Hi friends! Once or twice a week, someone asks me how to find a literary agent. This usually comes up because at my day job in publishing, we’re only taking agented submissions, though I also get this question from writers of all kinds of genres. So I figured it was time I did a post about finding a literary agent.

You might be wondering, “Do I need a literary agent to get published?” The answer is no. Some publishers accept unagented submissions—either all of the time, or during designated open submission periods. But many publishers only take submissions through agents, including most of the bigger publishers.

I’m going to focus on finding a literary agent for fiction, since those are the kinds of agents I work with as an editor, but some of this may pertain to other types of book agents, too![spacer height=”20px”]

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1. Consider getting a literary agent (or trying to) before submitting to publishers who don’t require them.

If an agent takes an interest in you, you don’t want to have to explain to them that you already submitted and struck out at four or five publishing houses…houses that might’ve been more interested if you’d had representation, by the way.

If you don’t have any luck at finding a literary agent, you can always submit later to publishers that take unagented submissions.

However, everyone’s situation and goals are different. You might decide you’re not going to go the agent route at all, and choose to publish with publishers who don’t require them, self-publish, or a mixture of both. And to be honest, one fantastic way to get a literary agent to represent you is to have a publishing offer in hand.[spacer height=”20px”]

2. Don’t submit to agents who don’t represent your genre.

Yes, publishing is a numbers game…but only to a point. Submitting your memoir to a hundred agents who don’t represent memoirs, for instance, is probably going to get you a pile of rejections and non-responses.

Agents aren’t that likely to think, “Well, even though I don’t represent this genre, this sounds fantastic!” Why? Because they’ve cultivated relationships with editors in certain genres, and they may have few or no existing relationships with editors on your genre. Essentially, they’ll be cold-calling, which is less likely to end in a book deal.

Besides, they may simply have no passion for your genre. In this case, you don’t want them to be the one to represent it! The right agent for you is going to be really into your kind of writing.

When you submit to agents who aren’t interested in your genre, you’re wasting their time—but not very much of it, since it doesn’t take much time to send a form rejection or just delete an email. More important, you’re wasting your own time, and (say it with me): writers do not have time to waste.

But how do you know which book publishing agents represent books in your genre? Easy…[spacer height=”20px”]

3. Use Manuscript Wishlist!

This website is the best place for making a list of book agents who might be interested in your work. It’s free to use! You can search the literary agents by genre and find out a little more about what they’re looking for.

I recommend making a list of agents you’d like to work with and sending out two or three queries at a time. Why not all at once? Because in a rejection, you might get feedback that’ll make you tweak your query or synopsis.[spacer height=”20px”]

4. Follow the #MSWL hashtag on Twitter.

Agents use this hashtag for special requests for submissions. (Editors do, too.) Sometimes, you can get the inside scoop! Just remember that when an agent says, for instance, “I’d love a mystery set at a microbrewery,” that doesn’t necessarily mean they aren’t interested in mysteries set in other places. Don’t let special requests discourage you.[spacer height=”20px”]

5. Follow agents you’d love to be represented by on Twitter.

Now look, don’t be creepy. Don’t reply to every single one of their tweets if you’re not friends. Don’t slide into their DMs with a pitch.

And please, don’t ask them on Twitter if they’ve read your submission yet. That’s basically publicly shaming them for being busy, and their first impulse may be to reject you quickly so you’ll leave them alone.

But if you follow an agent on Twitter, you may get the scoop on particular things they’re looking for. And hey, a friendly reply (or a retweet of a new release by one of their authors) now and again doesn’t hurt, either.

Don’t fall in love with one particular “dream” agent, though. The truth is, even if you do your research, your knowledge is going to be limited. Your perfect agent might be someone who’s barely on your radar.[spacer height=”20px”]

6. Take advantage of special pitching opportunities.

These include #pitmad events on Twitter, where you pitch your project in a tweet, and writing conferences (including online ones.)

Here’s my advice on how to do #pitmad…and here’s my advice for how to pitch your novel to a literary agent in person![spacer height=”20px”]

7. Try name-dropping.

If you have a friend who likes their agent and writes in the same genre as you, it doesn’t hurt to say in a query letter, “I know my friend (name here) really loves working with you, so I’m querying you first.” At the very least, that tells the agent that you know who they are, and that you’re at least connected to the writing community.

Finally, I need to say this…[spacer height=”20px”]

8. Beware of book agents who are really scammers.

If an agent asks for money to read your manuscript or represent you, they’re a scammer taking advantage of your enthusiasm in finding a literary agent. Legitimate agents only get paid if they sell your book. Typically, they take 15% of your earnings (advances and royalties). Since a knowledgeable agent may be able to get you a deal in the first place, will often argue for a higher advance or better terms, and will negotiation more favorable details in the contract, they are usually well worth it.

Getting a literary agent is a slow and brutal process for almost everyone…so if it’s slow and brutal for you, at least know you’re not alone! The best way to keep your spirits up is to work on a new project while you’re submitting the finished one.

 

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Do you have other questions about finding a literary agent? Or can you share some personal advice of your own about how to get a literary agent to represent you? Let us know in the comments! We all learn from each other here.

And if you’re interested in a step-by-step guide to planning, writing, and editing a novel (so it doesn’t turn into a hairball that’s impossible to finish), be sure to check out Blank Page to Final Draft![spacer height=”20px”]

[spacer height=”20px”]Thanks so much for reading, and happy writing!

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