22 July 2013
Like an ocean voyage long stalled by calm seas, the question of "agent-assisted publishing" for authors was all but dropped a couple of years ago, at least in many polite industry conversations. A hot potato of a subject, it had shallowed out in awkward, unsettling questions. It was left as a topic listing queasily toward perceived potentials for conflict of interest.
And yet, as entrepreneurial authors today make ever more assured strides in the marketplace, the position, purpose, and problems of literary agents need open examination.
