Things That Are Out Of My Control

Many, many things are out of my control. I, too, am astounded on a daily basis by this fact. Some examples:

1. Zits (right?!?!)
2. Trader Joe’s stock.
3. Vegans
4. Whether the subway conductor will open the train door again because I ran andOMGIWasAlmostThereAndGAAAHHhhhh…*pathetic look? *
5. Suzie’s orange soda addiction (it hurts those around you too, Suz)
6. There are more.

In some ways, my career belongs on that list too. Don’t get me wrong. Publishing is an extremely involved industry. There’s the networking, the small-talking, the reading of the queries (GAWD, the reading of the queries—thank that same gawd that reading Janet’s means a certain…quality control), the reading of the bookssss…it’s a lot of stuff. And I’m a newb. Imagine my fellow triumvates’ lists.

But so much of being an agent depends on other people. The queriers, obviously. You guys do so much work before we even see that trim, fit, one-pager. And if you guys didn’t send it to us, we’d never get the chance to rep you. (Thanks!!!) Edits are, obviously, dependant on the manuscript we’re reading. Which you wrote. For me as an assistant, it’s dependant on the projects that I get to work on, the jobs (like reading queries) I get to do. I am active in making sure I excel in those tasks, but beyond that, I just have to absorb.

Sometimes, we all need to be reminded how important it is to absorb. To listen instead of do. Watch the pros. And don’t fool yourself. There’s always someone more pro than you. It’s a good thing.