Guest Blogger: Tamar Rydzinski of Laura Dail Literary Agency
February 14th, 2008 by Michelle Diener
I am often asked how I came to be an agent. The truth is, it sort of fell in my lap. In college, I was wondering what to do one summer and a friend of my mother’s, who happens to be an author, said she had the perfect thing for me and helped me to get an internship at her literary agency. I was in love. I could not think of a more amazing way to spend my time than being surrounded by books. And I am still just as enamored as I was that first summer.
As an agent, I have to deal with the various frustrations of the publishing industry, but that has not diminished my joy in my profession. Selling a book that I have been working on with the author for months is an absolute thrill. But nothing compares to reading a great manuscript for the first time and knowing that this is a project that I want to work on, that this is a new project for me to help craft and then send it out to the world for everyone else to enjoy as much as I do (I hope). There is nothing equal to the back and forth between rounds of edits and seeing a truly amazing piece of work emerge.
Writing takes talent, but it also takes a lot of hard work and perseverance. Read your manuscript over and over until you think it’s perfect. Take a lot of writing classes and workshops. Go to writer’s conferences and listen to the advice offered. Meet as many other authors as you can and try to develop relationships with them so that you can help each other along. And, of course, read books aimed at helping you write your book and that teach you how to develop a good query letter. Because as agents, we get more queries than we can count and yours really does need to stand out in order for us to request to see a partial of your manuscript. I have found a number of great clients in the slush pile because they did succeed in making me want to read more.
I am still discovering a lot about myself and my tastes in books. When I started, I had never read anything but very literary young adult novels, though that may have been at least in part due to the fact that the category was much smaller when I was a teenager, which wasn’t all that long ago. Now I can’t get enough of them, and I am not talking about the literary stuff. I never would have thought that I would be representing fantasy as it wasn’t a genre I had grown up reading. But here I am having sold both adult and young adult fantasy. And that’s the beautiful thing about publishing and books in general. There is just so much learning, exploring and discovery available.
10 Responses to “Guest Blogger: Tamar Rydzinski of Laura Dail Literary Agency”
Thank you for joining us, Tamar. I always find it interesting to hear how agents got into the business. As an author, I’m finding that this whole business is an on-going education. Doesn’t matter how many classes you take, how many workshops … there’s always something more available to help you hone your craft.
Happy to hear that you’re interested in fantasy.
Tamar, the love of your career comes through in your writing. I can feel your smile. Much success.
Tamar, thanks once again for being a guest blogger here at MM. I agree with Barbara, your love of books comes through.
Tamar, you make being an agent sound like fun. If I wasn’t a writer, I think it would be a perfect job for me, too, discovering books that I love and knowing other readers will love. It must be like prospecting, sifting through sand to find gold nuggets. (Or whatever prospectors do.)
BTW, your agency has a great website!
Tamar thanks for joining us at Magical! I agree, sounds like you found the perfect job for you. Nice to know it’s so rewarding. And I think discovering a new author would be an incredible feeling.
Thanks so much for your time! It’s always great to have a job doing something you love.
I grew up reading historicals but fell in love a couple of years ago with series contemporary. I was thrilled when I began writing full-time and realized that was where my voice fit. One day I’ll see my books on the shelf next to my favorite authors!
Do you recommend a writer waiting for a contract before submitting to an agent? I target Harlequin but have heard their contracts are pretty standard. Eventually I’d like to branch out to ST and wondered if an agent was a better route?
Chelle, I always recommend that a writer use an agent. Not only do they often succeed in bettering a contract, but they are your go-between and often deal with the many different things that can come up after the contract is signed.
Thank you! I can only imagine how busy you are and appreciate you taking the time to give your professional advice. Being new to the industry, I’ve been pleasantly surprised at the response by published authors, editors and agents to help someone trying to break into such a competitive market.
What type of storyline/fiction jumps out and grabs your attention?
Chelle – that’s nearly impossible to answer. I am open to so many different things that it is really the quality and the originality that speak to me more than the storyline.
Tamar,
Thanks so much for joining us here at Magical Musings. I’ve always thought that being an agent (as well as an editor) would be just as awarding as actually writing the book. You get to see a big chunk of the books journey, you get to even help the book along on its journey.
I have no trouble imagining that such a job would thrill me each and every day that I stepped into the office.
Here’s wishing you success and joy in your journey through the publishing industry!