When editors and agents look at submissions, we often all say that it all comes down to the writing. It is the story that matters! And, while this is true, this is not really the complete picture. When I look at a submission, and I am sure other editors and agents do the same thing, we look beyond the story and take some time to get to know the author as a person.
A great many writers seem to think (either consciously or unconsciously) that the process a book goes through is pretty simple. They write, send it out for edits, revise and then it is published. While this is certainly an element of the process, those people involved other than the author are not just tools in the process. These are professionals that authors must interact with.
We often talk about the author-agent or author-editor relationship as being a marriage. This is a long-term commitment. We are not looking for you to simply write one book and move on. We are attempting to work with you to build your career. This means that we need to really be involved in you and your writing.
When I talk to potential new clients, I am often looking at several things that go beyond that story.
DOES THIS PERSON HAVE A REALISTIC PICTURE OF HIS OR HER FUTURE This is a big one. We often hear at conferences, authors talking about how much money they plan on making, or how they already know their story is going to be on the New York Times Best Seller list. Authors also go on and on about how they already are planning on their books going straight to movies. When I hear this, I already see this person really does not see a sense of their future. They simply do not get the business of publishing.
It is good to have lofty goals and we certainly want you to set your goals high, but, with that said, these goals need to be realistic. Thinking that after your first 3 books in a series romance, you are immediately diving into single titles and 10-20 K for each book is not realistic.
IS THIS PERSON OPEN TO LEARNING AND GROWING We all think we have a full grasp of our writing. We know how to write a great book! But in this business, we also need to be able to adapt and grow with the times. We have to be able to listen to critique and feedback, and then be able to make those changes.
I have worked with authors in the past who simply do not want to make changes to their stories. They are in the mindset that this story is fine the way it is, despite the fact that we have gotten feedback from editors that say otherwise. Those relationships stopped fairly fast.
HOW MUCH "EXTRA" WORK WILL I HAVE TO PUT IN TO GET THIS PERSON READY I think I talked about this just recently. We get that new authors will have a bit of a learning curve. We are open to that. We know that we will have to take initial time to make sure the author knows how to get from Point A to Point B. But, this is where we have to really stop and think. Is this author going to require a year of just education and training before we get to a project that is going to sell? Is this author going to require a ton of emails and phone conversations just to explain concepts he or she should already know? This is where we have to ask, is it going to be worth it?
IS THIS PERSON PROFESSIONAL Authors need to understand that while the publishers and agencies represent them, they are representing the agency and the publisher. We want to make sure that when an author is out there in public, they are demonstrating a strong sense of professionalism. It makes it really hard when I have to go to talk to an editor and hear that they are frustrated with how that author is acting or behaving. Yes, I have had these talks and I can honestly say, these conversations are not fun. As an agent, I have to attempt to run damage control between the editor and the author. Not fun.
So, in the end, yes the story is important. But we are signing a complete package and not just a book!
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