[[alternative]]A study in Literary Agents

[[abstract]]在英美出版世界裡，作家經紀人是生產機制中不可或缺的角色，如今美國九成的一般圖書，英國每年五萬本新書都透過作家經紀人仲介，經紀人已成為英美作家進入出版體系的第一道關卡，出版生產機制的第一道守門。 台灣近幾年也出現了類似英美作家經紀公司的機構，他們將為台灣出版業投下什麼變數？而台灣出版環境是否有施行作家經紀制度的必要？本研究企圖採用社會學的觀點與方法，探討英美作家經紀人的起源與發展，並透過問卷調查與深入訪談，了解台灣出版業者及作者對經紀制度的認知與需求，進一步探討作家經紀制度在台灣的必要性及可行性。 在英美作家經紀人的起源方面，經文獻探討後發現，作家經紀人乃因應圖書生產機制的需求而生。十九世紀英美圖書市場規模擴充，出版業發生專業分化，生產流程及著作權法日趨複雜，使出版成為超越作家理解的一項專業，加上作家與出版商長期權利的不平等，於是出現了為作者與出版公司提供仲介服務的作家經紀人。 英美作家經紀人扮演多元的角色與功能，對作家而言，經紀人是推銷員、權利擁護者、編輯、會計師、私人祕書、事業經理人、朋友及心理醫師；對出版商而言，經紀人是免費審稿人、稿源提供者及書探；對整個出版生產機制而言，經紀人扮演守門人、中間人、緩衝器及代罪羔羊，對整個機制發揮維繫與穩定作用。然而，作家經紀人功能的過度膨脹，也對英美出版業帶來衝擊，其造成圖書生產的異化，並助長了文學的商品化。 在台灣施行作家經紀制度的可行性方面，本研究以問卷調查及深入訪談的方式進行，研究發現：台灣出版環境對作家經紀人的需求並不高，短期內沒有實施作家經紀制度之絕對必要，而台灣出版市場小，專業作家少，也不利於作家經紀公司經營。 雖然當前台灣並沒有施行作家經紀制度的充分必要性及實質可行性，但國內作家經紀人仍宜積極培養專業知能放眼未來，因一旦華文市場形成，屆時必然需要熟悉華文出版市場操作、了解中文讀者品味的經紀人，居間擔任作者與出版公司的溝通橋樑。[[abstract]]In the British and American publishing world, literary agents have come to be indispensable. Nowadays, 90 percent of the trade books and 50,000 new titles per year have passed through the hands of agents. The literary agent has become the first step for author to enter the publishing system and the first gatekeeper of publishing production mechanism. In Taiwan, there appeared some similar organizations recently. Will they alter the working relationships between authors and publishers? Is there any necessity for publishing industries to practise the institution of literary agency? This study, based on the approach and method of sociology, try to probe into the advent and development of British and American literary agents. Moreover, through questionnaire and deep interview, this study tempt to realize Taiwanese authors’ and publishers’ recognition and need for literary agents, and further analyzes the necessity and possibility to carry out the institution of literary agency. Through analyzing the relative literature, we may say that the rise of literary agents grew out of the need of book production mechanism. As publishing has become a large-scale enterprise in 19th century, the production process and the new copyright laws were too complicated for authors to handle unaided. Meanwhile, the adversarial relationship between publishers and authors grew acrimonious. As a result, the literary agent appeared on the scene, who acts on behalf of the author to handle the sales of literary properties. Literary agents perform various roles and functions, to authors, literary agents are salesmen, advocates, editors, accountants, personal sectaries, friends and psychologists; to publishers, literary agents are unpaid readers, manuscripts providers and book scouts; to the whole book-production mechanism, literary agents play the roles of gatekeepers, middlemen, buffers and scapegoats to maintain the stability or equilibrium of the publishing system. However, the increasing functions and power of literary agents had had a great impact on the British and American publishing world, which leads to the alienation and commoditification of book production. As to the necessity for Taiwanese publishing industries to practise the institution of literary agency, this study find out: the need for literary agents of Taiwanese publishing environment is low still, in the short term it is not really necessary to put it into practice. Moreover, the limited market and small numbers of professional writers are unfavorable for the running of literary agency. While it is not really necessary and practicable to carry out the institution of literary agency, Taiwanese present literary agents and agencies still have to prepare themselves and look forward to the future. As soon as the Chinese single market has been formed, Taiwanese literary agents, who are familiar with the operation and market of Chinese publishing world, will be needed and play an important role