Written by Caitlin Tubbs-Galley
On my first day interning at Blake Friedmann, I realised just how much I didn’t know about the publishing industry. Over just two weeks, I learnt so much. It was life-changing – to my career in publishing, and to my confidence as a young professional. The Carole Blake Open Doors Project sets a major example for the rest of the industry as does Blake Friedmann as an agency themselves. The internship was proactive, inclusive, exciting, and impressively tailored to my interests. I could probably talk about it all day, but instead I’d like to share a few things I learnt that may be helpful to writers and aspiring publishing professionals alike.
1. Agents submit to specific editors not just ‘publishers’
If you get to the point where you have secured an agent (yay!) and you work with them to make your manuscript as great as it can be, it will then go out on submission. Your agent will send it out to publishers who will hopefully acquire and then publish it! Okay, you probably knew that already, but what I personally didn’t realise, is the agent isn’t just ‘sending it out to publishers’ for you, they are meticulously crafting a list of specific editors from specific imprints. They work hard to stay tuned in to every note the industry sings, their eyes constantly flitting from page to page, news article to news article. They spend a lot of time and energy to figure out, to put it simply, which editor wants what. All of this work gives your book the best possible chance at getting acquired. In fact, not just getting acquired, but getting acquired by the perfect editor for your specific type of book. I love this about publishing, it means agents, editors, assistants, and rights teams, are all thinking in terms of passion, of emotional investment, of real belief in the work. Of course, they are still very much thinking with a business mindset. They want to ensure lots of people will buy your book and love it, but alongside that comes a deep investment in your writing from everyone involved, and I think that’s pretty special.
2. Imprints are essentially just branded lists of books
There is a bit of a joke in the industry about the confusing nature of divisions and imprints, so I think it might be useful to break it down a bit.
Division – one section of a bigger publisher, basically small companies owned by a big company (for example Dialogue, which is a publishing house owned by Hachette UK)
Imprint – the different lists of books within a publishing division (for example Dialogue has Dialogue Books which is more literary and Renegade Books which is more commercial)
The lists are branded to help separate them. So, Renegade Books is physically branded differently to Dialogue Books, as well as being very different in their goals and the books they publish. To clarify, a ‘list’ is literally just the list of books that specific imprint publishes. For example, Dialogue might say they have a highly successful commercial list, and they would be referring to Renegade Books. To make it more confusing, the books one specific editor acquires might be called their ‘list’. Someone might say, hey Caitlin, your list includes so many bestsellers! They would essentially just be saying, wow, every book you’ve personally acquired for the imprint has done really well.
Honestly, this sort of thing is more for people working within publishing. It is a way for editors to communicate clearly with agents, and vice versa. It is very useful for agents to know, in as much detail as humanly possible, what editors are looking to acquire, and what they have acquired in the past. So, these imprints, these brands, are just another way to do that.
3. Rejections hurt, but they are imperative.
There is so much that goes into taking on an author and their manuscript. Agents, especially those at BFLA, are looking to take authors on holistically – they want to support writers in the best way possible, hopefully for their whole career, and, if they aren’t feeling confident in your writing, they won’t waste your time. Know that, as a writer, agents are taking your work seriously. They understand how hard it can be because they have worked with so many writers and seen the struggles as well as the successes. But sometimes, even if they do love your work, they aren’t 100% confident. As you probably know, there are so many reasons why this might be, but, when it comes down to it, it just wasn’t right for them, it wasn’t the right match.
I know it might be hard to accept, especially if you were desperate to be represented by a specific agent – but these rejections are a huge benefit to your long-term career as a writer. Hear me out. I understand how hard it is to receive rejection after rejection. I got rejected from countless jobs and internships over the past year, and it felt plain awful. No frills could dress that mess. But then, eventually, I was offered the internship at Blake Friedmann, and here’s why I am so grateful for the time it took. I used to get emotional about every rejection, get attached to every role and question my ability to work in the industry. But when I got shortlisted for the internship, then had my first call with the lovely Sian, and eventually met the whole team, it became clear to me. As I sat on the train making my way home from my first day, I realised just how perfect Blake Friedmann was for me. An inclusive environment, creative people genuinely excited about the work they do, and a general work ethic I related to. There were times in my job search when I thought I might have to pretend to be something else, to fit a mould of someone who I thought would be successful in publishing. But sticking it out and persevering meant I eventually found the place that was the perfect match for me.
I never thought I would admit it, because I am a strong advocate for the fact the job search slog can be soul-crushing. But it’s true, the rejection, the perseverance, is imperative. Please, don’t change your writing for anyone – and I don’t mean stop editing, workshopping, accepting feedback, because those are all vital - what I mean is don’t go against your morals, don’t try squeeze yourself into a mould you just don’t fit into. If you do, you’ll simply burn out down the line. Please remember – agents love books, they love the type of books they represent. This is an industry of highly invested, spirited people. So, please, stick to your craft, be undeniably you, and if you can write a cracking book, I promise you will find the perfect agent, the perfect match.