Agents 101

By Mary Freeman Rosenblum

So you’re a writer now, and you’ve sold an article or two, or a couple of short stories. You’re nearly finished with that novel you’ve been working on. Suddenly you realize…maybe it’s time to get an agent! But…how. Where do you start? How do you know if he or she is a good agent? And how much do they charge? Panic!

Let’s begin with the basic question: Do you need an agent? And why? Well, you don’t need an agent if you are not marketing a book length work, or if you are marketing a book length work to a publisher who will accept unagented material. An agent will rarely if ever increase your chance of selling your short fiction or magazine articles. Contracts for short work are fairly simple and easy to understand. And while many publishers refuse to consider unagented book length material, some still will. For those publishers, you really don’t need an agent until you have an acceptance from an editor. That acceptance will make it easier for you to find a good agent to handle your work.

Your agent does many things. He or she may offer editorial guidance, but never for a fee. They may establish contacts for you with publishers and will represent your work there. They may advise you about current trends, practices, and contractual terms. (For example, electronic rights are new. Ten years ago, nobody cared about them. Everyone does, now!) They will market your literary material and rights, negotiate and review licensing agreements, and review your royalty statements. They will monitor the licensees’ marketing of your work, and issue you an earnings statement and a 1099 tax form at the end of the year.

What Does the Relationship Consist Of?

You and your new agent should come to an understanding about which of your works, and which rights, he or she will represent. For example, my agent represents all my book length works, mystery, SF, or mainstream, but has nothing to do with my short fiction and earns no money from it. She handles my foreign rights and movie rights, if someone solicits a movie option. You may, for example, choose to have your agent handle only your mysteries, since another agent already handles your children’s books.

You need to agree on the compensation that the agent is to receive for his or her services. This has been around 20% of the gross earnings for quite a few years now, but it may be creeping up. This amount is calculated from the money you earn for each book, not from the cover price.

You need to agree on what expenses you will pay for, and how that payment will be made. Some agents charge for copying or overseas phone calls to publishers when negotiating foreign contracts. Mine does not, but many do.

‘Fake’ agents will charge for many things; editing, delivering the manuscript, handling, and other unspecified services. They may charge a ‘reading fee’. Members of the AAR are not permitted to make these charges. Print out a copy of the code of ethics on the website, and a copy of the list of topics you should discuss with your prospective agent. Have them in hand while discussing an agreement, either over the phone or by letter. If you have doubts, voice them. Why are you charging this? How will you do that? A legitimate agent does not want you to be surprised. They should be open and forthright with you.

There are many ways to contact agents. Attend book signings by authors who have published a book similar to yours, a mystery, perhaps, or a how-to book. Ask them about their agent. Are they happy? If you and the author hit it off, he or she may tell you to use his or her name when you contact the agent, or may even refer you to that agent directly. This is well worth the price of a lunch, a cup of coffee, or a beer! Hey, we all love a free lunch and a little admiration. J Be charming, be friendly, be polite.

Attend writing conferences or conventions. Do you have a SF book waiting in the wings? Attend a local SF convention. Go to the panels on writing and publishing. Editors attend. Writers attend. Ask these people politely for references. Again, an invitation for a snack and a quiet chat may get you way more than you expect. As a whole, writers are a friendly bunch, and most of us are more than willing to give the newcomers a hand. We were there, not that long ago! And if you run into a grouch, well, there’s an exception to prove every rule. Shrug it off, and don’t buy any more of that writer’s books!

You can visit your local library and check out The Literary Market Place, a directory of the publishing industry, available, usually, in the reference section. It should contain contact information for quite a few agents. Do check their names on the AAR website.

Agents want a query letter from you, not a manuscript. In effect, you will pitch your book to them. This is no time for bowing and scraping, or aw-shucks modesty. If you say you don’t know anything, but you think maybe your book is okay…the agent is NOT going to send an overnight letter to you begging to see it! He’ll believe you that it’s okay, but nothing special, and send you a brisk no thanks.

You want to pitch your book: ‘Concrete Jungle’ is a fast paced, fascinating mystery, set in a zoo. When Jake, the Primate keeper, is found mauled to death in the lioness’s pen, Natasha, the Assistant Cat Keeper must find out who lured her boyfriend into the lion pen before Bella, the lioness is destroyed. But the police think maybe she’s the murder, and now someone is out to stop her, and suddenly Natasha finds herself the hunted rather than the hunter in the midnight alleys and back rooms of the deserted zoo…

Basically, you’re out to hook that agent’s interest, just as you’d hook our interest or the interest of an editor. Be confident. Think of a book jacket blurb. Don’t spend ten pages telling the agent every detail of the convoluted plot. If he decides it sounds good, he’ll ask to see it. Instead, give him a quick blurb of a couple of paragraphs, just enough to interest him and get him thinking that yes, this just might be something that Putnam might like.

And yes, it’s fine to query several agents at once, as long as you’re honest about what you are doing. But do not send in your manuscript unless the agent specifically directs you to do so. Unsolicited manuscripts are generally returned unread and that agent may not be willing to deal with you any further. Believe me, agents get plenty of queries to keep them busy!

Do your homework. Spend an hour on the AAR’s website and learn as much as you can about what you can expect and what you should negotiate. You want to know what questions you should ask. Bookmark the helpful pages or print them out. Always check an agents name against the membership list and if they aren’t a member, say ‘no thanks’, no matter how sweet their offer!

And if you’re unsure, drop me a note at the web editor page, and I’ll help you out. But do your AAR homework first!