Brave new world of publishing

Yesterday morning I decided to step away from the desk and join the Geneva Writers Group to listen to three literary agents – Ayesha Pande, Oliver Munson and Nicola Barr – talk about the current state of the publishing industry. I was really curious to see what the prospects are for non-published writers. There were a couple of articles recently trying to convince people that writing cannot be considered a “real” occupation as the chances to strike gold are bleak, to put it mildly. Although the three agents weren’t as straightforward – or cruel – to put it that way, they didn’t sugar-coat the fact that, especially since the economic crisis (2009, that magical year), publishers are taking fewer risks.