Words for Writers

Business: How Do I Get An Agent?

If you read my previous chapter, about what a literary agent is and what they do, and you think you're ready to try to find one, it's now time to figure out how.

There are thousands of agents out there at any given time, but those thousands of agents are getting requests for representation from hundreds of would-be-writers every month. There's massive, massive competition for the attention of a single agent, and so the querying process has been developed to separate the wheat from the chaff, and help the agents find the authors with the talent, drive, and discipline that they want to represent. Agents can, therefore, afford to be picky.

The very  first thing that you should know is that agents sign clients on proven, tangible talent, not "what ifs" and "maybes" - you could have the best idea for a novel in the entire world, but if it's not down on paper, polished and complete, there's nothing there to actually read and evaluate. And then sell.

This is where a lot of writers first stumble – their first impression is awful. They don't finish and polish the manuscript, or they don't research the agents they're approaching enough and submit to the wrong agents, or their cover letters are horrendous. 

The agent-writer relationship is very important, and it's vital to find an agent who not only represents the kind of writing that the author is submitting at the moment, but also the sort of career they want to have – and the agent has to be excited about the writer's manuscript, too, and have the connections to sell it to the right publishing houses or manage the various rights. The agent and the writer have to like each other, and have to be able to maintain a professional relationship based on trust. They don't have to be friends, but they have to be able to get along.

It's also useful, but not necessary to have a handful of publications in short story anthologies, genre magazines, academic journals, newspapers, a completed thesis, a blog that you run and update consistently with a significant following, a series of popular fanfictions,  etc. prior to beginning the agent-search.

Basically, that completed manuscript and any other publications are proof that not only can you write, but that you can finish what you write. And that there are other people who believe your writing is good and like it - whether that's paid, or just a big number in terms of stats in a free-to-read medium like Wattpad or Archive of Our Own. You just need to prove that there have already been others who have invested in you and found your work worth publishing. This can include Wattpad stories, especially if the story is finished and you have a significant number of read stats and engagement.

Should I try to get an agent with my Wattpad Story?

Well, that's a tough question.

See, here's the thing: agents and publishers are in the business of making money. And a story that is already out there available for free to the reading public is, well, not making money. 

There are two times when I would say using your Wattpad Story on submission is a good idea: 

The first is if you have a highly polished and complete tale, that is relatively unknown on the site and has low reads. This way it can be pulled for polishing and submission.

And yes, I think that if you're going to submit with the story, you should delist it from Wattpad. Why? Because agents and publishers know how to use Google and if the book comes up and they find it for free elsewhere, then it's already out there and not something they can commodify.

(This is a personal opinion only, however. You do what you think is best.)

The second is the exact opposite - if the story is massively, hugely, incredibly popular. I'm talking like, "After" popular. Like, E.L. James "Fifty Shades of Grey"-back-when-it-was-still-a-fanfic popular. These kinds of stories, even though they've already been published online, have a massive, rabid, incredibly dedicated fanbase that is willing to purchase a book they've already read for the sheer fannish devotion. That's a book worth shopping around to agents because it's a guaranteed money-maker.