Do you need to find an editor first, or an agent? Or can an agend act as both? I'm sure there's a thread on this somewhere, but my brain has vacated the premesis, and I can't remember. A redirect would be most appreciated!
Posted by Alethea Kontis (Member # 3748) on :
It all depends on what you're doing, how you want to do it, and how much you're willing to put up with.
Mostly, as long as you pick a direction and go in it, it's not the wrong direction.
Posted by Survivor (Member # 213) on :
Generally, a good publisher will provide a copy-editor to go over anything you sell them.
Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
If the editor will only look at agented submissions, you may need to find an agent first.
If the editor will only look at solicited submissions (ones the editor has asked for), you can write a query letter, describing your book, and ask if the editor would like to see it. Then if the editor writes back and says, "yes, please," your book has been solicited and you send it to the editor. And then, if the editor says they want to buy it, you whoop and holler (something editors like to hear, so be sure you do it so they can hear you), and then you tell the editor that you will have your agent contact them.
Then you go to the list of agents that you have made (because, of course, you have done your homework and know which agents you'd like to have represent you, right?), and you call the first one and say that editor so-and-so wants to buy your book, would agent #1 like to represent you? If the agent says, yes, you're set. If the agent says he or she isn't taking on new clients right now, you call agent #2. And so on.
If there aren't any editors who will consider solicited manuscripts (but only editors who will only consider agented manuscripts), then you send query letters to the agents on your list, and so on.
An agent can send a manuscript to several editors and set up an auction (something writers can't do) and get a better deal for you than you could get with only one editor interested in buying your book, so that's one reason to try to get an agent before you get an editor.
As Alethea Kontis said, it depends.
Posted by autumnmuse (Member # 2136) on :
I'm assuming we're talking novels here, not short stories. Agents can also often have more inside information about specific publishers and editors. For example, they may happen to know that editor A at publishing house B really likes novels with a horror twist, while editor C can't stand them. The average author isn't privy to this kind of info, so agents are very useful there. Agents can also be a useful buffer layer between an author and publishing company. No matter how much an editor likes your work, he is ultimately on the side of the company, not yours. Agents are on your side.
Can you tell that I am in favor of agents?
There ARE times when you don't need an agent. Perhaps you are aiming at small press, or have a niche market book that doesn't have a large audience. Anytime the advance is likely to be small to nil, you are less likely to find and/or need an agent. However, that said, even if you plan on signing a contract on your own, it's a very very good idea to get an agent or contract lawyer to help review it at least, since again, all publishers are on their own side, not yours, and their standard contracts are always in their favor, and usually somewhat negotiable.
And, an argument for subbing directly to an editor might be that you met some at a conference and they expressed interest in your work. In that case you should go ahead and send to them, since your manuscript is now requested.
Hope that helps.
Posted by Robert Nowall (Member # 2764) on :
I was always afraid it would be a Catch-22 situation: you couldn't get an agent without having a few sales, but you can't sell anything unless you have an agent.
I haven't looked for an agent and have stuck with the over-the-transom routine---but I've sold squat-zip-zero-nada-zilch, too, so maybe that's not the way to go.
I wouldn't expect an agent to be an editor---the agent might advise, or perhaps critique, or perhaps know what changes should be made to make something marketable. But the nitty-and-gritty of it should be between you and an editor.
Getting a contract lawyer to review your contract was mentioned above. Important: get your own, not through an agent or editor. You will want one that represents your interest---if you rely on, say, the agent's lawyer, he'll represent the agent's interests, not yours.
Posted by Lynda (Member # 3574) on :
So y'all are saying going straight to the publishers isn't a good idea, huh? Unless you're aiming at small press?
I have a novel that will be ready to send out soon. I tried querying agents in the fall when I THOUGHT my novel was ready to go (a writing conference later, I saw that it wasn't! It's now being critiqued on a writing site). Then I thought it might just be smarter to approach publishers. Now you're saying I should approach an EDITOR first? How do you find good editors? The WD guidebooks list publishers or literary agents, not editors (that I've noticed so far). Or maybe I've just missed that listing?? Suggestions are welcome!
Lynda
Posted by Mig (Member # 3318) on :
When Kathleen wrote that you should call the first agent on your list, I think she should have written "write a query letter" to the agents on your list. My understanding is that agents don't accept writers for representation based on telephone calls. Here is a great website with lists of agents with links to their websites and submission guidlines. It also explains the process and provides excellent advise on how to draft a query letter to an agent. http://www.agentquery.com/default.aspx Posted by Beth (Member # 2192) on :
Lynda, editors (in this context) work for publishers. They're the people at the publishing house who read submissions. (though, more likely, it's their assistants or interns who give things the first reading.)
Posted by Survivor (Member # 213) on :
I thought she was talking about someone who's job was to edit the manuscript, not someone who's job is to decide which stories to buy. I suppose that needs to be cleared up...or not, since both the copy editor and the market editor work for the publisher...in other words you get both of them by submitting to a market. Well, you get both of them if the market buys your story. I suppose that if it dies at the hands of the slushkillers, you don't get either Posted by Beth (Member # 2192) on :
I guess Lynda could submit stories to the copy editor if she wanted. but, perhaps, submitting to acquisitions editors is more effective.
Posted by J (Member # 2197) on :
I'd like to hijack this thread for the limited purposes of offering my services as a contract / agency / intellectual property attorney . Of course, I'm in a federal government job at the moment, and am prohibited from taking on private clients until February of 2008. But if anyone needs an attorney 14 months from now, you know who to call.
Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
When you have an editor interested in publishing your manuscript, you don't have time to send a query letter to an agent. That's why I said to call the first agent on your list.
If you don't have an editor interested in publishing your manuscript, then, yes, query letters are the way to go.
Also, I was talking about acquiring editors, the ones who decide to acquire manuscripts for the publisher they work for.
Sorry I was so hard to understand.
Posted by Mig (Member # 3318) on :
Kathleen, your advice is different from the advice I've read on this issue in articles, including from some agent blogs. Your's is the first advice I've read that encouraged a telephone query. You may be right, but your advice seems counter-intuitive to me. I've never seen a listing for an agent that accepts telephone queries, but if you're going to call an agent you should first check to confirm whether they accept telephone queries. As for timing, I've read there is time after a publisher expresses interest in your work for you to accquire an agent, and that if you state in your query that a publisher is ready to sign you up, the process of acquiring an agent also improves considerably. You should state in your query the name of the publisher and the editor you are working with so that the agent can confirm what you've written. To me, all this stresses the importance of getting an agent early and making that the first priority (after finishing your novel, that is).
Posted by MommaMuse (Member # 3622) on :
So it looks like the best bet is to find the agent foist. Excellent. I have a few that I like the look of, and they're names that I've heard good things about, and there are a couple that represent writers I like, so this is good! Thanks for the tips. I'm not quite ready to publish, but I'm getting there. Hopefully by July 2007 I will be sending out the MS! An acceptance letter would be a nice birthday pressie! LOL
Thanks again! I hope this thread will be helpful to someone else, too!
Posted by Kathleen Dalton Woodbury (Member # 59) on :
Mig, you're right about not telephoning agents in general.
It's not a bad idea to call an agent's office (or a publisher's office, either) to talk to a receptionist and find out how to spell a name correctly, or what the proper job title is for the individual you wish to address a letter to (editors and agents are notorious for not staying at the same place very long, and it's always good to check).
I recommended a phone call because editors use phone calls to let authors know they are interested in publishing an author's manuscript. When they get to that point, things can speed up, and if you can call an agent (or an agent's office) to see if you can arrange for representation, the sooner you can get that going the better.
A phone call is only okay when you've got a solid offer (the agent doesn't have to do the selling part so it's a slightly different situation from trying to get an agent first).
A phone call is also quicker than mailing one query at a time to a list of agents (especially if the first few agents you query can't take you on, and you have to wait to hear that before mailing a query to the next agent--this is one time where multiple queries would not be a good idea).
What's at stake here is a "polite fiction" that you already have an agent when the editor calls to make you an offer on your manuscript. You really don't want to try to negotiate that offer yourself, but you don't want to make the editor wait too long to get it negotiated either. So you use the phone.
But it has to be a solid offer, and you have to have already done your homework and found out as much as you can about the agents on your list before you make any calls.
Best of all would be if you can honestly say "this author you represent told me to call you" or "when I met you at such-and-such writers conference, you told me to let you know when I received an offer on my book." (That kind of homework is the best of all.)
