So what is an agent? Well simply this, someone comes to us with a great idea for a book, we need a synopsis, chapter breakdown and at least one sample chapter, preferably more (the whole book would help) We should emphasise here that we don’t write or edit books, that is the job of the writer – we sell them to the best possible publisher, of course we have suggestions, but the basic equation remains – You write it and we will sell it.

If we take on a new writer we have a fairly shrewd idea where we are going to take it and which publisher/s we are going to approach. There is no great secret to the art of publishing or getting a book published, despite the reams of tedium written about the subject, get the right idea to the right person on the right day in the right place and you could be in business is the long and short of it.

MayerBenham Ltd is of course a business, we are here to make enough money so that we can all live in whatever way we choose and avoid the hassle of having to work for anyone else. We take a commercial view on the proposals we receive and make a judgement about whether it fits the profile of our agency.

It is fair to assume that the better the proposal the better the potential deal, an idea on a piece of A4 is not enough for an editor to make a commercial decision upon. Most editorial decisions are made not only by editors but by the Sales/Marketing/Publicity depts as well - they all need to be convinced. If you were about to do a major presentation to a key customer you would take a professional and thorough approach in order to win the business. The same applies to a book proposal - it is a pitch and the best tend to win.