They love you when they think they'll lose you:)

Did you need him in the first place, even these days? Do leeching middlemen still hold all the hookups?

Yeah. It's a closed circle. No one will talk to you unless you're coming from and agent or manager (sometimes an entertainment lawyer.)

same thing with trying to get a book published

Trying to get a short story published is like being a sperm; there are a million of you trying like hell, and only one ever seesm to make it through.

Tell me about it. I decided I'd try to query small publishers, since my first novel had no success getting through to agents. Turns out about 90% of them are closed to submissions or (gasp) unsolicited submissions. So, I'm back to square one trying to find an agent. Thank God I wrote something more commercial this time, but I've got a feeling the industry's going to make me do a lot of walking anyway. In the agent's guides, the agencies always try and make themselves look like they're open and expansive, but I have a feeling its an act with half of them. Right now it looks to me like finding an agent's my only choice, and while I don't like it much, I know I have a book with commercial potential, so I don't want to self publish or gamble with small publishers whose sites and titles alike provide no info. I guess the Stones are right. "You've gotta face the news if you wanna sing the blues, and you know it don't come easy". Humble apologies for the long, belligerent rant.

Wasnt that the beatles? Ringo sang, i would bet on it.

trying to get an agent now......it's not easy, that's for sure. we have someone shopping our movie. i guess you could call him an agent of sorts but we need someone with insider contacts.