I always hear that to publish a book, you really ought to hire a literary agent. How do you FIND one?

H

holly

New member
This is a step that never fails to be in the book-publishing process when I look it up, and I know how important it is. But no one ever says how to freakin' FIND a literary agent! Two favorite authors of mine met people who just happened to BE literary agents so they didn't even have to look. I don't understand how other authors found theirs. Is there a very important website or book of names I just haven't heard of yet?
 
Yes. Go to your library and ask the librarian about this. They will probably have copies of "Writer's Market" and similar directories.
 
There are a couple of ways

1) Look at the acknowledgments of your favorite books, or do a search to try to find your favorite author's agent. (If that author has written a book that's at least somewhat similar to your own, in terms of genre or audience). Then look that agent up online. Every agent has a website, where you can find information about whether or not they're accepting submissions. It's more likely that you'll have a rapport with an agent whose work you know than one who represents books you've never read

2) Begin your search here http://www.agentquery.com

When you're searching for an agent to submit to, make sure you're doing a lot of research. Don't just start sending your work out, willy nilly. Make sure the agent is someone you'd actually want to work with. Check their twitter feed, their website, their facebook page. It's also a bonus if you've read something they've represented.
 
Two ways --- go to your local library and in their reference section look for the book called Writers Market 2012 and check through that. Then look for copies of Writers' Digest back issues that discuss agents.
 
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