I need advise from an author or someone who knows the business.?

Question

I have a literary agent, who quite frankly I am not all that happy with, but she has been doing whatever it is that she does for the last two months. Suddenly she wants to pick up the pace.

However in order to do so I have to start investing money. This seems a little odd to me but of course this is my First book.

If there is someone out there that knows how this game is played I would like to know if this is a normal practice and perhaps what to expect for here on out.

Answer 1

well did she not explain what it is you are supposed to be investing money into?
I have an agent also and to be honest I have never been required to give him money, if anything, I have borrowed money from time to time. I travel to see him at his offices on a regular basis, and obviously I pay for the transport fares etc, but usually I get a lunch from it ..... I don't understand what it is you are supposed to pay for? Unless she means you should be networking in order to meet relevant people and get your name known? But even then I can claim expenses for the times I have done similar.
I think you need her to sit and discuss with you, what her aims are, what you should expect from her, and what she must be expecting from you?

Answer 2

Hi there,

I've published several books - mostly technical, for which an agent wasn't required - but have also had some success (and much more experience!) with fiction and the kind of book for which one usually engages an agent. I would look very askance at a request for money - this isn't the usual practice for literary agents, who normally make their money from a percentage of the royalties and other deals they negotiate for you. It sounds as if you're being dragged towards what's called 'vanity publishing,' which is where you find yourself paying rather a lot of money for printing your book ... and, frankly, having your book printed and warehoused is a fraction of the costs of getting it bought by real customers in real bookshops. People who go in for vanity publishing usually find themselves left with X number of copies of their book and then are told that getting it to market is up to them.

I would certainly want to know how much money she wants; what she proposes to do with it; whether this is the first of a number of payments; does she have a particular publisher in mind; and I'd want to see a contract. But first of all, I would look up the agent in one of the standard reference works, like the Writers' and Artists' Yearbook or the Writers' Handbook (cost a few quid and worth every penny) and see what it says about your agent (and the publisher she proposes to use, if there is one). the Writers' Handbook contains comments from authors about their publishers and, I think, their agents. I'd also ask to speak to some of the other authors she handles - and judge her reaction.

I can just about guess a few good reasons, like asking for travel expenses to a trade fair, but it does seem a bit fishy to me.

Good luck. Hope that helps.

Answer 3

You're seeing warning flags for a reason, friend. First of all a legitimate agent should NEVER ask you to invest money. In short, they get paid when you get paid. That's why she's supposed to be working her butt off to get you a good deal. If you're just giving her money, what does she have to work for?

I would drop this agent and find another, legitimate one.
Check out this site for information on agents, publishers, etc. It gives you a run down of what to watch out for as well as recommended agents/publishers. Hope this helps!

Answer 4

Absolutely no way! Your so-called agent is a crook. Get yourself another one. And don't expect it to be as easy as it was to get taken on by the crooked one. It's said that it's harder to get an agent than it is to get a publisher.