How to Get a Literary Agent: 5 Don'ts
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Not sure how to get a literary agent? In this post, I’m breaking down the top mistakes I see.
When I started looking for a literary agent after I finished writing a book in my early 20s, I grabbed a copy of that year's Guide to Literary Agents and sent over 100 letters by mail.
I never personalized the letters except for changing the "Dear" field.
I bet you know what kind of response I heard.
Crickets.
Well, mostly–I did have a few literary agents respond in kind with, "no, thank you."
I don't judge this young, book hungry version of myself– I was doing what I thought I was supposed to do, but the reality was, I did so many things wrong.
It would take me several years to learn how to approach literary agents the right way.
It wasn't until I landed a literary agent that I loved (and whom I am still with)—one who has negotiated life-changing book deals all over the world for me—that I finally understood what I had been doing wrong.
So what’s the best way to find a literary agent?
Since I have been in your shoes before, I want to save you hours of work—and months of grief—by sharing what I wish I had known back then as the bright-eyed, book hungry writer trying to get a literary agent.
Below, I am listing my top 5 Don'ts (and corresponding Do's) of how to get a literary agent.
But first, a little reminder:
You can do this.
It may take some time, but It doesn't have to take over your time, or take a toll on your emotional health and confidence.
Let’s begin.
Don’t #1: Don’t blindly submit
There are all kinds of literary agents.
Some agents just represent cookbooks.
Some agents only represent children's books.
When querying literary agents—which just means cold emailing them (it's not done this way in Hollywood, but fortunately, publishing is pretty dang democratic, comparatively)—you are wasting your time unless you are querying agents who:
Represent books like the one you've written/are proposing
Are signing new clients, currently
Accept email queries from authors
You can find these agents by researching—start with authors you love, who write like you do, and figure out who their agents are.
Then research the agents.
Are they accepting new clients?
If so, these are your people!
Don’t #2: Don’t just attach things
There are all kinds of literary agents, but something they all have in common is that they all have what are called Submission Guidelines.
Submission Guidelines appear on agent websites and instruct you on precisely what you need to do to query them.
Submission Guidelines vary widely:
Some agents will want you to send the first 3 chapters.
Some agents initially only want an email.
Some refuse to open an email with attachments.
Do your research and follow these guidelines to a T.
Don’t #3: Don’t just use the same letter for everyone
Here's the thing we sometimes forget: Literary agents are people.
People like you, people like me.
They have passions, hopes, desires, pet peeves, and personally react to emails they receive.
They, like you and me, appreciate thoughtful, intentional correspondence, and they, like you and me, don't want to be spammed, or sent a mass email that reads like it was just sent to 200 people (because maybe it was!).
Of course you will re-use portions of your query letter—your book description and personal background paragraphs should be so killer that you'd be dumb not to use them every time—but the opening should be tailored to the recipient.
Why are you emailing them, and not someone else?
Tell them.
And at the end, thank them.
How do you like to be treated when potential clients approach you?
Treat them that way.
Don’t #4: Don’t be long-winded
Literary agents receive hundreds of queries every day, so a good rule of thumb is to assume that you will have their attention for about two seconds before they make the call to keep reading or move on.
A really easy way to lose the interest of the agent is to write an email that, when they open it, requires them to scroll.
Seriously.
No query email should be longer than three paragraphs, tops.
Okay, maybe you can write a short one-sentence closing at the end, but the main point here is to be super concise.
You want the literary agent to read your entire query, so make it worth their while.
You want to be intriguing.
You want to start a conversation.
A query letter is not meant to sell your project—yet.
The query letter is meant to open a conversation about your project.
It's okay to leave some questions unanswered, and better that, than to write a treatise.
And hey, it saves you time!
Include essential information only, and express gratitude.
Don’t #5: Don’t pay an agent upfront
Another thing I did wrong back in my early 20s?
I paid a literary agent to review my manuscript.
It wasn’t a small amount.
I paid him $2,000.
Yeah.
Looking back, I get...*irritated* at how this person took advantage of me as a hungry, young writer.
But that’s another story.
Literary agents in the United States make commission—the standard is 15%—on the income from your book.
In other words, for every $100 you make due to their negotiation skills, they receive $15 and you walk away with $85.
If someone suggests an arrangement in which you pay them upfront, be skeptical.
Other things you don't need to pay for to get an agent:
Going to conferences to pitch them—I've never known anyone to get an agent this way. Not a single person.
Taking workshops that promise to introduce you to them—same as above.
Any kind of event for which you pay to meet them.
Everyone I know with an agent found their agent the old-fashioned way: over the Internet.
So how do you find a literary agent, in one sentence?
Be persistent.
Getting a literary agent was, for me, the most difficult part of my writing career.
It came with lots of lessons learned, but once I found my agent, my career took off.
It takes time, but stick with it—persistence pays off!
I hope you found these tips on how to get a literary agent and mistakes to avoid helpful!