The Safest Way to Search for an Agent

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Researching literary agents is complicated enough without having to worry about whether or not the agent is reputable. Unfortunately, you do have to worry. Too many agents engage in abuses–charging upfront fees, urging writers to pay for expensive adjunct services, placing clients with vanity or otherwise undesirable publishers–for you to assume that every agent you encounter is equally honest and skilled.

Not all abusive agents are scammers. Some are just inexperienced or incompetent. They may not understand that it’s a conflict of interest to offer their own editing services to clients for a fee. Their track records may be so dismal that they can only keep their businesses afloat by charging for services, or they may not be capable of placing manuscripts with reputable publishers. Regardless, the bottom line for writers is the same: wasted time, no sale, and/or a lighter bank account. Writer Beware, the publishing industry watchdog group that I co-founded with my friend and fellow author, the late Ann Crispin, has gathered documentation on hundreds of such agents.

Most writers know the basic agent-hunting drill: assemble a list of prospects, prepare and polish a synopsis, write a dynamite query letter, send out submissions…and wait. To this must be added another step: weeding out the questionable agents who will inevitably wind up on your query list.

The Procedure

1. Begin with a good market resource. This could be one of the many print market guides–such as Writer’s Market (for the US market); Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook or Writer’s Handbook (for the UK market); Canadian Writer’s Market; and Australian Writer’s Marketplace–or a reliable online resource such as Publishers Marketplace, QueryTracker. or AgentMatch.

Make sure to use more than one resource, because all have a different mix of information (and some can be out of date). If you write in a particular genre, there may be a resource that specializes in your area.

Unfortunately, I’ve never encountered a market resource that doesn’t include at least some questionable agents, who slip in despite the resource’s best efforts–so don’t assume that a listing in a respected market resource is proof of an agent’s honesty or competence. To protect yourself, follow the steps below.

What not to do:

  • Don’t type “literary agent” into a search engine. This is guaranteed to turn up scammers–not just scam agents, but deceptive websites designed to trick you into the clutches of disreputable self-publishing service providers, and faux consumer guides that are really just paid advertising.
  • Don’t bother with agent-author-matching websites, where writers post samples and synopses for agents to supposedly pick through. Most agents aren’t interested in using these, and the agents who do sign up may not be reputable.
  • Don’t ask for agent recommendations on social media. There are plenty of knowledgeable people on the internet, but there are also plenty who don’t know what they’re talking about and are eager to pass on misinformation. You may also make yourself a target for unscrupulous web-trollers who want to sell you something you don’t need.

2. Use the information in the resources to make a list of agents who are appropriate for your work. This list can be as large as you like (but see #1 in the “Practical Advice” section, below).

3. Expand your list by identifying books you think resemble yours, and finding out who agents them. Some writers thank their agents in the Acknowledgements sections of their books, or name them on their websites. A websearch on the author or the title may yield the information–through a newspaper interview reproduced online, for instance–as may a search of an industry publication such as Publishers Weekly, which regularly reports on who’s selling what to whom.

If you’re a genre writer there are even more resources–for instance, Locus magazine reports on US science fiction/fantasy/horror sales.

4. Check your list against the membership rosters of the Association of American Literary Agents (USA), the Association of Authors’ Agents (UK), or the Australian Literary Agents’ Association (Australia). You can obtain these rosters by visiting the AALA website, the AAA website, and the ALAA website. Members of these organizations may have to meet competency requirements in order to join, and are required to abide by codes of practice that exclude some common abuses, such as kickback referral schemes.

Membership in one of these associations is not an infallible guarantee of quality–Writer Beware has received serious complaints about some AALA members–nor is any particular AALA, AAA, or ALAA member necessarily the right agent for you (a very different, but equally important, issue–again, see the “Practical Advice” section, below). But you’re certainly safest if you give AALA, AAA, or ALAA member agents priority on your query list.

5. Place a question mark beside any agent who isn’t a member. This doesn’t necessarily indicate that the agent isn’t reputable. Not all successful agents choose to join agent associations, or haven’t been in business long enough to fulfill the membership requirements. Still, it’s wise to do some extra research on agents who aren’t AALA, AAA, or ALAA members.

6. For agents with a question mark, do any or all of the following:

  • E-mail me.  I’ll check Writer Beware’s archives, and let you know if we’ve received any complaints.
  • Search the agent’s name on QueryTracker. QueryTracker is a reliable resource that allows writers to leave comments–and complaints–on agent listings. Limited info is available for free; for full info, a paid membership is required, but the fee is reasonable.
  • Plug the agent’s name into a search engine to see if social media comments, blog posts, news coverage, and the like offer any useful information.

The above steps should ensure that you have a list of agents to whom it’s appropriate to send your work, and make it less likely that you’ll query a questionable one. It’s not an infallible method, but it does offer more protection than sending out submissions based solely on information you find on the internet or in market guides.

7. Some additional recommendations:

  • Learn the warning signs of a questionable agent. Pay a visit to the Literary Agents page of Writer Beware. If a questionable agent does slip through your screening process, the tips and information here will help you to identify him/her.
  • Educate yourself about the publishing industry! This is incredibly important. I’m constantly amazed by how many writers begin submitting without first taking the time to learn how things work in the strange and complicated world of traditional publishing. Knowledge is your best defense–without it, you’re far more likely to fall into the clutches of a dishonest or incompetent agent, or to waste your time querying inappropriate people.

For some suggestions on how to start the learning process, see my blog post, Learning the Ropes.

Some Practical Advice on Querying

1. Target your queries as precisely as possible. Pick only agents whose interests and specialties are a good match for your manuscript (apart from the fact that you’re more likely to find representation this way, it’s simply a waste of time to query an agent if your work doesn’t match his/her tastes). Be sure to take the future shape of your writing into account–ideally, your agent won’t represent just this one book, but your writing career as a whole.

2. Use up-to-date sources. Online resources are likely to be regularly updated (as long as they’re reputable and their staff is conscientious), but print materials fall quickly out of date. I often hear from writers who’ve picked up a two- or three-year-old market guide at a used bookstore in order to save money. Things change fast in publishing, and even a year-old guide may contain outdated information. If you’re using a print guide, bite the bullet and spring for a new copy.

3. Pay attention to the agent’s submission requirements–and follow them exactly. The most up-to-date information will be on the agent’s website. How-to-write resources often give general guidelines for what to send (query letter, synopsis, first three chapters), which is fine when an agent doesn’t have specific preferences–but many do, and don’t want to see all of this initially. Sending a submission that doesn’t conform to agents’ stated guidelines may provide a good reason to set your submission aside.

On a related note: keep it basic. Unnecessary extras such as author photos or mockups of your book cover will make your submission stand out–but not in the right way.

4. Spread a wide net. If an agent asks for your entire manuscript, they will often request an exclusive reading, but you can query and/or send partials to as many agents as you want.

5. Be bold. Query every agent who might be appropriate for your work, no matter how elite or successful. Many new writers limit their queries to small or new or never-heard-of-’em agencies because they believe, or have been told, that established agents don’t work with first-time writers (this is a close cousin to the equally pernicious myth that traditional publishers don’t work with first-time writers). But not only is this false, it’s enormously raises the odds of getting stuck with a dishonest or incompetent agent.

Certainly it’s hard to attract the attention of an established agent. But no agent worth his or her salt will turn away a promising manuscript simply because the writer has never published anything before. Agents’ client lists are constantly in flux–writers move on, retire, die, or stop selling–and an agent who isn’t on the alert for new talent will soon be out of business. Successful agents are also well aware that future literary stars and bestsellers often come from the ranks of the previously unpublished. A quick check of the news and reviews in trade magazines like Publishers Weekly will provide a good demonstration of how many writers are selling first novels via well-established agents.

Here’s another way to look at it. If you wanted to put your home on the market, would you employ a real estate agent who’d been trying for years but had never actually managed to sell a house? Or one who’d was just starting out and on top of that had no relevant training? It’s no different with literary agents. “Literary agent” is not an entry-level job: it requires specialized skills and contacts within the publishing industry. You want someone with relevant work experience–such as previous positions in publishing or training at a reputable agency–and demonstrated competence, in the form of a verifiable track record of book sales.

If an agent has been in business for a couple of years and has no real track record, or won’t share sales information (a major red flag), it’s a strong indication that they don’t have the skills or the contacts needed to get editors’ attention. And if they aren’t having much luck selling their other clients’ work, the odds that they’ll sell yours are pretty slim.

Many writers believe that the words “literary agent” on a letterhead is a guarantee of editors’ attention, and that having an agent–any agent–will automatically open doors. But this truly isn’t so. Editors are well aware of how many incompetent and/or fraudulent agents there are; it’s one of many reasons they prefer to work with agents they know, personally or by reputation. Unknown agents may receive a little more attention than unagented writers, but not much.

And if–as many amateur or fraudulent agents do–the agent uses obviously unprofessional methods (submitting substandard or inappropriate work, “blitz” submitting to a dozen or more editors at once, using form letters, using the client’s own query letter, including a “marketing” plan with a novel submission, “bundling” several manuscripts into a single submission) the editor will immediately tag them as questionable and toss their submission aside.

So do query that top agent–not only because you can, but because a successful, skilled agent is only kind of agent worth having.

6. Be careful with new agents. First-time writers are often advised to query agents who are just setting up shop, since these agents are usually actively looking to build their client lists. This is good advice, with one caveat: not all new agents are created equal. Contacts and an inside knowledge of the publishing industry are essential for success. Someone with these assets will probably start making sales right away, but someone who’s coming to agenting from a non-publishing-related field is going to have a much tougher time getting up to speed–if indeed they ever do.

If you’re thinking of querying a new agent, make sure they have a solid professional background in traditional publishing (as an editor, say), or have previously worked or trained with another (reputable) agency. It’s helpful if they’re part of a larger agency, where experienced agents can mentor them and the agency’s name can open doors. And make sure also that they really are new, and not just using a “new to the business” claim to cover up a pitiful track record (a common tactic among incompetent agents). As a general rule of thumb, a new agent should begin making sales within a year or so of starting up.

7. Be careful with new agencies. As with new agents, a new agency that’s actively building a client list may be a good prospect for a new writer. But the same caveats apply.

Check the agency website for agent biographies, and make sure the agents have experience. If there are no bios, or if the bios make vague claims that can’t be verified, be suspicious. Look for a client list, to see who the agency reps. Look for sales–there may not be many, if the agency is very new, but this information will give you at least some insight into the agency’s competence and whether that’s a good match for your goals for your writing. The rule of thumb on sales for a new agency is the same as for a new agent: they should begin placing manuscripts within a year or so of starting up. Any longer suggests a lack of skill and/or contacts.

Finally, consider a wait-and-see approach. Many new agencies don’t survive for long, and if there are few or no sales as yet, it may be difficult to determine where your book is likely to wind up (where an agency has sold is a good predictor of where it will sell).

A Final, Very Important Caution

Watch out for scams.

One of the most common scams targeting writers right now is out-of-the-blue emails and phone calls from purported literary agents who claim to work on commission but really want to sell some sort of service (often falsely described as being provided by a separate “trusted” company): editing, PR, book fair presence, “representation” to Hollywood, re-publication of your book if you’re a self-published author…the list goes on. In some cases, the scammers impersonate well-known and reputable agents and agencies.

Beyond the fact that reputable literary agents don’t require authors to buy anything or pay anything upfront as a condition of representation, reputable literary agents very, very rarely reach out directly to authors they don’t already represent. For scammers, on the other hand, it’s their main way of acquiring customers. Given how prevalent solicitation scams are right now, any direct contact–whether by email or phone–from someone identifying themselves as a literary agent is likely to be a scam.

For more on this very common type of scam, along with an extensive list of names to watch out for, see the Writer Beware blog.

Resources Mentioned in This Article

The Association of American Literary Agents.  The professional trade group for US agents. The website hosts a membership roster and the AALA Canon of Ethics.

The Association of Authors’ Agents. The professional trade group for UK agents. Their website hosts a membership roster and the AAA Code of Practice.

The Australian Literary Agents’ Association. The professional trade group for Australian agents. The website includes a membership roster, a Code of Practice, and an extensive list of writers’ resources.

Publishers Weekly covers US and international publishing. A prime source for publishing news and information.

The Bookseller offers comprehensive news about the UK publishing market.

Books + Publishing covers the Australian and New Zealand publishing markets.

Publisher’s Lunch is a daily e-mail newsletter with all the latest news about publishing worldwide. A full subscription costs, but the “lite” version is still free. A feature is the weekly Deal Lunch, which covers recent agent/publisher deals.

Publishers Marketplace is an extensive professional website where many established agents have listings (as usual, though, there are a few bad eggs). You can view the listings without a subscription, but with a subscription you get access to a tremendous amount of news and information about agents, publishers, and recent deals. Membership is pricey–but in my opinion, this is one of the few resources that’s worth the money. Although primarily focused on US-based publishing professionals, there are listings for UK, Canadian, and Australian professionals as well.

AgentQuery is an agent listing site whose owners are careful about vetting the agents they include (one of the few such listings that Writer Beware recommends).

QueryTracker is a similarly reliable resource.

AgentMatch is a comprehensive listing of literary agents from the UK, USA, Canada, and Australia that’s searchable by genre. There’s a fee for membership, but you can try it for 7 days for free.

The Writer Beware website offers detailed information on the wide variety of schemes, scams, and pitfalls that threaten writers. See especially the Literary Agents page.

Writer Beware’s blog supplements the information on the Writer Beware website, offering lively, up-to-the-minute coverage of the most recent scams, schemes, and issues of importance for writers.

The Absolute Write Water Cooler’s Bewares, Recommendations, & Background Check forum is a popular online writers’ community where writers discuss agents, publishers, independent editors, and others, and post information and/or warnings.

Researching an Agent’s Track Record. My article suggests a procedure for researching agents’ track records, and offers a number of resources to help.

Some resources on crafting query letters:

– A discussion at Absolute Write that links to examples of successful queries.

– A comprehensive resource on creating query letters, from author and editor Jane Friedman.

– How to Write a Great Query Letter, from Jericho Writers.

– How to Write a Query, from AgentQuery.com.

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