I know all the stuff about bad agents can be really scary and intimidating if you're a querying writer and have never had representation before, but there *are* some really great and caring ones out there, I promise

I absolutely would not still be writing for publication at this point if it wasn't for my agent. I hit a really rough patch between Books 2 and 3, and if my agent had been anything less than incredibly supportive and understanding and encouraging, I'd have packed it all in

Publishing is rough and a rollercoaster and I went from being one of those big shiny 6-figure debut deals to a significantly less desirable prospect when the first two books I sold did not perform as my publisher had hoped

Nobody likes to talk about it, but the book world is a business and if you no longer seem like a good business prospect, you can have amazing people fighting for you and still end up back in the submission trenches with dim prospects after it seemed things were only looking up

I have yet to work with anyone (agent or editor) who's anything less than wonderful and that's still what happened to me. But your agent is the one who's still with you if things go south at a publishing house. If things work like they're supposed to, they're your career constant

My agent never made it seem like failing to sell a third book to my publisher was REMOTELY my fault or in any way reduced my value as a client

She gave me time and space to feel upset and validated everything I felt while reminding me that it wasn't the end of the line