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The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World…Word by Word

The Steve Laube Agency

The Steve Laube Agency

Helping to Change the World Word by Word

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Home » The Writing Life » Page 76

The Writing Life

Find More Writing Time – Use Your Agent

By Tamela Hancock Murrayon August 24, 2017
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Have you ever been to a “perfect” wedding? You may think so, but chances are, even if you weren’t aware of it, procedures went wrong.

Why is it hard to plan and execute a wedding? Because we don’t practice to perfection. So, many people hire wedding planners to take care of details for them.

A similar profession? The interior decorator. Though my home was likely among the more modest my decorator adorned, I was thrilled to hire her for my front rooms. Wallpaper, paint, carpet, furniture, draperies — were her domain. We chose the décor from suggestions she made based on research and connections that cost her time and money to cultivate. The professionals she worked with displayed passion for painting, flooring, applying wallpaper and hanging draperies. I’d rather send out manuscripts and negotiate contracts.

What does this have to do with life as a writer? An interior decorator and a wedding planner have much in common with a literary agent. We can practice to (near) perfection so we know more than the majority of working writers have time to learn — because they must have a chance to write!

We’re on friendly yet professional terms with editors. Lots of them. A writer spending thousands of dollars attending every conference for a year still isn’t likely to meet even a third of the editors we already know.

We know the look, feel and terms of the contracts from major publishing houses. A solo writer simply does not have access to the number of contracts a literary agent sees. This knowledge allows us to negotiate the best terms for our authors.

And those are only two examples of areas we have spent our time and money to learn for you.

I won’t claim there is no situation we haven’t seen, no question we haven’t heard, and no problem we can’t solve. However, the probability that we’ve experienced your situation, been asked your question, and can solve your problem, is great. Much greater than if you’re on your own.

Just as the wedding planner should know who to call if the bakery misses delivering your cake (or better yet, keep that from happening in the first place), we’re familiar with our landscape and can help make your writing journey a happy one. You let us take care of what we know. You get more time to write.

Your turn:

What do you think is the most valuable service an agent provides?

How does your agent make your life easier?

 

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Category: Agents, The Writing LifeTag: Agents, The Writing Life

Every Book is a How-To

By Bob Hostetleron August 23, 2017
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C.S. Lewis famously said, “We read to know we’re not alone.” I think that is true. But I have long subscribed to a similar statement that I see as sort of a corollary to “Lewis’s Law.” It is this: No one reads about other people. We read only about ourselves. Feel free to quote me. And send me royalties. But you might say, “How can that be, Bob? I read a lot of romance novels. They’re fiction. …

Read moreEvery Book is a How-To
Category: Craft, The Writing LifeTag: readers, The Writing Life, Writing Craft

Deadlines Born – Deadlines Made

By Steve Laubeon August 21, 2017
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Deadlines. The bane of every writer’s existence. “A necessary evil.” “My nemesis.” I talked to an author who changed the internal time clock on his computer just so he could have three extra hours, claiming he was writing on the West coast (USA) instead of where his office was (East coast USA). Writing Without a Deadline (Deadlines Born) Not everyone, however, is …

Read moreDeadlines Born – Deadlines Made
Category: Get Published, The Writing LifeTag: Deadlines, The Publishing Life, The Writing Life

Writing Thoughtful Books

By Dan Balowon August 15, 2017
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There has always been a hierarchy in fiction distinguishing “literary” from “popular” books, with lines drawn between both topics and reading levels.  Authors of each are different, somewhat like actors who work on stage versus those who work on screen. Comparisons of literary vs. popular and stage vs. screen are often done in a derogatory manner. Christian authors describing non-fiction might use …

Read moreWriting Thoughtful Books
Category: Art, Faith, The Writing Life, TheologyTag: Faith, fiction, Nonfiction, Theology

Write Like You Brush Your Teeth

By Bob Hostetleron August 9, 2017
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I listen regularly to a half-dozen podcasts. One of them recently talked about how valuable “systems” are in making life run more smoothly. The podcast host said that making something a habit is the simplest but also one of the most effective “systems” a person can install in his or her life, because it eliminates the need for decision-making. For example, he said, did you decide to brush your …

Read moreWrite Like You Brush Your Teeth
Category: Get Published, The Writing LifeTag: Encouragement, Get Published, The Writing Life

Write Like Baseball

By Bob Hostetleron July 26, 2017
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Did you know there are nine ways for a batter to reach first base in the game of baseball? A few are obvious, of course. The batter could get a hit. Or a walk. Or even be hit by a pitch. But those are not the only options. The batter could reach on a fielding error. Or hit into a fielder’s choice, a play in which the fielder could throw him out at first but instead chooses to throw to another …

Read moreWrite Like Baseball
Category: Get Published, The Writing LifeTag: Get Published, The Writing Life

I Love Change, Especially For Someone Else

By Dan Balowon July 18, 2017
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Several decades ago, the British magazine, The Linguist printed a graphic with the phrase, “The strongest drive is not to Love or Hate; it is one person’s need to change another’s copy.” In the cartoon, the word “change” was crossed out and replaced first by amend, then by revise, alter, rewrite, chop to pieces, then back to “change.” I am not sure whether the cartoon necessarily struck a …

Read moreI Love Change, Especially For Someone Else
Category: Book Business, Career, Communication, Editing, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Creativity, Editing, publishing

Someone Stole My Book Idea!

By Karen Ballon June 28, 2017
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Years ago, a successful author friend of mine contacted a group of us, horrified at the discovery that another author’s most recent release centered on the very same little-known historical event as her just-turned-in book. What should she do? What if that author—or readers!–thought she’d stolen the other author’s story idea? We all assured her that, as crazy as it may seem, she was far from …

Read moreSomeone Stole My Book Idea!
Category: Book Business, The Publishing Life, The Writing LifeTag: Book Business, The Publishing Life, The Writing Life

Write Every Day

By Dan Balowon June 13, 2017
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A young writer penned these words: “I haven’t written for a few days, because I wanted first of all to think about my diary. It’s an odd idea for someone like me to keep a diary; not only because I have never done so before, but because it seems to me that neither I—nor for that matter anyone else—will be interested in the unbosomings of a thirteen-year-old schoolgirl. Still, what does that …

Read moreWrite Every Day
Category: Encouragement, Inspiration, The Writing LifeTag: Anne Frank, Inspiration, The Writing Life

Is Your Glass Half Empty?

By Steve Laubeon June 12, 2017
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Over the decades it has been interesting to listen to and read the various pundits regarding the publishing industry. Typically those who spell out doom and gloom get the attention (fortifying the idea that “if it bleeds, it leads”). At the same time there is the optimist position which is often derided for being unrealistic. After awhile I’ve learned to smile and simply get back …

Read moreIs Your Glass Half Empty?
Category: Christian, Encouragement, Faith, Inspiration, Personal, The Publishing Life, The Writing Life, TheologyTag: Encouragement, Faith, The Publishing Life
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