How Does a Writer Find an Agent? from James W. Ziskin

How does a writer find an agent? Give us your thoughts.

Over the past thirty years, I’ve managed to find representation from three different agents. The first was back in 1992. When she said yes to my snail mail submission, I was sure publication, financial independence, and fame were just around the corner. 

They weren’t

Two books later, there were no offers from publishers.

My first experience with an agent was unsatisfying, and not just because she didn’t sell my books. We never gelled. In fact, she made me feel that I was working for her, not the other way around. She was put out when I inquired—via mail—if there was any news on the submission front. This was after several months had gone by. She replied asking me to check back by phone in two weeks, which I dutifully did. At that point she sounded annoyed and told me there was no use in bothering her for news. She’d let me know immediately if there was anything to report. That stung.

And it was my cue to move on

Terry wrote earlier this week about choosing the right agent, and I couldn’t agree more. The wrong agent is worse than no agent at all. My first agent and I weren’t a good match, but I had been so grateful someone had agreed to represent me I went along. That was a mistake. So we parted ways. I had no worries. I was certain I’d find another agent in no time with the third book I’d written.

And then it took me fifteen years to land my second agent

Yes, I was fully involved in my career and had put my writing aspirations on the back burner, but fifteen years was still a long time. I finally decided that if I ever wanted to make it as a writer, I had to act. So I wrote another book and began querying again. This was 2009. I sent out a few rounds of query letters via e-mail and snail mail. Believe it or not, many agents still wanted snail mail submissions back then. I had several requests for partials and even some complete manuscripts, but nothing panned out. Some teased me with tantalizingly encouraging responses, only to ghost me later on. But the thirty-ninth query hit.

Unlike the experience with my first agent, my second was very positive. He was approachable, kind, and willing to update me whenever I wanted information. He told me right off the bat the squeaky wheel got the oil. I didn’t take advantage of his availability, however, and left him to do his job while I did mine. Still, after two years, he was unable to sell the book I’d sent him. I followed that up with two more, which had some nice “declinations,” as he called them, from good publishers. Finally, a month before he was to go into semi-retirement—and therefore have to drop me as a client—he sold my first Ellie Stone book, Styx & Stone. He kept me on after that and sold six more Ellie Stones.

I credit Bill—first name only—with getting me into print, and I will be forever grateful to him. The publisher was small but they put out an excellent product. In fact, several of the most decorated and admired crime writers out there today were discovered by that publisher’s editorial director, Dan Mayer.

After seven Ellie Stone books, the publisher was sold to a new house, and both the new owner and I thought it was time to move on. Small houses don’t always generate the sales to justify continuing a series, and that was my case.

I wanted a new start, and my agent and I agreed that the best strategy would be to go our separate ways. It was a mutual decision and the most amicable split I could have imagined. I even wrote a warm acknowledgment to him and the agency in my latest book, Bombay Monsoon, which they hadn’t even sold. I will always be grateful to John Hawkins and Associates, a wonderful literary agency with a long, distinguished history.

Which leads me to my current agent…

and my answer to this week’s question. 

How does one go about securing a literary agent?

Okay, I shouldn’t need to say this, but I’m going to say it anyway. First, you’ve got to write a really good book that’s ready. I’ve heard stories of people who queried agents before their book was finished. Don’t do that. Revise and revise and revise your book before even thinking of contacting an agent. Then revise it again. Get input from beta readers who aren’t related to you. 

Then write a compelling, individualized query letter and follow the agents’ instructions from their submission policies. (Do yourself a favor and check out Janet Reid’s Query Shark site https://queryshark.blogspot.com/. On second thought, don’t just check it out, devour it. Read the entire archive. Twice. Janet provides this valuable service for free, though really she could charge for it. And it would be worth the price. She gives tough love, but if you want to find an agent you should listen to Janet and listen good.)

So those are the things that I shouldn’t need to say. Once you’ve got those worked out, here’s a slightly easier road.

Use your connections if you’ve got ’em

Your chances of getting a yes from agents increase dramatically if you’ve been recommended by one of their clients. That’s how I signed on with my current agent. It didn’t hurt that she already knew me from conferences and—cough, cough—a few awards I’d won. I asked a fellow author for an e-mail intro, and the rest went off without a hitch. My new agent sold Bombay Monsoon in a few months. I’m very happy with our relationship. She’s always available for a call, always cheerful and encouraging. And always working.

Remember it’s better to have no agent at all than the wrong one

I found two agents the old-fashioned way: query letters and over the transom submissions. Then I found one using something of a shortcut. Don’t underestimate the power of a recommendation. It’s no guarantee, but it’s a leg up. That’s why networking and building your brand are so important. We may not like that side of the writing business, but it’s essential these days. Use your connections. But be prepared to pay it forward. 

No matter how you choose to approach an agent, there’s one sine qua non: 

You have to write a fine book first 

Then again, I shouldn’t need to say that.