One of the main questions that came up during my recent Twitter Q&A with fellow authors was about submitting to agents. I wasn’t surprised, I remember feeling bewildered and the lack of in-depth info on the process didn’t help. In some ways, it was almost as difficult as writing the novel! So, here’s the first in a series of posts with tips on finding an agent dedicated to bewildered writers everywhere.

Where to start your agent search

A great place to start is the acknowledgement sections of books you like. I wouldn’t worry about the genre too much because agents change their preferences from time to time. At this stage, you’re just making a shortlist.

The Bookseller lets you look at a selected number of articles for free when you register as a guest or you might be able to access it through a library. Look out for recent book deals.

If you’re active on social media already, then you can usually see authors’ agents from their bios. It’s not possible for everyone but you might be able to attend events to learn more about different agents. I found the Words Away salon, London Writers’ Café and the London Writers’ Club useful for this as they often have agents as guest speakers, there may be something similar in your area. Writing events are also a good place to try. Attending the York Festival of Writing 2017 helped me learn more about different agents and I had a 1-2-1 with an agent there.

Underrepresented writers can also try organisations such as Spread the Word – I was able to get early feedback on my submission package from an agent through them. The Literary Consultancy has a host of useful links to the partner organisations that might be useful.

Some people look at the Writers and Artists Yearbook but I know that the print version of this can get out of date quite quickly as agents move or change their preferences. There are some online services where agent and agency information is collated and updated. I used a paid one for a month or so but it’s no longer available. I do think it’s important to take responsibility for your own information on agents though, things move very fast in the industry so double check everything.

What to look for in an agent

There are some questions you’ll want to consider, which will depend on your personal circumstances and preferences. Here are some things to think about before you start:

  • Do you want to be part of a bigger agency or a small independent agency?
  • Do they have writers and genres that are similar to yours? How many clients do they have?
  • Do they handle rights directly (this includes film, TV, foreign and translation rights amongst other things, but they may work with a partner or subsidiary rather than managing them in-house)?
  • Is the agent high-profile and well established in the industry? If so, are they going to be busy with their bigger clients?
  • Are they up-and-coming agents and if so, how much experience do they have so far?
  • Do they work editorially with their clients and is this important to you?
  • Do they represent genres that you might be interested in writing in later down the line (I think this one’s less important because hell, there’s enough work involved in getting an agent and getting a book or two out there before you contemplate switching things up)!
  • In addition, it was important for me to choose an agent who represented people like me – that is underrepresented writers. There were a few agents who only seemed to represent a very particular type of author and I knew I wanted someone with a diverse list.
  • At a basic level, you’ll need to look for agencies and agents who are currently open to submissions, which you can check on their websites. Sometimes agents temporarily close their lists for various reasons such as taking time off or attending book fairs. You can find out key information from agency websites.

Research beyond agency websites

Don’t rely on agency websites alone. Now there’s probably a thin line between thorough research and stalking here but try to find a few online interviews, social media posts and videos where agents talk about what kind of authors they’re looking for (did I mention the need to double-check their requirements in case they’ve changed recently?) and also what they like to see in submission letters. As I said above, I attended agent talks too but even if this isn’t possible for you, there’s so much info online now that you should be able to get everything you need through the Internet.

All of this enabled me to understand what the agent was like as a person and whether we’d get on at a basic level. It also highlighted that all agents are different. For example, agents understand that you’re submitting to other agents at the same time so you don’t have to mention it in the letter but there were at least two agents who wanted to be told in the covering letter whether the writer was submitting exclusively to them or not. One of the agents mentioned it on their agency website, the other only mentioned it in passing in an interview, so it pays to check a couple of different places to get a feel for what they like.

I hope this is useful for your first step in finding an agent. I know that all of this sounds like a lot of work and well, let’s just say that there was a lot of swearing and biscuit-eating and hair-pulling (mine, don’t worry). But if you’re serious about your writing – and call me Detective Inspector Shah but I’m guessing you are because you’re here reading this blog – then I think it’s worth spending time on this part. It certainly worked for me as I signed with my lovely agent in 2018. You never know, it could lead to a life-changing decision and one which you need to make quite quickly.

Look out soon for part 2 of my series on finding an agent including writing query letters to agents without more hair-pulling than is absolutely necessary. Sign up to my blog and you’ll be (one of) the first to know!