This was the question I was forced to asked myself 12 months ago when I was first approached by one of Australia’s biggest publishers offering a 3-book deal. I had never illustrated commercially before and had honestly never imagined I would. When it came to negotiating contracts, I thought I had it nailed. I spent almost 15 years in big design agencies and much of that time was going over complicated corporate contracts. I was pretty confident that I could take this journey in to publishing alone, after all, how different would it be? Well, the answer is that it’s actually incredibly different. I definitely under-estimated it. It was a very hard and stressful time for me and so I wanted to document what I discovered in my journey in the hope that it might be help to others.
Even if you read no further, my short answer is ‘yes’, having a literary agent is one of the best things I’ve ever done for my career. My agent is like my best friend and ally in the world of publishing. She helps guide me through every negotiation and interaction I have with the people that make picture books happen.
A quick note about agent fees
If you’re concerned about their fees? Don’t be. Every illustrator I’ve spoken to has said their agent is worth their weight in gold. I know mine certainly is. Here are my reasons why getting a literary agent is the best thing I’ve done for my career.
Publishing books is complicated if you’ve never done it before
When I was trying to decide whether I should get an agent or go it alone, I called many agents and emailed some. Every agent I called was happy to chat. The ones I emailed didn’t even respond. Lesson 1, make phone calls, don’t send emails. Many of them were more than happy to speak to an author/illustrator with a 3-book deal already on the table so I avoided the hurdle of trying to convince one to represent me, an unpublished illustrator. I know how lucky I am to have been in this situation and I will never ever take that for granted.
Each conversation I had with an agent (I called 5 in the end), showed me that I was out of my depth in trying to do this without one. The language that the industry uses is very specific and for someone new to it, very intimidating. Negotiating things like rights and deadlines on your own is a tough gig, even if you’ve done it before in another context. I think I could’ve bumbled my way through it competently enough but there’s nothing like the confidence you get when you have someone whose been doing it for 30 years in your corner. No matter how much corporate contract negotiation experience you’ve got (I had 15 years) – publishing seems very very different and the stress that an agent alleviates is well worth it.
Focus on illustration, let someone else handle the paperwork
After each call with an agent my feeling that I needed one grew exponentially. Most agents will tell you right of the bat that you’re crazy to try and go it alone. My cynical self though, “Of course they would, right?” Speaking with a few agents meant I was able to hear different takes on my situation from each one. Many agents also made similar points too. Don’t get me wrong, I certainly wasn’t fishing for free advice. I was armed with an amazing list of questions that was available to me through my SCBWI membership and because of this I had very natural conversations with many very lovely people who answered the questions that were most important to me.
Let’s face it, in publishing there’s a lot of paperwork. My agent handles all of this for me so I can focus on what I enjoy most, making picture books.
Learn how the industry works as quickly as possible
I didn’t know what I didn’t know when it came to publishing. Interviewing agents for about 15-30 mins each made me feel like I’d gone and done a crash course in publishing, and it was only the tip of the iceberg. Had I chose to go it alone, it would’ve taken me years to understand the publishing industry. Now, a year on, I’m already very acutely aware of who knows who the value that comes with the ‘relationship development’ that an agent assists with because, after all, an experienced one has some very good connections.
So finally
In my short experience, having a literary agent is probably one the best things you can do for your career. My agent takes a huge amount of stress out of the contract negotiation process. She deals with my paperwork, deadlines and communicating to publishers so that I can focus on the work that I enjoy. She’s a wonderfully supportive person and whilst I know not all agents are created equal, I can’t imagine a career without one.
If you’re looking to understand what a literary agent is and how to get one? Then I’d recommend starting here first.
