Literary agent?

[Veggie3]

Dear forumites,

I'm a tenured associate professor at a large R-1 university. I'm in the process of completing my second book manuscript (fingers crossed to complete everything by March/April), and would love to hear people's experience with a literary agent. There is a thread about it from 2019, but it did not relate to some of my concerns.

My first book was published by a good university press (though not Oxbridge or any of the Ivies), but they contacted me first, so I have no experience in courting various publishers. I think that my book has a certain commercial potential, and it might ruffle some feathers in my small subfield of island basket weaving. Hopefully it will be well received by the larger field (say, mainland basket weavers).

Is it ok to send a pitch simultaneously to several publishers AND to few agents?
Will an agent (or a contract with a commercial publisher) help to publicize the book better?
I'd like to have the book come out initially as paperback at a reasonable price (read less than $40). Is that something an agent would assist with?

I managed to get a couple of prestigious international fellowships to write this book, and I'd like it to be a springboard to move perhaps to another place or at least negotiate better terms at my current university. Thus, I'm trying not to "blow it" at this stage.


Thank you in advance and happy 2023,

V.

[Parasaurolophus]

I don't have an you experience to share, but you might find this blog post helpful.

[bacardiandlime]

Agents are obviously focused on getting books into mainstream presses. Definitely send your pitch to a few if you think it has that kind of potential.

Most commercial publishers won't look at pitches that are NOT via agents.

As for publicity etc: many writers find these days they are largely on their own (even with commercial presses). A lot of the publicity stuff has been cut back, so you'll be organising your own reading in a local bookstore etc.

Pricing for paperbacks etc is something to worry about once you have a contract.

Edit to add: do you know anyone in your field with an agent? Check out the acknowledgments pages of books in your area, see if they thank one. Agents often like to work in particular fields so that might help you find one.

[Ruralguy]

i don't have an agent, but I can say that, yes, you can pitch to multiple publishers and agents. Be aware though that some publishers act fairly quickly (believe it or not!) so you will probably want to get an agent first.

Price is usually determined  on some combination of  length, whether or not it is  mass market paperback, and related to those, how much it will sell.  My one 250-300 or so page paperback usually sells for something in the twenties from the publisher, and more like just about 20 from retailers. Electronic goes for less that 10.  I get a 10% cut on actual *sales* price.  But I'll be honest: I'm not going to retire early based on book proceeds, even if I get my second book out before I retire. My gut tells me that most agents will want to negotiate up the royalties since they'll probably get paid based on some cut of your cut. This is why many won't touch you unless they are sure it will sell well. However, there may be some fee-based agents out there.

[Veggie3]

Thank you all for your replies.

@Parasaurolophus - that link does not work.

@bacardiandlime - thank you for those points. No, I don't know anyone who worked with an agent, but I'll keep looking for people with books in one of the largest commercial publishers.

Isn't pricing and paperback vs. hardcover part of the negotiation before signing the contract?

@Ruralguy - your book is listed at a very reasonable price. My first book came out only in hardcover and costs about $45.


That brings me to the question of publication subvention. A colleague told me that sometimes publisher are willing to lower the price if you throw in a grant to help defray costs. Is that legitimate, especially if you do it out of your own pocket?


V.

[Ruralguy]

Subvention is legitimate, but that's completely the opposite of something marketable. The publisher knows it will only sell to libraries and a few experts, they are a smallish press with some reputation, but don't have a lot of cash on hand. So, putting in some upfront cash helps defray some costs, and I guess thus can reduce price of the book. Don't do it for a book you think will sell, and definitely don't tell an agent you are thinking of it or they'll run for the hills. If you do this, try to use college/university money. Some (not all of course) will provide some funds for subvention.

[Parasaurolophus]

Thank you all for your replies.

@Parasaurolophus - that link does not work.

Weird.

I've fixed it now.

[bacardiandlime]

Isn't pricing and paperback vs. hardcover part of the negotiation before signing the contract?

Sometimes, but you're still putting the cart before the horse here. Get your agent first.

And yes, as ruralguy said: subvention = the book is a loss-maker. An agent isn't interested in making 15% of nothing. Your approach to them has to be that this book will have a market.

[Wahoo Redux]

Agents are notoriously hard to land.  We had one come speak to my graduate cohort and she said, "In twenty years of being an agent, I have only accepted one cold-call submission."  Her stable was exclusively comprised of writers that she recruited after reading their work somewhere else.  Now, this agent sold literary fiction, so perhaps it is different for non-fiction.  Still, agents only get paid if they sell your book, and they only get commission and promotion if your book sells. 

It might help if we knew a bit more about what kind of book you are writing (it sounds like a non-fiction academic book that has some commercial crossover appeal?).  Still, I think the dynamic is always the same regarding agents.

There is some art to writing a cover letter for an agency.  There are a ton of blogs and examples out there.  You might take some time to read these and spend some time on the letter itself.  The wisdom / mythology about agents is that they receive thousands of queries a year and will immediately ditch any letter that does not catch their attention right away. 

Many writers from many genres use Poets and Writers Literary Agents database.

You can also simply Google, "Literary Agents, Hollywood Basket Weaving."

Make sure the agent sells your particular subject area.  Often agents specialize.

Read carefully what the agent wants.  Some want a letter and nothing more; some want a letter plus 20 pages; some what two chapters, etc.  It is kind of like applying for a job. 

Query as many agents as you can stand----they are notorious for not responding at all if they are not interested.

Best of luck.

[Hegemony]

To get a literary agent for a non-fiction book you need a subject that has the potential of a huge readership, and generally you need a "platform." A platform is an already-established reputation, for instance having a million followers on social media (not exaggerating here, I really mean a million), or a TV show, or a string of high-profile publications (New York Times, New Yorker, etc.), or some kind of similar track record of prominence. Occasionally nifty ideas from a more obscure author make it into the publishing queue, but you have to work hard. Landing an agent is as hard as writing the book, sometimes harder. There are many books and websites about the process. Have a look at a few of those and see if it's something you want to undertake. It has a better chance to success to do this as a "I am determined to take this next step" kind of endeavor rather than "If I have a little spare time I'll try it out." Writing successful books for a popular audience is a very demanding enterprise.

[Veggie3]

Again, thank you all for your responses.

@Ruralguy - yes, absolutely, publication subvention is kind of a last resort, in case there is little interest by publishers.

@Wahoo Redux - thank you for the links. I began doing such a mapping of non-fiction agents, but have not contacted them yet. My book is about racial imagery and vocabulary in a particular context of time and place.

@Hegemony - the term "overstatement" just called and asked if you could kindly reduce your usage of it. When I look at my footnotes, many authors who published with Macmillan/Palgrave, Norton, HarperCollins, and others do not even come close to your yardsticks. Of course academic non-fiction does not sell a fraction of what successful fiction does, and I'm not aiming at some pie in the sky. If it'll work out - hurrah! If not, I'll move on to academic publishers.

V.

[Hegemony]

Veggie3, I gather you think I don't know what I'm talking about. I worked in publishing for a number of years, and I know many non-fiction writers and agents. The proposal package you put together will ask you about your marketing plan and your platform. For instance, this is from an online site on writing a non-fiction book proposal:

"Platform

What platform do you have to generate publicity or visibility for your book? Answers might include large followings on social media, a regular broadcast presence, or a position as a columnist in a major national newspaper or magazine."

https://jerichowriters.com/non-fiction-how-to-write-a-nonfiction-book-proposal-with-examples/

Every site on the same subject will have the same information. If you want to sell your book to a commercial publisher, you would be wise to start developing your platform. If you think that doesn't apply to you, I am reminded of the saying "Many people fail because they conclude that fundamentals simply do not apply in their case."  So, if you can swing it without a platform, good luck and take it away.

[Hibush]

I just read an interesting description of the current state of agent-getting from a moderately successful writer.  from someone who was trying to get an agent. Some of the observations reflect how uneven the terrain is, in ways you might not predict but make sense in retrospect.

• Most agencies are still in NYC.  Almost none accepted mailed submissions, but the majority still feel the need to be physically present in the same city where the majority of publishers reside.
• 
  There don't seem to be medium sized agencies.  Agencies seemed to be either large with a bunch of agents or one, two, or three person shops.  I suspect, but again, cannot prove, that this mirrors the publishing industry in general.  Either you are a huge blockbuster, or you are scrapping by at the back.  If you are an agency, you either have a list with enough millionaire authors to make you a huge winner, or you are desperately searching for the next such author.
• 
  Most agents emphasized "own voices".  In this case, though, "own voices" was expressed almost exclusively in terms of identity -- race, sexual identity, etc.  Lower/working class was not considered to be an underrepresented category.

To what extent are these true for non-fiction?

[Veggie3]

@Hegemony - I do not doubt for a minute the much higher bar of securing representation by an agent and signing with one of the larger commercial publishers. Yet I know several non-fiction writers who managed to land such book contracts without what you define as a platform. Their books did not even sell that well, but certain publishers were willing to bet on them.

@Hibush - Yes, the "own voices" aspect is quite significant today, and that's one of the things I'm working on right now.