SHALLA CHATS with Ellen Pepus

"Tips from a Literary Agent "

by Shalla DeGuzman

First of all, who’s Ellen?

Ellen Pepus recently started her own agency after working at the Graybill and English Literary Agency in Washington, DC. She has a law degree from George Washington University and extensive editorial and marketing experience.

She is actively building her client list in both fiction and non-fiction and is looking for talented writers with original voices, who can create believable characters and page-turning plots.

Shalla: Hello Ellen. We’re very glad to hear about your new agency, the Ellen Pepus Literary Agency.

Ellen: Thanks very much. I’m excited to have an opportunity to chat with you.

Shalla: What kind of books are you looking for? Both fiction and nonfiction, right?

Ellen: I am definitely looking for both. In fiction, I’m especially interested in historical fiction, literary fiction, women’s fiction, mysteries and thrillers.

In non-fiction, I would like to find more narrative non-fiction including history, biography, true crime, adventure, science and memoir, as well as food and cooking, travel, and self-help and how-to books.

Shalla: What type of clients do you enjoy working with?

Ellen: Every client is different, but I enjoy working with people who come to the agent-client relationship with professionalism, who understand the editing process, and who have realistic expectations and a sense of humor.

Shalla: What do you look for in submissions? What grabs your attention first? And what must be there?

Ellen: I think the thing that always grabs my attention is a fresh, original idea.

Then I look for strong writing without major grammatical errors, and a clear, understandable description of the project.

I also always look to see if the person has any type of platform or writing credentials – the platform, particularly for non-fiction, would be prominence in his or her field, publications, or some other kind of fame or expertise in the area they want to write about.

For fiction, I’ll look for writing credentials, such as publication credits (either magazines, literary journals or books published by mainstream publishing houses), writing prizes, or degrees in creative writing.

I like to see that someone is taking their writing career seriously and has laid some groundwork for it before approaching agents. For fiction it’s not strictly necessary, particularly if someone has a really creative, beautifully written fiction project, but it’s extremely important for non-fiction.

Shalla: What makes a cover letter strong?

Ellen: A cover letter should convey the idea of the project clearly, be written so that I can get a sense of the writer’s style, have no mistakes of grammar or spelling, be neatly laid out in a readable font, and be intriguing enough to make me want to read the book.

Shalla: Also, we’d like to ask your expertise on the subject of royalties, how are royalties calculated? Is it based on the list price of the book? Or on net receipts?

Ellen: For mainstream publishing houses, royalties are based on the book’s list price.

At some smaller publishers, you do see royalties based on net. The standard calculation is: 10% of list for the first 5000 sold, 12.5% on the next 5000, and 15% thereafter.

Shalla: How much do authors usually make per book?

Ellen: That varies so much from project to project that it’s impossible to say. The size of the advance will determine the author’s earnings to some extent – the larger the advance, the less likely it is that the author will receive royalties.

Smaller advances can often mean a stream of royalty income down the road.
Shalla: What are book advances? Do literary agents negotiate for higher advances?

Ellen: A book advance is actually an “advance against royalties” – it’s a sum of money paid up front to an author that is later deducted from royalties.

Once the book is published, the publisher keeps the author’s royalties up to the amount of the advance until the advance is “earned out”, or completely paid back.

Only once an advance is earned out does the author start receiving royalty payments. And yes, one of the jobs of a literary agent is to negotiate the highest possible advances for their clients.

Shalla: What kind of book advance should new authors expect to receive?

Ellen: Again, it depends on the project. I’ve seen huge advances, but the norm for first fiction is probably under 20k.

Shalla: Lastly, any words of encouragement for writers who may be too afraid to begin approaching literary agents?

Ellen: The best thing I can tell writers who want to start approaching agents it to be sure their work is as good as it can be. This is a tough business but persistence does pay off, particularly in combination with the best possible material you can offer.

It’s also important to know that rejections will happen, and they aren’t personal.

Agents base their decisions on a combination of personal taste, knowledge of the market, an editorial sense of when someone’s writing is ready to be published, and timing. So, rejection by a particular agent could mean: the subject matter doesn’t appeal to him or her; the writing style doesn’t appeal; he loves it but doesn’t think it’s commercial enough; the writing just isn’t ready or the idea isn’t well-thought-out yet; he just took on a similar project, etc.

In spite of all this, many new writers do find agents. Writers will increase their chances dramatically if their work is professionally presented, well-written, and original.

Shalla: Thanks Ellen, very helpful answers.

For more on Ellen Pepus and the ELLEN PEPUS LITERARY AGENCY, please visit http://www.epliterary.com

Shalla DeGuzman's short stories have appeared in Poetic Diversity, the Mosaic Literary Journal, the Mad Hatters Review; her articles in The Scriptorium and L.A. Freepress; her skits at the Stella Adler Theatre. Shalla, a former writer and producer of a health and fitness cable show, is currently writing a new novel. She is President of The ShallaDeGuzman Writers Group; the Senior Editor of SHALLA Magazine where she interviews literary agents, publishers, editors, and authors; and the Publisher for SHALLA Publishing. News! Shalla has been nominated for the prestigious Pushcart Prize. SHALLA Magazine, which features short stories and excerpts from top, award-winning writers, now sold at www.amazon.com! For more on Shalla: www.shalladeguzman.com