Category Archives: advice

March 23, 2012   Lauren   about us, advice, Lauren, opinion  
7

7 Things I’ve Learned in 7 Years in Publishing

Seven years ago this week, I walked into the office of Dystel & Goderich Literary Management as Jane’s new assistant. I started out here the usual combination of nervous, cocky, overwhelmed, over ambitious, and grateful someone was willing to take a chance on me. Seven years later, here I am, Literary Agent & Subsidiary Rights Director. Fun fact: on the day I started, DGLM was Jane, Miriam, Michael, Stacey, and Jim. On my seventh anniversary this Wednesday, all five of those people were right here in the office, along with a bunch who’ve come along since. Now that’s partially coincidental timing, but I think it’s a fitting testament to the kind of company this is.

DGLM is a company that’s given me much opportunity to learn and grow in many ways. Through the agency and publishing at large, I’ve learned many lessons in the last seven years. Without further ado, here are seven of the biggest:

  1.  Taste ≠ Quality ≠ Viability: It’s a hard lesson to learn for the very opinionated like me that one’s taste is not an objective indicator of quality. That quality is not necessarily the only factor in viability. It is annoying, yes, that the world does not yet bend to my will and some people persist in having opinions that are not the same as mine. But I’ve stopped taking it personally. (Most days.)
  2. Competition Does Not Preclude Helpfulness: Publishing is a highly competitive beast, but it’s also surprisingly collegial. Sure, some people are overly competitive and undermining, but I find most people are actually pretty helpful even to the people competing for the same resources they are. With few exceptions, the really successful people seem to be well liked by their competitor peers. Of course, being a lovely and wonderful person isn’t enough on its own. But isn’t it nice to know that it can also be a strategic advantage?
  3. There Are a Lot of People Behind Every Book: Before I was told about the job here at DGLM, I didn’t even realize literary agencies existed. I’d pretty much worked out author, editor, publicist, sales rep, buyer, store personnel, customer as the chain, but that’s missing so many people I can’t believe I hadn’t given the others any thought. It’s taken me a while to get a sense of all the other roles at play, because it’s not always easy to see what’s happening behind the scenes. Until you’re mired in the publishing process, you might not be aware of every aspect, but for every piece of the puzzle, there’s a person whose job it is to place it.
  4. The Delete Key Is Your Friend: I implore you to find the delete key on your keyboard and commit its location to memory. It has saved me so much heartache. Publishing is a business, and it behooves us all to be professional and constructive. Delete the bile and move on to something that will help the situation or at least not harm it. When in doubt (even the tiniest scrap of it) about whether your response to something is motivated by reasoned thought or reckless emotion, ask your agent what they advise. Authors need allies, and people who are hurt or pissed off don’t make good allies.
  5. Systems Are Magic: Jane is the master of systems. Seven years on, much of how I get my job done is based on what she taught me to do as her assistant. I’m hyper organized and efficient, mocked for my use of spreadsheets and general systematic nerdery. But without them, I wouldn’t get anything done. Don’t just adopt any old system (electronic/calendar reminders are a total waste on me), but don’t stop trying till you get one that works for you. Being on top of things is important, whatever your role.
  6. The Internet Is Both the Best and the Worst: It’s distracting. It’s glorious. It’s inspiring. It’s soul crushing. It’s connecting. It’s isolating. Find a way to make it work for you, and when it’s just not doing you any favors, walk away. Talk to a friend, go to a café, sit in a park, play with small children or adorable animals, or just take a nap. It’s amazing how much more incredible the internet seems when you’ve taken a break from it.
  7. Breakfast Is the Most Important Meal of the Day: When breakfast arrives in the DGLM kitchen, stand back till Miriam and Jim are done fighting over who gets to use the very sharp apple-cutting knife first. Words to live by if you find yourself in the DGLM offices some morning and value all your limbs.

 

March 13, 2012   John   advice, inspiration, John, opinion, recommendations, suggestions  
10

Getting a grip on fear

While it’s said that Publishing is an industry built on optimism, it’s often ruled by fear. Writers fear rejection; editors fear acquiring an unsuccessful project; booksellers fear Amazon; everyone fears ebooks; and so on. And ever since I became an agent, I feel like I’ve been more aware of the fearful side of the business than ever before.

If one of the key attractions of agenting is that you work across the publishing spectrum, it seems to come with a similarly broad range of fears. In any given day, agents handle acquisition worries (i.e. whether or not to take on a client), fear of rejection from editors, stress about the future of the industry, and a good dose of personal financial uncertainty, much like our independent bookselling colleagues.

In other words, oy!

But as I logged on to Facebook this morning, I was fortunate that the first post on my wall was this blog from writer Candice Ransom about dealing with fears both in writing and in life. It’s a beautiful piece, perhaps made more so by her stunning photographs. I was particularly struck by her honesty about her new fear concerning time and productivity—it’s a sobering thought, and yet a brave one to acknowledge like this.

Best of all, I appreciate that she offers at least one concrete suggestion for dealing with fear. Has anyone read Writing Past Dark? If so, I’d love to know what you think. One thing that certainly helps me deal with my fears and to get better as an agent is to see how writers manage their own work. So I’d love any suggestions/inspiration you’ve got for how, as Candice puts it, to “face down fear and walk through doors into uncertainty.”

 

March 06, 2012   Jane   advice, conferences, Jane, opinion  
11

The value of the writers conference

Truth be told, I hadn’t been to a writers conference in years.  I am often asked, but I usually suggest that our other agents should attend in my place.  I remember years ago at a conference in Seattle, one of the other (inexperienced) agents asking me why I was there – suggesting that because I had a full client roster I shouldn’t be looking for new ones when neophyte agents needed the exposure.

But when I was invited to attend last weekend’s ANWA Writers Conference, I remembered how much I could get out of the experience.

Of course, we agents all like to think that our presence at these meetings provides useful information to the participants.  And there is always the possibility that one of the attending writers might even find representation for their work.

But I found that I, too, came away with so much from the experience:

First, I got away from my office and that always gives me perspective.

Second, I met some really wonderful and interesting people:  a lawyer who traveled to numerous third world countries to represent clients; a woman who is a men’s athletic coach; a “story teller” (she was amazing — I didn’t know that there are professional story tellers — people who attend events and, as a kind of performance, tell stories).

Third, I learned about what other agents not in New York are thinking and how they do business and about some smaller publishers on the West Coast.

And finally, I am very hopeful that as a result of my being there, and talking with so many people, I will find some exciting new material.  Over the years I have indeed found some wonderful new clients at these events and, as a curious person, I am always looking.

I am so grateful to be given the opportunity to share my years of experience with others; I enjoy public speaking and I enjoy talking one on one about book ideas.  So, hopefully I will not absentmindedly pass along future invitations to conferences when I feel I can both make an important contribution and benefit from participating.

I would love to hear what your writers conference experiences have been like.

February 24, 2012   Lauren   advice, fun, Lauren, reading  
23

Make me smile

My computer has decided to stage some kind of hateful protest of late (if it’s not done with that, you can find me standing over its incinerated corpse on Monday), so I’m very far behind—so much so that my brain can’t stop and focus long enough to figure out what my note re: a blog idea was really meant to be about.  I know at one point on Wednesday I was downright inspired.  Alas.

So as an alternative, I’m going to ask you all for some help: the last few books I’ve read, while phenomenal, have been kind of sad.  Especially the most recent two, which ended with me bawling on my couch for about thirty minutes before going to bed all a-sniffle.  Now I love a book that can move me to tears, even the embarrassing all out sobbing kind, but I think I might need something a little happier for a bit.  So I ask you, dear readers, what are your favorite pick-me-up books?  They don’t necessarily need to be purely escapist, just really hopeful, and not in a “dark but ultimately uplifting” sort of way.  For now, I’d like something with an emotional range from fine to cheerful (or just a book where the author doesn’t make me love an amazing character and then allow the world to try to destroy them because why would you do that to me????).

So…what should I read next?

February 16, 2012   Michael   advice, Michael, suggestions, writing  
4

Momentum

I’m not sure what happened in the past week, but everything I had simmering came to a roiling boil in the last few days. Deals closed (can’t wait to share the news!), lots of new covers seen, manuscripts arriving in my inbox, and then my power went out. I was speaking with a client, when BAM!, something popped, and the unmistakable zzzrp-zzzrp of electricity crackled in the air. I’m glad my home phone cut out, as I may have shouted an expletive. Until that point, I’d been running nonstop, totally on autopilot. The sudden lack of power and ability to communicate totally threw me off my rhythm, and I’ll admit it’s been tough to get my groove back today. Slowly, I’m getting the mojo back, and I’m running down the to-do list and knocking things off, but it’s feeling a bit labored.

I know my authors have similar ups and downs. There are those moments when the words just come, when fingers can’t keep up with ideas. Then there are the moments when the phone rings, the email dings, the kids whine, the spouse calls. And suddenly the muse is gone and the magical moment has passed. What then, writers? For me, it’s easy enough to get back to things by doing. Instead of worrying about the piles, I focus on one thing and get it done. That seems to get me back in the swing without feeling overwhelmed. But when you’re doing something creative, how do you recapture the magic? I’m curious how our readers handle it. Any advice?

February 15, 2012   Stacey   advice, agents, conferences, cookbooks and food writing, relationships, Stacey  
6

A few words about cookbooks and agents

I participated in a cookbook conference last Friday and sat on a panel with four other agents who also represent practical nonfiction, including cookbooks. The discussion centered around the agent’s role in the current market and how that role has changed with the shift into electronic publishing.

It was a really thoughtful and informative conversation that lasted almost an hour and a half. We had a lengthy talk about the cookbook as object and whether that is something that will continue into the future or go the way of the VHS tape. We all agreed moving away from the book is a long way away, if it ever happens at all, and that there is still a great benefit to holding a book in your hands, cooking from a book rather than a computer screen, and sharing books as gifts with friends and family.

Perhaps the most interesting part of the discussion centered on the agent and author relationship, and the question of how important is it to have an agent in a market where so many writers, bloggers especially, are going it on their own. I strongly believe that (and I think, based on feedback, made a persuasive argument for) authors need agents now more than ever. A savvy agent who understands the nuances of the market’s language and culture is critical as they oversee every aspect of an author’s entire career, focusing on the big picture, as well as the smaller details that can go astray at any point in the process.

What really jumped out at me, though, was the concept of how much book negotiations have changed in the recent past. Each and every negotiation now, even with publishers we’ve dealt with for many years and have boilerplate contracts with the best negotiated terms possible, is fraught with challenges that include new and changing digital royalty rates, author deliverables that previously didn’t exist (one agent mentioned a major publisher had asked that the author deliver along with their manuscript 20 minutes of the author on tape), and which rights will be retained by the author versus the publisher.

This might sound simple, but believe me when I say it is not. The landscape has been described as The Wild West, and we are using our collective years of experience to secure the best deal and contract terms that are possible in a market where publishers are pushing so hard in one direction to keep rights in their control and agents are pushing so hard in the other.

The good news is we are making progress with every deal. Each new contract offers an opportunity to renegotiate contract language we aren’t happy with, or get an author an improved digital royalty, or at least the ability to renegotiate the royalty in the future. We are always striving to protect our clients and maintain a positive working relationship with all the publishers we do business with. I’ll admit it can be precarious, but we have leverage because publishers know the value of our long, successful client list.

All this to say your agent is your friend and will be there to guide you through this sometimes messy and difficult process of being a book author. I’d love to know your thoughts on the agent-author relationship in this new market and also on cookbook as object and its future. Do you think cookbooks are going to go away, or will there always be room on your shelf to display your favorite stain-filled tomes as a badge of cooking honor?

February 07, 2012   Morris   advice, book club, comics, fun, reading, Twitter  
5

1book140

Almost 2 years ago, my friend Tom ranted and raved to me about American Gods by Neil Gaiman. I was hesitant; even though I read a lot of sci-fi and fantasy, American Gods seemed like it would be long, tedious, and ultimately, boring. Then it became the first selection of the monthly twitter book club and I decided it would be nice to join in. So I got myself a copy and started reading. Neil quickly became a favorite author of mine. I immediately ran out to read all of his other works, and I can’t imagine life having not read them.

The brilliant Jeff Howe (@1book140) realized that the biggest conversation in the world was an amazing opportunity to create the first truly global book club. It’s called 1book140, and although it took some figuring out, they’ve got it down to a science now. It is an amazing conversation to be a part of.  This month, 1book140 is reading graphic novels. We’ve begun with Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud, which we are reading this week. Next week we’ll be reading Art Spiegelman’s The Complete Maus: A Survivor’s Tale. The week after is dedicated to the great V for Vendetta by Alan Moore, and we’ll be closing out the month with none other than Neil Gaiman and The Sandman Vol. 1: Preludes and Nocturnes.

It’s super easy to follow along on twitter. First, follow Jeff Howe for official updates. Then, use the hashtags to join in:

#1book140 for general discussion

#1book140_1 for Understanding Comics

#1book140_2 for Maus

#1book140_3 for V for Vendetta

#1book140_4 for Sandman

(This also makes it really easy to ignore the schedule.)

I’m in the middle of Understanding Comics right now, and even for a long-time constant comic reader like me, it is very insightful. I haven’t yet read Maus, but I have only heard good things and I am really excited to start it. V for Vendetta and Preludes and Nocturnes are both amazing works, and are arguably two of the greatest graphic novels ever written. So come and join us. You might discover something amazing.

February 06, 2012   Jane   advice, Jane, opinion, writing  
22

The lost art of communicating

This last week, I found myself having to evaluate entries for a fellowship in publishing.  There were five of them from students in a prestigious master’s program at a well known university.  Sadly, I was shocked not only at the lack of creativity exhibited in these entries but (more importantly) by the level of the writing.

Over the last several years, I have noticed that even young people who have PhD degrees have writing skills that are poor and ineffective.  It seems that communicating clearly and effectively has become a lost art.

It is one thing to write “pretty” sentences in a novel, for example, but I am discovering today that good technical business writing is extremely hard to find.  We need to do better; and the people I am talking about are all intelligent.

I wonder why this is happening.  One of my dear publishing friends has suggested it’s due to the internet, and I suspect that has something to do with it, of course.

But I think there is something else — a lack of focus on the actual process of communicating by the written word.  Young people especially, I think, have to be aware of what they are doing in this regard and how they are doing it.  With so much competition for jobs today, their writing skills are going to become an increasingly important factor in the kind of job and maybe ultimate career they can have.

I would love to hear what you think about all of this — whether you have noticed what I have, why it is happening increasingly now, and what can be done about it.

February 01, 2012   Stacey   advice, blog chat, blog-to-book, conferences, cookbooks and food writing, Stacey  
4

Insider tips on how to successfully turn your blog or idea into a book

While this is a complex and challenging question in a complex and challenging market, a friend and editor at Chronicle Books, Kate Woodrow, gets to the heart of the matter in this insightful piece culled from a recent conference panel she was on. It gives some advice from the inside on the book development process, and more importantly from an author’s perspective, what makes a successful pitch. Chronicle is a publisher we do a lot of business with, and they are very creative when it comes to developing nonfiction books from brands or blogs, so it’s worth a read.

A number of the tips Kate shares about developing a saleable book concept apply to fiction writers as well. Like researching and reading your competition. It seems so obvious, but it bears repeating and often. Knowing your market and what’s out there is incredibly important. And no typos! In this moving-so-fast culture we all inhabit, it’s way too easy to hit send before triple checking your work. But if you’re serious about getting published, then take the time to get it right the first time.

One point that Kate doesn’t address but that’s been coming up a lot in my blog-to-book conversations with clients and editors is that the more targeted book concepts seem to be working better now given the competition in the market. Having a great idea is still imperative, even if you have a big blog to support it. That’s something that’s a bit different than it was even six months ago. There was a long stretch where publishers were snatching up books from bloggers at a rapid pace. That has slowed down considerably, and now it’s even more important to think through and develop a commercial, accessible concept that is supported by your blog, but not necessarily the topic of your blog. For example, I just sold a single subject book on avocados by a food blogger. Her blog is a lot more general, but there is a section on avocados because it’s a food she loves and writes about often, so we felt the idea of narrowing the focus of her book was a smart one.

Hope you find some takeaway here that’s helpful. And good luck if you choose to go in this direction!

January 25, 2012   Miriam   advice, culture, inspiration, Miriam, trends  
19

Helping ourselves

So, as we do around here, we’ve been talking lately about what book categories are thriving and which are tanking.  As Jane mentioned in her post earlier this week, categories wax and wane (and so do we).  The other day, during a staff meeting, Jane and I were fondly remembering the self-help boom of the late ‘80s to late ‘90s.  All those Women Who Love Too Much and the Men Who Find Them Annoying bestsellers, along with the mystical/empowerment titles like Women Who Run with Iron John, made for fat royalty statements back in the day.

Not so much any more.  Aside from the inspirational/health/nutrition/lifestyle books by any of the Real Housewives and the occasional Let Me Tell You How You Can Fix You book on the New York Times list, the self-help category seems sadly quiet at the moment.  We are clearly in need of help as a culture—individually and collectively, and this piece in The Hairpin points out the kinds of situations some of us could use  guidance with.

All kidding aside, though, what happened to the self-help category?  Why are those books not making the kind of splash they did 15 or 20 years ago?  Certainly, we’re not any more well-adjusted.

So,  really, what happened?   Serious question here, why do you all think that the self-help bubble went bust?

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