Fiction author Robin Brande talks about writing, reading, and other vital matters

I’m sitting here in my VERY fancy hotel (thank you, Random House!) in San Francisco near the waterfront, having just enjoyed a delicious Vietnamese dinner with my agent Laura Rennert and her husband who shall remain nameless because I’m not sure if I’m supposed to tell that he’s her husband. Just like I don’t tell any of you who my husband is, even though he’s very, very famous. Not really, just testing.

Anyway, I don’t know how it is for other authors, but before tonight I have only been face-to-face with my agent for ten minutes EVER. And those ten minutes were two years ago, at the writing conference where I met Laura during one of those agent-author interview slots you can sign up for ahead of time to pitch your project to an agent, hoping please please please she will take you on.

Laura did. That was back in January, 2005. And the novel that got her attention ended up not selling (yet–I still have plans for it). So then I wrote another novel, and that one is the one coming out this summer.

Since January, 2005, then, Laura and I have communicated by phone or e-mail, but never seen each other in the flesh until tonight. I had no worries waiting outside the restaurant because I remembered very well what she looks like, but I knew she probably had no memory of my face whatsoever. Which is where the internet comes in handy, since my photo is now posted a few places. So we found each other, all was well.

I tell you all this for two reasons: first, I don’t think it’s that unusual not to see your agent in person very often, and second, I think that’s a real shame. Because this business is driven so much by relationships, and having face time really makes it all so much easier. You lose nuance in e-mails, and even over the phone. There’s no substitute for getting to sit across from someone while shoveling in some tofu and scallions, and talking non-stop for three hours straight about all matters career. I’d never take up three hours of someone’s time on the phone–how rude is that? But over appetizers and dinner and tea and dessert it all makes perfect sense. And you can cover so much more ground, including the all-important question of how each of us hooked up with our respective spouses. Always something worth knowing about a person.

I decided not to have one of the fabulous desserts the restaurant offered because I’m doing these whole six days out of a carry-on suitcase, which means I could only pack one suit for my nighttime dinner meetings, which will all take place at fabulous restaurants, which means I have to fit into this one pair of pants just as well on day six as I do today. But obviously my body wasn’t satisfied with its lack of sugar, because here I am back in the hotel having a little indulgence out of the mini-bar. Sorry, Random House. But it really is hitting the spot.

Tomorrow is my only cush day. My escort picks me up at 4:00 in the afternoon, so until then I’m free. The hotel offers a yoga class at 7:00 AM, so I’m there. I’m really going to make a priority out of taking care of myself on this tour. It will be an interesting experiment, in light of all the early flights I have to catch and the go, go, go aspect of the days. But I don’t want to drag home feeling like I left half my body and soul in Ann Arbor, another quarter in Chicago, etc.

So tomorrow morning it’s yoga, then some good coffee, some oatmeal, some walking. Explore the area, see what it’s like to be in a place where the air feels wet instead of like an oven (it’s already in the mid-90s back home. Skipping spring, going straight into summer, apparently). I’ll give myself the day to play, then come back in plenty of time to shower and change for my first event.

Which I’m REALLY looking forward to. I get to go to a restaurant with about a dozen teens who have read advance copies of my novel, and sit around and talk about whatever they want to talk about–maybe some God, maybe some evolution, maybe some behind-the-scenes stuff about how I wrote the novel. Whatever. Hit me.

Then I’ll have about half an hour to come back to the hotel, change into my one suit, and go to dinner with a group of local booksellers and librarians who have also read the novel and who might also want to talk about God, evolution, and perhaps some of the sordid details of my own history which led me to be interested in the topics of this book in the first place. Whatever. Hit me.

Can I just tell you all what a thrill this is? Sure, the schedule will be a little grueling, but I’m just so grateful for the opportunity to get out in the world and meet all these new people–teens, booksellers, librarians, teachers. So energizing. I realize very few new authors get to do a pre-publication tour like this, and I intend to enjoy and appreciate every aspect of it.

But it’s getting late now, and I promised my husband that whenever I have the choice between blogging and sleep, I will choose sleep. So off I go.

If I’m still awake after dinner tomorrow night, I’ll report in then. Otherwise it won’t be until the airport Tuesday morning, on my way to the next city.

Hope you all had a fine weekend. Enjoy your Monday.

Technorati Tags: Authors, Writing, Publishing, Agents, Literary Agents, Laura Rennert, Writing Conferences, Book Tours, Author Tours

Posted on Sunday, March 18th, 2007 at 9:15 pm under Writing . Subscribe to responses: RSS 2.0 Comment Feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.