S.T. Literary Agency / Stylus Literary Agency

MysticWolf1

Re: President of ST Literary / Sydra Offers a Few Thoughts

Usually I'm depressed at my lack of funds (I rarely have 50 cents remaining at the end of the month); but I feel good knowing that I won't get caught in these traps.

While I don't have the $$ to send out mss. I know that a legit agent won't expect me to pay $$, instead he/she would take $$ owed them from my earnings (a commission, which is A NORMAL BUSINESS practice).

So, for once, I feel good! :D
 

JustinoIV

money

Money should flow to the writing for his writings, not the other way around.

Many would be actors, models, etc fall prey to similiar scams. Ie, gives us money/;et us take your pictures and you'll have a fabulous modeling career!

Not! LOL.
 

Raywe

ST Literary Agency

I am also trying to find a reputable agent. Are there any out there?

I received the same info from ST Literary Agency, aka Sydra Techniques. Very disappointing.

From what I can understand, through investigating, ANY agent that requires an UP FRONT fee of any kind is not reputable.
 

emeraldcite

that's right

that's right, raywe. any upfront fee is a sure sign. always look for a track record, that's the safest bet. a solid track record, not just any track record.
 

James D Macdonald

Re: ST Literary Agency

ANY agent that requires an UP FRONT fee of any kind is not reputable.

I wouldn't go that far, but I would say that if you find an agent asking for any upfront fee, you aren't in a place a newbie should be messing around.

(Sort of like there are some bars you shouldn't go into wearing a Hawaiian shirt and Bermuda shorts with a camera draped around your neck and all your vacation money in your pocket, even though a guy with scars on his knuckles, tattoos on his arms, and a scuffed leather jacket can go in and have a good time.)
 

Queen Uhuru

Re: ST Literary Agency

What troubled me about their website was the lack of a physical address for their business. It is not enough for me to have only an email address for an agent. I like to know where they are.

So this is the information available on "stliteraryagency.com" from the whois database:

LRR
699 SW 8th Terrace
Boca Raton, Fl 33486
US

Domain Name: STLITERARYAGENCY.COM

Administrative Contact:
Leslie Williams [email protected]
LRR
699 SW 8th Terrace
Boca Raton, Fl 33486
US
Phone: 561-347-8683
Fax: 209-755-3861
Technical Contact:
Leslie Williams [email protected]
LRR
699 SW 8th Terrace
Boca Raton, Fl 33486
US
Phone: 561-347-8683
Fax: 209-755-3861

Record updated on 2003-04-26 07:12:17
Record created on 2003-04-26
Record expires on 2004-04-26
Database last updated on 2004-02-13 20:04:00 EST

Domain servers in listed order:

NS1.WEBSITEMACHINE.COM 64.135.116.69
NS2.WEBSITEMACHINE.COM 64.135.116.70

ST Literary Agency seems to be owned by or affiliated with "LR&R Enterprises" and when you do a whois search on that domain name, you get the same name and address.

"LR&REnterprises" seems to be owned by or affiliated with "byteaudio.com" and the trail ends for Byte Audio here:

Domain Name: BYTEAUDIO.COM

Created: 2002-10-24
Expires: 2004-10-24

Nameservers:

THIS-DOMAIN-FOR-SALE.COM
NS.BUYDOMAINS.COM

Registrant:

BYTEAUDIO.COM
4200 Wisconsin Avenue NW #106-190
Washington, DC 20016-2143

Administrative Contact:

BYTEAUDIO.COM
Buy This Domain RN, WebReg
4200 Wisconsin Avenue NW #106-190
Washington, DC 20016-2143

Voice: +1 202-478-0990
E-mail: [email protected]

Technical Contact:

BYTEAUDIO.COM
Buy This Domain RN, WebReg
4200 Wisconsin Avenue NW #106-190
Washington, DC 20016-2143

Voice: +1 202-478-0990
E-mail: [email protected]

Billing Contact:

BYTEAUDIO.COM
Buy This Domain RN, WebReg
4200 Wisconsin Avenue NW #106-190
Washington, DC 20016-2143

Voice: +1 202-478-0990
E-mail: [email protected]

When your domain name has been scooped up by buydomains.com that's not a real good sign.
 

Gahndrielle

St Literary AGency

I sent these scammers my story about a week ago and they e-mailed me yesterday saying that "readers around the world are beginning the evaluation process." How the heck do I stop them from stealing it? Help!>:
 

vstrauss

Re: St Literary AGency

Gahndrielle,

Don't worry, they won't steal it. Agencies like this aren't interested in your manuscript, only in your money.

New writers worry a lot about theft, but in the book world, theft of unpublished work is so rare as to be functionally nonexistent.

- Victoria
 

smilerscomedy

still charging fees

Before I was aware of this website I sent these guys my recently produced show for the stage. They wrote back that they were interested in representing me. when I asked if they charged any fees, they sent me this...


We specialize in helping new authors get the credibility they need. I have recently joined the company and we are expanding the number of authors we represent. However, the timeframes are long and the odds are stacked against new writers so we have made a business decision to defray the administrative costs associated with maintaining our relationship. We charge a one time fee of $129 when you are accepted into our company and that covers putting you into our database, our communications, and the marketing materials we build on your behalf. There is a $14 fee for printing, binding and mailing a manuscript.
Those fees are DEDUCTED from our commission upon a sale.
I hope that helps.

Best regards,
Jill Mast
ST Administration


********************
I've since replied and told them I was not interested in being represented by anyone who charges me a fee. To please destroy my script. So if any of you hear of a play called "Southern Exposure" that my show...if it's not written by Thomas Amo...then something is very wrong!!!
 

sfsassenach

Anone who checks out their site...

unless they are hopelessly naive, would smell a rat. What agent doesn't list their clients/sales???
 

legendone

Re: S.T. Literary Agency

Given the difficulties all new writers face with acceptance and just finding an Agent who will represent them, it is not surprising that these people "pop up".
As it was not really a huge amount, I paid ST their fee and have now paid for the submissions by them to publishers.
So far, they have done what they said they would do. If they manage to sell my book or its screen rights, I will give them a glowing reference everywhere. If they don't perform their function it will be very easy for them to say "Nobody wanted your work." It would be really good to hear from any authors who have had success through S.T.Literary Agency. The only other question remaining is...I have been trying to get an Agent or a Publisher to "take me on" for 18 months now, with no luck. Where do you turn to?
 

emeraldcite

Re: S.T. Literary Agency

I have been trying to get an Agent or a Publisher to "take me on" for 18 months now, with no luck.

This is a very short time in the publishing world. If you exhaust all of your options with your present text, write another one, move on. Keep going until you sell something. It may not be your first book, it may not be your fifth. If you keep at it, you will eventually sell something.

I said before that finding an agent is like getting married. Finding a publisher is the same thing. It takes time and effort, and your first few dates may never pan out.

The problem is that the only good agent to have is a good agent. Bad agents are worse than scams. They may be sending out their work, but publishers may not even look at it. Read through the boards, you'll find this everywhere. A bad agent will smear your name, a scam agent never even bothers.

In most cases, if they don't have a solid track record, you should stay away.
 

SRHowen

tick tock

everything in publishing takes time---

took 4 months to find my agent
took 9 months to work out rewrites we were both happy with
has now taken 4 months of pitching so far--5 publishers are reading the complete ms--when I asked how long we could expect a sale to take--my agent said--could be a month could be 18 months.

The wheels move slow, that's one reason so many people fall prey to the scams and bad guys out there.

But, one thing is more than true--if this one didn't sell, move on. If this one didn't find an agent, move on.

The book I found representation with is my 6th complete work--or is it the 7th--it may be the 7th.

You move on. It takes time to find your voice and your style. It takes time to learn the craft--to learn what a commercial novel is.

And no I am not saying that your work is no good--but like a marriage, your agent and you must see eye to eye and love the story equally. It takes time and a lot of words to find that story.

Shawn
 

James D Macdonald

Re: S.T. Literary Agency

Alas, legendone, if ST manages to sell your manuscript it'll be their first. That means that they don't have any contacts among publishers. That means that they don't have a clue how to negotiate a contract. That means ... don't hold your breath. They're making their money off fees paid by writers (which is easy), rather than by selling books (which is hard).

(There's a common name for people who take money to provide a service that they know they can't perform.)

Here's <a href="http://nielsenhayden.com/makinglight/archives/004772.html#004772" target="_new">a discussion</a> of agents that you might find useful and enlightening.

Remember: Having a bad agent is worse than having no agent at all.
 

legendone

ST Literary Agency.

>: Does anybody ever look at or vet the sponsors at the top of the page?
One is headed up "Literary Agent" Sydra techniques.com and another says "Literary Agency Openings" ST Literary Agency.com
They probably work on the basis that any publicity is good publicity and they may be laughing all the way to the bank, but is there any restriction or control over who advertises? If they are as unscrupulous as the comments would indicate, then they should be told where to go.:grr
 

legendone

Re: S.T. Literary Agency

;) 18 months may be a short time for some Emeraldcite, but it is an interminable period of time for others.
Do you have a good Agent? Have you had anything published?
If you believe you have a good Agent and have been waiting to be published for more than 18 months then something is wrong somewhere. It has to be either your Agent or the material he is working with.
It may well be that STLiterary Agency is a scam and we are certainly not being inundated with their success stories. I would just like to hear from two of their happy writers.>:
 

emeraldcite

Re: ST Literary Agency.

the ads are content specific and done by ezboards. you could donate money to the bank and we could get rid of them forever. otherwise, it's better to ignore them.
 

emeraldcite

Re: S.T. Literary Agency

Firstly, no i don't have an agent and I have had nothing published with a major publishing house. Of course, I'm still revising my manuscripts. When I feel I'm ready, I have a nice little list of reputable agents with strong sales that I will begin to submit to. If those don't pan out, then I'll go after my list of small presses. If that doesn't pan out, then I'll put the manuscript in a drawer and get my next one ready.

This is a tough industry that is a slow moving monster. as the above authors mentioned, it takes time and you need a good agent. Even with a good agent, not everything is a guaranteed sale. having a good agent is only a step.

impatience will push you out of the industry quickly, mostly because nothing is quick. it may take you a year to find an agent, another six months to find a publisher and anywhere from one year to two for the publisher to prepare the manuscript. a colleague of mine has a book coming out this year from random house. He gave them the manuscript sometime early last year or the year before.

If you believe you have a good Agent and have been waiting to be published for more than 18 months then something is wrong somewhere. It has to be either your Agent or the material he is working with.

now, this is problematic. keep in mind that this is a business and even though a book might be stellar doesn't mean that someone will buy it right away. the industry buys what's popular and what they think is the next big thing, this is business. if they bought everything that 'good agents' picked up, then agents wouldn't have such a hard job, would they?

ultimately, it's patience and perseverance that pays off in the industry. Eighteen months is a long wait when you're counting the days between letters. keep busy, work on the next thing. let your baby go, and concentrate on the next step.

I'm not trying to make light of your plight here. the wait is tough and it sucks, but sometimes you just have to roll with it and hope for that opportunity. hopefully ST sells your work, but they've have a number of 'clients' under their belt and have little to show for it. How long have they been in business? you think they would have sold something noteworthy.
 

HapiSofi

Re: S.T. Literary Agency

Legendone, I'm sorry, but S.T./Sydra isn't going to do a thing for you. Sydra's been a hissing and a byword for years. I recently heard that they'd actually sold a book, and was astonished; then heard it was sold to PublishAmerica, which if true confirms what needs no confirmation. (No real agent would ever sell their client into a house of ill repute.)

I don't expect their president has continued to read this board; otherwise I'd have a few words to say to him. What separates the men from the boys isn't a $129 fee. What does it is writing a saleable vs. an unsaleable book. Real agents can tell the difference. And all those things S.T./Sydra charges for? Real agencies don't bill for those. They're part of their cost of doing business.

Still, given that you're a writer, you probably don't care about any of that as long as you think S.T./Sydra's going to sell your work. They aren't. They won't. They never do. They've been in this business for years, and they never, ever do. Your manuscript will meet the same fate as all the others they've represented.

I'm truly sorry.
 

LiamJackson

Re: S.T. Literary Agency (Jim D)

<<<ANY agent that requires an UP FRONT fee of any kind is not reputable.

I wouldn't go that far, but I would say that if you find an agent asking for any upfront fee, you aren't in a place a newbie should be messing around. >>>

Jim, I was very fortunate in not having to go through the whole agent-query process, but my curiosity have gotten the better of me. Regarding your statment above, under what circumstances would a "reputable agent" ask for a fee, "up front"?

L
 

HapiSofi

Re: S.T. Literary Agency (Jim D)

I can't think of any circumstances in which a reputable agent would do that. I got in touch with my favorite editor and asked him if he could think of some.

"No," he said flatly.
 

emeraldcite

Re: S.T. Literary Agency (Jim D)

under what circumstances

i don't think there are many circumstances, but some posters have mentioned before that some good agents with solid track records asked for upfront fees (such as reading. mostly i think it had to do with hiring a slush reader, but i might be making this up). But then again, these agents probably used the tactic to discourage submissions since they had their hands full with successful clients and referrals.
 

legendone

Re: S.T. Literary Agency

:) Thank you very much Emeraldcite and also HapiSofi for the time and effort you have both taken in this matter.
I have spent the last dollar and now must wait the required time for ST Literary Agency to perform. If they don't, I will be the first to admit my gullibility and will go to great lengths to let others know of my stupidity. If they do sell it, it will give me great pleasure to let you all know that too. I must say though, my confidence has been wrecked.
Thank you all again.:heart
 

emeraldcite

Re: S.T. Literary Agency

I will be the first to admit my gullibility and will go to great lengths to let others know of my stupidity

legendone: I'd say that you're neither of the above. These kinds of scams work because they are so convincing. The amount does seem small and reasonable. It takes some digging and a lot of research to find out who's reputable and who's not. Take a look at the long melanie mills thread, many of these people were tricked as well. This doesn't make them gullible or stupid, it makes them victims. They did what they thought was right to find out their Agent was a criminal in the US and Canada.

Although, ST Literary Agency isn't performing criminal acts, they are not a suitable agent for anyone. good luck with the manuscript. keep up the hard work. I hope we'll all be surprised with a sale, but you might be better moving on.
 

vstrauss

Re: S.T. Literary Agency (Jim D)

>>under what circumstances would a "reputable agent" ask for a fee, "up front"?<<

A small number of reasonably well-established agents (i.e., agents with genuine track records) do ask for a deposit or reserve on contract signing to offset submissions expense. I've collected a little list of them, based on reports I've gotten from writers who've queried them. One difference between this and an amateur or scam agent's request for upfront money is that the established agent won't promise to reimburse it if the book sells.

I also know of at least one agent who recently stopped asking for an upfront deposit, a practice she'd followed for many years, because she was concerned about how it reflected on her reputation.

I've also heard that some established agents bill periodically for incurred expenses. Another method of making clients pay out-of-pocket before their books are sold is to ask them to provide all full manuscript copies that may be needed. This seems to be becoming more and more common.

I don't approve of any of this. While it doesn't really diminish the agent's incentive to do a lucrative deal for the client, I think it does make it easier for agents to dump clients who prove difficult to sell. Lack of agent loyalty is a growing problem for writers. IMO, it's in writers' best interest for agents to front submissions expense, and reimburse themselves from the client's income--which is still how must successful, established agents do it.

All this ambiguity makes track record even more important as a bottom line.

- Victoria