Information & Advice
Do I Need A Literary Agent?
If you are a poet, the author of occasional pieces for magazines or a compiler of local histories then probably not. Agents are interested in authors who make money. Poets generally don’t. But if you are a new novelist (or even a not so new novelist), the author of a book of criticism or some other non–fiction work, or a biographer then an agent could get you into places that alone you’d never reach.
Literary agents sit between author and publisher. They handle the business side of things, negotiate contracts, and handle rights. Their greatest claim to fame is, of course, that they can actually find a publisher for you in the first place. If your work is saleable (and they’ll tell you if it isn’t) then an Agent will find it an appropriate home. Agents are nearly all based in London, close to the heart of UK English-language publishing. They know the market, know where the gaps are, know who sells and who doesn’t, and understand the requirements of publishers’ commissioning editors.
What do they charge? Good ones will charge you nothing up front - no reading fees, no joining fee - but they will expect commission on work placed and that will be in the range of 10% to 12.5%.
Can I have more than one Agent? It’s not really desirable practise but there’s no regulation against it.
Will they help me with personal appearances? Some Agents specialise in this but you need to have a good product to sell before they’ll take you on.
In Wales we have a small, independent publishing industry where everyone knows everyone. Well, mostly. As a result there are no Agents in the conventional sense. London-based Literary Agents will place a work with a Welsh publisher if they feel that is appropriate.
How do I find one? There are decent listings in both Macmillan’s The Writer’s Handbook and in A&C Black’s Writer’s & Artist’s Yearbook. Approach them by letter, include your CV and some samples of your work. If you have a complete novel then send a synopsis along with a sample chapter. If you have a proposal for a non-fiction work that you have yet to actually write then include an outline along with some supporting information which explains why you are best person to write this book. Follow the advise on mss submission and wait. Don’t pester. Don’t chase. If they turn you down then look somewhere else.
I only write poetry and short stories. Is there an Agent somewhere for me? Probably not. Conventional wisdom says that short fiction will sell so long as you get a novel out first and that poetry never does. Not in sufficient quantity anyway. There are always exceptions to this rule but generally Agents don’t make them.
But the Academi is an Agent, isn’t it? Not really. The Academi is The Welsh National Literature Promotion Agency which is rather different. We do offer a host of services for writers ranging from providing information to manuscript appraisal. But we don’t deal with publishers on author’s behalf.