Can I query an agent after self publishing?

iwannabepublished said:

I've been writing for many years. Early on, I attempted to find an agent and regularly submitted my work. After a long period with no success, I began self-publishing my work. I now have ten books available on Amazon, B & N, etc. I've once again given thought to seeking an agent for one of my science fiction stories. My question is - should I remove my book from all sales venues before submitting my work to literary agents? I imagine this question has been asked and answered before, but have been unable to locate any recent postings regarding this question. Any suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

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I don't think it'll make a difference if you take them down. The Internet is forever; the fact of them will be easy to find. (And since Amazon sells used books as well, I'm not sure they'll take them down anyway, since you've got hardcopies for sale.)

There are no rules about querying agents after you've self-published! But I would expect that an agent interested in the work you're querying (which is NOT something you've already published, right?) will take a look at your previously published work.

Assuming you mean that you plan to query agents with a new, unpublished book, why would you want to de-list your other, self-published books first? I guess I don't understand the question...

I would leave them be. That way, if you don't find an agent for this new offering (or if the agent doesn't ultimately find a publisher for it) you can just self-publish this one too, adding to your backlist rather than starting all over again from scratch.

If you are talking about a book you've already self-published, an agent is much less likely to want that. In that case, since you seem pretty prolific anyway, why not just wait and query agents with the next one instead? That way, you wouldn't be starting out with a book that has a considerable complication attached.

I just faced this, querying a self-published (via Amazon) novel. An agent took interest in my pages and asked for the full. At that point I told her that I'd already self-published, in the interest of full disclosure. She said that was okay. I ended up signing with her at which point I "retired" the title from Amazon, but like liz said, it's still listed for the purpose of used copies, etc.

My agent didn't end up having a problem with it, but I also know that there some agents who do. So to answer your question, yes you can query a self published novel, just be up front and expect that some - but not all - agents won't be interested in your submission as a result.

NealM said:

I just faced this, querying a self-published (via Amazon) novel. An agent took interest in my pages and asked for the full. At that point I told her that I'd already self-published, in the interest of full disclosure. She said that was okay. I ended up signing with her at which point I "retired" the title from Amazon, but like liz said, it's still listed for the purpose of used copies, etc.

My agent didn't end up having a problem with it, but I also know that there some agents who do. So to answer your question, yes you can query a self published novel, just be up front and expect that some - but not all - agents won't be interested in your submission as a result.

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What Neal said. There is also other rights than first print to execute for self-published projects. I've sold audio rights for numerous self-published novels. It would be a good idea to query with your sales numbers (assuming they're high), because an agent will ask.

Good luck!