Finding a Literary Agent & Dealing With Rejection

Literary agents act as the link between authors and publishers. Their principal role is to advocate for authors and negotiating book deals with publishers on their behalf. In reality, they have over time become the gatekeepers between authors and publishers, especially at the higher corporate level of the industry. Often editors accept submissions only via agents. Your agent then becomes your manager, negotiator and advisor. They are the ones who will have the difficult conversation with the publisher (or should be). They are also the ones that advise you against saying Really Stupid Things to a publisher!

Do You Need a Literary Agent?

On balance, you probably need a literary agent. They offer you access to high-level publishing networks and industry contacts. They are the experts when it comes to negotiation of book deals. They know which editors might be looking for a book like yours (surprisingly hard to work out on your own). As time goes on, they will offer you strategic career advice and may also offer more market-oriented manuscript feedback. On balance, you will earn far more with the literary agent than the cost of 10-20 per cent you may pay on domestic, foreign and media deals that they will net for you, both when you sign and many years into the future.

But you may not want to go with an agent or find it hard to find one for your kind of work. Smaller, specialist or more left-field publishers often accept submissions directly from authors. Self-publishing platforms do not need agents much at all, except perhaps for foreign language or media deals.

It really depends what you want out of publishing, but if you want to be signed to Penguin Random House or Simon & Schuster and make tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars, you probably need a literary agent.

How to Find a Reputable Literary Agent

The most important thing to know is if the literary agent represents your type of work and whether they are currently accepting work. This can be harder than it appears.

1. Research resources such as Literary Market Place, Writer's Market, Writers & Artists Yearbook, or Publisher's Marketplace and literary-agency websites for agents who represent your genre or style of writing. If possible, rather than looking at what they say they want (most agents say they want literary fiction, but in reality want more lucrative commercial writers) to see what novels they have sold to a publisher recently. This is not too hard to find out. Google is your friend here.

2. Networking: Attend writing conferences, workshops, and literary events to network with agents and authors in your genre. This may well be offered as part of a package on the more expensive writing courses and can be an excellent way to meet agents, although representation is not guaranteed. If the idea of this fills you with dread, don’t worry: I didn’t ever do this. It makes life a bit easier, but is not essential.

3. Social Media: Some agents are very active and surprisingly responsive on social-media platforms. Twitter/X is historically the go-to place but this will probably change over time. Many agents will be quite open to tell you what they are currently looking for, or might have posted the same information recently. Hashtags like askanagent, writingcommunity, amquerying and amwriting can be very revealing in this respect.

4. Competitions. Writing competitions can be a great way to secure representation, although of course, you usually have to be shortlisted – or win! Nonetheless, many writers find an agent this way, either directly or because they seem much more tempting on the slushpile.

There is lots of advice online and from writers’ organisations on contractual details and other aspects of having a literary agent. I will not repeat those here.

Approaching Literary Agents

- Submission Guidelines: Follow agents' submission guidelines as given on their website or social media. Some agents prefer queries initially, followed by sample chapters or a manuscript if interested. There is one exception to this advice.

- If at all possible, directly email (do not phone!) the agent. The website might tell you to send the email to a general submissions email. Avoid doing this if you can, although if you can’t, still approach. Initially just Google “John Smith literary agent email address” and see what comes up. If that fails, try to work out how personal email addresses at the agency are formatted. If Jane Wong at the same agency’s email is “jw@bigliteraryagency.com” then it’s a good chance John’s is “js@bigliteraryagency.com”. Alternatively just Google variations of possible email addresses to see if anything comes up. Most agents will respond to a direct email even if there is a general submissions address, if they respond at all. (Many do not.) If you are directed back to the submissions email, make clear you are interested in being represented by John not Jane. Agents are often very charming and friendly, but they like to know they are wanted, too!

- Present yourself professionally in all communications. Refine your query letter and manuscript. A basic template for a query letter would be: introduce yourself briefly and explain why you want to be represented by that agent; pitch the novel in one or sentences referring to its genre, what it’s basically about and who the central character is, and any similar novels (a “comp,” which means comparator, would be “SUCCESSFUL WRITER A meets QUIRKY ACCLAIMED WRITER B” or even “SUCCESSFUL NOVEL A meets RECENT HIT MOVIE B”); a short paragraph giving more detail on the narrative; information on any prizes or courses you think worth mentioning; and some contact information. Be charming and friendly, without being too much. Don’t crack any jokes or impose any conditions on them representing you. Really: don’t.

- Unfortunately, some agents will just ignore emails, send you the most blanket rejection immediately, having obviously not looked at your work, or even say something a bit rude to you. Never be rude to an agent. NEVER. It is absolutely fine to follow up an unanswered query after a few weeks. Otherwise, don’t take it personally. It’s their loss. Move on.

What Is The Slushpile?

Oh, the dreaded slushpile! Have you heard the term before? It refers to the unsolicited manuscripts and query letters that are submitted to literary agents, and to a lesser extent, editors. These come from authors who usually do not have an agency. The term "slushpile" reflects the sheer volume and variable quality of these submissions. Someone has to sift through them and most are either ignored or get an immediate no-thank-you, often called a “form rejection.” There is no way around it: slushpile submission is a hard process, with low levels of acceptance. But it happens all the time. It happened to me. This is not a business in which to feel too much fear. Be confident. Learn your craft. (You’re already doing this, reading this book.) Write a great novel.

Interacting with Agents After They Express Interest

Agents typically respond within a few weeks to a few months. (Although it can be very quick.) Be patient, polite and professional in all your interactions. If someone has asked to see your work, give them no less than a month before you follow up. I would recommend six weeks. When you do, send a very polite, short follow-up: “Hi, John, I sent you my manuscript recently. I am just following up. If you need more time, that’s absolutely fine. Best wishes, Neil.”

Here is a brutal fact you need to hear. It is much more likely an agent will say no than yes. Agents say no more than they say yes. Accept this and move on as appropriate, but be the most easygoing, professional person you can be. Consider carefully any real advice you get, but at the same time, do not be put off by one person saying no. Agents are often wrong. They are the very first people to admit this. The industry is filled with people who made the wrong call on the next bestseller.

How Many Submissions? How Many Rejections?

It used to be an industry standard that you approached one agent at a time, but thankfully, that unrealistic standard has more or less vanished. I would suggest going out in batches of roughly six agents, and submit to a new batch every 4-6 weeks, as rejections come in. Again, don’t be put off but be open to any themes that emerge or any comments that make you think, “Oh, they make a good point.”

If you get to around 20 rejections, it might be time to stop and consider any such patterns. [A2] Here is something writers find hard to accept: maybe they’re right. And here is something else: maybe their ideas are good and will help your novel a great deal.

The industry is filled with stories of people who had 100 rejections before selling a book that made millions or won big prizes. All I can say is that this is a frustrating part of the industry. You just have to accept it. Be determined. Be open to feedback. It is part of publishing lore that J K Rowling had 12 rejections before placing her Harry Potter novels. It is often reported as if this was a miracle of perseverance, but I would describe it as completely standard. I wouldn’t blink if someone told me that they got 20 rejections, let alone 12.

Choosing the Right Literary Agent

If you are lucky enough to find yourself choosing between agents, or even if you are just dealing with one interested party, ask yourself the following:

- Does the agent have a record of success in selling novels in your genre?
- Did they clearly understand how your novel related to the publishing industry and current market trends?
- Were they easy to deal with, professional and seemingly pretty honest?
- Was there rapport between you during initial discussions?
- Did you sense they were going to be on your side?
- Did you feel like this was a colleague you wanted to work with rather than someone who would either be difficult in some way?
- Did you find you wanted them to be your friend? Be careful here. They are not your friend. They will be your colleague. They will be your manager in the same way as if you were an actor or a pop musician.
- Did they share your vision for your writing career and manuscript?
- Did they come up with ideas either to improve your manuscript or how to progress your career?
- Did they talk about having ideas for which editors might be interested (even if they did not name them, which is fine)?
- Did the agency (whether big or small) seem to be a professional organisation? Did they explain how they would sell other rights, such as foreign translation, film or TV or other media rights?

On the reverse, did they say they could make you rich, guarantee you stardom, or did they say something that made you personally or ethically uncomfortable? If so, it might be hard but consider moving on. There are a great, decent, professional agents out there in abundance.

If an agent makes an offer of representation, inform any other agent to whom you have submitted who has not yet rejected you. This will not necessarily lead to other offers but it will focus minds on reading your work. You may be surprised how quickly someone who was six weeks away from reading your novel will now promise to look at it in the next week.

Dealing with Rejection

- Rejection is not a reflection of your worth as a writer. Even more importantly, it is not a reflection of your worth as a person. It is merely a fact of the industry. You are being rejected for one of two reasons: one, the agent doesn’t feel you are a good match; and two, they don’t know if they can sell your work to a publisher. Both of those things are on the agent, not you.
- Use it as an opportunity to gain insights from any feedback you get.
- Keep submitting your work – “get back on the horse” – because each rejection brings you closer to finding the right person.
- Remember that many, many successful novelists have dealt with repeated rejections. Again, it’s not about you. It’s just how the industry works. Sadly, there is no Excel spreadsheet or online quiz you can take to find the right fit. It’s hard work and determination. Be determined: that’s the best way to make it happen.

You can buy Neil's book How To Write A Novel Chapter By Chapter available here: https://www.amazon.com/How-Write-Novel-Chapter-Outlining-ebook/dp/B0DJ8TMVWL?ref_=ast_author_mpb

You can also check out our other services, Mentoring and Manuscript Review, on the links above.