DAY ONE
A few months back, I signed up to come back to my hometown of Austin, Texas for the Writers' League of Texas Agents and Editors Conference. I've done a lot of research over the past year or so about the best way to get to know how the business works and network with agents. In this case, it's right in the name and it was one of the conferences that floated to the top of my list. More on others in another post.
I arrived yesterday--June 20th, 2024--at the Hyatt in downtown Austin. Though I lived here for years, I'd never been inside. It's a good place for a conference, and so far, this is a good conference. I've done a few conferences and conventions for various other things over the years (film, music, etc.) and each time I've found something, or several somethings, to surprise me. This one hasn't disappointed and shows that I really should get out more. The first surprise was the diversity of genres. I live in a sci-fi/fantasy/fantastic fiction bubble and most writers I know are sci-fi/fantasy/fantastic ficiton writers, not to mention many conventions I go to are geared towards us geeks, but not so here. I got the impression of a fairly even representation across the board, which made for many enlightening conversations.
The second sorta-surprise was the representitive span of ages. I say sorta because I've already been told multiple times that my worry of being too old to switch to novel-writing is a silly notion, but it's hard to shake, though it shouldn't be; I'm not really that old. It's part of my tendency to front-load-overthink and I'm working on it. Seeing such a display goes a long way towards my... reprogramming. What does age have to do with anything, right?
There are agents and editors just walking around (not surprising), and they're nice and easy to strike up a conversation with (also not surprising). Me being the "whatever it's called when you're an extroverted introvert," means I'll just start talking to anybody until the house lights come on. I'm also open and honest and will talk about, and ask about almost anything. On the one hand, it might seem obnoxious to some people. I'm not sure because most people I meet are so nice, but silver linings and all that; I learn a lot straight from the source(s). This is important, because, though I do a lot of research, quite often it's full of contradictions. This has been especially true of how the publishing industry actually works. I admit it could be that I'm overcomplicating it--I do that sometimes until I don't--but I don't think so in this case.
Here are a few things I learned through some conversations with agents and otherwise:
1) Your agent will be your partner, probably for a long time. You should both like similar things, which is to say, your sensibilities should be a good match. Your agent may even be a kind of "writing partner," giving you feedback that could influence what you do. Different agents will have different involvement levels, and it can be genre-specific. It makes sense your sensibilities should be aligned even if they're not that hands-on. I say I learned this, but it would probably be more accurate to say I confirmed this. It's obvious, and I was sure that, of course, it must be this way for most people. I heard the term "editorial vision" thrown around if you want to go down the Google rabbit hole.
2) I talked to some writers and a question came up more than once that I had also been wondering. What happens if you're prolific and have several novels? Let's say you pitch a story and it lands you an agent. Great, right? But, remember, you're prolific and have other novels already written, so, what happens if you then present another one and your agent says that nah, they can't sell that one? What are your options for that book?
It just so happens that I'd been reading up on this very thing recently and the results pointed to doing hybrid deals. Hugh Howey seemed to be one that came up most frequently, but of course, I had to go and hit up agents with the question. One agent mentioned Colleen Hoover. The name didn't ring a bell at that moment, but I just Googled her while writing this and as soon as I saw her, I recognized her. She does some interesting hybrid thing? I'll have to drink from that firehose later.
Another one of the agents did mention something else interesting; for one thing, her agency signs people for more than one book at a time anyway, and for another, a hybrid deal can be dangerous for future sales. If you do take that book the agent can't find a buyer for and put it out yourself, and it does poorly, then you have this on your record to contend with when your agent takes whatever is next and tries to sell it. Makes sense, right? This is what I was referring to earlier about conflicting information, or, to be more precise, incomplete information. You see, Hugh Howey started with self-publishing and it exploded into a firm following. He has an agent now, but if he wanted to put something out himself at this point, chances are it would do fine. The dude has a highly-rated TV show on Apple TV+ right now. Look what Brandon Sanderson did with his kickstarter to see what I mean. Would that have caught fire after Elantris, but before Mistborn? Very likely not.
3) I listened to other writers pitch their stories and practiced/learned more about how to pitch without sounding like a robot (I hope). I'll be pitching Into That Good Night to a couple of editors on day two. Wish me luck. At the very least, I will leave with more direct information on how to continue this journey and a better idea on how to pitch. At most, I'll gain a fantastic creative business partner.
DAY TWO
It’s the end of day two, and if you've ever done a convention like this, dear reader, then you know the mix of weariness and elation I'm feeling right now. Everything went well—better than expected, in fact. Of course, I met yet more interesting people with interesting stories to tell. And, of course, there were more great panels of speakers. Drinking from the firehose of information and the social strain explains the weariness, but the elation has a different origin story.
I had my sit-down pitches. They both went fine. Even though the first one didn’t net me the “here’s my email, send me more” feedback we writers are aiming for, I still thought her feedback was worth the talk, and I still think she would be a good fit if I had the right book. In this case, she had just sold a book whose jacket copy was uncannily similar to the book I was pitching. I wasn’t sure just how close it actually was until we spoke (I’d heard about the book earlier), but yeah, I get it—selling another book that even “seems” similar might not be the best look.
My next one went a different direction. Not only did she give me the “here’s my email, send me more,” she actually seemed excited about the story, vibing along with the pitch—like it could be right up her alley. I say “could” because my writing and voice still have to be vetted. Natch.
**Yeah, okay, the first pitch was a little (very?) rough, so that one would've been hard to vibe along with.
I have friends here in Austin, but the drain of the day has had me just disappearing into my room to write until I fall asleep. Maybe I’ll get to catch up tomorrow. It looks like the third and final day is a short one.
DAY THREE
It was indeed a short one. I said my goodbyes to the great people I met with business card exchanges, handshakes and hugs, then caught a couple more panels before heading out for lunch. If you've reached the point with your own stories that you're ready to talk to agents, this is a good conference. If you're early in your writing journey, as many I talked to were, then the panels are a good way to level up. I've been doing this for years and have been to other conferences and there was still much to learn. Whatever your level, it's hard to beat having access to people that are living it on a daily basis whether it's writers, agents, editors, whatever. The internet and ChatGPT can only tell you so much, and much of that is suspect anyway. Even if this experience nets me an agent, I would still go to conferences just for the chance to meet and palavar with other writers.Good luck on your journey out there!