Welcome to episode one of The Agent Unveiled.

In today’s episode, we talk about who the agents are outside of their agent roles, what brought them to agenting, and something surprising about them most people don’t know. This is a soft intro before getting into deeper questions later in the series. Join the conversation by leaving comments that will be featured in next week’s written article! Agents are going to also be answering any questions left in the comments. 🫶

Participants include:

A.J. Van Belle

Rachel Estep

Ciara Smith

Shelly Romero

Vicky Weber

Josh Foreman

Renee Runge

**Rachel McMillan has chosen to participant through written format only. Her answers will be available in next week’s written episode. She will not be in the LIVE roundtable chat April 22nd.

This series is meant to offer clarity, nuance, and humanity in a space where agents are rarely given room to speak openly. Online public discourse, including outrage culture, often oversimplifies or distorts the reality of the job. So, I’m here to work with them and you to remove that veil and bridge the community between agent and author by reducing misinformation and tension between while helping readers and listeners to understand the realities agents navigate.

Thank you for joining us for the beginning of this deeper look into the people who help bring stories into the world.

What to look forward to in this mini-series:

(Today’s conversation) EPISODE 1:

The Human Behind the Agent“This episode explores who agents are outside of publishing. Their identities, passions, grounding rituals, histories, and the human side of their lives that rarely receives space in industry conversations. You’ll also learn something surprising about them you may not know and maybe can’t learn anywhere else.

EPISODE 2:

The Invisible Labor of PublishingPart two digs into the work agents perform that is rarely visible. From emotional load to daily decision-making to behind-the-scenes advocacy, this episode pulls the curtain back on the realities of a job that is often misunderstood. Agenting and the work doesn’t stop once you get the agent or sign the publishing deal.

EPISODE 3:

The Industry Through Their EyesPart three widens the frame. Agents discuss the pressures of modern publishing, how social media shapes their day-to-day experience, and which conversations feel unsafe or underrepresented in public spaces.

EPISODE 4:

The RoundtableA collective LIVE conversation with the participating agents, where where you, the listeners, get to engage live in this conversation before the series ends. This finale brings all three themes together while opening the floor to discuss public responses to the series. You can ask questions, comment on what you’ve heard, and help strengthen this wonderful community of creatives.

- Angelia N. Bailey 🫶🖤

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