Coatbridge John described his agent, Knox Burger, as “the Maxwell Perkins of the era.” Here’s a letter from Burger, from April 23, 1974, discussing initial reactions to The Mothman Prophecies, and the possibility of spinning off the material on phone troubles into another book.
Dear John,
Sopkin called to say he’s not finished with the book yet, feels it may be too long and discursive, but he likes it very much. I told him to finish it up and send money.
Cheers, Knox
P.S. I liked it too, and suspect the phone stuff near the end may be a whole ‘nother book. I dunno. I see what you mean about needing more time to document all the odd happenings. I’d have liked some more expertise on how individuals can cut in on phones, more first-hand accounts of oddball phone experiences — but we can’t have everything.
It’s a good job.
Best, Knox