By Evan J
Photo by Evan J
New authors often ask me, “How do I acquire a literary agent?” It strikes me as strange that the question is not phrased, “Do I need a literary agent?” Why is it assumed that a literary agent is a necessary step on the road to publication? My guess is that it is due to the frequent depictions of literary agents in popular film and television. Regardless, here’s a few responses for these new authors.
The short answer:
You don’t acquire a literary agent. If your work is good enough, and you publish a great book or two, at that point a literary agent will find you.
The long answer:
You don’t need a literary agent. But if you want one, then, by all means, try to get one. Literary agents can be incredibly helpful.
Literary agents are essentially assistants. They promote the work of their authors. They offer career development advice. They keep a keen eye on publishing trends and advise their authors on this information accordingly. And they can offer editorial feedback on an author’s work.
But literary agents should not be something that any Canadian author, new or established, should worry about acquiring.
The literary industry is financially malnourished, and with such little money to go around, there exist very few literary agents—far fewer than there are good authors. So even if you want a literary agent, and your work is stellar, it will still be difficult to get one.
Furthermore, many successful authors never acquire a literary agent. Instead, they’ve found a publisher and editor that work well with them, and they’ve spent their career utilizing these relationships for their literary needs instead of leaning on the expertise of a literary agent.
Additionally, many authors just don’t want a literary agent. Agents earn a living through a percentage of their authors’ sales, and many authors would rather not give anyone a cut.
How do I get a literary agent?
Literary agents need to make money too. Therefore, most literary agents aren’t acquiring authors until they are a few steps into their careers. For literary agents, it’s not worth investing in an author unless there’s proof that the author’s work is respected, that their books have a sizeable and growing audience, and that the author is ambitious.
If you are already a few steps into your career and you'd like a literary agent, but literary agents are still not flocking your way, then look for literary agents that accept submissions.
Similar to a publisher, literary agents often accept manuscript submissions. Unfortunately, literary agents also receive tons of submissions, almost always require complete manuscripts, and have little time to judge a manuscript's quality. So make sure that the manuscript is perfect before you send it out.
Can you just hire a literary agent?
You can, but it’s unusual. There are not many for-hire literary agents out there, and if you do find one, they’ll likely come with a subpar reputation. It would also be unlikely for a publisher to give these agents the time of day.
What if I’m a poet?
Unless you also write prose, literary agents can't take you on. There’s such little money in poetry that it’s just not worth a literary agent’s time.
Note: The opinions shared in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Cloud Lake Literary. As always, do your research and do what’s best for your writing.