SHALLA
CHATS with Literary
Agent Caren Johnson
“An
Insider’s View on Agenting and Publishing”
by Shalla DeGuzman
First
off, who’s Caren?
Caren Johnson recently began her own literary agency, Caren
Johnson Literary Agency. She began her agenting career four
and a half
years ago when she started an internship at Peter
Rubie Literary Agency.
She stayed at the agency for three years, the first year
as an intern
and two years as an agent. She then left to join Nadia
Cornier at Firebrand Literary where she stayed for a year.
Recently,
she made the switch to agenting on her own so she could work
more closely with her authors in building their careers.
She would like well organized,
well crafted stories in the areas of romance (particularly
romantic
comedy in the vein of Susan
Elizabeth Phillips, Jenny Cruisie
and Kelley St. John; and historical in the vein of Susan Carroll, Diana
Gabaldon, and Lauren Willig—high concept only please!),
Teen fiction (in the vein of Caridad Ferrer/ Adios to My
Old Life, Scott
Westerfeld/ Uglies Trilogy) and commercial fiction (in
the vein of Christopher Moore/A Dirty Job, Carl Hiaassen/
Nature Girl). For the
moment she’s full up with wonderful paranormal romance (Caridad
Pineiro, Lee Roland) and romantic suspense (Caridad Pineiro,
Dianna Love Snell) authors so if an author submits in this
genre, she will
be more critical than she normally is.
Shalla: Hi Caren, congratulations on starting your own agency, that
must be exciting.
Caren: Thanks for the congrats. They’re certainly appreciated.
It’s exciting, nerve wracking, fun, exhausting and a great excuse
to buy books (in the name of research, of course!).
Shalla: We’re glad you can join us because we’d like to
ask you about literary agents and how they fit in the business
of publishing a book. For those writers who are new to this,
how would you describe
the job of a literary agent to be?
Caren: A literary agent is a salesperson, securing deals
for a writer’s literary works. They are a manager (making sure the
publishing houses doesn’t ignore the author and adheres to the
contract signed, offering career guidance and planning, in some cases
offering assistance with publicity and promotion, and acting as an editor
for new material). I’m also friends with many of my clients since
I work so closely with them and see them often at conferences
and signings. Working side by side creates a camaraderie that
I cultivate though I
make sure it never overshadows our business relationship.
Shalla: When do writers need a literary agent? Are literary
agents always crucial to signing with a large publishing
house?
Caren: A writer needs a literary agent needs an agent
as soon as they make the decision that they plan on becoming
full time writers. If there goal is to support themselves
by their
writing,
then they’re
going to need an agent who can give them a plan on how to do
so. A writer does not need an agent to sign a contract with a
large publishing house,
but it is always encouraged for a few reasons.
Can a writer
comfortably negotiate their contract? Do they know what to
ask for? Do they
know what compromises to make with the current contract
with an eye towards
improving on them for future contracts? Can an author
comfortably ask their editor for more money, more rights or
more royalties
without causing
ill will? These are important points to keep in mind
before signing a contract and a writer may just be so grateful
that someone
offered to publish their work that they may sign whatever
is put in front of
them.
Shalla: Would you say, it is always better to sign
with a large publishing house or not?
Caren: It depends on what the author is expecting
from their publisher. If they don’t mind doing a lot of their own publicity/promotion,
can take the lead in a publicity campaign for their book, then signing
a contract with a large house is worth it. If they don’t have
a proven track record, then they’re a small fish in a big pond
and may not get as much attention as they’d like. If they want/need
nurturing, they may want to go with a smaller house where they
can be a small fish in a small pond. If they are a proven entity,
they may
still elect to go with a smaller house and be a big fish in a
small pond. This will mean more support, more feedback and more
perks.
Shalla: How would you define a small publishing
house? (under a dozen authors?) And how would
you define a large publishing house? And are they really
impersonal?
Caren: I define small house on amount they can
offer as an advance, what their distribution
is like, how
long they’ve been around,
etc. There are about six large publishers and they can be very impersonal.
However, an author and agent can make sure that the editor (and by extension
the publishing company) pays attention to them by being professional
(make your deadlines!), by taking the lead on publicity and marketing
(attending conferences, networking with other authors who write in the
same genre, establishing a web presence, finding innovative ways to
cultivate readers, etc.) and by thanking the people who helped get their
book in print (yes, it’s their job, but it always cultivates good
will when you send a nice card or small gift to say thanks).
Shalla: As the agent, do you negotiate with
the house about who will design the book
cover? How it will be marketed? How much money
goes into its publicity and marketing?
Caren: The less established the author, the
less say they’ll get
about cover/design. However, a publishing house will usually compromise
if the author hates the cover they get. I will always step in on the
author’s behalf if the author is unhappy. I try to manage their
expectations as much as possible, but since it is ultimately the author’s
name going on the book, it should be something they can wholeheartedly
embrace. I will step in on an author’s behalf if it looks like
the cover doesn’t fit the book. For example, I had a women’s
fic whose original cover had four young women lying down in the grass
laughing. It was a nice cover, but didn’t fit the book at all.
The women were hardworking professionals who meet for mojitos
once a week to dish and discuss their problems. I went back to
the editor and
expressed the author and my concern and the cover was changed
(and it looks awesome).
As far as publicity/promotion, the less established
the author, the less the publishing company
is going to offer. That doesn’t
mean that the author can’t get some great publicity/promotion
from their publisher. They have to know what to ask for. A publisher
isn’t going to send them on a ten city tour with their book, but
they will mail out review copies to the author’s local newspaper,
magazines and other media outlets at the author’s request. They
will usually link the author’s website to the publisher’s
site. I have asked on the author’s behalf if the publishing company
will design an image incorporating the cover for bookmarks/promo items,
and design web banner ads to use on the author’s website (which
the pub company will do). I’ve had authors ask their assigned
publicist for help crafting press releases and suggestions for markets
to send them to, as well as places that the author plans to send them
to.
The trick
is not to ask the publisher/publicist what can they do for
the book.
Instead,
take the lead and have a plan for what exposure/press you’d like to cultivate for the book and show them what you intend
to do. Your enthusiasm will usually be met with enthusiasm.
Shalla: Are literary agent commissions
usually around 10-20%?
Caren: The standard is 15% commission
on contracts signed with publishing
companies domestically, 20% on subrights (film,
foreign,
etc.). This
is what I charge.
Shalla: Any tips on why or why not
to sign with a literary agent?
Caren: Don’t sign with someone because they rep your favorite
author or because their agency is large and therefore must be better.
Sign with an agent because you like the plan they’ve proposed
for your career and for your writing. Of course ask your friends
for recommendations, but make sure you sign with an agent because
they get
your writing and are enthusiastic about it.
Shalla: Thanks so much, Caren!
Very insightful answers.
For more on Caren Johnson and
the Caren Johnson Literary
Agency, please visit her blog at
http://www.cjla.squarespace.com and her website at http://www.carenjohnson.com.
More
SHALLA CHATS
More to come!
Stay tuned :)
