What I Love (and Don’t) About my Job

What I love about my job:

Wednesdays. Why, you ask? Is it that the week is half over or the glass is half full? No, it’s the evening the New York Times bestseller list comes out. It’s like watching to see if you won the Lotto, but with a much better chance of someone you know (or represent) hitting.

Brilliant people. Other agents, authors, editors, bloggers, fans…they’re all BOOK people. I work with some of the most brilliant, creative, out-of-the-box thinkers in the universe. I call that blessed.

Deals. I admit it, I’m a deal junkie. I live for the rush of making a sale and negotiating terms. Yes, I like to haggle. I love a good debate, where both sides present logical and well-reasoned support for their positions and in the end hammer out an agreement.

Travel. I’m seeing the world one convention at a time. In 2011 alone, I’ve been on a writers’ conference cruise to Key West and Cozumel; to Dallas, TX; Yosemite, CA; New York, NY (several times over, of course); Reno, NV; Atlanta, GA; Germany and Greece (though this latter was for vacation). Gorgeous places, great company. It satisfies the travel junkie in me. Yes, you now know my two of my major addictions: deals and travel.

What I don’t love quite so much:

Power reading. Power reading, like power walking, is about the goal and not the journey. I miss the days when I could immerse myself in a book and become one with the characters, my gut churning and pulse-pounding along with them. Now, I have so much to read, all of which needs to be evaluated, that my inner editor keeps me intent on the details and not the ride. Every once in a while I have to stop and smell the fiction to refresh.

The Internet. To be honest, my feelings about the internet are a little love/hate. Complex and chaotic. It’s wonderful for spreading information, putting people in touch, networking, learning and growing. But some people use it to spread misinformation, further an agenda or browbeat others. However, since I did an entire post on cyberbullying last month at the Magical Words blog, I’ll move right along.

The Downers. As agents, we see a lot of rejection. We take on projects we love and work with people we admire. Don’t think we’re not affected by rejections, silences or bad reviews for our clients. We are. We champion these books and authors. We want to win the day, bring back the holy grail every darned time. It doesn’t always work like that.

And…let’s see, I feel like I should have four downs, since I have four ups. But you know what? The good completely outweighs the bad. By a longshot. I love my job. I love most everyone I’ve met and everywhere I’ve been because of it. I love being surrounded by bookshelves I’ve helped stock and being part of a business that meant so much to me growing up and still does. You know those addictions I mentioned? You add reading and family…oh, and caffeine…and my life is complete.