We are pleased to welcome back Helena Fairfax this
month with another of her wonderful interviews. Over to you, Helena.
My
interviewee today needs no introduction for many members of the RNA. Broo
Doherty was voted Agent of the Year at the Festival of Romance in 2013 and her friendliness
and approachability are well known to many.
Thanks
for taking the time to answer my questions over the Christmas period, Broo.
It’s much appreciated! Please tell us a little about the DHH Literary
Agency, how long you’ve been with the agency, and how you came to join.
I
have been with the DHH Literary Agency for just over two years, although David
Headley set it up himself about eight years ago. It is a boutique agency run beneath the
wonderful independent bookshop, Goldsboro Books, so we have a constant stream
of authors, publishers and readers through the doors. David and I had been friends of several years
before we decided that working together would result in a valuable and
productive partnership, and so far it has been exactly that. I couldn’t be working in a better place.
What do enjoy most about your job? And least?
The
thing I most enjoy is nurturing new talent; there is nothing more exciting than
being the first person to read a first novel and think that it could become a
best seller. Meeting an author and
knowing that potentially I can help to make their dream become a reality is
very seductive – and if I manage to fulfil that dream, I feel that I’ve done a
good job. One of the most frustrating
things about the job is working hard to place a novel that I feel has real
potential only for others to disagree with me.
What
is it you are looking for when a manuscript lands on your desk? Are there any
specific plots or themes you’d like to see?
That’s a difficult
question. I love books that transport me
to places I have never been to before, or ones that make the ordinary seem
extraordinary, and novels that enable me to see situations from a completely
different perspective. It’s not so much
about the themes or the plots – I know there is a theory that there are only
ten storylines in the world – but how those themes are explored, the way the
plots are unravelled, and the quality of the writing.
Where do you find your new authors, and how?
At
the agency, we received about five thousand submissions a year, and each and
every one of them is read, but it is only fair to say that of those, I would
take on about three or four a year. I go
to various industry festivals where they run pitch to an agent, such as
CrimeFest in Bristol, Winchester Writers’ Festival and the Writers’ Workshop
Festival in York. These are invaluable events as it gives both me and any
potential author the chance to meet and discuss their work in a relaxed,
friendly environment. I am invited to
various creative writing courses round the country to discuss the role of an
agent; and then there are also the personal recommendations. Suffice to say I am never short of reading…
What advice would you give someone submitting to you?
Do
your research. When approaching an agent, find out a bit about them before you
submit to them. If you are writing
romance, make sure that they are interested in the genre, and illustrate that
you have done your research by mentioning one or two of their clients. It is incredibly easy to look up the various
agencies on the internet these days and you can assess whether or not you think
that you could be a good match for an agent.
I also recommend that you look at the Acknowledgements of your ten favourite
books; agents are usually thanked and you may notice that one agent is thanked
by two or three of these authors, which suggests that you and the agent may
have similar taste. And I would suggest
that you write a very clear submission letter; mention any relevant writing experience
you have done in the past, articles or short stories that you have had
published, and whether or not you have done a creative writing course. All of
this helps the agent to build up a picture of you and to assess whether or not
you are serious about your writing.
Do you think aspiring romance writers have a better
chance of being published if they are planning a series? Are stand-alone novels
more likely to be rejected by publishers and agents?
There
seems to be a vogue at the moment for series – publishers can start to
establish a writer as a brand from the beginning and if they are aware that
there are several books coming in the future that can certainly be attractive. However, I don’t think that stand-alone
novels are more likely to be rejected; after all, it all boils down to the
quality of the writing and the enthusiasm of the publisher.
What
benefits do you feel an agent can offer an author?
Writing is a very lonely
business and I believe that once you secure an agent, the two of you become a
team, and your writing becomes a collaborative process. An agent should provide professional advice
and support, as well as a genuine passion for your writing, and should be your
first point of contact with regard to your publishing career. It is a relationship based on trust. An agent
can be invaluable when it comes to negotiating contracts, dealing with every
aspect of the publishing process, and should ultimately become a friend who
provides not only support, but humour and the odd hanky as well.
What’s your favourite romance novel of all time?
Pride
and Prejudice by Jane Austen. No one has done it better.
Apart from your own authors, which book have you enjoyed the most in the past twelve months, and why?
A little Life by Hanya Yanagihara, published last summer and shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize, for its sheer scale and humanity, despite the gruelling and harrowing situations it describes. Utterly
captivating, it was a novel that kept me awake for days, and the characters will live with me for a
long while to come.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I
love nothing better than spending time with my family and friends, enjoying
decent food and wine, chatting about anything from books to yomping and
everything in between.
If you could describe your working-day in just
three words, what would they be?
Exhilarating,
challenging, fun.
About Helena:
About Helena:
Thank you, Broo and Helena.
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RNA blog is brought to you by
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If
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13 comments:
Five thousand submissions! I can see why you're not short of reading material, Broo. Thanks for the insight. Thanks for sharing, Helena. :) x
I find it mind-boggling, too, Sheryl! And it just shows how hard an author has to work to make their submission stand out. Thanks for dropping in!
Thanks for another great interview, Helena! Love these Meet the Industry Expert posts.
A great interview. In spite of the terrifying statistic - 5000 submissions a year to the agency with an uptake by Broo of only three or four - I find this full of positive thinking and hope. Thank you
An interesting and constructive interview. Thank you, Helena and Broo.
A great series, thank you Helena and also Broo for finding time to take part.
It's good to read the stats - it makes us work harder!
Thank you for an interesting interview, Helena and Broo. Although the statistics don't sound great, if you truly love your novel it shouldn't put you off. If I had worried about the hundreds of short story submissions magazines had each month I'd never have become a magazine writer. It's partly luck and partly belief in your work.
An excellent interview. It's fascinating to read an agent's point of view.
It's pretty humbling to know how many submissions there are (even now, when self pub is a perfectly viable option). Great interview. Thanks Helena and Brooks.
What a fascinating insight into the writing world from an agent's perspective. Thank you both for the interview and like others have said, 5,000 submissions a year, wow.
Thanks for a very interesting interview, Helena and Broo. It's good to see how much an agent can still add to an author's career, even if the competition is so high! How lovely to see you mention P&P as your favourite romance, Broo - many of us would agree with that.
Well, that foes to show you. This spring it will be 10 years since I sent my first novel to the amazing Broo, when she had recently started out as an agent. She sold it to LBD soon after, but in all that time, I didn't know her favourite novel was P&P. Luckily it's mine too. I may be her client but that statistic is terrifying...
And you can tell she has to correct my typos. That's Goes to show you!
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