The Paper Literary team talk about signing authors in other countries, the differences in the UK/US markets, what happens when authors leave agents, and how it feels to set up a new literary agency!
This was a great read! An important reminder about not trying to write to market, and now I'm invested in the difference in floppiness between US and UK books.
Loved reading this, thank you Phoebe! Also, MASSIVE fan of God of the Woods, it’s one of my take-it-apart-see-how-it-works thrillers, it’s so clever. Anyway, great interview, thanks to the three of you 💕
Oh! Meant to add…my agents are American (I love them), and we definitely plan with the US market in mind. So I’ve been steered away from using children as emotional leverage (I’m currently writing thrillers) and any sex is shut-the-door sort. The more they both teach me about genre and market expectation, the more I realise I have to learn!
Very interesting. I was particularly struck by the comment about UK readers being more open to darker issues than US ones. I have been fortunate enough to have had a book club in California read and comment on my (not yet published) second novel, in which an unremarkable middle class family's lives are turned upside-down by a house guest (with horrible consequences). While UK Beta readers have been positive, the US readers struggled with the idea that such bad things could happen to such 'normal' people. The family members had not done anything wrong, so why were they suffering? They also found it hard to accept that one of the key characters could demonstrate both good and bad sides to his character.
Perhaps that's a reflection of the white hat-black hat goodies or baddies characterisation prevalent in so much US films and television programmes.
This blog arrived with perfect timing! I've been debating about querying the UK. How does a US writer go about with paying a tax? Do they only pay to the US or to the UK too? A UK agent I love offered a R&R with a middle grade fantasy, but I wasn't sure how complicated this would be.
So because the agent is not the source of income (the publisher is), where an agency is incorporated does not factor into tax. Our list is evenly split between US and UK clients - for our US clients who have a deal with a US publisher, they would fill in a W-9 form (just as if they'd been represented by a US agency), for UK publishers, there isn't withholding tax for US tax residents, and then for each territory there are different requirements for tax withholding and forms. As a dual-citizen, I do spend a lot of my life thinking about tax admin, and just to note that we aren't tax advisors (!) but there shouldn't be any additional complications based on whether you're represented by a US or UK agent.
There are tax exemption forms usually for foreign territories, I have to fill them in (as a writer) each year. For the US I can’t remember what I do but Catherine may know!
Phoebe you have done so many amazing interviews & posts but I think this is my favourite to date. Absolutely amazing! I had a similar conversation with my agent this month about the gap between the UK and US market. I got the impression it is harder for a UK book to sell in the US especially if they use UK locations/themes because Americans aren't familiar with culture. I find these conversations incredibly fascinating. Thanks Phoebe! 👏🏾
This was a great read! An important reminder about not trying to write to market, and now I'm invested in the difference in floppiness between US and UK books.
Loved reading this, thank you Phoebe! Also, MASSIVE fan of God of the Woods, it’s one of my take-it-apart-see-how-it-works thrillers, it’s so clever. Anyway, great interview, thanks to the three of you 💕
Oh! Meant to add…my agents are American (I love them), and we definitely plan with the US market in mind. So I’ve been steered away from using children as emotional leverage (I’m currently writing thrillers) and any sex is shut-the-door sort. The more they both teach me about genre and market expectation, the more I realise I have to learn!
Great insights. I'm currently querying (US-based) and wondered about agencies across the pond.
Thanks so much for addressing a topic I wonder a great deal about. Hope to hear more insights about the UK publishing market. 🥳
Very interesting. I was particularly struck by the comment about UK readers being more open to darker issues than US ones. I have been fortunate enough to have had a book club in California read and comment on my (not yet published) second novel, in which an unremarkable middle class family's lives are turned upside-down by a house guest (with horrible consequences). While UK Beta readers have been positive, the US readers struggled with the idea that such bad things could happen to such 'normal' people. The family members had not done anything wrong, so why were they suffering? They also found it hard to accept that one of the key characters could demonstrate both good and bad sides to his character.
Perhaps that's a reflection of the white hat-black hat goodies or baddies characterisation prevalent in so much US films and television programmes.
This blog arrived with perfect timing! I've been debating about querying the UK. How does a US writer go about with paying a tax? Do they only pay to the US or to the UK too? A UK agent I love offered a R&R with a middle grade fantasy, but I wasn't sure how complicated this would be.
So because the agent is not the source of income (the publisher is), where an agency is incorporated does not factor into tax. Our list is evenly split between US and UK clients - for our US clients who have a deal with a US publisher, they would fill in a W-9 form (just as if they'd been represented by a US agency), for UK publishers, there isn't withholding tax for US tax residents, and then for each territory there are different requirements for tax withholding and forms. As a dual-citizen, I do spend a lot of my life thinking about tax admin, and just to note that we aren't tax advisors (!) but there shouldn't be any additional complications based on whether you're represented by a US or UK agent.
Thanks so much! It helps a lot.
There are tax exemption forms usually for foreign territories, I have to fill them in (as a writer) each year. For the US I can’t remember what I do but Catherine may know!
I'm reasonably knowledgeable about publishing, but until reading this interview I'd never thought about the relative floppiness of UK and US books.
Haha right!
Phoebe you have done so many amazing interviews & posts but I think this is my favourite to date. Absolutely amazing! I had a similar conversation with my agent this month about the gap between the UK and US market. I got the impression it is harder for a UK book to sell in the US especially if they use UK locations/themes because Americans aren't familiar with culture. I find these conversations incredibly fascinating. Thanks Phoebe! 👏🏾
I’m so glad you liked it. Thank you for reading!
Thanks for this interview! I've often wondered a lot of these things!
Me too!
Great interview. Thanks for sharing. 🥰🫶🏻
Thanks Elaine!
This interview addressed several questions I’ve been pondering. Thanks to all involved for the great insight, and greetings from Atlantic Canada!
Thanks for reading!
Many thanks for These insights. I’m based in Australia and have 3 queries out to agents in Australia, UK and US. 🤞
Thank you for reading and wishing you good luck!