Wolds Words 2014 How to Find and Catch a Literary Agent

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Wolds Words 2014: How to find and catch a literary agent Eamonn Griffin / www.eamonngriffin.co.uk / @eamonngriffin

description

Advice for UK-based writers on how to locate and approach literary agents with a view to them representing you and your work, as well as an overview of the roles and responsibilities of an agent, and hits and tips on what not to do.

Transcript of Wolds Words 2014 How to Find and Catch a Literary Agent

Page 1: Wolds Words 2014 How to Find and Catch a Literary Agent

Wolds Words 2014:

How to find

and catch

a literary agent

Eamonn Griffin / www.eamonngriffin.co.uk / @eamonngriffin

Page 2: Wolds Words 2014 How to Find and Catch a Literary Agent

Session aims

1. Do I need an agent?

2. What does an agent do?

3. Am I ready?

4. Triage

5. How many?

6. How do I make the approach?

7. What don’t I do?

8. How long does it take?

9. It’s OK to say “no”

10.There are no guarantees…

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Stage One: do I need a literary agent?

Not necessarily. Not all published writers have agents.

If you’re self-publishing, then you definitely don’t need an agent.

However your expertise is in writing, not in the business angle. You

may not have (or be interested) in the expertise or the contacts to

deal with the publishing industry.

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But you’ll get much further with an agent than without, and the fact

of having an agent gives you an advantage over others who don’t.

For example, many publishers do not accept unagented

submissions. Some do, but many don’t.

It’s validation from a publishing professional that your work has

merit.

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Stage Two: so what does an agent do?

A literary agent is your intermediary in the publishing business.

They represent you and your interests.

They will approach editors at publishing houses on your project’s

behalf.

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Their job is to sell you and your book/s.

This may involve offering editorial notes, guidance and support

before submission to editors. This is an increasingly important

element of the agent’s role.

For this, the agent charges a commission.

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The money side of things

Rates vary, though a typical offer to a new author might be

representation in return for 15% of your income regarding UK sales

and 20% of overseas sales and of sales to other media (film/TV

adaptations, for example).

It’s thus in the agent’s interest to secure the best contract they can

for you, as they earn nothing if you earn nothing.

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Mo’ money

An agent negotiates a) an advance and b) a royalty rate for your

book/s.

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An advance is money forwarded by the publisher to you against

projected sales. It’s a gamble on their part. Most advances are

paid in parts (“tranches”):

1. on signing

2. on delivery of a completed manuscript

3. on hardback publication

4. on paperback publication

Many books do not “earn out” their advance and so the publisher

loses money. If this happens, it’s their loss, not yours. For many

writers, the advance = their payment for the book.

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If/once the advance is “earned out” then you’ll be paid royalties

on sales: 8-10% of the book’s sale price (note: not necessarily the

cover price) comes back to the author. This rate usually rises with

sales.

Ebook royalty rates may vary.

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Royalties are paid twice-yearly in arrears. They are paid to your

agent, who subtracts their commission, and passes the balance to

you.

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The more successful / prestigious / award-winning you are, the

stronger your agent’s bargaining position is on your behalf, and the

better your terms will become.

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Stage Three: Am I ready?

Probably not.

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Oh, don't be like that.

I'm serious. You're probably not ready.

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Meanie.

Is the book finished?

How many drafts have you been through?

Is the book as good as it can be?

Who says so? Who’s read the book? Is their verdict trustworthy and

honest?

Have you written a synopsis of the book? No more than 500 words.

Tell the whole story. This includes the ending.

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Think like a bookseller: where would the book go in a shop?

Think like Amazon: how would you list it?

What other books / authors could it be compared to, or suggested

as a follow-on recommendation?

If you've made sure that your book is ready, then let's go.

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Stage Four: Triage

You need to make a shortlist of agents to approach.

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Shortlist: method 1

Make notes while reading about agents who represent authors you

respect/seek to emulate. Often they’re acknowledged in authorial

notes in books, or will be mentioned on author websites.

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If your genre has a membership organisation (Historical Novel

Society, Romantic Novelists’ Association, Society of Children’s Book

Writers and Illustrators as examples), are there agents who are

members or who attend meetings and other functions?

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Which agents are attending conferences, book festivals and other

events associated with the kind of writing you’re interested in?

Many such events have “pitch sessions”, where writers can book

short appointments to talk about their project with an agent.

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Shortlist: method 2

Look at the web page for the Association of Authors’ Agents:

www.agentsassoc.co.uk

Their Members’ Directory is here:

www.agentsassoc.co.uk/members-directory

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Shortlist: method 3 – part 1

Get hold of a copy of the Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook. It’s an

annual publication that lists (among other useful stuff) all the literary

agents in the UK. New editions come out in the summer for the

following year.

Website: www.writersandartists.co.uk

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Shortlist: method 3 – part 2

Go through all of the agency listings with a pen.

Mark agencies that are interested in the genre of writing that you’re

working on.

Strike out agencies that are not. Many agencies, for example, will

not deal with SFF or children’s books.

Compile a list of possible agencies to approach. Then…

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Shortlist: method 3 – part 3

Visit the website for each agency in turn. Do this because: a) the

Yearbook is an annual publication and details change over time

and b) because the website is where the up-to-date information on

submissions will be.

If the agency looks promising, select one agent and one agent only

from that agency to approach.

Carry on until you’ve exhausted your triaged shortlist.

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Shortlist: method 3 – part 4

Different agents within an agency will have different outlooks.

Don’t approach an agent who says that their list is closed. This

means they’re not accepting new clients. They won’t make an

exception for you.

Pick the agent who seems the best fit at the agency to you.

Often, younger agents / those new to the agency are looking to

build their list and will be open to new client approaches. If they’re

looking for new clients, the website will say so.

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Stage Five: How many do I approach at

once?

As many as you like.

I’d suggest ten a week, every week, until your shortlist is exhausted.

Some agency websites will say that they’re not interested in

multiple or simultaneous submissions. This means they want to be

the only agency considering your work at that time. Feel free to

ignore this, as you’re under no obligation until you’ve signed.

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Keep a spreadsheet…

Agency

name

Agent

approached

Date of

approach

Post/email Response

due

Chased? Response

received

Anderson

Agencies

Alice

Anderson

13 May 14 Post 3 months 14 Aug 14

Smith

Agency

Bob Smith 13 May 14 Email 8 weeks Rejection by

email 20

May

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Stage Six: How do I approach an agent?

The process is a little different for fiction and for non-fiction writers.

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Fiction submissions

Three component parts to the submission:

1. the covering letter

2. the synopsis

3. the manuscript

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Fiction submissions : covering letter

The covering letter should fit onto a single sheet of A4.

Professional, contemporary and businesslike. Use a standard sans

serif font (Ariel, 12pt). Left hand justified only. Use line spaces instead

of indents for new paragraphs.

Use the agent's name. Check the spelling.

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Four paragraphs: one introductory, one about the book, one about

the book's potential readership, one about you. Think 90% book,

10% you.

You may need to personalize your cover letter to the agent

concerned. No-one likes circulars, so try to make your letter sound

fresh, genuine and personal.

Sign off: Yours sincerely

Work on this. You're a writer, remember….

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Fiction submissions: the synopsis

The synopsis tells the story of the novel you're submitting. Introduce

the main characters, the main themes, the chief plots and sub

plots. Give away the ending. Do all this in 500 words.

No, it's not an easy thing to do.

Next time you write a novel, write a synopsis as early into the project

as you can, and keep updating it.

Use the same font and layout as the writing sample/manuscript.

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Fiction submissions:

writing sample/manuscript

Typically, agents will ask for the first three chapters / 50 pages of the

manuscript.

Give them what they ask for.

Don't cherry pick your favourite / "best" bits from across the book.

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Use a sensible, plain serif font for the MS. Times New Roman is fine, for example, as is Garamond. If the agent specifies something, give them

that.

12pt, double line spacing, printed on one side of the paper only.

Page numbering is a sensible idea. Laser printing is preferable to

inkjet printing.

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Non-fiction: enquiry letter/sample

Non-fiction book proposals may be handled differently. An enquiry

letter/email is best first, with the offer of sample material if that’s

appropriate.

Be clear about your bona fides in the topic area. How and why are

you the person to write this book?

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It’s much more likely that a non-fiction book idea may be

commissioned on the strength of a pitch than a fiction proposal,

where it’s much more usual that a full-length manuscript will already

exist.

That said, many non-fiction writers may well write their first book

before really considering representation and/or publication.

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Post or email?

You do what the individual agent requests on their website.

Many agents are happy to accept either. If this is the case, email

them.

Some specify email only. If so, never post them anything.

Some specify post only. If so, never email them anything.

File formats for email: do what they request. Usually MS Word or PDF

files are fine.

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Email

The covering letter goes in the main body of the email.

The synopsis and the writing sample should be sent as attachments

to the email (unless you're given other instructions - occasionally

people like everything in the main body, usually because they're

afraid of attachments containing computer viruses ).

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Post

A plain brown/manilla A4 envelope.

Handwrite the agent's details on the cover.

Don't send it by recorded delivery. Standard first class is fine.

Ordinary white A4 printer paper.

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Laser print.

Letter / synopsis / sample in that order.

Use a single rubber band to hold everything together.

No fancy closures / folders / staples or suchlike.

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Stage Seven: what don't I do?

Don’t be annoying / pushy / impatient.

Don’t be cocky.

Don’t try to be quirky or madcap to get yourself noticed. It may well

get you noticed, but not in the way that you’d like.

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Don’t phone or email badgering the agent.

Don’t be weird on social media.

Don’t go to their offices without an appointment.

If you are rejected, don’t take it personally. And don’t try to

continue a correspondence of the “You’ll be sorry…” variety.

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Stage Eight: how long does all this take?

A typical advertised response time will be eight to twelve weeks.

Make a note of any response time indicated on the agency

website.

If that response time’s elapsed without a reply, send a brief, polite,

chasing email.

No news is no news. Don’t read anything into it.

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That said, you’ll get some responses by return. They’ll probably be

polite and negative.

Don’t read anything into these replies. There’s no need to respond

to a straightforward rejection.

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Some may offer more detailed opinions. All feedback is good at this

point. Reply politely and positively to such feedback.

And someone may well ask for you to send them the full

manuscript.

If so, do so by return.

And then the waiting begins again…

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Behind the scenes

Agents liaise with editors at publishing companies. The industry is

small, and people know each other. Likes/dislikes, wish lists and

suchlike are well understood.

If you’re heard nothing after submitting, it may be because the

agent is sounding out, however informally, one or more of their

publisher contacts.

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However, it’s only realistic to appreciate that the marketing tail

wags the editorial dog.

Your agent may love the book and you, an editor may think the

same, but there are myriad reasons why the book may never reach

the shelves of Waterstones.

That doesn’t mean the book is a bad one though.

So write another.

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Stage Nine: It's OK to say "no”.

You don’t have to accept an offer of representation if you don’t

want to.

It’s OK to use an offer as leverage against other agencies that you

have samples with to see if you can get a quick reply back from

them. It’s possible (but by no means certain) that you’ll get another

offer.

But don’t burn your bridges.

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Stage Ten: there are no guarantees

Gaining an agent won’t guarantee you publication and it’s

certainly no assurance of fortune and glory.

But writing the best books that you can (while reading a lot) is the

best that you can do to ensure that some day you’ll get a book

deal and that your work will be published.

Some writers strike lucky first time out, for others it takes years. So

stick with it!

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Useful books

The Writers’ And Artists’ Yearbook 2015 (2014, Bloomsbury

Publishing)

Bingham, Harry, The Writers’ and Artists’ Guide to Getting Published

(2010, A & C Black)

Blake, Carole, From Pitch to Publication (1999, Macmillan)

Davies, Gill, Book Commissioning and Acquisition (2004, Routledge)

Green, George, and Kremer, Lizzy, Writing A Novel and Getting

Published for Dummies [2nd ed] (2014, Wiley)

Thompson, John B, Merchants of Culture: The Publishing Business in

the Twenty-First Century (2012, Polity Press)

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Useful online resources

The Association of Authors’ Agents: http://agentsassoc.co.uk/

The Bookseller (UK industry publication):

http://www.thebookseller.com

Literary Rejections: http://www.literaryrejections.com/

The Society of Authors: www.societyofauthors.org/

Writers and Artists: https://www.writersandartists.co.uk/

The Writers’ Guild of Great Britain: www.writersguild.org.uk

Also – Twitter feeds of individual agents, of agencies and of sites like

Literary Rejections.

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