Agenting and Trust

Why is it so difficult to trust literary agents?

I’m writing this rather serious newsletter fresh back from the best work trip ever. I travelled to London for the Jericho London Festival of Writing. I’d been invited to accompany my brilliant author, Marve, and the inimitable Debi Alper on stage for the closing keynote speech (among other things). I met Marve and 3 other clients for the first time in person. I even had a couple of days in the southwest reconnecting with my old work pals and spending time with family. I hadn’t been back to the UK since moving out to the SF Bay Area in early 2023 so it was a treat!

Me at the London Festival of Writing - thank you Jericho Writers for making this whole trip possible!

But before I left on my trip, there was Twitter drama surrounding agents… again. I won’t go into the details here but a huge topic was raised: how can writers trust agents? I’ve been percolating the question ever since.

First and foremost, it’s important to acknowledge that sometimes the distrust of agents is rooted in misunderstanding their role. Not understanding something is a shortcut to not trusting it, after all! But let’s leave that to one side, because even for those who do understand the role of agents, there are serious concerns. So, why is it so hard to trust agents? Here are a few reasons (probably non-exhaustive!) - and my thoughts.

1. There is no professional accreditation to become a literary agent. Technically, anyone can call themselves an agent and start to pitch books to publishers.

True. However, often, an agent’s experience speaks for itself – if they represent a few recognizable names and are successfully handling their careers, there’s no reason to mistrust their ability to do the job, even if there’s no official qualification involved.

But what about newer agents? There are so many specialist skills associated with agenting - including, for instance, understanding and negotiating publishing contracts. Shouldn’t you need to pass some kind of exam for that?

In answer to this, I’d like to refer to my own experience. I spent a decade on the editorial side of publishing – I know my way round a contract because I was drafting them (for eight years) and negotiating them (for four years). Lots of agents have similar prior publishing experience – whether in editorial, assisting other agents, writing professionally, or elsewhere. All of this is valid and useful.

If they don’t have specific publishing experience, then remember that all agents learn on the job to a greater or lesser extent, being mentored by more senior agents. My experience doesn’t help me with every aspect of agenting. How do I handle an auction? How do these royalties compare to those across other publishers? How can I word this tricky request to an editor? Luckily I have a fabulous manager to help – and all newer agents should have that similar support to draw on when needed. Ensuring this is the case should be a key part of ‘The Call’.

Lastly, let’s acknowledge that agents often have experience from other industries or valuable ‘soft skills’. For instance, someone who has worked in sales will probably be good at selling, which is a fabulous skill to have as an agent! Try to look at an agent’s experience holistically and understand that while there’s no identikit ‘agent qualification’, there are a myriad of helpful experiences - with the right support.

2. Many agents have a day job and agent in their spare time - this can create an impression that agenting is a hobby, not a profession.

Agenting isn’t a hobby – trust me. It’s a job for which you get paid, and everyone I know who agents is extremely passionate about it and would likely agent full-time given the choice. However, the majority of agents aren’t paid a salary – instead, they earn commission only. That means they have to have another job, a day job, to pay the bills - especially when they’re new. I’m one of the lucky ones – right now, I do get a salary – but that doesn’t mean I’m a better agent. What it means, practically, is that I can take on a lot more authors. That’s it.

One point: Most writers aren’t full-time writers – do we take their work any less seriously as a result?

3. AALA and other professional bodies exist – but many agents are not members and it is unclear whether a code of ethics is enforced.

Professional bodies like the AALA are there to provide networking opportunities, training, mentorship and – crucially – a commitment to certain ethical standards. You can read the AALA’s canon of ethics here: https://aalitagents.org/canon-of-ethics/.

I’m a member and feel it’s a great signal to authors as well as offering lots of opportunities for my career (e.g. events where editors are introduced/interviewed about their wishlists) - however, it’s clear that it’s not completely standard to be a member. Perhaps this is because it costs to join (you’re looking at $150 fee for the first year if you are under 5 years into your agenting career) and if your agency won’t cover it I can see how that might be too much of an expense. I know plenty of reputable agents and agencies who aren’t members.

As for the enforcement of the code, I’ve been unable to find much information on this. My suspicion is that if a writer (or anyone) were to report provable malpractise by an agent, the AALA would eject them - but I can’t confirm in writing.

Overall, my feeling is that membership is a great signal to authors without being the be all and end all, and agents may have a variety of reasons to not be a member. It doesn’t mean they’re not trustworthy, but it’s worth asking what those reasons are.

4. Agents sometimes drop writers when they can’t sell their first book, which adds to the sense of mistrust for writers. How can you trust someone who could abandon you after one try?

Yes, agents do sometimes drop clients (and honestly, vice versa!). And yes, sometimes this happens after one book has failed to sell. For me, this is all about expectations and communication - and recognizing the professional nature of the relationship.

Bottom line for me: I’m in this for the long run. I sign authors, not books. Nine times out of ten, I’m going to go on that second round for the first book and try to sell a second book too. I can’t promise to sell an author’s project(s) but I can promise ‘there will be a second round, we will discuss your next book, we will continue to have those conversations about what’s in your writing future, and we will continue with this professional relationship until it’s not working for one or both of us’.

That decision to walk away will rarely be taken lightly by any agent - and most likely it’ll be because that agent doesn’t feel they’re serving the author well e.g. they don’t have the editor contacts/ editorial vision/ expertise in the area to move forward with the next project. And it’s necessary to recognize that, in this way, space can be made on their list for new writers and opportunities.

Photo by Javier Allegue Barros on Unsplash

The fact that clients are dropped (after one book or beyond) isn’t a reason not to trust an agent - but it is a reason to ensure there is clear and open communication throughout any agent-author relationship so you always know where you stand.

5. Thanks to social media, we hear all about bad agents. Can there really be so much smoke without fire?

While we all know there are bad actors in the agenting world - it’s been proven enough times with names and receipts to be certain! - they undoubtedly gain an outsized proportion of attention. And I think this sadly impacts on the perception of agents overall. At the end of the day, a lot of the good work we do is invisible, even confidential. So, don’t let those agents tarnish the rest of us - mostly, as in virtually every other industry, we’re decent people who want to do right by our clients and by everyone who lands in our inbox.

6. A lot of agents, especially new ones, don’t seem to be selling that many books – are they actually doing their jobs? How can I trust an agent who hasn’t sold anything?

I say this a LOT but I’ll say it again: publishing is SLOW. I closed deals in July, October, December 2023 and February 2024 - they’re not even all announced yet (it’s July 2024 at the time of writing). An agent with no announced deals is not an agent with no deals.

In addition, quiet periods are an accepted and normal part of agenting life. You don’t sell anything for four months (possibly over the summer), then you do three deals at once in September (yes please). Ultimately, you can’t make editors buy your books - all you can do is keep putting as much good-quality stuff out to the right editors as you can, pitching them to the best of your ability. So, don’t judge an agent with a gap in announced deals too harshly.

Remember - you can totally ask about an agent’s deals on The Call - they may be able to tell you (sans confidential details)!

7. Agents are just social media personalities - you can’t trust an agent who spends all their time on Twitter.

This is entirely personal but for me, this one is a bit of a catch 22. Most writers don’t tend to love it when agents are closed doors - and when what happens behind that closed door is a total mystery. I don’t love it either. Agents and their writers are equal partners and I like to present myself as such. So, like a lot of other agents, I try to be a part of the community (while always recognizing the power dynamic there) and to be open about what my job involves. This also helps to raise my profile - something we’re all told to do as more junior agents. There’s always the danger that this will give the wrong impression about my motives - am I just in it for the likes and retweets? But bottom line, being active on socials is not something that makes an agent untrustworthy - there are generally decent/understandable motives behind this decision.

8. Agents might steal my story concept and give it to someone else. How can you trust any agent when this could happen?

I get the nervousness here, but I maintain from 11 years of publishing experience that stealing concepts is an extremely rare occurence. I’ve seen multiple instances where different writers with no connection came up with similar, nearly identical concepts, usually by combining existing elements. And yet, conversely, none of these writers wrote those concepts in quite the same way!

Agents are rich in options and short on time. If I like the concept of a book but not the execution, it’s ultimately far easiest to hit reject and move on to the thousands of other queries in your inbox, where that perfect idea/execution combo might just be waiting for me.

How can agents build trust with authors?

I’m part of a fabulous group of newer agents to whom I asked this question. The answer from every single one of them when it comes to our clients was basically ‘transparency and straightforward approach at all levels’ – from an initial author offer call through the whole process of submission and beyond. Communication is everything. So much of the above mistrust could be circumvented if we all talked a bit more about what authors can expect from us - and vice versa - not only with our own clients but in the wider community.

Phew - that was a long one so I’m going to end on that note. Let’s keep talking, always - and please let me know if this newsletter raises more questions for you. I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Kesia