Do agents/editors care . . .

hollyfan · Jul 18, 2010

Do they care what the writer they want to work with is like as a person, or what that writer does with their spare time for example?

Say for example an unemployed heroin addict keeps producing excellent manuscripts in the mainstream genre. Could the junky find it hard to publish because of what he/she does?

To be honest, I'm not very good with people in person, I have poor social skills, and not many people like me unfortunately. But if I kept writing excellent stories that people would love to read, surely that's all that matters, right?

Freelancer · Jul 18, 2010

I believe they care and they should / must care, because you and your behavior, your actions may cast a bad light on the agents and editors as well.

To be honest, I'm not very good with people in person... I kept writing excellent stories that people would love to read

I'm partially like you. I also try to keep writing stories what may people would like to read, but my personality is also similar than yours as I'm not very good with people. In many cases I used to be very arrogant and sometimes I randomly hurt people with it, while it's never my intention. It is very bad and I know should leave this behavior behind if I don't want to cast a shadow on my future colleagues or what is more important, on my work.

Well, it's time to change. Today is my first day where I will try to achieve this quality change.

Paul · Jul 18, 2010

em, finding a famous author without some form of substance abuse issues would be harder than not.

That said, a basic communication is required, by internet mail etc is fine.

Danthia · Jul 18, 2010

They care. How that affects them depends on the writer, the work, and the situation. If you're so difficult to work with that every encounter is painful, the editor might not buy another book from you after your contract is over. There are thousands of other authors with great books who are a joy to work with. If the work is so good and makes them so much money they might not care, but you might not get the best attention from your editor, either.

A heroin addict who missed deadlines and caused public scandal and bad press and just general mayhem due to their addiction would probably be out of a contract no matter how good the work was. It's not good business to work with them. A heroin addict who kept it private, never missed a deadline and was odd and awkward, but professional, might be just fine.

The upside is that you won't have many (if any) face to face meetings with your agent or editor. It'll be mostly email and phone conversations. If you're professional and do your job, you'll be okay. It's a business relationship, not a friendship. You do your job and treat them with respect, and they'll do the same.

However, it is helpful to an author's career to make public appearances. It's in your best interests to overcoming any shortcomings in that area so you can sell more books. Speaking in public terrifies me, but I'm learning to do it because this is the life I want and that's important to be successful.

Hedgetrimmer · Jul 18, 2010

I recall reading in another thread (I believe in the kid's section about a pedophile) that publishers are now putting a "morality clause" in their contracts. Basically, it says that the author agrees to refrain from engaging in public behavior that would be frowned upon and thus cast a bad light onto the publisher. I don't know how true this is or if it's only something being done for the children's market. In any event, I imagine getting arrested for purchasing smack would fall under such a clause.

Wayne K · Jul 18, 2010

Looks like I picked a good week to put down teh heroin

Ineti · Jul 18, 2010

Of course they care. It's a business. Would you want to enter a business arrangement with a pedophile, a drug addict, a rapist, a murderer? Writing well is nice, sure, but if there are major character flaws or other issues, it's a big red flag.

Bufty · Jul 18, 2010

Of course they care. Turn it around - wouldn't you care if you discovered your prospective Agent was...take your pick....?

Jamesaritchie · Jul 18, 2010

hollyfan said:
Do they care what the writer they want to work with is like as a person, or what that writer does with their spare time for example?

Say for example an unemployed heroin addict keeps producing excellent manuscripts in the mainstream genre. Could the junky find it hard to publish because of what he/she does?

To be honest, I'm not very good with people in person, I have poor social skills, and not many people like me unfortunately. But if I kept writing excellent stories that people would love to read, surely that's all that matters, right?

If they do care, they're in the wrong business, but most don't.

Jamesaritchie · Jul 18, 2010

Ineti said:
Of course they care. It's a business. Would you want to enter a business arrangement with a pedophile, a drug addict, a rapist, a murderer? Writing well is nice, sure, but if there are major character flaws or other issues, it's a big red flag.

I wouldn't want anything to do with such people on a personal level, but agents and publishers work with such people on a daily basis. I know of two murderers, and half a dozen or so drug addicts, who got publishing deals primarily because they were murderers or drug addicts.

Put yourself on the other side of the desk for a minute. You get a query, along with a few pages of excellent writing. The query says,

I spent eleven years in prison for a contract murder on behalf of the Mafia. I'm out of prison, and I've written a novel, sample pages enclose, about the real inner workings of the mob.

The protagonist is a hitman, but I think I've made him fully human, and even empathetic.

I can submit sample chapter or the complete novel at your convenience.

The sample pages pull you in, make you want to read the rest of the book. Are you saying you wouldn't request the novel?

The only character flaw that really matters in publishing is not delivering a good book on time.

kaitlin008 · Jul 18, 2010

Jamesaritchie said:
I wouldn't want anything to do with such people on a personal level, but agents and publishers work with such people on a daily basis. I know of two murderers, and half a dozen or so drug addicts, who got publishing deals primarily because they were murderers or drug addicts.

...which means the agents and publishers DO care what these people do/did in their spare time.

scope · Jul 18, 2010

Since there are exceptions to every rule, let us put aside the few who find themselves in a position to write high profile stories because of their past or present deviance from accepted moral standards--e.g., the hitman, the super sleuth--so many more. Let us talk about the everyday writer such as you or me. Do agents and/or editors care what we do and how we act, especially in public? Well, yes, I kind of think so. How do you think they would act to our missing deadline after deadline because...."I decided to go scuba diving in the Bahamas for a couple of weeks", or for some other ridiculous reason. If a writer has an appointment to meet his agent, do you think it's acceptable for the writer to be an hour late, show up drunk, and put his feet on the agent's desk? What about a writer who behaves well during the writing process and whose work is published? The publisher arranges talks at different venues but the writer consistently shows up late and unprepared? These are just a few silly examples of why IMO agents and editors do care what their writers are like.

Hedgetrimmer · Jul 18, 2010

Bufty said:
Of course they care. Turn it around - wouldn't you care if you discovered your prospective Agent was...take your pick....?

Reminds me of Portrait of an Addict as a Young Man, in which an agent at W&M went on a $70,000 crack binge, totally neglecting his clients and his agent partner, ultimately quitting the business and leaving everyone out to dry.

Toothpaste · Jul 18, 2010

Here's the thing. You can get away with anything if a) you are a genius, or b) you make tons of money for your employer or c) both.

So no, agents/editors won't really care who you are and how you behave so long as you are the above.

Most of us, however, are not the above. Most of us are decent writers who will wind up on the mid list. And for people like us, we unfortunately cannot be little princes or princesses. We have to be, like everyone else in the working world, professional. And agents and editors like to work with professional people, like in any business (and just for the record, authors also like working with professional behaving agents and editors - I know someone who was being totally ignored by her agent - not exactly a professional thing to do - who hadn't been interested in selling her next work. So finally she left her, only to get a new agent a week later and a three book deal that went to auction a month after that). Do the work, be personable and thoughtful, and you'll be fine.

(btw, that morals clause currently just exists for children's book authors)

Polenth · Jul 18, 2010

Your two examples don't really match. You ask about drug addicts, but go on to say you're just not very good with people. A lot of people aren't very good with people. The agent isn't going to look at how many friends you have.

It obviously helps to be social and charismatic, but a lot of writers aren't. It's a profession that attracts the shy and socially awkward. I think most agents realise that.

Ryan_Sullivan · Jul 18, 2010

Agents, for the most part, definitely care. Some take on clients for a deal or two, but often they are looking for clients to build careers. You can't work long term with somebody you don't like, nor can you build a career for an author who isn't involved. Similarly, publishers aren't going to do all of the publicity. The author must do his or her part, and that means networking a lot of times. You don't have to be a people person, but you do have to be able to be professional and outgoing enough to get readers who will stick with you. If you don't, you won't have much success.

Libbie · Jul 18, 2010

I am trying to turn my writing into a business, and for me, that means I conduct myself professionally. Including on the internet...most of the time. It's easy for people to find stuff on you these days. I keep my agent and any potential editors in mind when I participate in the online world, just as if I were at a company social event. You can socialize and be yourself to a degree, but you never know who's watching you and how your actions might effect your future. (Obviously I'm not too straight-laced...I am not above showing a little cleavage in my avatar pic, for example!)

I participate in a weekly public access TV show that is also online, and even there I try to keep my behavior as professional as possible while still being myself. You just never know what might come back to bite you later.

I have other reasons for not being a substance user than how it might change my career prospects, but other writers' mileage may vary. My assumption is that so long as the writer is professional when the chips are down and it's time to deal with the pros, the writer is probably going to be fine.

As for not being socially adept, who cares? Make sure you're professional in the business aspect. You'll likely never meet your agent or editor in person unless you go out of your way to do so -- therefore your social skills aren't too likely to change how your career may go.

Stacia Kane · Jul 19, 2010

The thing is, while they might care if they knew, they probably won't, and you're under no obligation to tell them.

As long as you meet your deadlines and write well, as long as you make yourself easy to work with, they're really not going to care what you do in your private life. They don't care, for example, if you live in a nudist colony, or are polyamorous with two men and two women. They don't care if you have a dozen kids all with different daddies (or mommies), or if you're on welfare, or if you spend every weekend drunk, or if you've been divorced a dozen times, or if you got arrested for shoplifting when you were twenty.

The only thing they care about is how any of these things may affect you or your work. (Aside from pedophilia. I can't think of anyone who would be cool with that, or rather, I wouldn't want to know someone who was cool with that.)

Theo81 · Jul 20, 2010

To be honest, I'm not very good with people in person, I have poor social skills, and not many people like me unfortunately. But if I kept writing excellent stories that people would love to read, surely that's all that matters, right?

Well, that depends. A literary agent (like any other business person) will weigh up your positive points against your negative points and make a decision based on it. You could be the greatest writer in the world, but if you behave like a jerk, they are unlikely to want to work with you.
You say people don't like you. Try thinking of that sentence in a different way: "The people I know don't like me" Solution? Spend some time with different people, ones who will like you.

I've been disliked for being too stupid, too clever, too esoteric, too conformist...lots of reasons. I'm good with that. I don't tend to have a particularly high opinion of them either and we are all comfortable not to spend time with each other.
If a Literary Agent likes your work, they are probably going to like you as well. When the time comes to meet with one, just be polite and listen to what they have to say. They've seen it all before, really. Don't forget; you are also judging them: they could be the greatest agent in the world but if they are a mysogenistic homophobic racist cretin, why would you want to work with them?

shaldna · Jul 20, 2010

Yes, they care. In the same way that anyone you work with will care. They will care about the effect it has on your work, how it will reflect on them, and how easy you are to deal with.

Look at it this way, there are so many other, equally talented writers out there, who are easier to deal with, so why waste you time with someone who's too much hassle?

In my day job I don't employ people who have a bad attitude, no matter how good they are at their job. Why? Because I don't want the stress of dealing with them, and I can always train someone else who DOES have the right attitude.

In the same way, I don't care what someone wears or how they look, I don't care what their political or religious opinions are, I don't care if they are a raging drunk, have a criminal record, or moonlights as a hooker in their spare time. So long as they don't bring that to work with them. When they are on my time they represent me, and their actions reflect on me. What they do outside of our professional situation is up to them.

Jamesaritchie · Jul 20, 2010

Write a good book. Turn it in on time. Nothing else matters.

Eddyz Aquila · Jul 22, 2010

All good and dandy but what about posts on different forums? I mean, it's so easy for them to check up on you, and I'm sure some of the more offensive posts will not be looked upon too kindly.

shaldna · Jul 22, 2010

Jamesaritchie said:
Write a good book. Turn it in on time. Nothing else matters.

Yes. It really does. And to say it doesn't is incredibly naïve of you.

Perhaps 40 years ago all that mattered was the book. But that's not the case now, in this age of multimedia and superfandoms it's more important than ever to be professional in all aspects of your business life. That includes your behaviour.

Look at it this way, if a writer was a notorious party animal, had been in and out of prison, was addicted to crack and had a string of paternity suits following him around he might well be fine publishing his sci-fi, but his childrens book is going to be dead in the water.

Eddyz Aquila · Jul 22, 2010

What Shaldna said.

But still, where do you draw the line? I mean if the author has controversial (to the public) views that he expressed somewhere on the internet, particularly about politics, does this mean it's a turn off?

shaldna · Jul 22, 2010

Eddyz Aquila said:
What Shaldna said.

But still, where do you draw the line? I mean if the author has controversial (to the public) views that he expressed somewhere on the internet, particularly about politics, does this mean it's a turn off?

Exactly.,

Or what about extreme and very vocal religious/homophobic/racist opinions? Does an agent or publisher really want to stand behind someone like that and have thier own name tarnished?

Do agents/editors care . . .

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