The 5 C’s to Landing a Literary Agent

by Tracey Hughes Royal

Every writer’s formula to landing an agent is different. It took seven months to discover mine was comprised of five c’s: craft, community, clarity, connections, and coincidence.

Craft

Two years ago, I was wrestling with the last three chapters of a memoir, Rum Cake Fairy Rising. It had suspense, four job layoffs, life in New York City, and an Oprah moment. What’s not to love?

I signed up for a three-day writing class to improve my craft and learned the imp...