WHY FOREWORD
LITERARY? WHY NOW?
Before I became a literary agent in 2005, I had previously
spent 25 years in high tech marketing working with clients such as Apple
Computer, Adobe Systems, Intuit, Hotmail and hundreds of other companies. It
was a heady time in our culture with technological advances occurring at the
speed of light. It also proved to me that technology can transform an industry,
big or small, creating chaos, opportunity and excitement in its wake.
This was an important consideration for the formation of
Foreword Literary, Inc.
I thought I’d left the crazy pace of the tech realm behind
me for a more sedentary life in the slow-moving world of publishing. In fact,
the agonizing pace of 18-24 months from contract to bookshelf was the most
difficult part of the job for me. Then Smashwords, and Amazon’s Kindle eReader
and KDP self-publishing service, debuted in 2008, and my dormant virtual
tech-antennae sprang out of my head. I knew that publishing would never be the
same again.
I spent thousands of hours over the years studying these new
technologies. I could not prepare a conference presentation on this subject
more than a day in advance because change was happening at such a rapid pace.
It was (and still is) exciting. My passion was engaged. I started incorporating
eBooks and self-publishing and new technologies into all my clients’ writing
career plans.
And in the back of my mind I kept envisioning how a literary
agency could emerge from this chaotic transition to embrace this change and use
it to a writer’s best advantage.
It was very difficult to leave behind an agency with the
longevity (40 years) and heart of Larsen Pomada Literary Agents. But I needed
to blaze a previously undiscovered path if I was to build something entirely
new.
I also knew that I needed amazing partners to make this
company work. Pam van Hylckama Vlieg started off as my assistant and within 3
months it was crystal clear to me that she was destined to become a super
literary agent. She became an agent after 3 months of rigorous training and in
her first year sold 21 books. This is astounding success. And her love of
technology and social media marketing rivals my own…perhaps even surpasses it!
So Pam was the first person I approached once I’d made the decision to leave
Larsen Pomada. Thankfully she saw the potential of my vision, and amped it up
several megawatts with her own creative ideas. Pam is pure awesome. On
steroids!
Gordon Warnock and I have known each other for 5 years. I am
always encouraged by his thoughtful consideration, wonderful eye for
nonfiction, droll sense of humor and the solid name he’s created for himself in
the publishing industry in such a short time. Plus he is a culinary explorer
par excellence. And that is an understatement. When I heard that Gordon might
be looking to start the next chapter of his professional life, the timing was
perfect, and we had to have him on board.
Together we are a triumvirate ready to take on the world. I
can’t even imagine what we can accomplish together with our intelligence,
experience and energy.
So what is Foreword Literary? We are a brand new type of
author representative. Sure, we’ll sell books to publishers and sell subsidiary
rights to movie studios, foreign publishers, magazines, audiobook companies,
etc. But we’ll also work with a network of affiliates such as self-publishers,
cover designers, app creators, web series developers, comic book producers,
social media marketers, publicity experts, teachers, game designers, speaker
bureaus, and many, many others to offer our clients a fully-fleshed world of
possibilities for their creativity.
We would be lying if we said we know everything. We’re
learning new technology, new procedures, new ways of doing business every
single day. And that’s what keeps this fresh and exciting for us. Foreword
Literary, as the name implies, is an endorsement of our talented clients and
the direction in which our industry is moving. We applaud the pioneers who are
revolutionizing publishing. Gutenberg would be proud. So would Steve Jobs.
Foreword is moving publishing Forward. Watch. This. Space.
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