What I have read agents don't want

[theDamonfreak]

Agents are always after new ideas. They always say they don't want something, but as everyone else said, they'll still take old ideas with new twists if the writing's good.

Think about it, though. Hasn't most writing already been done? A writer can think they have a really great idea, but somewhere, there's a plot similar to it. Never exactly the same, impossible, but close. It's all just about putting our own finishing touches to traditional ideas, myths, really, and spicing them up to fit in with the times and morals of today's society. Which will be different in the next decade, ready for someone else to stamp their mark.

 

[Steve Jordan]

Writing something you don't really want to write because you think it will sell is a very poor idea.

To a purist, sure. But you have to admit, a lot of serials (not all of which were that bad) were written by staff and stable writers on commission, many of which sold well, even if they weren't considered literary gems. Sometimes, you have to pay some dues in order to write what you want to write later.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Note, Steve, that I said think you will sell. I was talking about writing on spec, which is a risky proposition to begin with, and even riskier if you are merely going through the motions working on a story you don't even enjoy writing.

As for those staff writers you mention, they may have enjoyed what they were doing enormously. Some writers get a kick out of seeing what they can come up with within certain constraints; it's more like a game for them than grinding hard work. For other writers, that sort of thing would be sheer drudgery.

And there are more ways of paying your dues than churning out stories for the sake of a paycheck. Working at the art and the craft of writing with dedication and passion, in my opinion, counts for a lot more.

 

[Steve Jordan]

As for those staff writers you mention, they may have enjoyed what they were doing enormously. Some writers get a kick out of seeing what they can come up with within certain constraints; it's more like a game for them than grinding hard work. For other writers, that sort of thing would be sheer drudgery.

That's just what I was alluding to: While there are writers that only want to write their own material, there are also some who really don't want to develop their own ideas, but who get real enjoyment out of satisfying an assignment given to them, and are good at it besides. It's a different kind of writer, but just as valid.

And yes, if you're not that kind of writer, such a job would only be good for getting you some cred in the industry before branching out with your own material. But as cred can sometimes be the only way to break into the biz, it can still be worth pursuing.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

I know people who do work-for-hire for book packagers, which is the modern day version of what you are talking about. Writers are more likely to be hired to do that sort of thing if they already have a few credits. Nor does it usually translate to better sales when you get your own books published. There are a few notable exceptions, but most of the time the readers don't cross over. As a way of building a career (unless you want to continue in that particular niche, as of course some do) it doesn't seem to have a lot to recommend it. It's really more like any other day job you do in order to keep eating while you write your own novel.

So for those who enjoy doing it, fine. Otherwise, the rewards are few and the possibility of burn out pretty high.

 

[dustinzgirl]

Well on a much smaller scale I write articles for lifescript...at first I thought up my own but it was such a pain because of SEO optimization. I rather enjoy working when I have predetermined ideas, keywords, guidelines...it is just easier.

 

[Anthony G Williams]

I quite enjoy writing non-fiction to order (I write a lot more non-fiction than fiction) but I don't think it would work for fiction, as far as I'm concerned. I prefer to let my imagination decide what I'm writing.

 

[Teresa Edgerton]

Sometimes being given the subject matter for a story is a good way to stimulate the imagination. I've written short fiction for theme anthologies -- maximum word count and the story has to conform to a general theme. I enjoyed writing those stories immensely. I don't think that I, personally, would like to do that on a regular basis, or with greater restraints like stock characters and a "bible," but viewed in the light of the proverbial day job and with the prospect of the kind of steady work and steady paycheck you don't get writing on spec ... it doesn't look so bad. The biggest drawback, so far as I can see, is that it could drain off some of the creative energy that might have gone into something more original and soul-satisfying.

But to return to the subject of agents and what they want, I've heard of them arranging deals for work-for-hire, but it seems to me that generally speaking they would prefer representing a work that at least has the potential to break out and generate some serious money.

 

[Leo Medici]

Plus. Writing a traditional quest scenario? Snooze-a-rama.