Agent Percentage Question

So this question is a little premature as I haven't signed a contract with my agent yet, but I was having a conversation with someone today about agents and process and all of that good stuff and realized I wasn't sure how this situation would work. And I thought maybe you fine people could help me out

(please forgive me if this has already been discussed somewhere - I looked around but couldn't find anything).

Here's the situation:

I've been working exclusively with a big agent/big agency on my novel revisions since June 2009. We have not yet signed a contract (I just recently turned in the first revision), though I hope he will like this revision and we will continue forward and submit to publishers in the coming months. I've enjoyed working with him and think he has a great perspective. He's a better (and bigger) agent than I ever expected would have interest in little ole me. I say all this to be perfectly clear that I in no way want to jeopardize the relationship.

In the meantime (since June) I have become friends with and started collaborating with a really talented and well established (read: already published and a little bit famous) comic book writer and artist. He has expressed interest in collaborating on a comic book script I have. We are still some months away from being in a position where we would reach out to publishers - but in this case - because this working, publishing writer/artist already has all the contacts and relationships I doubt we would go through my agent - we would just query the publisher's directly through the artist. So in the case anyone bit on the project, if I have already signed with my agent for my book...is he eligible for 15% of my likely pitiful comic book writing fees, even though he was not ever involved?

What about if I have a short story or a magazine article accepted after we sign the contract? Is he also entitled to 15% of that if he wasn't involved and I was just submitting to literary magazines on my own?

Thanks for your help everyone!

Thanks Waylander - that makes sense.

Thanks for weighing in eqb. Sounds like it's just one of many conversations to have with my agent if/when we sign - but at least now I feel confident about the conversation. Thanks!

Hi Donna:

I appreciate you weighing in. My question actually wasn't about the agreement between me and the artist however, but between me and my (hopefully soon to be signed with) agent, but thanks for your thoughts.