Who here has an agent?

A long time, a very long time

It took me more than 3 years of actively searching to get an agent. I met with 13 of them face-to-face during that time, at 4 writing conferences. Two agents actually read my first three chapters, and one read my entire manuscript. That one liked it, but wanted extensive changes and I knew if I made them, the manuscript wouldn't be what I'd intended, so I passed. The 13th agent, a fairly big name, told me that he could tell I was just starting out in my writing career (even though I'd been working on that manuscript for nearly five years).

Then, lo and behold, a friend read it, and connected me with a NY agent (#14), who liked it (without mainline revisions), and sold the story in a few weeks, via an auction. (The same version that #13 disparaged, by the way)

So sometimes that's what it takes, lots of time, endless revisions, and dumb luck. I do admit that the work got stronger and stronger over the years.
And that's also why you should never pay too much attention to what any agent tells you. Of the 13 that read my stuff, I got some of the following comments:

1. too violent
2. not enough action
3. too much sex
4. not enough sex
5. too long (they did all agree on that one, I must say)
6. too boring
7. not enough women
8. not a likeable hero
9. chapters too long
10. not marketable
11. not ‘au currant’
12. too wordy, too dense (I think she meant I used too many words, like Mozart's notes? I took it as a compliment)
13. never make a movie (the ms is circulating in Hollywood now)
14. badly written (I can see you're just learning how to write)
15. starts out too slow
16. needs editing
17. wrong font (Times New Roman, 12 pt)
    [*]uninteresting characters
    [*]uninteresting period
    

I use this list to explain to people why you need a good (repeat: good) critique group. They're the only ones who can tell you the truth about your work. Agents look at your work through their narrow lens of what particular editors at what specific publishing houses they have contacts with. When you're just starting you, the tendency is to think that all agents are all powerful, with equal connections to the real players at the publishing houses.

That's not really true, especially for agents out of the New York scene.
So most agents really just submit your work to the 3-4 editors they know, sequentially, and hope for the best. That's why it can take an agent a year to sell your work, since each editor may take 2-3 months just to review it and get back to the submitting agent.

In that time, I found that the best feedback I received came from published authors, whom I met at the conferences in reading sessions, etc.

So don't get discouraged. They say it takes an average of 5 years to sell your first book, assuming it's actually marketable.
eskkar

I do. It took three books and two years. But the third book was the charm--it got me multiple agent offers, so I think it was a combination of (hopefully) strong writing and the right time for this sort of story in the marketplace. (At least, I hope so...I'm on submission now, so we'll see.)

agent

DivaNicoletta said:

Who here has an an agent? If so how long did it take to get them, and how did you get them to take you on?

Click to expand...

I have an agent. I've had several agents, in fact. I don't know whatto say about the rest. I've never had a problem getting an agent. As for how I got them to take me on, the same way every writer does, I guess. You send them somethng they think will sell. This seems to be what it always boils down to. If they really believe your work will sell, they represent it. If they don't believe it will sell, they refuse to represent it.

I also have an agent. It took nearly four months from the completion of my book to the offer of representation. I polished my manuscript as best I could, composed a good query, and set it free.

I recently changed my agent. My first agent was a nice old gentlemen whom I got on with very well.

edited some stuff out that I think should be kept private. sorry!