Before I pitch a story idea
to my agent,
I ask her
what her feelings are
about that specific niche.
Why do I do this?
Because once I pitch
the story idea
to an agent,
she believes she has
first rights
to represent it.
She, of course,
will want to hear
ALL the story ideas,
whether she plans
to shop them around
or simply sit on them
…forever.
(Or, worse,
f*ck with my time
by asking for a gazillion tweaks,
never feeling the stories are ‘ready’
to be pitched.)
That doesn’t help me
at all.
So I ask her
about her feelings.
If she isn’t enthusiastic
about the niche,
I either shelve the project
or I work with another agent
on it.
Having an unenthusiastic partner
is worse than having
no partner at all.
Hear a prospective partner’s insights
on your niche
before working with them.