they did NOT get it from me!)

[Laura Hyatt]

I hate getting hosed. Charging extra fees is like going to the dentist and getting charged $75 because they "taught" you to brush up and down. True story, by the way.