Inside a Literary Agent's Head

[Paul Whybrow]

No printing this out to throw darts at!

 

[Jason Byrne]

Very developed frontal schadenfreude lobe, I'm pleased to see.

 

[Marc Joan]

There's an error - 'masochism' should read 'sadism'.

 

[AgentPete]

Need to read Mal Peet's MURDSTONE... he's got this down to a tee in the glamorous and ruthless Minerva Cinch...

 

[Paul Whybrow]

Need to read Mal Peet's MURDSTONE... he's got this down to a tee in the glamorous and ruthless Minerva Cinch...

Mal's premature death was a sad loss. I'd just read his historical novel Tamar, when he passed. One of those deaths that makes you go "oh, no."

 

[Paul Whybrow]

Apart from Minerva Cinch, have there been any other notable fictional literary agents? Googling this question, in many different ways, proves the inadequacy of search engines, as it produces thousands of results on how to find an agent + lots on Harper Lee.

I must admit, that after eight months of submitting to literary agents, I toyed with the idea of writing a crime novel called 'Who Is Murdering The Literary Agents of Olde London Towne?', as at least this would raise my chances of hearing something back from them!

It's kind of been done before though, in the 1973 horror film 'Theatre of Blood.' This starred Vincent Price as a wronged Shakespearean actor on the vengeance trail to punish the theatre critics who had ridiculed his performances. The whole film is available on YouTube, and it's deliciously camp fun, but here's the trailer for it:

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Then there's Casting the Runes...a rune curse unleashed against a book reviewer. Quite creepy, it made my mother very nervous of runes for a while. Now she knows them a little better, she's still wary but has them inscribed on a stone in her back garden. Heh.

The rune of writers and writing is the rune of Odin, ANSUZ. It is the rune which gives us the word ANSWER.

MR James @Marc Joan (A creepy little film follows 'Casting the Runes.')

 

[Marc Joan]

Then there's Casting the Runes...a rune curse unleashed against a book reviewer. Quite creepy, it made my mother very nervous of runes for a while. Now she knows them a little better, she's still wary but has them inscribed on a stone in her back garden. Heh.

The rune of writers and writing is the rune of Odin, ANSUZ. It is the rune which gives us the word ANSWER.

MR James @Marc Joan (A creepy little film follows 'Casting the Runes.')

I was just about to ask if it was the same as the MRJ story....it's a good one.

 

[AgentPete]

Well, I never knew they re-shot Casting The Runes in that (ah, rather cheesy) sixties/seventies way. I adore the earlier black and white film Night of the Demon by Jacques Tourneur, it’s gorgeously atmospheric and one of my favourite noir films of all time. The underlying story by MR James is brilliant, too.

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Night of the Demon was very frightening. That moment when the thing comes along the railway line. Ughhhh.

 

[Paul Whybrow]

Jacques Tourneur was a masterful director. I recall watching his 1942 Cat People as a young boy, feeling the hairs rise on the back of my neck as the naive heroine is stalked by the shape-shifting villainess, who has transformed into a big cat. She seeks refuge in a swimming pool, and though you never get to see the creature, the suspense is palpable (great acting by the kitten):

 

[Katie-Ellen]

Not nice at all, and big cats are fine with swimming.

 

[Jennifer Stone]

Someone give that kitten an oscar