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agent or not yet?
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Stephanie
(new)
Nov 06, 2013 03:48PM
When should someone start looking for an agent? And how much to they generally cost? The person I was working with had me put out my first book. And as I predicted, it tanked. It was stuff I wrote in high school. So now I don't work with anyone. It was just someone I went to school with. But now I am working kn another story that I hopes turns into a series. But I was wondering if I should look into an agent?
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Firstly agents don't cost anything. They earn their wage by taking a percentage of any deal that flows to the author.Secondly, it depends what path you want to take with your writing career. You need to query agents if you dream of a large publishing deal with your book on the shelf of a local store. The Big 5 don't take unsolicited submissions, they have to go through agents.
Or you can keep all the control and self publish. Or you might want to query smaller presses, who bear all the costs and organise everything but who will take a percentage of your royalties (although a much smaller % than the large publishers will devour).
There are pros/cons to each path, it really depends what your end goal is, and that can also change with each project. Do your research and see which route feels like the best fit for you :)
Thanks. Whats the best keywords to search for when researching?
If you insist on looking, one of the better places to start would be Writer's Market.
Www.querytracket.netQuery Tracker is a fantastic site, you can search by genre and it contains all relevant links to agents (agency site, blogs, twitter) plus you can save lists and keep track on when you query & responses. Agent details are constantly updated so you know who is open or closed to queries and it will show you slow responders & non responders.
Do not query an agent until the book is finished and spit polished to an awesome shine.Also as others have said, research agents. Not all agents represent the same genres, most specialize with what genre's they accept.
Lastly, realize that rejections are not personal, though they may feel like it. There are all kinds of reasons an agent may reject a manuscript. Grow some thick skin and stay on course. New writers are found every year by agents and publishers, despite what others claim...
