Attorney or Agent?

“Do I need an attorney or an agent?” is a question we often hear, and the answer depends on your needs as an author, illustrator, publisher, or other publishing professional.

As Attorneys:
Some authors who retain our legal services have already placed their work with a publisher and would like assistance negotiating their contract or addressing difficult, complicated, or unusual issues. Other clients have made arrangements to contribute to a project and are generally comfortable with the terms, but are faced with a contract that contains provisions they don’t fully understand. Some of our clients have their own literary agent, but desire an independent and additional level of review.

Some clients seek our legal advice while preparing their manuscripts if questions arise about (for example) seeking permissions for the use of others’ work, securing releases for interviews they have conducted or will conduct, or understanding when releases may be required from individuals in photographs.

Lucas LLP also advises clients who have decided to work with others on a project, preparing collaboration agreements, assignments of copyright, or work-made-for-hire agreements.

The examples noted above also reflect some of the work we perform for our publisher clients in both print and electronic media, and for clients who work in other creative endeavors.

In an attorney-client relationship, our clients compensate us for our services on a fee basis as services are provided, as well as for out-of-pocket expenses we incur on a client’s behalf. Payment of fees and expenses is not dependent on the outcome of a particular matter or on successful completion of a negotiation or transaction. Fees, anticipated expenses, and other details of arrangements for our legal services are discussed between Lucas LLP and potential clients before work begins, and are confirmed in a written engagement letter.

As Literary Representatives:
Our agency clients seek assistance introducing and selling their work to publishers and other potential licensees and partners. While we provide many of the same services to our agency clients as we do to our legal clients—such as contract and license review, copyright registration assistance, and advice on permissions and releases—we additionally focus on finding and securing publishing opportunities for our literary agency clients.

For prospective agency clients we require submission of materials so we can determine whether we are suited to represent your work. We evaluate submissions based on a number of factors, some related to the quality of the work itself, but also others related to our own range of contacts and our preferences and strengths. We also must consider commitments to our current clients when assessing whether to take on new clients, so our declining to represent an author or their work does not mean that the work is not suitable for another agent or that we do not think a publisher will be interested in it.

Also note that we:

» offer literary representation on an exclusive basis only;
» enter into written agreements with our agency clients;
» do not charge up-front reading fees or other evaluation or editing fees to agency clients or to prospective clients;
» may charge agency clients for certain out-of-pocket expenses, such as photocopying services and messenger or courier charges related to submissions;
» are compensated on a commission basis, receiving a share of income generated from publishing arrangements and licenses of subsidiary rights.

We retain a commission of 15% from all gross proceeds of works we represent. This commission also applies to the placement of subsidiary rights. If we retain a co-agent to assist with the placement of subsidiary rights (for example, in a foreign market), their commission will be an additional cost (usually 10%). Agency commissions and reimbursable expenses, along with the timing and manner of payment, are detailed in our agency agreement.

Submission Guidelines

Before sending material for our consideration, please read these submission guidelines. Following these guidelines will allow us to review and respond to submissions as efficiently as possible, and will help us take the first step toward determining whether we are the appropriate representative for your work.

Note that we may not respond to submissions that do not conform to our guidelines.

Areas of Representation
Lucas LLP represents authors of nonfiction. Within that broad category, we seek projects in the areas of current affairs, history, biography and memoir, science, gastronomy and food science (including topics in food, wine, cooking, sustainable agriculture), law/legal history, popular culture and cultural criticism, and lifestyle topics with an emphasis on sustainable and ethical practices.

Although we provide legal services to authors of fiction, we do not serve as literary representatives for authors of fiction or screenplays.

Few if any agencies represent works of every stripe and style. Because there are many excellent agents with experience in genres and subject areas not listed above, we urge you to consult one or more of the regularly updated print and online resources for finding such agents.

If your inquiry relates to legal services, please note that our legal advice is not limited to the aforementioned categories and genres. If you do not seek an agent but instead have questions about whether we are available to advise you on a particular legal matter, to review a contract or license, or to provide other assistance, please contact us.

What to Submit
Please send a letter introducing yourself and your project along with your proposal. If not included in your proposal, also send a c.v. or résumé. Let us know the submission history of the work, to agents and to publishers.

Effective 31 March 2009, all submissions should be made electronically. Do not send copies of your submission via postal mail, and do not send complete manuscripts or original or unique materials or artwork unless specifically requested.

Do not send Microsoft Word or other word processing files as attachments unless specifically requested. If you include an attachment with your email, please convert your document to .pdf. Other attachments may not be reviewed.

Where to Submit
We accept submissions via email. Queries should be directed to:

submissions@lucasllp.com

How we respond
Replies to email submissions of interest to us will be made via email. We aim to review and respond to submissions 4-6 weeks after receipt. Please do not telephone or email to confirm receipt or to request the status of our review.