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How to Get an Agent
publication date: Nov 10, 2010
EXCLUSIVE! Caroline Wood, literary agent from Felicity Bryan, whose impressive stable of writers include to Sadie Jones, Phyllida Law, Martin Walker and our own Lucy Cavendish, reveals from the inside, the secrets of how to get that writing career off the starting block - GET AN AGENT! This is how... Top Tips for Getting an Agent Where to look? The Writers & Artists Yearbook lists all the reputable agencies in the UK. Once you have made a shortlist of suitable agencies, look at their websites. You will be able to tell an enormous amount from them, both in terms of their submissions procedures but also the sorts of writers they represent. Which agent? Think about writers whose work your writing is similar to and find out who represents them. Put the author’s name and the words ‘literary agent’ into google or a similar search engine and you should be able to identify the relevant agency. Can I submit simultaneously? Yes you can and agents expect this. It is courteous to say in your covering letter that you have sent the material to others. It will also make the agent in question look at your work more quickly. But don’t submit to too many people at once. You may receive some useful feedback and want to rewrite before submitting to others. What do I submit? Most agencies like to read the first three chapters, a synopsis and a covering letter. You should send a hard copy of unbound A4 pages no smaller than 12-point Times New Roman, either double-spaced or 1.5 line-spaced. Email submissions are mostly ignored. How long should my synopsis be? No more than 1 or 2 pages. It should summarise the plot in an interesting readable way, but not be a scene by scene step outline. These are notoriously hard to read. It should not be a pitch document either. Save that for the covering letter. Do your homework Write a covering letter that shows you have studied the agency you are submitting to. You may want to target a particular agent if you like his or her authors and feel free to say that. The agent will be flattered and feel more warmly towards you. Be your own editor Do not send your work out until it’s as good as you can make it. It will always need more editing but you should feel that you have honed it as much as you can. Do agents edit? Some agents are excellent, nurturing editors (many started their lives doing that job), others are better deal-makers. Decide what’s important to you, do your research and ask the relevant questions once someone has offered to take you on. Write a strong beginning It’s the one bit that everyone is going to read. Agents are inundated with submissions and their eyes will glaze over if they are not hooked from early on. Perseverance is the key Agents all have different taste so try not to be discouraged if a number of people pass. It’s often a question of finding the right fit and that can take time. Meet the agent The agent/author relationship is a very personal and long term one, assuming all goes according to plan! It’s important that you like your agent and feel relaxed with them. Don’t let yourself be taken on by someone you’re going to be afraid to pick up the phone to even if they have a starry client list. FOR MORE INFORMATION ON CAROLINE WOOD AND THE FELICITY BRYAN LITERARY AGENT CLICK HERE
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