Do You Really Need a Literary Agent?

Many writers ask whether they need a literary agent. It truly depends on your unique circumstances – and the quality of the agent. And it is much more important for an author in the US and UK to have representation than it is in Canada or Australia. This is partly a reflection of the market size and also partly a reflection of culture.
.

Don't Send the Manuscript

Sending your (partial) manuscript into the online slush pile is a waste of time. Most writers with a finished manuscript don’t mind too much whether they get an agent before a publisher, or skip straight to the publisher. They just want to see their book out in the bookstores of the world. So the tips that follow apply equally to finding an agent as they do to finding a publisher.

.
Research, Research, and Research Even More

There’s a lot of information hiding in plain sight if you know where to look. Start with your own library: what have you read that has something in common with your manuscript – such as genre, subject, historical time period?
.
The Imprint page. This is the page at the very beginning of the book that details the publishing house that has produced it. It’s useful to note down the different imprints that belong to the same publishing house. For example, Penguin Random House is the huge behemoth publishing house, but within its universe, you will find imprints such as Viking and Michael Joseph. Familiarise yourself with which books are published under which imprint because these are conscious commercial decisions publishers make. Agents and publishers need to feel that your manuscript would be a great fit with a particular imprint.
.

The publisher’s website will contain numerous pages devoted to each of its imprints. Study these to determine which imprint/s your work aligns with. You will be amazed at the education this gives you (or at least the number of fresh questions about the publishing process you’ll have), and at how impressive you will be to a prospective agent or publisher.
.

Literary agent website submissions guidelines. I feel this needs to be listed separately because unpublished authors regularly feel free to ignore submission guidelines posted on literary agents’ websites. Those guidelines are there for a reason...
.

Find a lot more tips by Virginia Lloyd, a former literary agent:

https://www.aerogrammestudio.com/2018/09/13/how-to-research-literary-agents-and-book-publishers/

.

<><><><><>

.

All About Literary Agents

Why do authors use the service of a publishing agent?  Except for those publishing houses which deal exclusively with agents, authors don't really need an agent to submit their work for publication consideration.  In Canada, just to name one country, very few book deals are done by agents, only under five percent.  An author can do everything an agent does, though an agent might have better knowledge of the market and what the publishing houses are actually buying.

.
 

  

For those writers who might think they need an agent, have a look at the do's and don'ts of both sides:

• Reputable agents will not charge you a fee up front to represent your book. They earn their living by selling your book to a publisher and gaining a commission. That commission is a percentage of the proceeds your book earns. For one thing, this gives the agent an incentive to actually market your book around to various publishers likely to buy it for publication. This is another reason why many agents pick submissions carefully. They know what publishers are looking for and they will not accept anything which isn't ready for submission or close enough that a few days of editing will make the difference.

• Most agents these days charge 15% commission on domestic sales (USA & Canada). Never under any circumstances should you pay expenses or any fees up front: the agent only receives money by deducting his or her 15% commission from your eventual earnings.  An agent telling new writers that she/he was charging 15% commission plus expenses — that's a rip-off; don't agree to it. The Association of Authors Representatives (professional organization of literary agents) also forbids the charging of "reading fees." If an agent asks you to pay a fee for his or her "evaluation" of your manuscript, refuse! 

• Agents have differing commission rates though you will not have the option of shopping around as much as you might like. Most important, the agent has to be willing to represent your work.  Once an agent offers representation, the author better takes the offer. After having established a great reputation as a novelist, one can shop around for a better deal - if it is to be found.

• If a manuscript is truly marketable in the agent's opinion but needs editing, most agents will tell so but not recommend a particular editing service.  A good agent might name some without recommending any editing service in particular.  Some agents have even been known to go above and beyond the call of duty in assisting with the editing themselves when they feel they have a sure winner to represent.

• But authors should have ensured that a manuscript was edited prior to submitting it to any agent or publisher. Remember that the editors of a publishing house are not there to edit out any mistakes, they are the decision-making managers.

• The agent is also the money manager besides being the one responsible for getting the best deal for the author with any publishing house. When the manuscript sells to a publisher, the agent is the one who receives the money. The agent subtracts the appropriate commission and pays the remainder to the author.

• An inquiry letter is not a submission. Use an inquiry letter when contacting publishers who deal by invitation only.  If your inquiry letter gains the publisher's interest, the publisher will then request to see the manuscript.
  .
  

Agents are often reluctant to take on any new writers, especially first-time authors, no matter how well the writer writes.  However, if you feel you must have an agent, then you must sell both your manuscript and yourself / your platform to the agent.  A good query letter is the key to pitch your book.

• Do not send manuscripts to agents unless the agent's guidelines expressly state that those are acceptable within initial correspondence.
• Email messages should be kept to a length of one or two pages unless explicitly invited to send a manuscript or sample chapters.

• Go to the agent’s sites and follow their submission guidelines to the letter.
  .

Find Addresses of Agents in these Books:

• 2015 Writer’s Market  the best Resource for Authors
• Novel & Short Story Writer’s Market
• Children’s Writer’s & Illustrator’s Market
• Poet’s Market, Writer’s Market
• Publish Your Non-fiction Book
• Guide to Literary Agents
• Writer’s Digest
• Editors, Literary Agents
• The Canadian Writer’s Market
• The Canadian Writer’s Guide for Canadian agents
• Literary Marketplace
  .

Since the USA is the largest market with the most potential for sales you should seriously consider getting an agent there, before you commit to anything in Canada or the UK.  However Canadian Publishers don't require always agents, while American Publishers are almost always insisting on it.  Important for success are not only perfect writing skills and an enticing story, but also to have more than just one book, and to show a great Social Media author platform with thousands of potential readers.  “The smartest thing you can do today for your career (other than write)”. This is the motto of an amazing blog that I discovered:  http://queryshark.blogspot.ca

.

<><><><><>

.

Hyper Smash

Pingate