That’s what Chris Parris-Lamb, a rising star at the Gernert Company in NYC wonders, and it’s why you won’t find him posting on Facebook anytime soon.

No time for tweeting

“I don’t.  I don’t have time.  And with all due respect to my peers who do, I don’t really see the point.  Perhaps blogging and tweeting does increase an agent’s profile in the world of writers, which might result in getting good submissions that they might not otherwise receive.  But if you were one of those writers, once you’d signed with that agent, wouldn’t you want to feel like they were working instead of blogging or tweeting?”

Instead, Parris-Lamb is busy making book deals.  He’s been an agent only about three years, but has had exceptional success finding new writers with unusual projects and placing them for big bucks with mainstream publishers.  He’s out there doing it the old way.  “…You sell a few things at an auction, and you know, you start going to lunch with editors in chief.  I really feel like if you hustle, if you put in the time and energy to get out there and read, there’s a lot of good writing and a lot of good ideas.  There are books out there waiting to happen.” (New York Observer)

Big-time book deals

Recent deals include: a sale at auction to Scribners for Forbes editor and blogger David Ewalt’s Of Dice and Men: The Story of Dungeons & Dragons and The People Who Play It, and another to Little Brown, also at auction, for a debut novel by an editor of the literary magazine n+1, Chad Harbach’s The Art of Fielding, about love, ambition, family, and sports, set in a small college town.  A third sold to Holt at auction for Harvard Business School Professor Anita Elberse‘s Blockbusters: Hit-making, Risk-taking, and the (Big) Business of Entertainment.

I met Parris-Lamb recently during a NYC acquisition blitz and was impressed by his intelligence, vitality, and earnest idealism.  He agreed to take time out for an interview with the Book Deal, and here’s what he had to say about breaking into the business and moving up in NY publishing:

How, as a young unknown agent, did you find your first clients?

Most of my early clients were ones that I reached out to directly after reading something by or about them.  Like Jane McGonigal, whose first book, Reality is Broken: Why Games Make Us Better and How They Can Change the World, will be published by The Penguin Press in January.  I first saw Jane’s name in an ad for the New Yorker Conference in the spring of 2008.  It described her as a game designer whose goal was for a game designer to win a Nobel Peace Prize by the year 2023.

Well, that’s a bold statement, I thought to myself. So I googled her and spent a week poring over articles, and reading her blog and other pieces she’d written.  A whole new world opened before me. Her ideas were completely groundbreaking—and so I emailed her to ask if she’d ever thought about writing a book.  She said she had an idea for a book, and wanted to show people ways that the real world could be more like a game

But Jane had already been contacted by other agents and publishers, and I’d been an agent for less than a year.  She was coming to New York in a couple of weeks and was going to meet with agents, but I was determined to be the first.  So I asked for permission to fly to San Francisco that weekend for 36 hours to meet her.  It was such a crazy request my boss must have decided I really thought it would pay off, so the answer was yes.

Long story short, we hit it off, she decided to work with me, we got a great deal with Penguin Press, and now there’s a fantastic book —”as addictive as Tetris,” according to Publishers Weekly — to show for it.

Given your youth and relative inexperience, why should authors go with you?

Because I’m passionate about their work, understand it and how it fits into the literary/cultural conversation, and have strong ideas about how it would best be published and who would be the best publisher to do that.  And because they feel like we’d get along on a personal level.

How do you think the role of a literary agent is evolving and changing in the book business today?

Writers are always going to need someone to advise them and advocate on their behalf if they want to bring their work to a larger readership in a monetized way.  We, as agents, need to be more vigilant than ever to make sure our authors’ interests are protected and maximized as the industry undergoes this tectonic shift, with the rise of ebooks and the decline of the traditional model of publishing and marketing books.

What do you think of other agencies or agents who are offering their authors marketing services?

Frankly, I tend to take a cynical view of agencies who offer those sorts of services right now — though the Gernert Company would take that step if changes in the landscape made it necessary. The real value to those agencies lies in advertising marketing services as a way of wooing prospective clients. Strategic marketing and multi-media efforts require a serious investment on the part of a company, and I have my doubts that an agency’s hiring of one or two people, whose positions are paid for through the 15 percent commission of an author’s share of a book’s sales—a pretty small slice of the pie, all things considered—can really be effective or make financial sense unless they’re working on behalf of a very lucrative author—who of course probably gets plenty of marketing muscle from the publisher anyway.  I could be wrong, though, and my opinion could change.

Do you find new writers through query letters or among unsolicited proposals?

I don’t have a lot of faith in the query letter/slush pile process to bring me great writers and material, though I do take a look at everything that comes through. It’s incredibly frustrating when authors send emails directly to my personal account, address it “Dear Agent,” and have quite clearly bcc’d every other agent in the business. So I’ve just found it’s a better use of my time to be proactive about finding writers.

Do you find new writers in literary journals and other periodicals?

Yes, I’m a voracious reader of magazines and journals of all kinds, from Foreign Affairs to the London Review of Books to McSweeney’s to Tin House. My favorite, the only one I read cover to cover, is n+1, a print journal of politics, literature, and culture.

What about author blogs?

I probably read blogs less than most younger agents, although there is great stuff out there online—including my favorite NBA mad scientists and one of my favorite authors, FreeDarko, whose second book was just published by Bloomsbury and whose blog is much beloved among sports readers.

What are you looking for right now?  Give us examples of your dream books to agent.

I don’t know what I’m looking for until I find it, but three very different writers I love, and who represent three different types of books I’d love to work with, are Jared Diamond (Guns, Germs and Steel,) Annette Gordon-Reed (The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family) and David Mitchell (Cloud Atlas: A Novel.)

Note: Responses have been edited and condensed

__

There you have it, writers.  Is Chris Parris-Lamb the kind of agent you’re looking for?

“Absolutely, yes!”  That was Jim Levine’s unequivocal answer when I asked him recently if he was accepting self-published submissions.

Levine is a founding partner at Levine Greenberg Literary Agency, among the top five overall most active agencies in the business, according to Publishers Marketplace.  And he’s on the crest of a wave of agents beginning to represent authors who’ve self-published and are seeking mainstream commercial publication.

A notable shift in attitude

Levine’s attitude is a notable shift, since in the past, most agents shunned self-published books as tainted goods and a tough sell. Levine says that’s changing.

“Usually when we take on a self-published book we sell it,” he said. “We sold Jason Kaplan’s Things That Suck to Andrews McMeel Publishing, Jeff Rivera’s Forever my Lady to Grand Central, Dane Sanders’ Fast Track Photographer to Random House, and Ivan Sanchez’s Next Step to Simon & Schuster. And that’s just off the top of my head.

So we’re happy to take a look at self-published books. Of the more than 10,000 proposals we get every year, a few hundred are self-published and that number is growing. Sales track is key. If the author has sold 5,000 copies in the previous year, it interests publishers.  And if an author has sold that many, she or he probably has some sort of platform.”

The times they are a’ changing

Literary agents have been the missing link for self-published writers trying to break through into mainstream publishing.  When I recently interviewed Keith Ogorek, VP for Marketing at the self-publishing conglomerate Author Solutions, he said agents with old-school attitudes were the biggest obstacles for his authors pursuing commercial publishers.

But new attitudes are taking hold, especially among younger up-and-coming literary agents. Check out these three agents and their positions on representing self-published authors:

Nathan Bransford, the popular publishing blogger and agent for Curtis Brown in San Francisco:

“I definitely am on the lookout for self-published books, and have clients who started out self-publishing. I wouldn’t say that I have strict criteria for which self-published projects I take on. It’s all case-by-case.”

Bransford reports selling a previously self-published book on humane dog training, which will be published next year by New World Library.

Terra Chalberg at the Susan Golomb Agency:

“I would absolutely handle more of them, on a project-by-project basis. The self-publishing aspect, for me, only factors in as a sales tool in one extreme or the other – that is, if it hasn’t sold many copies and is “like new” or, if it’s sold so many copies it’s worth the investment (as happened with the self-published book The Shack, which sold a million copies and reached #1 on the NY Times bestseller list, before selling another five million copies since Hachette picked it up for mainstream publication.)

So, it doesn’t matter one way or the other to me or to the editors I’ve encountered. I wouldn’t ever turn a compelling project away because it had been self-published. It holds no stigma for me.”

Rachelle Gardner, an agent with WordServe Literary and also the author of Rants and Ramblings, a smart and well-written blog about writing and the book business:

“I haven’t taken any on yet, simply because I haven’t received any that impressed me enough. But I’d definitely consider it. My criteria are exactly the same as with any other project coming across my desk: Do I think I can sell it? Do I believe in it? Do I think I’d be a good fit with this author? Does the author have an appropriate platform to be able to market this book?

Then of course: how many self-pubbed copies has the author sold, and can they prove it?

Caution and skepticism persist

Not all agents are on board. Veteran agent Sandy Dijkstra (representing Amy Tan, Susan Faludi, Maxine Hong Kingston) for example, says she’s received very few self-published submissions but would handle one if she thought it had potential. So far, she hasn’t.

Another stellar agent, Jane Dystal (representing Barack Obama’s first book, Joy Bauer and Bobby Flay, among others) also has no self-published authors that she’s either represented or sold, as far as she can remember.

Joelle DelBourgo, a literary agent and former top executive at Random House, is divided on the subject, with one very successful experience and others not so much.

“A couple of years ago, an author approached me about her book, which she had self-published,” DelBourgo told me.  “She wrote a wonderful letter, provided a dazzling promo kit and included a copy of a beautifully designed little book which she had sold to her clients, 4,000 copies or so, without any bookstore distribution.”

“I was intrigued, read the book right away and took her on. I sold the book for six figures practically overnight.  But that’s the exception, not the rule. More recently, we took on an author who self-published a great marketing book and sold 6,000 copies, but publishers were still not impressed enough to take it seriously.”

So despite her initial success, DelBourgo is cautious and skeptical about most self-published books, expressing views held widely among mainstream agents. “My experience is that most self-published books have been poorly edited and produced.  Authors don’t always understand that self-publishing means that YOU, the author, are the publisher, and need to do everything for your book that a “real” publisher would do, like editing, copyediting, design, production, marketing, distribution, etc.”

Alice Martell, of the Martell Agency in New York, says “Up until five years ago, I had a knee-jerk negative reaction to self publishing. It’s become quite attractive these days, however, as a way for an author to test-market a book’s commercial appeal. It’s funny, though. Most people don’t assume they’d be great lawyers, engineers or doctors, but easily imagine themselves as magnificent writers.  So this is one field in which some kind of review process is absolutely essential.”

My view: Self-published authors need agents

As an editor at a big commercial publishing house, almost all my acquisitions come in through agents.  So I’ve always believed that the best way for a self-published author to convert to commercial publication is with the help of an agent. A good agent who believes in your book can make all the difference in the world.

What about you?

Are you a self-published author seeking representation with an agent?  How’s that going?  Or are you an agent with war stories to share?

We’d all be very interested to hear about your experiences, so please post here in comments.

Leading the charge

Bransford, 28, an agent since 2005 with the venerable Curtis Brown Ltd with offices in San Francisco and New York, takes blogging seriously, and is leading the charge among the handful of agents out there actively connecting this way with writers on the web.

Bransford’s avid followers are hungry for information and encouragement about getting published.  He says that up to 7,000 visitors stop by his blog every day, with many commenting on his daily posts about subjects ranging from writing query letters to dealing with rejection.

So what can we learn about the future of the book business from a young tech-savvy literary agent?  I spoke with Nathan over lunch last week at Max’s Deli in downtown San Francisco.

Q & A with Nathan Bransford

It’s really exceptional for an agent to maintain a blog like yours. Why do you do it?

I use the blog to give readers an opportunity to get to know me, to see what I’m like, and hopefully they’d conclude that they’d want to work with me.

It’s also frustrating as an agent to have to pass on literally thousands and thousands of projects without an opportunity to provide any feedback, and I saw it as an opportunity to give back and help people make their way in what can be a very opaque business.

Hopefully I’ve been able to help some people along the way.

What do you learn from the readers’ comments you get every day?

I learn so much. I get a pulse of what readers are feeling about books, about their book-buying habits, about their likes and dislikes in potential agents… everything.

Just a couple of weeks ago one of my readers, Steve Fuller, suggested that I could really curb some frustration if I’d just let people send me some sample pages when they query so they wouldn’t feel like they were living and dying solely by their query.

I adjusted my submission procedures accordingly and it’s been a great change – I feel much more comfortable about my decisions now because I can double-check the sample pages, and hopefully everyone now feels like they’re getting a fair shot.

Has your blog helped you get some good writers to represent?

Absolutely. Just about all of my new clients come through the blog.

What do you look for when considering whether or not to take on a new writer?

I’m looking for a relationship for the long haul. I try only to work with people who are talented, professional, and committed, and so far I’ve been very lucky in this regard.

What are some of the books you’ve represented that you’re most proud of and why?

I love every book I’ve worked on, but some notables have been Barry Gifford’s collection of short stories The Stars above Veracruz, which is an incredible work.

I recently handled the movie tie-in edition for a blockbuster movie that’s coming out this summer, and I’m extremely excited about The Secret Year by Jennifer Hubbard, which is a stunning YA debut novel that will come out in early 2010.

I’m also extremely proud of some of the books that I am representing but haven’t yet sold, but fingers crossed on those.

How’s business? How many sales have you made in the last six months?

A solid handful. I’d be lying if I said business was going like gangbusters. I suspect it isn’t going that way for nearly anyone right now, but I’m staying busy.

Recently your blog has focused on “How to remain positive in the face of negativity.” How are you leaning these days – positive or negative?

I’d say I’m cautiously hopeful. It’s definitely frustrating working in a business that increasingly will spend $5 million on the latest celebrity book but can’t find $20,000 to take a chance on a quirky debut novel.

But I think there are still many opportunities out there, and I’m hoping the emerging electronic publishing will help ease some of the barriers that have held writers back.

What do you think books will look like in five years? With the ability of writers to reach their readers directly, what will be the role of agents, editors, and publishers?

E-books are the future. The devices may change, but just about everyone I know who has an e-reader is never going back. They love them. For convenience and portability, they’re unmatched.

With electronic distribution, however, will come a huge deluge of books, whether from traditional publishers or self-published, and branding and marketing are going to become even more important.

The role of publishers especially is going to change dramatically as there will be tremendous downward pressure on prices and publishers increasingly retrench behind “known” commodities and bestsellers.

Publishers will live and die by their big bets if they aren’t cultivating any small bets that have the potential of panning out in a big way.

Are there any publishers whom you admire for their response to the big changes happening in the book business?

On the major publisher level I think it’s impossible to ignore the recent success of Hachette up and down their imprints, from children’s side all the way up through the quality books at Jon Karp’s imprint and the incredible roster of suspense novelists at Grand Central.

They know what they do, and they do it well. Sometimes it’s not brain surgery.

And on the small press side, I really admire what Benjamin LeRoy is doing at Bleak House, connecting directly with readers through blogs and podcasts, and enjoying some terrific success.

The future new voices in literature are often going to come from small presses giving them a launch, and it’s going to take people like Benjamin to connect them with readers.

What specifically will the role of agents be for the increasing numbers of writers who choose self-publishing?

Agents will be the navigators and experts in a publishing world that is growing more and more chaotic.

I think you’ll see agents snapping up self-published books that are catching on and working out distribution deals and selling sub-rights like film and translation.

One of the other reasons I started the blog was to build an audience and hopefully give my clients a boost by the publicity it affords.

Agents are increasingly going to serve as tastemakers and gatekeepers, and hopefully I’ll be able to afford my clients a “brand” and publicity platform that I’ve built through my blog and existing clients.

Have you heard about agents who are starting to work with self-published writers to package and market their books?

Absolutely. The possibilities are still somewhat limited because of the financial demands of self-publishing and the distribution barrier, so it’s not for everyone.

But there are tremendous opportunities in this arena, particularly for authors who come with a pre-existing platform and the ability to forego an up-front advance.

And if you fit this description, e-mail me, please.

_________________________________

Readers, what do you think of Nathan Bransford’s concept of a literary agent’s blog providing a potential brand and publicity platform for writers?  ~Alan

“It’s terrific. Two or three days a week, I’m talking to an editor about projects I’ve already sold them and are now in publication, or new projects I’m pitching that I think might interest them.”

New York agents have more access

“An agent from California comes into town two, maybe three times a year,” Sobel said. “There’s no way they can have my kind of intimacy with an editor over the years, nor can they know about all the new, up-and-coming editors and what they’re looking for.”

Nat Sobel, an agent with 40 years in the book business, represents literary giants Joseph Wambaugh, James Ellroy, and Richard Russo, among many others.

Prior to launching the Sobel-Weber Literary Agency with his wife Judith in 1977, Nat was for ten years Vice-President and Marketing Director of the Grove Press during its groundbreaking years of legal struggles to publish Lady Chatterley’s Lover, the Tropic of Cancer, and Evergreen Review.

I visited Nat last week while on one of my own periodic trips to Manhattan, where a growing sense of chaos, fear and uncertainty was palpable in the world of book publishing. Some of my colleagues read aloud from an article in New York Magazine, an inflammatory doomsday scenario called “The End” which reported that “The book business as we know it will not be living happily ever after…sales stagnating, CEO heads rolling, big-name authors playing musical chairs…”

Still turned on by the hunt

Inside Nat’s elegant Grammercy Park brownstone, however, all was serene. I found him reading earnestly in his office, surrounded by piles of manuscripts, an agent of the old school who’s still turned on by the hunt for the new writer he can champion with an authentic passion in the tough, competitive world of today’s book biz.

What do you look for in a writer?

“A story teller, a stylist, someone who doesn’t try the same old thing but plays a wild card, a writer who can grab me by the throat with the first sentence, the first paragraph, so I can’t stop reading, I have to keep turning those pages, and above all a writer who can surprise me.”

There are dozens, hundreds of agents in New York. How do you stand out from the crowd?

Well I do have a track record after so many years. I try to sell only projects I feel genuinely passionate about, that’s a luxury I can afford myself these days. And when I’m working on something very special that I want to sell for six or seven figures, I always have a messenger deliver a hard copy of the book. You know, real paper? A manuscript with ink on it that you can hold in your hands? That’s so unusual in these days of digital electronics that it helps a project really stand out from the crowd. Editors love it; it gets their attention.

What are the books and writers you’re most proud to have represented?

That’s a tough question, but I’d have to say F.X. Toole’s Million Dollar Baby, which Clint Eastwood made into a terrific film; Poachers, the great and famous story collection by Tom Franklin, Richard Russo’s wonderful second novel The Risk Pool, T.J. English’s non-fiction book Havana Nocturne about the Meyer Lansky mob in pre-Castro Cuba, and here’s something new: James Ellroy has a terrific novel coming out next fall called Blood’s a Rover. He wrote L.A. Confidential and Black Dahlia.

Also, Joseph Wambaugh is a hugely successful writer I’ve worked with for a long time, and of course the great English artist, Ralph Steadman. Ralph’s Gonzo style has influenced so many young illustrators. I see work that looks like his all over the place, but he’s still unique , and no one else can really do what he does. What an imagination, what a line!

________

Before I left, Nat showed me Spinal Beauty, a collection of autobiographical sketches based on a short piece he discovered in a small literary journal written by a young doctor about secretly falling in love with his patient.

I loved it immediately and hope to be a player in Sobel’s auction for the book that closes in ten days, so wish me luck.

________

Look here for Nat Sobel’s advice on choosing an agent.

“My mission is to promote literature and make some money for deserving authors,” said Proulx, whose five tips for unpublished writers appear below. “My specialty is both high quality fiction and what I call “pragmatic nonfiction”, meaning books that are useful and prescriptive, like good parenting books,” added Proulx, an associate at the venerable Frederick Hill Bonnie Nadell Literary Agency.

Titles Proulx has handled recently include I am Death by Gary Amdahl, Anxious Pleasures by Lance Olsen, Writing Through Darkness by Elizabeth Schaefer and due out in October, Twins 101 by Khanh-Van Le-Bucklin, MD.

Last month we interviewed Sandy Dijkstra, the superstar big-bucks agent whose business is always booming. Elise offers a different perspective:

How’s business these days?

It’s tough. Publishers tell me a lot of the formerly successful categories that I love aren’t selling, like literary crime fiction, but other categories are — like YA, young adult. So one of my best literary writers has just written a terrific YA that I’m almost ready to go out with.

Are you looking for new writers?

Yes, definitely. At this point I don’t get big mass market best-selling writers beating down my door, so I’m looking for writers who are just hitting their stride and ready to jump up on the lists. It still happens.

What do you offer aspiring authors?

I’m willing to take on unpublished, up-and-coming clients and help them develop their manuscripts, draft after draft. I’m also very dogged about ignoring a few rounds of rejections. I won’t give up after 7 editors have said “no thanks.” I only take on books I really believe in.

Do you want a query letter or will you accept a full proposal or manuscript?

I’d love to see the first few pages if it’s a novel, but I do want a query letter first. No full proposals or full manuscripts, please.

What do you tell your authors about marketing their books?

I recommend hiring an outside publicist and I encourage authors to establish a strong presence on the web, including blogging to their readers

Are you discouraged by the state of the book business today ?

Oh no. Definitely not. I love my authors and their books, and I’m passionate about selling them to publishers. It’s wonderful when you see good stuff getting out there and read by large audiences.

Some people say the book is dead. Do you think people will stop reading?

Absolutely not. I’m the Executive Director of Litquake, the big San Francisco organization that creates dozens of events where writers can read their work to thousands of avid readers. We pack big halls all over the Bay Area and we’re spreading to New York with a huge festival in October. Our Porchlight story-telling series has Jonathan Ames, Amber Tamblyn, April Sinclair, and others reading.

I see this as an extension of my work as an agent to promote good writers to book lovers. As we say at Litquake, we have “heart, guts, and a taste for the wilder side of the literary world.”

Elise’s tips for aspiring and unpublished writers

1. Your query letter should be three or four paragraphs long and only the last one should be about you. Hint…if you’re still “falling in love with literature” in Jr. High by the second paragraph, an agent probably isn’t going to read any further.

2. If your query letter gets a response from an agent, be prepared to send in a completed novel or full nonfiction proposal – and not just the kernel of an idea.

3. Find a writers group or a free-lance editor who can give you some real criticism. Don’t rely on relatives to edit your book!

4. Read a lot. Not just the classics, but what’s selling now. Don’t only compare your work to Virginia Woolf, the Catcher in the Rye, or Great Gatsby. Position your book on a contemporary shelf.

5. Go shopping! Buy books! Part of learning to be a good writer is committing the bucks to buying what you like. It’s an educational exercise. I’m always amazed that the publishing industry is in trouble when there are so many people who want to be writers and so many good books out there to buy and read.

Reach Elise at: elise_hillnadell@sbcglobal.net
Frederick Hill Bonnie Nadell Literary Agency
1842 Union Street
San Francisco, CA 94123
415 -921-2910

News flash (12/08):

We’ve received word from Elise that she’s left the literary agency business. We’re very sad to see her go and wish her good fortune in all her endeavors. All of her authors will be absorbed and represented now by Bonnie Nadell at the Frederick Hill Bonnie Nadell Literary Agency.

Meanwhile, we’re leaving up this post so writers may still benefit from Elise’s good advice.

Alan

So look out, now that she’s back!

Widely considered the most powerful agent on the West Coast, Dijkstra has been called “tough” and “abrasive” with a keen nose for new talent.

A passionate fighter for her authors

I’ve been on the other side of the table from Sandy during some tough negotiations and I can tell you she’s a passionate fighter for her authors. She knows the ins and outs of every contract. She perseveres, she’s relentless, and she walks away with top dollar for her clients.

One thing is certain: when I get a submission from Sandy Dijkstra, I sit up and pay attention.

The agency, based in Del Mar, California, represents more than 250 writers. Its deep bench of blockbuster best-selling authors includes:

• Amy Tan Joy Luck Club; Saving Fish from Drowning
• Lisa See Peony in Love; On Gold Mountain
• Joel Greenblatt The Little Book that Beats the Market
• Chalmers Johnson Blowback; Nemesis
  
• Susan Faludi Backlash
• Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni Mistress of Spices
• Irv Yalom Staring at the Sun
• Maxine Hong Kingston Woman Warrior
• Stephen Prothero Religious Literacy
  
  

What Sandy thinks about publishing today

What can we learn about the state of the book business from a top literary agent? I reached Sandy by phone at her offices in the beach town of Del Mar, just north of San Diego.

How’s business?

Absolutely terrific. I just got back from a two month vacation in Europe and found that the three wonderful young agents who work for me had sold eleven major projects while I was gone. Eleven new contracts.

‘I should go away more often,’ I told them.

These were deals for new authors just starting out, for older established authors, for five and six figure advances, some with two or three titles in the contract, fabulous projects at major commercial publishers. So my people are happy, optimistic about selling more books, passionate about what they do. And that’s the future for us!

There’s quite a bit of doom and gloom in the book business this year, as publishers report declining unit sales and profits. How has this affected your operation as an agent?

Well after 25 years in the business, I know that plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose. The more things change the more they are the same.

I’ve seen this cycle before. We don’t really know what’s going to happen and personally I don’t believe this doom or gloom is going to last. I can see the bigger picture. The truth is that we’re in an economic recession, real estate is suffering, the price of gas is awful, there’s less discretionary income around.

But what do we really know about the future? Well, we know that baby boomers need larger type books, that’s for sure. We know younger people still love to read but are buying fewer books.

So what we have to do is understand, to meet and grow with these young people, and figure out how to sell them ideas and information they want.

What do you tell your authors about marketing their books?

I tell our authors that they can’t stop working on their book after the first act, after finishing the manuscript and signing the contract. I say they have to go on to the second act or there won’t be any third.

We want our authors to know that they themselves are the first and best advocate for selling the book, and we their agents are the second.

We can try to persuade the publisher to pay attention to the book and do all the conventional things they’ve been doing for years in the national broadcast and print media. But we know that they have a narrow window of concentration. It’s hard to get their attention. A few weeks after publication, they’re on to the next season, the next list of books. So we tell authors to have limited expectations of their publishers.

It’s really up to us – the author and the agent – to keep the book visible, to continue and expand the marketing, to hire a publicist when appropriate, especially to invest in web-based internet marketing.

How important is web marketing?

I agree with my colleague Steve Kasdin (former marketing executive with Harcourt Brace, now marketing Amazon’s Kindle to book publishers) that authors and agents have a tremendous opportunity now to control marketing direct to readers by going on the internet, building interactive web sites, and blogging.

Some publishers, like Penguin and Random House, support author web sites and blogs, but it’s still up to the author and agent to keep pushing on this, with the help of professional tech design and web-marketing specialists for hire.

I’ve been recommending Fauzia-Burke Associates, for example, and there are many others.

What are you most excited about now and for the future?

You’re going to be hearing a lot about the San Francisco Opera’s World Premiere of The Bonesetter’s Daughter on September 13th. Amy Tan wrote the libretto based on her novel. Stewart Wallace has written a score with western and Chinese music. It’s going to be fabulous.

I’m also excited by what Irv Yalom is doing now. You know he’s been a psychiatrist and professor at Stanford Medical School for decades, writing nonfiction and novels, books for professionals and for lay readers, big New York Times bestsellers like Love’s Executioner, international bestsellers like When Nietzsche Wept, and The Gift of Therapy.

All of his books are having new editions all over the world. His new book about overcoming the terror of death called Staring at the Sun is a bestseller in Germany, France, Greece, Brazil, Israel, Norway, and Sweden, When Nietzsche Wept has been made into a movie that’s soon to be released, he’s starting in on a new novel.

What an inspiration!