Blogs by Flo Fitzpatrick
A Discussion of Literary Agents
8/15/2025 4:10:20 AM
A little insight into the workings of agents...and why we should be nice!
For Writers ….and Anyone Who’s Curious:
A good friend and I have been discussing the world of publishing, including the enigma that is a literary agent.
And I’m about to do the unthinkable here and defend them. Stop! Fellow authors, put down the torches and pitchforks and “let me ‘splain.” (Or sum up).
I get just as frustrated as my fellow authors about today’s publishing industry. (And for the record, I’ve had three agents, but am currently not repped). We send in queries and hope for a request for the full manuscript from a wonderful agent who will send our wonderful novel to a wonderful editor who will offer a wonderful contract. More than half the time, we don’t hear back. So we rail against the agents, blaming them for not instantly recognizing our genius and helping us become the next best-selling author on the NY Times list.
Unfortunately, publishing isn’t always about genius…much of it is about time. As in lack thereof. And numbers. Agents get literally hundreds of queries on a weekly basis. Which is one reason most only accept a blurb. Maybe a synopsis, maybe the first ten pages, or even first three chapters. That’s now rare. Because…remember… ”Agents receive literally hundreds of queries on a weekly basis.” Many agencies will note on their website, “Mary Smith, your desired agent, is no longer taking queries because Mary Smith is too stinking exhausted to read your title, much less a blurb, or heaven forbid…a three page synopsis.” (Or words to that effect.)
An agent’s actual, real-live, job is to help an author get a contract with a publishing house and then represent them through a variety of tasks, including dealing with contracts and buffering relations with editors. Agents are not paid a salary. If an agent is spending 10 hours a day reading queries, that gives them maybe two more hours (if their head hasn’t already exploded) in an absurd 12 hour day to represent their contracted clients who, understandably, are upset if the agent isn’t responding to their questions about what the editor at “We’re -So-Picky, Publlshing” really wants them to change in Chapter 14. Note…agents cannot force an acquisitions editor to offer a contract for your book. They can suggest ways to make your book better before they send it to said editor, but once it’s in the hands of that editor…your baby has to hold its own.
Mangling and misquoting Shakespeare here, “If you prick an agent, will they not bleed? If you poison us“(not a good plan!) “will we not die?” If you haven’t gotten the point, I’ll spell it out. Agents are just people, people. Like every other profession out there, you can find good agents and bad agents. Agents whose ineptitude can put your novel and your reputation at risk. Agents who mistakenly believe if they promise you the moon, they can deliver. Thankfully those agents aren’t the norm.
The majority of agents are not greedy. To be greedy, you have to have a sure thing going and sending a book to a publisher on behalf of your client is anything but a certainty. Most agents, like most editors, are voracious readers who would dearly love to find the next Great Novel of the Millenium. And…going back to the whole “do not receive a salary” thing…recall what I said. They don’t get one. They get a percentage of an advance and royalties, so the better deal for the client, the better for the agent.
I repeat, “agents are just people, people’. Who have the audacity to believe they deserve a life now and then. A chance to go out to dinner with someone other than a client or an editor. Walk in the park with the dog. Take in a show. Perhaps patch up the roof or paint their home office which hasn’t seen a new coat in 25 years.
Last thoughts…if you pitch in person to an agent at a conference, remember the humanity issue. Take a moment to say, “ Love your hat!” or “How was your flight?” If you’ve been lucky enough to sign with an agent, be patient and remember you’re not their only client. Don’t make unreasonable demands. Send a thank-you note along with some flowers if the agent has helped get your book in front of “We’re-So-Picky Publishing” and they’ve offered a contract. Send a case of their favorite wine if the book they repped hits the best-seller lists.
Channel Patrick Swayze in Roadhouse. Be nice.
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