solace_aderyn | Publishers and Agents 101

Taken from an author asking for advice, and my reply. As always, details are confidential, and any advice is my opinion alone.

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I self-published my first title... I'm working on my 2nd and 3rd books now.

So far, I've been told:

1. Find an editor with good contacts with agents and publishers.
2. Find an agent with good contacts with editors and publishers.
3. Forget about it and keep building my platform and publicity.

When you're considering new titles, who do you generally work with? Agents? Editors? A combination of the two?

Are there particular agents or editors you prefer working with?

I’ll be happy to advise how I can!

The reason you’ve got confusing/conflicting advice is because almost all publishers have different requirements; they will offer differing advice on how to approach them rather than others, which then filters outside of the publishing environment. So sadly there’s no hard and fast rules, more general guidelines. However, I will give you as concrete advice as I can.

So. Firstly, congratulations on getting self-published – it’s not an easy process, but one that will teach you more practically about publishing than most other methods. You’ve got a book that’s been designed, typeset, printed and hopefully distributed – and now it needs to be sold, and that is by far the hardest part of publishing. It’s whether it can sell that makes it or breaks it for almost all publishers – and indeed agents.

Now, with this in mind, we’ll look at the advice you’ve been given.

1) In the UK at least, editors are largely tied to publishers. There are a few editors who will examine your book for a fee, but only a few, and given you’ve self-published, I personally wouldn’t try this route unless you’re willing to republish your book after you’ve received detailed feedback (an expensive process). An agent is primarily there to sell your work, but a good one will also help you to edit your work and get it the best you can, which leads to...

2) The Agents. Oh, this is well worth going for. As long as you’ve kept all rights to your book, approaching an agent with a self-published work will suit you fine. I will warn you that getting an agent is almost as hard as getting published, thanks to the “will this sell” factor rather than the quality of your work, but, nonetheless, it’s worth trying if you’ve had a good reaction to your work (see 3). JK Rowling was rejected nine times, and Bloomsbury almost didn’t take her on the basis her agent didn’t specialise in children’s fiction. A good agent will not be a friend or acquaintance who knows a bit about the publishing world. They will have at least five years’ experience in the field, and more often over ten. Any less, and it’s probable they just won’t have the contacts. A friend, though they may have kind intentions, will be biased favourably towards you rather than your work, and the lack of objectivity will often mean they won’t sell it as well as someone who just sees the work for what it is. Likewise, you have to promote your work as just the work: treat it like your child going to university. You’ve nurtured it throughout its conception, birth and growth, and now it’s time to let it go with an occasional contact to make sure things are going well.

3) This solely depends on how well your book has been received. If it looks like it will sell well – more than a thousand copies in six months is a good idea – then go for the agents, and indeed publishers who’ll accept unsolicited manuscripts (i.e. those without an agent). If it’s not proving as successful as you’d like, then work on getting yourself heard and noticed. That will give you excellent karma points when it comes to approaching someone with more professional clout and experience.

Even if you do go for the approach tactic, keep your website up to date if you have one. If you don’t, get one. An online presence is an extremely valuable tool.

When it comes to [My First Publishing House™], we accept primarily UK-based authors... About half our titles are unsolicited, and half by an agent. As for particular editors and agents, well, there’s no specific preference for us – if the work’s good, and we think it’s right for us, we take it on. But we are unusual in that respect.

The best thing to do when it comes to approaching is create a shortlist of publishers and/or agents who you think will like your work. Above all, do your research – use specific contact names with each submission. Look at similar titles and authors, and find out who published them. Write how you think it will sell in a proposal, and a synopsis, and include both with your book, as well as that you have other projects relating to this in progress. Be aware that unless you include an SAE that covers the cost of returning your book, the majority of publishers and agents will not send it back to you, in order to save on funds and postage. A wonderful source of contact details and advice for the UK, including on self-publishing, is in The Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook, updated and released every August. There should be a very similar title available in the States if you’re from there – just look under the Reference section of any good bookstore.

That’s the best advice I can give, I think. Hope it helps, and good luck!