Looking for a little help on getting started

[Ermo]

Hello all -

Ok, I think I'll be ready to query agents by the summer for my current project. I want to get a preliminary list of agents together that I think might be good fits so that I can start reading some of their client material, read blogs, etc. However, there are SO MANY agents out there that I'm having a hard time getting started. How do you guys go about quickly and accurately creating a short list of potential agents? Is there a web site or sites that I can use that has a search function that works well? I'd love to hear any tips on how you guys negotiate this landscape. Thanks.

[tameson]

I have not yet done an agent search, but here is a website I have seen that might be what you are looking for.

http://agentquery.com/

My first list of agents will come from my own bookshelf. I am going to go through all the authors that write in my genre and figure out their agents. Of course, my first query will be to Nathan. :)

[JustineDell]

I don't think I can be much help here. I write women's fiction/romance and since I am a member of RWA, they are thoughtful enough to provide us with a current list of RWA approved agents - to which we can sort through ourselves. (Or like the other person posted, find your favorite writers and then find their agents - although most good writers have great agents and they are tough to get)

Aside from that, I think there are other genres (like sci-fi) that have something similiar to RWA. I can't really remember what you write, but maybe your genre has something like that?

~JD

[Krista G.]

Check out http://www.querytracker.net/index.php. Immediately.

And I did a couple of posts on this topic on my blog. Check out http://motherwrite.blogspot.com/search/ ... g%20agents if you're interested. (I should mention that since I did that post, both Query Tracker and Lit Match have updated their sites, and now I like Query Tracker better. And Lit Match isn't called Lit Match anymore - it's Author Advance.)

[Ryan]

The above mentioned site agentquery.com is a good place to start. Look at similar books on the market and find out who represented them. Just use the search engine on agentquery to find out. I got restless one night, went to agentquery, typed in keyword memoir, copy and pasted a few names, and shot off a couple of queries(a query that was way too long and more like a mini-proposal). I just scrolled down the list of names saying things like, "He sounds cool, she sounds too anal, he sounds like a jerk..." Late night self-entertainment at its best. Guess what? A reputable agent(one who sounded cool) requested a proposal. After reading his profile, he actually does look pretty cool. A little gut instinct and spontaneity probably isn't such a bad thing. You just never know.

If you search this blog, there's some strategy on making a list of top agents and 2nd choices to test your query with. Personally, that sounds too Virgo-esque for me, an Aquarian...it'll all work out type guy.

I'm finally just about done with the proposal(hardest 25 pages I've ever written) so I'm getting ready to send out another round of queries. I have no idea who I'm going to send them to besides this guy here. Know of any other agents that sound cool? :)

Good luck!

Ryan

[Scott]

I recently read that it's better to flood the market with queries and play the numbers game than spot pick. There were stats to prove it and everything. Wish I could remember where I read it, but the theory behind it was agents rarely look for something they've done before, or something. Some agents have specific genres they handle, but those are to be ignored, as well. A good idea is a good idea. I realize I'm little help if I don't quote my sources, but I remember seeing sound logic in the idea.

[Ghost in the Machine]

I read the Guide to Literary Agents Editor's Blog--after reading Nathan's blog, of course! The agent interviews contain what they like, dislike, have sold recently, and how to submit. Even if the agent is not a good match, you can surf through their agency website for other agents.

You can also google the words 'literary agent' and your genre, but the websites already mentioned or Agency Query Connect might be faster.

Ghost in the Machine

[Nick]

Short list? Haha, I wish it were short. Every so often I pop into sites like the AAR and just run a search. Find anyone and everyone who says they represent the genre. Down goes their information. All saved to a Word document, which I regularly make copies of. I do a bit of digging into each before I copy them down, of course, and when I go to query, I will look much more extensively, but for now, my list is long. And in some ways it might be better to keep it long. And like Scott said with reading something about flooding the market...to be honest, that was my strategy anyway, because to me, it seems like a good one. Better to try every agent on the face of the earth and get a rejection from all of them than to query all but one and have that one be the one who would accept it and go on to get you published. Overzealous? Probably. Crazy? Most likely. Obnoxious? I'm sure. But that's my strategy. Of course I'm not much to speak on the matter, but there's my opinion. Make of her what you will.

[casnow]

I would just start reading through agent blogs... look at the links on those blogs to other agents and chose the 1/2 dozen you like the most, then DON'T query them. Why? Your first round query should be like a test - see if there is any interest at all. Then after you get 20-30 rejections racked up, then modify your query and then query them.

If you get lots of hits, then go ahead and send it out to your short list.

I know this might sound like a dumb thing to do, but when I sent out my query I got lots of hits for partials, but nothing beyond that. What did I realize? My story lacked tension and stakes and needed a lot of work, especially if I wanted to get a shot at a top agent.

[Tycoon]

I had a barnes and noble gift card along with a 15% off coupon so I ordered Jeff herman's -- Bookpublishers, editors and literary agents. so this could be an option of you want to spend a little money.

[marilyn peake]

After making a list of agents from reputable sources on the Internet, I decided to pay to belong to Publishers Marketplace. That’s an incredibly wonderful resource! I found agents I didn’t see listed elsewhere, and Publishers Marketplace announces publishing deals made by agents. They announce specific books the agents have placed with publishers, the genre of the books, the names of the publishers, and the financial amounts involved in specific book deals. You can actually see which agents are making the best and most frequent book deals with publishers. Some agents’ names show up over and over again for making fantastic book deals.

[mojo25]

I would suggest Query Tracker and Agent Query (just google them), both reputable, up-to-date data bases of agents. You can look up agents by genre or category, by whether they accept snail mail or equeries etc. I don't use any other sources (except sometimes I check Preditors and Editors). I like Query Tracker because it includes comments by people who have queried agents (ie they never heard from them, they requested pgs, etc), overall stats, etc. The printed versions might be helfpul for giving you background about an agency, but they go out of date too quickly.