I started reading the article to better understand the role of literary agents and the publishing industry as a whole. What the article actually did was reaffirm some of the reasons why I created Supraterranean.com in the first place. The world of publishing has become a giant corporate mess, but that happened long before I was born. However, now consolidation of publishers is making things even worse. Just as in the music industry, the books you see in big stores and atop bestseller lists are certainly not the best ones being written; they’re simply the ones that can be sold the most effectively to a specific type of market. Hence, as it is with music, the world of popular books is monotonous and dismal.

This conversation between four young literary agents is funny at times, but more often frustrating. All these agents are in denial of the imminent demise of the traditional paper book publishing industry. Not once throughout the conversation do they discuss literature as an art form, or the greater role of literary fiction in society. It’s all about markets and commercial products, not experimentation and progress. I’m sure that paper books will be around in some form at all times, but this method of turning fiction into a mass product will not last. Between electronic (both online and off) and on-demand book publishing, I think new systems will arise that will complete the destruction  of the major book companies.

Then we can have a free flow of literary development, where writers control their own evolution as artists. The public will benefit in the same way they did from the recent overturn in the world of music. The floodgates will open and we’ll all swim in the luminescence of creativity and passion.

In the meantime, we have this Q&A. Jeff Kleinman was the only one who seemed aware of the ridiculous nature of the book industry, but all four of them are dead-set in their ways. Instead of working my favorite quotes into a commentary, I think they can stand on their own. The full interview probably spanned about 10,000 words, so this serves as a decent digest for anyone short on time. But if this isn’t enough, please consult the actual article.

ON AGENTS: “I think the problem is that we’re all sheep. I think we’re all coming from the same complex. We’re all either in New York or affiliated with New York and have the same kind of vision because ‘this is the stuff that sells.’ I think there’s a uniformity.” -Kleinman

“I think so much of this business is egotistical agents who make writers wait.” -Kleinman

ON CLIENTS: “I think an ideal client is somebody who is obviously an incredibly gifted writer who also understands that, these days, being a writer is more than just writing a book. A writer who is willing to participate in the publication. Brainstorming. Working with their publicist. Working with their marketing department. Getting themselves out there. Using their connections. It’s hard because I think a lot of writers happen to be introverts who are shy and kind of just want to be left alone to sit at their desks in solitude. I think it’s somewhat unfair that the business has changed so much and that we now rely on them. But we do. And, truthfully, the writers who are the most successful sometimes are the ones who are really willing to be a part of the business aspect of it.” -Barer

“I think it’s not just the author who’s really well connected—it’s the author who’s so well connected that he’s sleeping with a producer at ABC News or something.” -Kleinman

“You’ve got to be on your best behavior, even if you’re in a crappy mood. Always write thank-you notes. Help other writers. I have another client who’s like that too. So aside from being smart and writing something really terrific, I think you have to have people rooting for you.” -Zuckerbrot

“I don’t want to hear that you’re mired in the classics. The classics are great. They’re an amazing foundation to have. But if you are not reading what is being published today, and what is selling, who are you writing for?” -Zuckerbrot

“I think there’s so much MFA stuff with such a standard voice and such a standard protocol.” -Kleinman [note: MFA = Masters of Fine Arts]

ON EDITORS: “I’m convinced that if you have a choice between an editor who is a great editor—who really understands fiction, how it works, how to shape it—versus an editor who is a cheerleader, I will always, from now on and forever afterward, take the cheerleader. For a long time I kept thinking, ‘It’s so important to have an editor who can shape the book.’ I was such a moron. ” -Kleinman

“I will not send [an author's book] out until it is perfect to me, and then it will be edited again by your editor. But it will have a chance at actually selling.” -Barer

ON THE INDUSTRY: “If you’re a writer and you want to be published, go out and buy a hardcover debut novel and short-story collection tomorrow. And next month, do it again. Buy one every freaking month. Because if you want to be published and you want people to buy your books, and you are not out there supporting fiction and debut authors, you are the biggest hypocrite in the world and I don’t know who you think you are.” -Barer

“I read [the New York Magazine article entitled "The End"] and couldn’t decide if I should buy up every issue I could get my hands on and throw them off the top of the HarperCollins building, or if I should throw myself off and make it faster. But I talked to Amy Berkower and Al Zuckerman and Robin Rue, who have been in this business for a lot longer than I have, and they all said, ‘We read that same article every single year.’” -Lazar

“The books that don’t work these days are those wonderful little books that I loved in the eighties—those very quiet, introspective, interior, family coming-of-age books. I loved those books. But they just don’t work anymore.” -Barer