To Victor Go the Spoils

In the course of my travels and work, I often bump into literary agents--and I even scout for a few of them. Some of the foremost agents in the UK include Jane Gregory of Gregory and Company, Jonny Geller of Curtis Brown, Euan Thorneycroft of A.M. Heath, and Darley Anderson of Darley Anderson and Associates. But one who’s truly become legendary is Ed Victor. I got to know a little about Victor through two of his oldest friends and fellow New Yorkers, spy novelist Robert Littell (Vicious Circle) and Overlook Press honcho Peter Mayer. Victor, who first arrived in Britain in 1961, but made London his permanent address a couple of years later, represents many genres in the world of publishing, but with Littell, Frederick Forsyth, and Jack Higgins (aka Harry Patterson) in his stable, he obviously has a leaning toward thrillers.

Today’s London Observer contains an interesting profile of Ed Victor, whom they dub “The Mr. Big of Publishing.” In that article, Stephanie Merritt quotes Victor as saying:

‘The adjective that has most often accompanied my name in the press is “flamboyant”,’ Victor has said, though it can hardly be a complaint.

Another adjective often applied is ‘legendary’--for his glittering celebrity client list, which includes U2, Nigella Lawson, Sophie Dahl, Anne Robinson, Frederick Forsyth, Ruth Rogers, Jack Higgins and Joe Eszterhas; for the six-figure advances he regularly commands; for his ubiquitous presence not just at literary parties, but fashion, film and society soirées. Anywhere the beautiful, famous and talented are gathered, Victor is certain to be in their midst, his gentle New Yorker charm and affability concealing the fabled steely core. He is also frequently described as ‘leonine’, and not just for his elegantly swept-back, collar-length hair and neat beard.

‘How do I get my manuscript to you if I don’t go to that kind of party?’ Victor was once asked by an audience member when he spoke at the Hay literary festival. ‘You don’t,’ he replied. ...

[Victor’s] agency boasts around 50 authors, though some years ago, he closed the door to unsolicited manuscripts, having only ever sold one book from the slush pile. His authors come through personal recommendation and although many do transfer from other agencies, Victor is unusually scrupulous about not poaching clients.

‘Ed is above board in all his dealings,’ says Jonathan Lloyd, managing director of Curtis Brown. ‘He would never make the first call. And he expects other people to be straight with him. It would be a very brave or foolish publisher that would cross Ed; he can be ruthless if you promise him something and then let him down. He’s not vindictive, but he does have favourites.’

But Victor is, first and foremost, a tough businessman. Says fellow agent David Godwin:

‘He brought this whole showbiz feel to the selling of books that had previously been very fusty and dull. I think it’s a lot to do with the fact that he’s so funny and a great talker, he’s very good at dramatising. He was a powerful and brilliant editor and he’s such a party-goer now, so he has the connections, but he also has a great knack for timing and an instinct for what people want. A few years ago, Nigella [Lawson] didn’t have anything like the profile she has now and I think Ed has played an important role in her success.’

In the 1970s, when Victor made his career switch, a number of eminent British publishers would not so much as touch a book that came through an agent. One described the role to Victor as ‘women’s work’ and most considered leaving an
editorial job to become an agent as an inexplicable and retrograde step.

Victor changed all that, to the extent that the transition has almost become a standard career path. It was also Victor who turned it to gold: his first sale as an agent was for the book and film rights to a now-forgotten novel by Stephen Shephard called The Four Hundred, for $1.5m. Small change now; in 2005, he sold Eric Clapton’s memoirs for a reported $4m, the day after another newly signed client, John Banville, won that year’s Booker Prize.

On top of all this, Victor is an author himself, having written a diet book for victims of the literary lunching lifestyle (see here).

The Observer’s full profile of Ed Victor can be found here.