{"id":1997,"date":"2021-02-08T17:45:26","date_gmt":"2021-02-09T01:45:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/marycmoore.com\/?p=1997"},"modified":"2023-03-29T14:46:45","modified_gmt":"2023-03-29T22:46:45","slug":"editing-the-big-picture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.marycmoore.com\/index.php\/2021\/02\/08\/editing-the-big-picture\/","title":{"rendered":"Editing The Big Picture"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The past year was indefinable in so many ways. I struggle to find the words, as I’m sure many of us do. Personally, politically, socially, spiritually it’s been. . . something. But the readers of this little blog are interested in my professional perspective. So: let’s talk about the publishing industry<\/a>. Could it survive the pandemic, political upheaval, social unrest of 2020? (Reader, it did<\/a>). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

It made some questionable moves, with the acquisition of books like American Dirt<\/a>, Apropos of Nothing<\/a>, and Troubled Blood<\/a>. There was a reckoning with the Black Lives Matter<\/a> movement, which resulted in calls for more Black voices, but many argue and agree that the lack of diversity in publishing and the industry’s performative response to it, is a never-ending<\/a> cyclical issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And closer to home, agent scandals erupted at a pace as if a global pandemic didn’t exist. Literary agents and agencies saw increasing demands for transparency and ethical behavior. Some may not survive in the industry as a result. Individual agents faced backlash on behalf of their clients. My peers publicly parted ways with established clients for problematic behavior such as sexual harassment, racism, and gaslighting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Much of this was fast-moving, forgotten-after-the-next-controversy-broke, but the ripples had an effect. There has been an undeniable increase in anxiety seeping into all corners of the industry. Including into the already nerve-wracked minds of the hundreds of thousands of querying authors. How can you trust agents? How do you know an agent will be there for you long-term and won’t be at the center of some Twitterstorm\/unearthed as a terrible professional\/person? And how can you trust yourself that you are making good decisions and won’t find yourself facing the mob?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since a tiny percentage of this group are readers of this blog, I’m sharing that you’re not alone. I can’t speak for all agents, but I do think a majority of us have felt the shift. This past year, I constantly re-examined my goals, my mission, my reason for doing what I do. I stumbled, more than once. How was I contributing to the conversation, positive and\/or negative? I spiraled out and in, was off social media then back on, had highs of elation and lows of pessimism. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

And then in late-August I came down with a moderate case of COVID-19<\/a> (link to an article that a local newspaper did on my experience<\/a>). At the same time the largest wildfire in recent California history blanketed the sky with smoke, making the air hazardous to breathe for weeks. The personal overwhelmed the professional. I couldn’t work, I had no desire to be connected online and life, well it sucked. Physical recovery was about two months, emotional. . . I’ll let you know.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It did bring the importance of patience into sharp focus. The fast pace of social media conversations and industry scandals will not slow down. It’s important for me to keep track of it all, in order to have an understanding of the climate. But the choices I make as a literary agent (and perhaps you as an author) do not have to be at the same pace. We are caretakers of stories<\/a>, one of the deepest aspects of the human psyche. This is not a fleeting mission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So I remind myself:<\/p>\n\n\n\n