In Chapter 12 of 17, Scott Gold graduates Washington University in St. Louis and lands his first job as a literary agent. Supporting non-fiction writers and journalists, Gold learns to reshape his ambitions, striving away from mediocracy rather than toward greatness. In his literary agent role, Gold gets to help, shape, and hone writers' work from first draft to final copy. Through this, he learns about the editing process, picking up tools he later applies as a writer in telling stories and telling them well.