This weekend I did a panel for the RWA NYC chapter. While I got a lot of the regular questions (how often should I check in with my agent, do you represent romance, etc), there were a few that inspired some great advice from the other agents that I wanted to share.

Your agent is not your friend. This statement got a few frowns and shocked looks, but it's absolutely true. Your agent can be friendly (and would definitely like to have a congenial relationship with each of their clients), but their primary concern is to sell your book. Keep this in mind when you have the urge to talk about things that aren't strictly book related. There are some things you should share (life changes--minor or major--that change your writing schedule or ability to promote your book), while there are things you should think about why you're sharing. Use your discretion.

There is a difference between platform and credentials. Credentials are degrees you hold that add to your expertise on a subject. Platform is audience you bring who will seek out your book to read it. Saying you hold a law degree is a credential; saying you hold seminars for non-lawyers to understand the law is platform. The difference is that the seminar attendees may buy the book because they've heard you lecture on the subject you're writing about (or a similar subject).

Picking the right agent. There was one woman who asked if we'd give her agent some help (she'd act as the go between to share any advice we could offer) on how to sell her new book. But the best advice to give was find a new agent. If your agent has no clue on how to sell a book you've written, then you have to ask whether you're with the right agent for you. My agency's agreement with our author's specifies a time period; we don't have a different agreement for each book. This is because it is absolutely important to us to find authors who want to make a career of writing, not who want to sell one or two books and then turn to different pursuits. Most likely if you're looking to have a career as a writer, your books are going to be similar in nature (ie they're contemporary romances or self-help books). Barring you writing something that absolutely doesn't match what you've written before, if your agent is thrown on how to sell your new book, you need to ask if this is the right agent for you.

Talk to them, find out their strategy and get a sense of what they're thinking. They could be confused about what kind of book you're writing (just in that group, there were at least a handful of people who really didn't understand what they were writing and how to fit it into a group; if you don't know what you're writing, how is your agent supposed to?). They could be unsure of the strength of the material. The point is, talk to them (or email them) and see what's the bottom line with how they're going to market your book. If they're truly thrown, ask if they're the right agent and if you're writing to the best of your ability.

It was a great panel and I really enjoyed hearing other agents offer advice and insight into publishing.