What is a 'dream agent'?

And me with no experience at all with agents. At this point, a dream agent is anyone who likes my book enough to take it on. Period.

Best of luck to you, though. I hope you find Agent McDreamy.

When I started sending stuff out to agents, I started with agents who represented authors whose work I really like and which is similar to mine in style / genre. (ie. Ive a mystery novel, so I looked for teh agents of all my famous mystery writers.)

After that, I just started from the top at A and worked my way towards Z.

Edit: Oh and other than that, I'm with CaroGirl -- my dream agent is the one that wants ot represent me. And is a memeber of the Professional Association of Literary Agents, or whatever it's called.

I think "dream agent" gets bandied about a lot to mean those uber agents like William Morris. These agents have the ability to pitch to the top (senior?) editors and whatnot, and land the major deals without even batting an eyelash.

That's only one definition, though. A dream agent could, as has been stated, be the agent that's right for you. Certainly you should research to see what the agent has sold. You might also want to google potential agents to dig up info on their personalities and business styles, as those factors may enter into your definition of "dream agent" as well.

Good luck!

Prawn said:

Thanks CaroGirl. I want to make a list and start querying at the top, but I don't have any criteria for ordering the list. I guess that's what I am asking for in this thread.
P

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Ah, well, in terms of intelligently targetting potential agents, number one criterion is to make sure the agent handles your genre. Next, I think it's very important to read the list of authors each agent represents. Even, if possible, read some of the books on the list. Your query has much better chance of success if you send it to the right agent.

In my country, where I would prefer to get published, the list of agents who handle my genre is v. small. I will likely send to all of them and then cross my fingers and wait.

Best of luck!

Sorry are you asking for what the definition of a dream agent is, or are you asking people who their specific dream agents are? I think you may be asking the latter, and I can definitely tell you you will not get a straightforward answer, because there isn't one (trust me I tried).

CaroGirl said:

And me with no experience at all with agents. At this point, a dream agent is anyone who likes my book enough to take it on. Period.

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Ditto. Basically it's the agent you dream will represent you one day.

Right now I just sent my dream agent a requested partial. If he rejects it, then I move on to my next dream agent. Previously, I was rejected by my dream agent.

Get it?

Penguin Queen said:

When I started sending stuff out to agents, I started with agents who represented authors whose work I really like and which is similar to mine in style / genre.

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Ditto this. There are several agents whose blogs I read regularly, and I know they represent work similar to mine. Alas, they have all (save one, who is now reading a partial) rejected my current novel, but I will be requerying them when my newest book is ready.

Not everyone has a "dream agent," but you want to do a little research ahead of time, instead of just blanket-querying everyone who reps your genre.

My personal idea of a "Dream Agent" is the one that says "I love it! Here, sign this."

The agents I target first are ones who represent writers I love (providing they rep my genre, of course). Then I go down the list of legit agents in my genre, then hit the little tiny indies, then start asking people on the street . . .

Speaking from the depths of my inexperience...

I am going to visit Agentquery.com, make a list of agents who represent my genre (it's a combination, so I'll start with those agents who represent both) and then check them out. I'll check their agency pages, their blogs if possible, and I'll google them. Those with a good reputation and a solid track record of strong sales are what I'm looking for. I intend to start at the top, with those who look the best as a result of that research.

Then, if I am ever in the incredible situation of having a choice, I will look for personal compatibility. I will ask a few questions of a potential agent, one of the most important being communications. I'm willing to not harass an agent day and night, but it is important to me not to be ignored. Even if the answer is "I'm swamped, I'll get back to you next week." I can be very patient if I know where I am in the wait queue and I will make sure that an agent interested in me knows that about me.

I'm less concerned about reading what they already represent. I don't think the list will be long enough to need to narrow it down any further. If they don't like what I write, they won't extend an offer anyway, right?

So, I will define my dream agent by appropriate genre, good track record, and personal compatibility. Is anything else really necessary?

Track record is important. Agents who represent in your genre, with or without authors you identify with. Not just any old agent who says, "Love it! Sign here." It's nice to hear the words, but you want an agent with an established record of recent sales. Search around on the Web, agent sites, agent blogs, Writer Beware, Preditor & Editor. You'll start to identify agents who appeal to you, and these will likely become "dream" agents.

Research not just the agents, but also inform yourself about contracts and such for the happy day when "sign here" is requested (no need to do this right away, but be aware that you should do it). It's nice to get caught up in the yay factor of being offered representation, but there's a lot of business going on behind the scenes that you should be aware of so that you can properly advocate for yourself.

It really depends on what you want. For me, my dream agent was a powerful agent and a prestigious house. Like Toothpaste suggested, an uber-agent. But there are consequences to getting an agent like that; namely, you are at the bottom of a very, very tall totem pole. Personally, that mattered much less to me than the fact that the totem pole was very tall. So for me, my dream agent was an uber-agent and luckily, that worked out for me.

Some people would rather not be in a big house. Their dream agent is one who belongs to a small agency that has solid sales. They want an agent who is more into guiding a person's career, or, in some cases, placing only one book (the one masterpiece in a lifetime kind of authors.) They want an agent they can feel comfortable calling with their concerns and problem and getiing the personal touch that comes with being in a smaller agency, In return, they are willing to chance longer waits from editors, possibly a smaller publisher, and maybe a newer agent who is still learning some of the ropes. I know a lot of people who don't want to query uber agents because these smaller, more personal agents are more in line with their personality. So their dream agent list will be very different than mine.

It really depends on you.

Oh, and Judg had excellent advice sending you to agentquery.com. That site is invaluable!

Maprilynne

It's hard to turn down an agent who actually wants to rep you, but think carefully. My experience may offer a cautionary tale. For my first nonfiction book, I was so overjoyed to find someone who'd take it that I asked few questions, and all of them sounded paranoid the moment they left my mouth. So, feeling stupid and hoping for a quick sale, I trusted him, blind. He sold that book, yes, and my second--reluctantly--and I'll always be grateful for that. He even reworked my proposal, which many agents won't do.

But he refused to intervene with my publisher during a dispute even though he acknowledged that I was right; I did it myself and won my case. Nor did he push foreign rights aggressively; once, I got a better deal only because I insisted on making a counteroffer, against his advice. He seemed to have the attitude that I should take any offer anyone put on the table because I didn't deserve more, and never, ever did he say, after a discouraging rejection, "Hang in there. You've got a good book."

So now that I'm looking for an agent for my fiction, I'm desperate for someone, anyone, to say, "Sure, I'll take you on." But I also know what I want: an agent who won't simply submit to six editors and call it a day if they turn down my book; an agent who'll be willing to say, "Chin up"; an agent who's got enough confidence in my work to decline the first offer if it's unsuitable; an agent who'll push every foreign-rights button he or she knows. . . . That agent is a dream, and I don't know whether such a person exists. At least for me, because I'm getting discouraged.

But by all means, do your research. AgentQuery is an excellent place to start, the best I've seen, particularly because of the titles-sold listing, which gives you a glimmer of what they might be looking for.

"Dream agent" is a term that provokes eye rolling. It is used (as another commenter said) to describe uber agents that may or may not be suitable for your project.
Kind of like wearing Manolos to clean your garage...but hey...they're Manolos!
I personally use it in a teasing way to describe my agent cuz I like her, we work well together, she sold my book, and takes good care of me.
And I found her on Agentquery.com.

I just finished a political/espionage thriller with half of the story set in the Middle-East, and I've been sending out queries for the past two months. The agent I had for over two years I finally had to let go because he thought this genre was too tough in the current market. I didn't like the negativity, but there genuinely appear to be only a limited number agents who will give this type of work a sniff.

If I can suggest three websites that will save you a lot of time and aggravation (one was just mentioned ahead of me), they are:

agentquery.com aar-on line.org agentresearch.com

Agent Query lets you target genres with their subsets. AAR is the organization that most but not all top-agents belong to. Agent Research provides a compilation of agents (over a 1000, I think) and I found some addresses of certain ultra high end agents that I couldn't find anywhere else. The only problem with this last site is that I haven't been able to figure out how to narrow the search (I'm old and lousy with computer nuances).

I don't want to sign off without mentioning what a great job AW does in
the agent category, as this is what initially drew me to the site last month. There was information in AW on certain agents' scamming activity that
I didn't see on the other sites.

Good luck!

Namatu said:

Track record is important. Agents who represent in your genre, with or without authors you identify with. Not just any old agent who says, "Love it! Sign here."

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Actually, my current dream agent that I'm courting doesn't do contracts. So I'm hoping to hear "Love it, let's shake on it."

A dream agent is one with the best contacts and works hard for the client to get the best deal.

Two words: long legs.

PennStater said:

Two words: long legs.

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Well, if my agent accepts me and I meet with him, I'll check and see how long his legs are. Not sure what sort of criteria that is, though.