What I'd tell you on an author call: Agent edition

This is only the *most important decision* you'll ever make as an author

Photo by Solstice Hannan on Unsplash

Ok we’ve talked advice about the querying process. What if you asked me for a call because you’ve received some offers from agents and you’re deciding between them? Or what if you have an agent but you’re thinking of jumping ship? Or what if you’re making your agent list and you need to know what qualities are important when you do have to make the decision? The below should apply to all of you. No-holds-barred, I’m going to tell you what I really think here.

Important to note: I’ve broken up with my own agent of many years, and then found one I’m absolutely obsessed with and who has literally changed my life; I’ve encouraged friends to leave their agents for greener pastures; I am always the *biggest advocate* for authors being treated well by their representation. And I love agents, I truly do! But keep this all in mind as you read: all this advice is from the perspective of the author. Not the publisher, not the agency, but the storyteller. Because writers, at the end of the day, have the least amount of protection and security in these matters. And we need to advocate for each other.

No agent is better than a bad agent

I have to say this first because I really mean it. An agent is like your manager, your accountant, your lawyer, your confidant wrapped into one. The deals they get, the contracts they have you sign, the ideas they encourage you to pursue, are the key element that sets you up for success, financial and otherwise.

Publishing is unfortunately a self-fulfilling business. How your first book does can (doesn’t always but *can*) influence future deals, future orders from the big bookseller accounts, future opportunities. This doesn’t mean that your first book sets everything—there are ways around it—rebranding, changing genres, changing names, coming up with an idea that’s so good everyone ignores your track—but realistically, it’s best to start strong if you can. You want an agent who can set you up for the sort of career you want to have.

I know it can start to feel like anyone will be better than no one. You just need an agent. To make that social media post announcing that you are out of the query trenches. But let me tell you. I’ve signed bad contracts, more than once. It’s not good—and it has years-long repercussions for your career. I didn’t have an agent who could tell me not to, who had the capacity to argue better for me, or who envisioned my career in the way that I did. Now I do.

You want a good agent.

So what makes a good one?

They’re not a scammer.

First things first, anyone who asks for money upfront is a scam artist. Run and don’t look back.

They have a track record of the kind of deals for the kind of genre you write (or have a clear plan to get them).

This is hugely important. If an agent can ink impressive deals for literary fiction but you write romantasy, they’re simply not a good fit for you. Their name should be on publicly recorded deals (you can check Publisher’s Marketplace for this and subscribe for one month or so while querying or share a membership with a friend) that are at the financial level/type of publisher you’re seeking, and at least one of those should be in your genre.

But wait, does that mean we’re discriminating against new agents? Everyone has to start somewhere, right? Yes and no. If you choose an agent with little to no track, they need to have a mentor or co-agent at their agency that is going to help them get there. And many do. The point is, they need a clear plan that they can articulate on how to sell your book.

They’re a shark.

I know this will ruffle feathers, but bear with me. There’s a lot of advice out there that’s along the lines of “I don’t want a shark I want someone nice or I want someone editorial, etc., etc.” From what I’ve seen this is the kind of thing that gets said to excuse agents not being very good in their specific area. It reminds me of that advice that says you don’t want a big book deal because a small one gives you more of a chance of earning out (it really doesn’t). This advice gets passed around to keep writers from expecting fair compensation and living wages, IMHO.

Listen: a shark doesn’t mean that they aren’t nice (my agent is one of the kindest in the business) or that they don’t have editorial know-how, or that they won’t answer your calls. It means that they fight for you, that publishers respect them, that their starting offers for these agents are higher than for others. It means they’re good at their jobs. No, not everyone is cut out for going to bat over contracts and advances and what have you, but agents should be able to, or they’re in the wrong business.

They’re a good communicator.

Another lie I was told before I found a great agent was that if you did have a shark, they wouldn’t be as available to you. Funny thing is, my top-tier agent is way more communicative than my first agent was. Even though she has way bigger clients and deals than my last one did, she gets back to me in a timely manner (or later explains what was going on) at every single instance. Different agents will have different styles. Some might try and respond that day, some in a few days, some a week, but the situation should be upfront and clear. When you reach out to your agent, you should have a pretty good idea of how soon they’ll get back to you.

They’re not afraid to tell you the truth.

Okay, this is absolutely huge. Sugar-coating (which my first agent did a lot) doesn’t do anyone any favors when your career and finances are on the line. I appreciate that my current agent will say, kindly, “yeah, the publisher isn’t doing very much here” or “I don’t think this idea is working.” Then I can know how to feel about it and strategize accordingly.

They direct you toward marketable ideas.

Also very important. An agent isn’t just the person who sells your ideas. They’re the person who helps you decide which ideas are worth pursuing. Do you want someone to say “oh no keep writing” to spare your feelings if they really don’t think they can sell it? My agent 100 percent respects that the creative process is mine but also tells me when I have a home-run or a punt. And I feel that’s a huge part of why I’ve been able to stay in this business, despite an up-and-down track record.

Your creativity should always be yours, but it’s your agent’s job to give you a reading on the market as they understand it and let you make the choice of what to pursue from there.

They’ve got the contacts.

The best agents are often based in NYC (or have the means to get there frequently enough to make connections). This business is mostly run out of the city and face-to-face pitching is always going to be more compelling than an email. For example, my agent hints and loose-pitches my ideas for months ahead of making her phone calls and officially going out on sub. She knows exactly who is the right editor at each imprint and house and primes them to get excited, often while I’m still writing!

The other side of that is it is a numbers game to a point. If your agent only knows six to eight editors well enough to call up and pitch, what do you do if those six say no?

They get yeses and nos.

This is a big red flag and one I never realized early on in my career: I would be out on sub and have many, many editors who I simply never heard back from. At the time I blamed myself (I just wasn’t good enough! The idea was trash!) but now, looking back, I realize my agent simply didn’t have the contacts. She was essentially cold-pitching many of the editors on our list, and so it was no surprise I wouldn’t hear back.

They’re are upfront and honest.

I have heard horror stories of authors not even knowing what editors have their book, what point they’re at in the sub process, what the responses have been. It’s totally fine if an author doesn’t want to know to protect their mental health (and a good agent should check with you about how much communication you want during the tender sub process), but if you ask and they say they won’t tell you, well they better have a darn good reason, because I really can’t think of one.

They have the same vision for your career that you do.

You want to be a massive bestseller? Get you an agent who sees a path to that. You want to be a literary darling, more focused on prizes than gaining a spot on a Target shelf? Same applies. There are many different career paths here. You need an agent who sees you as you see yourself (if not even better). No, they should absolutely not be making promises they can’t keep but they should be excited and see a path toward at least trying like hell to get the career that you want.

You like them.

Okay, this last reason is maybe the most important, in the end. This is someone you’re going to talk to regularly, who is going to read your raw-est work, who you may cry to (I have many times), who will be breaking good and bad news to you over and over again. The personality has to be a good fit, or else you'll be miserable. And this is a relationship that should hopefully last you many years.

What do y’all think are key things to consider when choosing an agent? Any I missed? Any you disagree with? Let me know!

Happy reading, writing and querying!

Leah