Post by Amber Skye Forbes on Apr 2, 2014 15:33:02 GMT
Original post here.
A literary agent is someone who represents writers and submits their manuscripts to houses requiring agents. Some specialize in only certain types of works, while others may specialize in many.
If you want to get published by a large publishing house, like Bloomsbury or Harpercollins, a literary agent is necessary. Literary agents are the filters for the industry. Without literary agents, houses like the ones I mentioned above would be too swamped with manuscripts to ever get anything done on time. Even worse, we would probably have less books published per year if it weren’t for agents.
So what exactly do they do?
Editing. A lot of literary agents now work with their clients on revisions since the field of publishing has become so competitive. The manuscripts agents submit have to be perfect to attract the interest of an editor. Sometimes agents will work with you on revisions before offering representation. In these cases, the agent simply wants to know how well you work with him or her.
Submissions. Agents do not get paid to submit to editors. Their income depends on your advance and the sales of your book. They receive a certain percentage of each. But this is not easy. Agents themselves must network with other editors, must know which editors like what projects, continuously network, keep up with industry news, and constantly network, network, network. Networking is simply having connections with the right people. Agents do try to submit your project to the best editors, but at the end of the day, there is no certainty that those editors will like the project. Having an agent does not guarantee publication. Some agented manuscripts will never see the inside of a bookstore. Luckily, self-publishing has become a more viable route to fix this issue.
Negotiations. These only occur when your manuscript has an offer. One offer doesn’t mean you’re going to automatically go with that house. Accepting an offer depends on the terms of the offer and the dollar amount. If the publisher offers a measly advance and will not offer anything higher, sometimes that offer might be rejected, especially if the agent is confident your manuscript can receive better. If multiple houses are interested, an agent will conduct an auction. Whoever offers the best deal will be the winner.
Negotiating contracts. Some agents specialize in this, and some have in-house contracts specialists. They’ll negotiate clauses in your contracts to create a better deal for both you, the agent, and your book. An author without representation will have a much more difficult time doing this on his/her own, which is why research is important if you’re going with a house that doesn’t require an agent.
Subrights. Agents will try to retain the rights to such things as audio, film, and translation. Retaining these rights means that you don’t have to split revenue with the publisher.
Career adviser. Agents are vested in the advancement of your career, not only for the money but because they want you to succeed and want more work from you. They were passionate about book one, so they want to be passionate about book two. They can suggest what type of book you write next, can help you brainstorm, build your platform, give the you an inside glimpse into the industry, and in general help the you understand the business of publishing.
What literary agents are not:
Requiring reading fees. A reading fee is, well, a fee for submitting your work. Reputable agents do not charge this type of fee.
Requiring marketing fees, submission fees, or other types of fees for contract negotiations. If an agent requires ANY type of fee, back out.
Requiring writers to buy critique or manuscript assessment. This should not be a condition of representation.
Referrals to editing services that you don’t know about. Generally the agent should be the one editing your manuscript, but if he or she does submit your manuscript to other editorial services, you deserve to know those editorial services, especially because their reputation determines the quality of editing for your manuscript.
Running contests that win you the prize of paying for an editing service or going with a vanity press.
Coercing clients into buying adjunct services. These services can include your own website, illustrations, book cover mockups, space in a book catalog, and so on and so forth.
Fee-charging publishers. If an agent places you with a fee-charging publisher, run.
Overall, agents should not require ANY type of money from you for ANY service provided. Any agent or publisher forcing you to spend money on the publication of your manuscript is one to be avoided.
A literary agent is someone who represents writers and submits their manuscripts to houses requiring agents. Some specialize in only certain types of works, while others may specialize in many.
If you want to get published by a large publishing house, like Bloomsbury or Harpercollins, a literary agent is necessary. Literary agents are the filters for the industry. Without literary agents, houses like the ones I mentioned above would be too swamped with manuscripts to ever get anything done on time. Even worse, we would probably have less books published per year if it weren’t for agents.
So what exactly do they do?
Editing. A lot of literary agents now work with their clients on revisions since the field of publishing has become so competitive. The manuscripts agents submit have to be perfect to attract the interest of an editor. Sometimes agents will work with you on revisions before offering representation. In these cases, the agent simply wants to know how well you work with him or her.
Submissions. Agents do not get paid to submit to editors. Their income depends on your advance and the sales of your book. They receive a certain percentage of each. But this is not easy. Agents themselves must network with other editors, must know which editors like what projects, continuously network, keep up with industry news, and constantly network, network, network. Networking is simply having connections with the right people. Agents do try to submit your project to the best editors, but at the end of the day, there is no certainty that those editors will like the project. Having an agent does not guarantee publication. Some agented manuscripts will never see the inside of a bookstore. Luckily, self-publishing has become a more viable route to fix this issue.
Negotiations. These only occur when your manuscript has an offer. One offer doesn’t mean you’re going to automatically go with that house. Accepting an offer depends on the terms of the offer and the dollar amount. If the publisher offers a measly advance and will not offer anything higher, sometimes that offer might be rejected, especially if the agent is confident your manuscript can receive better. If multiple houses are interested, an agent will conduct an auction. Whoever offers the best deal will be the winner.
Negotiating contracts. Some agents specialize in this, and some have in-house contracts specialists. They’ll negotiate clauses in your contracts to create a better deal for both you, the agent, and your book. An author without representation will have a much more difficult time doing this on his/her own, which is why research is important if you’re going with a house that doesn’t require an agent.
Subrights. Agents will try to retain the rights to such things as audio, film, and translation. Retaining these rights means that you don’t have to split revenue with the publisher.
Career adviser. Agents are vested in the advancement of your career, not only for the money but because they want you to succeed and want more work from you. They were passionate about book one, so they want to be passionate about book two. They can suggest what type of book you write next, can help you brainstorm, build your platform, give the you an inside glimpse into the industry, and in general help the you understand the business of publishing.
What literary agents are not:
Requiring reading fees. A reading fee is, well, a fee for submitting your work. Reputable agents do not charge this type of fee.
Requiring marketing fees, submission fees, or other types of fees for contract negotiations. If an agent requires ANY type of fee, back out.
Requiring writers to buy critique or manuscript assessment. This should not be a condition of representation.
Referrals to editing services that you don’t know about. Generally the agent should be the one editing your manuscript, but if he or she does submit your manuscript to other editorial services, you deserve to know those editorial services, especially because their reputation determines the quality of editing for your manuscript.
Running contests that win you the prize of paying for an editing service or going with a vanity press.
Coercing clients into buying adjunct services. These services can include your own website, illustrations, book cover mockups, space in a book catalog, and so on and so forth.
Fee-charging publishers. If an agent places you with a fee-charging publisher, run.
Overall, agents should not require ANY type of money from you for ANY service provided. Any agent or publisher forcing you to spend money on the publication of your manuscript is one to be avoided.