But here’s a story where you can pay a top-notch agent to read the first 50 pages of your manuscript and it’s legit. But would you?
Each month, Irene Goodman of the Irene Goodman Literary Agency, “puts her services up on eBay to benefit three foundations that fund research to cure deafness and blindness: the Deafness Research Foundation, Hope for Vision and Foundation Fighting Blindness. Bidding starts at $500 for each of the three monthly auctions, and the winners get to have the first 50 pages of their manuscripts read and critiqued by Goodman.”
So, again, my question is…would you?
No. For that kind of money you can get a professional editor to do an analysis of your whole book, which I think would be more valueable to most writers.
ReplyDeletePlus, I think there's an ethical line. Agents just shouldn't be taking money for their evaluations, because that's a very short walk to the completely unethical.
If the donation to the charity is legit, I'll see this as doing a good deed. So it's ok to pay.
ReplyDeleteSteamy Darcy
Depends on how generous you are feeling at the moment...
ReplyDeleteI suppose it has merit since it's for charity but I wouldn't do it.
ReplyDeleteI'd say I would have to agree with Enid. If you're looking for these services and as long as it was a legit charity and the agent is good. You would basically just be making a donation to a good cause.
ReplyDeleteMason
Thoughts in Progress
I'm inclined to agree with Enid and Mason (until someone makes a strong case for the other side; I'm wishy-washy on this). If you think of it as a contest where there's a final judge who is an agent or big name author or someone you'd want to perhaps have a connection with, and you enter it knowing your odds are teeny ... and in this case, the money goes to a cause you support, and you can afford it...
ReplyDeleteBut it's a lot of money for only a few pages.
No, I'd take the $500 and give it to the charity of my choice and keep sending out my manuscript until it was picked up on its own merit.
ReplyDeleteI'd say no. There's something just unethical about it. It's almost as though she's toying with writers desperate for an in, hooking them with that possibility, for someone else's benefit. I don't really think that's the way to go for the "sake of charity."
ReplyDeleteIn her defense, and I don't know her at all, she never claims to be looking for authors to represent. But, you're right, having an agent do the critique would get the hopes up of new writers looking for an agent. There are contests out there that say up front that the winning entry may get published, so if that's what you're looking for, go there.
ReplyDeleteSign up for my newsletter (plug, plug). I post contests in it every week. You can also check my website where I have a page of contests and a page of events for writers that I update every week.
I guess everybody wants to get paid for the work they do, agents too. If the agent is doing valuable work he/she deserves to get paid of course >:)
ReplyDeleteCold As Heaven
She's a legit agent with a big heart. I could never afford that, but from what I've read those charities are close to her heart and she's not out to trick anyone.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Jemi. I had not heard any results on the critiques. She is definitely a well known and legit agent.
ReplyDeleteIt's like a contest and she's the prize. Nice that the money all goes to charity. I doubt I'd ever do it, though.
ReplyDeleteOoh, I am torn on this one. If I had that sort of money to play with, then maybe. So long as I knew for sure it was for charity.
ReplyDeleteThe other me is not so sure, it is a lot to pay for a few pages.
Interesting post, thanks.
You say the bidding starts at $500 so it probably gets pretty pricey for fifty pages. How many authors without agents can afford that kind of money? If you can afford it you most likely have an agent.
ReplyDeleteMaribeth
Giggles and Guns
I'm with making a donation (if you can) to the charity of your choice and then going for editors/agents as you would anyway. I feel like her hearts is in the right place though.
ReplyDeleteThat gives me pause, as well, Maribeth. How high would the bidding go? And if you don't win, have you still donated the $500?
ReplyDeleteI tend to agree with the side that says it's a legit way to raise money for charity. 500 dollars is way beyond my price range, but I know others who would be happy to spend that.
ReplyDeleteI stopped by at the Do the Write Thing for Nashville site a few times and checked out the auctions there. They had page critiques from authors and agents and phone calls with agents and lunches with agents, and many of the auctions got into the thousand dollar range before they closed.
I think it's like anything else, if there's a demand for it, the price goes up.
(And while I personally would rather pay an editor to look at a bigger chunk, some people aren't looking for edits per say, they're looking for agent reaction to give them an idea of where to go next.)
Very true, Miriam. If I had the money, I'd be tempted.
ReplyDeleteI guess I look at this as a 'can I afford to donate to the charity anyway' gig. I'm sure she does an excellent job and it is incredibly helpful. I'm also sure it is not worth more than $50--I suspect a REGULAR editor, at a more reasonable rate, could do the same, AND I think our peer reviewers could do NEARLY as good in a tit for tat system.
ReplyDeleteI don't have a problem with this as a charity fundraiser, but I don't think it should be confused with a 'business of publishing' option.
I'm split on this one, Helen. Great way to raise money for a charity. But if the bidding starts at $500, do you realize how insane it must become toward the end? Desperate writers bidding for their chance to be read, with money they don't really have...
ReplyDeleteIf I don't get sidetracked, I'll try to keep an eye on it and see what the wining bid is. If anyone else catches it, let us know!
ReplyDeleteI look at it as any other service offered at a charity auction. I don't see anything wrong with it. If someone was going to donate $500+ to a charity anyway, it might make sense to get a manuscript reading out of it. It would just be gravy.
ReplyDeleteBut I have to wonder what the fair market value would be. When someone donates to a charity and gets something of value in return, only the difference between the FMV and the amount donated counts towards a charitable contribution. You know how the IRS is.
To answer your question, no, I would not do it.
~jon
You're quite smart, Jon. You know what's right for you and you stick with it.
ReplyDeleteI don't really like the idea of this kind of thing, really. I know the money goes to a good cause...I just dunno.
ReplyDeleteI would possibly be inclined to do it, just to support a charity, if the fee were a lot less. That is a lot to pay for an analysis of just 50 pages. I would rather pay an editor for an analysis of the whole book.
ReplyDeleteI agree with India (first post). For that money you could have an industry professional do a ms appraisal for you. If the money doubles you could pay for an editor.
ReplyDeleteHaving the money go to a charity doesn't make it any more legitimate.
If I wanted to donate to a charity, I'd give it to the charity of my choice as some of you said.