A typical day or why agents drink
I know that I have to get better about my time management (evidenced by the fact that I’m writing this blog post instead of continuing to check off items in my daily to-do list) but I think it's important to note that a day in the life of a literary agent is long and sometimes difficult to manage. I've made posts about "my day in the life" before but it doesn't hurt to reiterate, right? On a typical day, my work hours are 14-16 hours long and consist of so much “brain work” that I often need a nap around 4 PM. (Much like a toddler or a Golden Girl.) So, what do these 14-6 hours consist of, you ask? Email: 3-4 hours are usually spent replying to, composing and forwarding emails emails from clients (sounding a lot like “are we there yet”) emails to clients (royalty summaries, editorial letters, marketing/promo ideas, what are you working on next) emails about clients (buzz-building) emails to editors (proposals, negotiations, general “how-do-you-do”