Even if the crossover smash was still the exception, such books encouraged the idea that any promising young nobody might be transformed into a very big somebody with the right promotion, and ironically, a big-enough advance could help serve as that promotion. The problem was, with everyone swinging for the fences, publishers could no longer afford to have much patience for young writers who show only warning-track power. Its the blockbuster mentality applied to literature, says New York literary agent Jody Hotchkiss. The middle is falling out, but the financial upside is far, far greater. Its exactly whats happening in Hollywood right now.