Hi everyone,
I have a somewhat odd question -- do agents ever take on just the subsidiary rights of a book that has already been sold to a US publisher?
The reason I ask is this: I have had, from the beginning, a "challenging" relationship with my agent. (I've posted about this before). After sitting on my manuscript for more than three months, and after some extensive and uncomfortable prodding and pushing on my part, she did find it a good home, for which I am very grateful. Since that time, however, she has become even less responsive -- even my editor complains about this -- and though I signed with her over a year ago has taken absolutely no initiative in doing anything with the book's foreign/film rights. She had made repeated promises about taking certain steps in advance of the Frankfurt Book Fair about the foreign rights, steps that I learned last night that she never followed through on.
Since she has done nothing with the foreign/film rights, I wanted to see if, assuming I can get out of our representation agreement, a different agent might be interested in representing them instead. Do agents ever take on "part" of a book in this way? Or is it pointless to represent a writer whose book has already been sold in the US market by someone else?
Please note that I am not at all seeking legal advice or any other advice about the termination of my representation agreement. I am asking only if, were I to reserve these rights, if an agent would ever take these on, or if these rights are essentially dead in the water.
Thank you so much for any insight you can provide. Bookishjen
I have a somewhat odd question -- do agents ever take on just the subsidiary rights of a book that has already been sold to a US publisher?
The reason I ask is this: I have had, from the beginning, a "challenging" relationship with my agent. (I've posted about this before). After sitting on my manuscript for more than three months, and after some extensive and uncomfortable prodding and pushing on my part, she did find it a good home, for which I am very grateful. Since that time, however, she has become even less responsive -- even my editor complains about this -- and though I signed with her over a year ago has taken absolutely no initiative in doing anything with the book's foreign/film rights. She had made repeated promises about taking certain steps in advance of the Frankfurt Book Fair about the foreign rights, steps that I learned last night that she never followed through on.
Since she has done nothing with the foreign/film rights, I wanted to see if, assuming I can get out of our representation agreement, a different agent might be interested in representing them instead. Do agents ever take on "part" of a book in this way? Or is it pointless to represent a writer whose book has already been sold in the US market by someone else?
Please note that I am not at all seeking legal advice or any other advice about the termination of my representation agreement. I am asking only if, were I to reserve these rights, if an agent would ever take these on, or if these rights are essentially dead in the water.
Thank you so much for any insight you can provide. Bookishjen
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