Science fiction agents

[Havlen]

I was mainly just messing with you, Peter. And, if I had to guess, the Texas equivalent would be New York City Of course, I have read exactly 0 chick-lit books, so my guess would not only be from in the dark, but blind-folded too.

[Pete Rebb]

Wow, this post is all over the place, ha!

The way I understand it, and the point that John is trying to get everyone to understand is this:

Publishers are in it to make money. They're a business, not a charity. They don't give a toss what your glory-seeking goals are. They want longevity and a sound investment that will show a good return. That's why they're there, that's why they'll always be there. They're not in it for glory, to make authors part of history. They're in it for the MONEY baby!

If your work has a twist of Sci-Fi, a splash of Horror and a dash of Crime, that doesn't matter. First off, is it well-written? WILL IT SELL?? If you're lucky enough to have a 'Yes' ticked in both box's, the publisher will decide what friken genre to market it in. It's not your decision.

If you write 5 books in Sci-Fi, then decide to write horror. Good luck! Fingers crossed! If I was in that situation, I'd keep my mouth shut, shelve the Horror manuscripts til the day I'm sooooo damn famous that my name alone would even sell instruction manuals on 'building that MFI wardrobe' Like, hmmm let me think, Stephen King? Heh!

See you the other side.

Pete

[John Jarrold]

Amen...

[Pete Rebb]

Bottom line I guess, is:

Write the damn manuscripts! Learn the craft. Turn out good prose. Enjoy it.

If you finish a manuscript and you read it back and think, 'Oh, my. How amazing I am. What an artist. I fully understand the craft. I'm a friken genius, all bow to my superior abilities.' FORGET IT! Pass the manuscript to your family and friends. Leave it at that. Forget about seeking an agent.

If however, you think 'What a pile of crap, BUT I can improve it' Chuck that baby in the post. A true craftsman/woman is a perfectionist, never bloody happy.

You're the artist, not the commercial genius. Leave that to the professionals. If you don't like it . . . Erm, bye bye.

"But, Pete, she's my baby. I've spent a large proportion of my life nurturing her." Well, my friend. You either 'Mother' her for the rest of your natural life, OR, you let go. Let her venture out into the world on her own. who knows, if you leave her out there with no interference, she might just surprise you!

It's hard because we pour our souls into these pages. It's hard because we think we know what's best . . . But we don't.

Pete

P.S. Sorry for rambling, but, like you, I’m passionate about this business

[Teatime]

I like your, erm, attitude!

I certainly have the self doubt thing, haha. But I am concentrating my search on agents who represent more than just sci fi, because, well, for the genre reasons I explained earlier!

On the other hand, someone like Robert Rankin, I imagine is classed as sci fi, but his work, for me, certainly goes in the 'weird' direction more than sci fi. Arg. Let's see what happens!

[Pete Rebb]

I always think that as long as I see weakness and room for improvement in my writing, then, I'm on to a winner. If the day comes that I can't improve the writing anymore, that's the day I close my laptop and start a new career.

If you get an offer, be humble, do everything they suggest, don't interfere without an invitation to, and keep writing. That's what we all are; 'Writers'

I wish you all the best Teatime.

Pete

[Teatime]

Thanks. I think the self doubt can be beneficial, in some ways - although, I am on top of it right now, and my opinion is likely to change over the next twenty four hours, haha.

[Havlen]

I like to sift through what I wrote several years back on occassion just to see how much I've improved. One great measure of how much you've learned is looking at something you wrote 3-5 years ago and discovering how horrible it is and how you wouldn't even be able to edit it because it needs a complete rewrite.

[Barney]

On the subject of switching between genres, I see the distinction between literary and other genres has cropped up in this thread.

An old question perhaps, but what is it that makes a work literary? I assumed something attained the status of literature if the writing really stood out as excellent, if it "dealt with themes" as well as concentrating on a compelling narrative (although I get very impatient with novels that put the language before the story. Come on, you have to meet the reader halfway!)

Can a genre work achieve literariness (if that's a real word), or is literature expected to be rooted in workaday reality?

[Nick P]

Personally I think "literary fiction" is just fiction that doesn't fit into an otherwise specified genre. It's got to be marketable, though.

And genre fiction has themes, Barney.

How are you, anyway?

[Barney]

Very well, thanks for asking. Hope you are well also.

I agree that genre fiction has themes. In fact, I think even the simplest piece of writing can have themes at some level. Maybe it is how much themes are foregrounded that determines for critics if something is literary?

There is that snobbishness that seems to prevail amongst critics that genre fiction is substandard in some way, which I have never undersood. It seems there is only a reluctant acknowledgement that genre writing can be good writing. Stepehn King has had to sell millions of his books over about thirty years before he has got some critical recognition. I think someone mentioned The Road by Cormac McCarthy earlier. This seems to have been praised to the skies, but then he had an established repuation in more mainstream areas before he did something a bit sci-fi. If The Road was his first novel I doubt it would have got the same acclaim.

How iniquitous the world can be!

[John Jarrold]

Originally Posted by Barney

On the subject of switching between genres, I see the distinction between literary and other genres has cropped up in this thread.

An old question perhaps, but what is it that makes a work literary? I assumed something attained the status of literature if the writing really stood out as excellent, if it "dealt with themes" as well as concentrating on a compelling narrative (although I get very impatient with novels that put the language before the story. Come on, you have to meet the reader halfway!)

Can a genre work achieve literariness (if that's a real word), or is literature expected to be rooted in workaday reality?

It depends how the author, agent and publisher perceive it, therefore on which imprint it is submitted to and published by. If it's published by Jonathan Cape, it will be seen as a literary novel. If it's published by Orbit, it's a genre novel. Occasionally, of course, a specific writer or novel 'transcends the genre'.