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Do you have an agent? Have you ever tried to publish a book without one? Would you?

I have an agent. We are preparing my manuscript for the big sell to editors.

I would not try to get my book published without one because I don't write in the genres that still allow for non-agented submissions. However, I firmly believe it's better to have no agent than a bad agent.

I don't have one...I'd like one, but I don't have one...and mostly I write genre fiction so that's a yes/no sort of thing....some still take unsolicited manuscripts....

I do not have an agent, but I did submit a childrens book a few years back and got a very nice rejection letter back telling me to get an agent and resubmit it. I never did that because I did not want to be known as a childrens writer. They even gave me a list of possible agent's to contact. I still have that list just in case I ever want to try it again.

Dreamweaver - you can always published children's lit under a pseudonym and save your own name for your writing of choice. Since children's lit authors rarely do the same kind of publicity that authors of YA through adult do, the connection wouldn't carry that kind of preconceived notion.

I put my novels out on my small press, but I'm gonna start looking for an agent to try and get stuff published overseas. I write mainly for liberals and punk rockers, so I think my books might find an audience in left-wing countries.

Am currently looking for an agent and it's proving about as much fun as riding in a tumble dryer, blindfolded!

If anyone can recommend any agents who would be interested in the gay Bridget Jones, then do please let me know.

Also, anyone know the protocol for querying overseas agents? You see, I think my novel is far more suited to what is coming out of the US at the moment, but I'm in the UK.

Thanks,

Alison

Alison,

Have you tried searching through agentquery.com? They have a search feature that allows you to screen listings for keywords which ought to help you find the agents interested in gay fiction.

I don't think the protocol for querying overseas agents is any different than querying domestically. That is, you still need to follow their directions.

My suggestion would be to get a generic email address (and by that I mean a .com or .net that doesn't have the .uk attached) and start your process only querying those agents who take email submissions. That way you save postage and you don't have to worry about foreign return postage.

Then, when an agent is interested in your book, you tell them you live in the UK. There's no reason New York agents can't take you on as a client--it's more a matter of preference on the part of the agent, and from what I've heard, preferences are often put aside when the right book comes along.

Good luck!

Hey Kaytie,

I appreciate your help, thanks! I'm just reworking the first few chapters and my synopsis and then I'm going to hit the ground running in a big way and I'll definitely check out agentquery.com.

Thanks again and will catch up with you on myspace soon!

Alison

Agents probably get a lot of requests from potential clients. You are going to need a great idea, a great resume, or something else to catch the agent's attention.

Tried like cray to recruit an agent, but to no success, so I finally went ahead and self published. If you are considering self publishing you can build a very impressive product, however, distribution is a difficult task. Most retailers and book reviewers frown upon the Print On Demand market. Therefore, you can find yourself working very hard just for a small slice of recognition. Good luck . . . and be sure to polish your writing, spelling, and punctuation. Readers are easily insulted about lack of quality.

I not ever did that because I did not desire to be renowned as a children's writer. They even provided me a register of likely agent's to contact. I still have that register just in case I ever desire to trial it again.

I don't need or want one. They're moochers.

The whole idea of having an agent is kind of controversial when I think about Harper Lee. Because of her bad experience with an agent I have decided never to have an agent. Moreover, ideologically, I oppose the whole industry around it. My literature is a message not a business. Anyone who makes business out of literature is in breach of divine law. It is basically, like taking the gist of a holy man and making it an industry. The classical example for such a breach of divine law is when the creeds of Jesus were turned into the industry known as Christianity. It is a free world, no doubt, but I do not believe in opportunism. No agents are needed in my case, only a publisher in order to polish, edit, and revise the text of my books, for I have experienced that many readers these days judge a book by its cover and by the type of its text and such vain technicalities, a fact which hinders the message.

It's really hard to get an agent, but it seems like the best way to go to be a "well-known" author. As long as you get one who isn't going to try to take your money. They should only get paid when you do, and then you want to make sure that they aren't taking more than they should.
It's scary!