Parity and Professionalism in 2010 and Beyond

[bccreations]

An agent expects me to write well. I expect an agent to represent me well. This is the foundation of the author/agent relationship. It the the foundation but not the extent of that relationship. An agent has other expectations to.

An agent expects me to follow his/her submission guidelines.

An agent expects me to write a stellar query. ("The query doesn't matter as much as the writing" is outmoded claptrap that I wish people would stop regurgitating. With more queries being submitted than ever before, an agent won't see your writing if the query isn't top-notch.)

An agent expects me to have a web presence in the way of a blog or website.

So here is the process for every manuscript I write:

• I write the first draft.
• I revise that draft until it's suitable to be shown to others.
• I send to beta readers/crit group.
• I compile feedback and revise again until I feel the manuscript is finished (repeat steps three and four as necessary)
• I look for agents who express an interest in my genre (this changes on a yearly basis)
• Read agent's submission guidelines
• Google agent to see if he has posted or conducted an interview that lists likes/dislikes or other personalizations that help me improve my query.
• Write a query
• Revise that query
• Go to Query Shark, read the last 60+ posts and figure out what I'm doing wrong in my query.
• Revise that query again
• Separate my manuscript into 5-page, 10-page, 50-page, and three-chapter samples formatted for email.
• Write a synopsis
• Revise synopsis
• Double-check submission guidelines
• Query agent
• Wait

What to do while I wait? Well, I'm maintaining that web presence, as expected. I have a website (Joseph L. Selby dot com), a blog (Brick City Creations), Facebook (become a fan!), and Twitter ( follow JLSelby). Oh, and I have a full-time job as well, so there's a minimum of 40 hours a week already accounted for. Not like all this time is free. Gotta put food on the table, pay mortgage, that kind of thing.

So there is my list of fulfilled expectations. As for my expectations of my future agent, I have none. Represent me well. Give me the information and input I need. Fight for my best interests with publishers, and get my book on bookshelves. The end. Nothing else.

That's a striking disparity of expectations. My list is 17 items long. Yours is one. That doesn't seem fair. So starting today, I'm increasing this number to two.

• Represent me well
• Meet my professional expectations

Scouring the web for agents, tolerance turned to frustration, frustration turned to disgust. If I am expected to have a web presence. I expect you to have a web presence. This does not mean an entry on Publisher's Marketplace. This does not mean a blogger account with one post that lists your submission guidelines. This does not mean a landing page that lists your submission guidelines.

You will do the following:

• You will have a website.

This is not a Wordpress or Blogger blog. If you use WordPress, you will modify the PHP so that I cannot tell your site is actually a blogroll. This is 2010. Your nephew can design you a website for free*. If you are uncertain what to do, go to Go Daddy and buy a domain name. Then go to Webs.com and buy a premium hosting account. It is a template website builder that will do all the heavy lifting for you. If you have the cash to spend, hire a website designer. *And I mean a professional website designer that understands css coding, not a freshman in college who will charge you $20. This is the first thing I see about you. If your website is not professional, you are not professional.

If your website is not professional, you are not professional.

• You will post the mission of your agency
• You will post a recent picture of yourself
• You will write a description of yourself that sells you as a serious literary professional
• You will will explain what you're looking for in clients
• You will ensure this information is up to date and accurate. If an agent leaves or if your interests change or if you stop/resume accepting submissions, this will be reflected. If you really want to be nice, you will even specify that this is a change from the previous statement, for those that follow you over the years.
• You will list your submission guidelines accurately and succinctly
• You will list your clients
• You will list your most recent and prestigious sales

Warning signs

• If your site looks like it was built on Geocities, you did it wrong
• If your site makes you look like a scam because I have to dig for the most basic information (as listed above), you did it wrong
• If your site looks like a dog peed on it or a pea shat on it, you did it wrong.

This is the FIRST thing I the prospective client learn about you. If you are incapable of presenting yourself in a professional manner, I have no faith that you can present ME in a professional manner.

You will not EVER tell me you are too busy to establish a web presence. I worked a full time job, wrote a novel, revised a novel, and jumped through all your hoops to make sure I submitted to your satisfaction. If I can do that, you can pay someone

You will not EVER tell me that you spend so much time representing your customers that you don't have time to establish your web presence. If that's the case, you have no time for me, and I do not need to submit to you.

You will not EVER tell me a website does not matter. I don't care if editors look at it. I look at it. Your money comes from my money. You should be just as concerned with my opinion of you as you should an editor's opinion of you.

So what does this all mean? It means starting today, if you do not have a professional website, I will not query you. I will not recommend you to other aspiring writers. I will recommend agents who conduct themselves at a professional level appropriate for the twenty-first century.

Do those two things, and we have parity in our relationship.