By Daniel Ford
As we learned in #Authoring Episode 2, having a good agent who has your back can make your #writerslife a lot easier.
Literary agent Mark Gottlieb explains how the publishing industry works, what pitfalls writers should avoid when looking for agents, and how he and Trident Media Group are adapting to our current times.
Mark Gottlieb
Daniel Ford: We typically start with the origin story, and we’ll get there, but first tell me how you’re doing and how you’re adjusting to this new normal we all find ourselves in.
Mark Gottlieb: I greatly appreciate you having me here as a guest and thank you very much for asking. We are living a unique situation here in New York City, which is quickly becoming the epicenter of the world pandemic. At the Trident Media Group literary agency, we’ve begun working remotely. So it’s mostly back to business as usual in this new normal. What has been particularly painful to see is that smaller publishers have had to begin layoffs, furloughs, and salary reductions. Most impacted among literary agencies will be smaller boutique literary agencies that rely on a very small handful of clients to pay the bills, and the major international talent and literary agencies that rely on live events (sporting, music, theaters, etc.). WME laid off 250 employees, Paradigm let go of 150 employees, UTA paused salaries on all of their executives and asked every other employee to take a third reduction in their salaries. The other big talent agencies are in trouble too. I won’t be surprised if authors from those book departments jump ship... We at Trident Media Group are fairly well-insulated against what has been going on with this virus because we are a larger literary agency with thousands of best-selling and award-winning authors and we do not rely on live events.
DF: How did you get your start in publishing?
MG: Whereas most people tend to stumble into book publishing as somewhat of an “accidental” profession, I set out to work within major trade book publishing from a young age. Both of my parents built their careers in book publishing and so I attended Emerson College to obtain a degree in writing, literature and book publishing. While there, I was a founding member and later president of the undergraduate students for publishing and founded the Wilde Press at Emerson College. Upon graduation, I did a stint at Penguin Books, where I worked in production, before making my way over to Trident Media Group, where I began working in our foreign rights department. I later transitioned to assisting our company chairman, before moving on to head Trident Media Group’s audiobook department. A short time thereafter I began building my own client list. I’ve since performed over 180 book deals, many of which were six-figure-plus book deals and multi-book deals. I’m typically leading the literary agency where I work in number of deals in any given six- to twelve-month period.
DF: Were there literary agents you looked up to when you first started out? Or ones that helped you get established in the industry?
MG: I always admired my father’s mentor, Owen Laster, who helped run the WMA book department with my father. In fact, my middle name is Owen, since my parents wanted to name me after him because he was such an incredible man. Before he passed away, Owen worked with authors such as Judy Blume, Ralph Ellison, Gore Vidal, James Michener, among many others. Owen was a very sweet and kind man. He celebrated books and wanted to keep book publishing a kind and gentlemanly profession. I remind myself every day to be more and more like him.
DF: What steps do you recommend an author take when trying to land a literary agent?
MG: Authors should think highly of themselves and shoot for the moon when they approach literary agencies. I really think that authors should be brave in approaching the biggest of literary agencies, since even when you miss the moon, you still land among the stars. Beyond that, authors of fiction should have a high-quality manuscript, fully written and polished. Authors of nonfiction should have a strong platform and a book proposal with sample chapters.
DF: How can writers develop a quality query letter that catches a literary agent’s eye?
MG: A good query letter is one page, containing the hook or elevator pitch upfront with two or three comparative/competitive titles, followed by a couple of body paragraphs detailing some of the exciting plot details without too many spoilers, followed by a one-paragraph author bio of the author’s platform, relevant writing experience, and writing credentials.
DF: What is the most common mistake you see from first-time authors?
MG: Most commonly, I see writers that send incomplete manuscripts or manuscripts that fall under word counts that are way too short or too long for consideration for publication. For the most part, manuscripts need to adhere to age group and genre conventions for word counts, due to publishers wanting to publish for profit within their price margins, and the needs of the retail landscape within major trade book publishing.
DF: What do you look for when you're reading a manuscript?
MG: In fiction, I look for an exciting plot that keeps a reader enthralled, along with strong character development, a distinct voice, and quality writing at the level of each line.
In nonfiction, I look for an exciting new idea, with a unique angle, from a writer with a strong platform who is an expert on their subject area.
DF: What’s on your wish list currently?
MG: I work with such a wide range of books that my manuscript wish list is fairly wide open. With that being said, I am trying to focus my list down to upmarket fiction, commercial fiction, platform-driven nonfiction, children’s books, and graphic novels.
DF: What kind of relationship do you have with authors on your list? What are some of the things you do to make their lives easier or ensure their work is top notch?
MG: I try to win every battle on behalf of my authors. I feel that is important to winning the war. Recently, a book publisher, who will remain unnamed, tried to censor the free speech of one of my clients and we were very quick to put the kibosh on that. I remain a strong proponent of not placing limitations on freedom of speech.
In working with authors to make sure their work is as strong as can be, we work with clients in editing their manuscripts, crafting pitches that conform to the needs of the marketplace, assembling the strongest of comp titles, making magic bullet submission lists of editors at various publishing houses, and so much more. After we find a publisher for an author and negotiate the best deal terms, we make sure they have highly successful publishing experiences by finding audiobook and foreign publishers for their work, while also trying to adapt their books for film and television.
DF: A lot of reading is part of the deal in your line of work. Are you able to unplug from your professional persona and enjoy reading when you’re off the clock?
MG: Given all of the manuscript reading I must do for work, it’s hard to read for pleasure. Book clubs ask me all the time to take part, but I have seldom found the time. So I’ve recently turned to audiobooks so I can listen to books on the go. I just finished reading Dan Peres’s As Needed for Pain and AJ Dungo’s In Waves. I’m currently reading Nico Walker’s Cherry and Jack Black’s You Can’t Win. I would like to read Tom Robbins’s Villa Incognito next.
DF: Who are some writers you’ve discovered that readers should go out and read ASAP?
MG: While I am proud of every writer I work with, I would prefer not to single out just a few of the authors I work with. Instead, I can mention the names of some authors I recently performed deals for…
New York Times bestselling and three-time Edgar Award-winning author T. Jefferson Parker's California Boy, pitched for fans of Emma Cline's The Girls and Delia Owens's Where The Crawdads Sing, in which one young man's search for his missing sister takes him into the bright, beautiful heart of Southern California in the roaring ‘60s but it also leads him into its decadent heart of darkness, sold to Linda Quinton at Forge Books, with Kristin Sevick editing.
International bestselling and National Jewish Book Award-winning author of the forthcoming Eli's Promise Ronald H. Balson's The Melancholy Dane, a modern-day courtroom drama where one woman must defend herself from criminal prosecution and a bitter lawsuit that hearkens back to Denmark's wartime heroics, sold to George Witte at St. Martin's Press.
Jaimal Yogis's City Of Dragons, pitched as a series with shades of Amulet, American Born Chinese, and Avatar: the Last Airbender; a fantastical coming-of-age adventure that proves monster-sized problems can be solved if you have friendship, courage, compassion (and maybe a friendly dragon), illustrated by Vivian Truong, sold to David Saylor at Scholastic/Graphix.
DF: We’ve asked authors who have appeared on our podcast recently about what they’re doing to promote their work during this crazy time, so I wanted to get your thoughts on what you advice you’ve given to your authors and how your approaching PR in the time of COVID-19.
MG: A lot of book publishers have chosen to push publication dates out in response to this global pandemic. Author book tours have already become somewhat a thing of the past, but a lot of authors are moving toward using online interaction with their fan bases via various social media channels and video conferencing. I think that there are actually a lot of opportunities for authors right now, especially since the industry recently saw an upward spike in book sales, particularly in eBooks and digital audio. Readers can still get books delivered to their homes. Reading is a mostly solitary act and being quarantined is conducive to activities such as reading.
DF: Where can our readers and listeners find you online?
MG: My bio, contact details and client list can be viewed on my Trident Media Group literary agent page.
Facebook is where I go to share some photos from my daily life, announce book deals, and share industry insider news.
I compose tweets on new deals, manuscript wish lists, industry news and more on Twitter.
Instagram is where I share a lot of photos from what it’s like living the day in the life of a literary agent.
I talk all things writing, literature and book publishing on my blog, Talking Books at literaryagentmarkgottlieb.com.
DF: Can you name one random fact about yourself?
MG: While I’m no Joe Exotic, I am a bit of a crazy cat man. I have two Singapura cats, named Dingus Khan and Willow Tree. They make for the perfect literary companions since they like to sit by my side while I read manuscripts and compose editorial letters. Dingus and Willow are on Instagram @dingusandwillow.