Is it really necessary to have an Agent?

Don Raden · Sep 27, 2012

Sorry for my ignorance. My editor is finishing my book and soon I'll have it published. Do I really need an agent? How about going to sites like Lumina Press, Outskirts, etc and purchase one of their publishing packages? It this idea doable?

I really need advice on this one.

Thank you

Vindicated · Sep 27, 2012

Uh...

Diving right in here..

There are several ways to publish a book. Not all of them need an agent.

Get an agent if you want to trade publish through a big six like Penguin.
Don't get an agent if you want to e-pub, self-pub or purchase a pub package.

You should really do your homework on every form of publishing, I am not very knowledgeable.

Scribble Orca · Sep 27, 2012

The common wisdom is that agents pretty much well provide value for money, above and beyond shopping your manuscript to publishers.

That said, some publishers in Australia will accept unsolicited QUERIES (not manuscripts) - so you could try that option. I think this is very much a 'depends on genre, depends on target audience, depends on location, depends on what you want to do....'.

Unless you have a specific reason and have researched, as the previous poster said, I would think that in the first instance it is necessary to have an agent. But there always going to be exceptions to the rule.

Don Raden · Sep 27, 2012

Scribble Orca said:
The common wisdom is that agents pretty much well provide value for money, above and beyond shopping your manuscript to publishers.

That said, some publishers in Australia will accept unsolicited QUERIES (not manuscripts) - so you could try that option. I think this is very much a 'depends on genre, depends on target audience, depends on location, depends on what you want to do....'.

Unless you have a specific reason and have researched, as the previous poster said, I would think that in the first instance it is necessary to have an agent. But there always going to be exceptions to the rule.

I am not living in US, CAN, AU, or UK and I don't know much about runaround with agents so I think I have limited options when it comes to publishing?

Old Hack · Sep 28, 2012

Agents often represent writers who live elsewhere, so don't feel that your location is going to limit your options.

I wouldn't buy anything from Outskirts: they're a vanity publisher. If you want to self publish, do it yourself.

Note that if you want to go the trade publishing route you get an agent before you publish your book, not after.

I'm going to move this to the Round Table as it seems to belong better there than here, in Self Publishing; and you'll get a broader range of responses there, too, which should help you more.

blacbird · Sep 28, 2012

Don Raden said:
Sorry for my ignorance. My editor is finishing my book and soon I'll have it published. Do I really need an agent? How about going to sites like Lumina Press, Outskirts, etc and purchase one of their publishing packages? It this idea doable?

I really need advice on this one.

The bolded above sums up your problem. You should not pay anyone to publish your work. Period. No successful author does this.

Nor do you pay a legitimate agent to represent your work. Legit agents only get paid as a percentage of commission when they succeed in selling your work to a legit publisher.

caw

Don Raden · Sep 28, 2012

Thank you very much for the response. I'll do self-publish when the book is completed.

GeekTells · Sep 28, 2012

Don, I've read tens of thousands of words in interviews and essays on this subject, and I don't think there's any shortcuts...err...around that.

I read thoughts from new authors and old, publishing editors, agents, and publishing executives. I've read up on many of the self publishing options, and researched what I could of Amazon's (rush-to-the-bottom) empire, it's effect on the industry, and options such as Smashwords.

I also read as much as I could find that was specific to my genre.

I eventually decided that I wanted an agent and shopping for one now. This stuff is very, very subjective, however, and I would recommend doing your own research, your own reading, and getting as good a handle as you can on the state of the industry today.

Even when it comes to your specific situation, somewhere out there are authors from your market who have gone through this and written about their experiences. You just have to find them.

Good luck!

Don Raden · Sep 28, 2012

Another question here.

I have 2 non-fiction short ebooks on kindle and they are doing pretty good on sales for 2 months now. This is my first novel and I am planning to follow the same path as with my first 2-non fiction ebooks.

Can I first publish it on kindle and if successful, find an agent to handle the traditional publishing? Or, should I start finding an agent right away without testing it first on kindle store?

Thank you

Ken · Sep 28, 2012

... to be honest, it doesn't sound like you're ready to do anything at this point. You're pretty clueless about marketing your book as it seems and have no idea what's what. That's perfectly fine. You've just gotta learn the ins and outs of the biz. That's not going to happen overnight or by reading one thread on this site. So take your time. Give it a few months at least before making a decision about what to do. G'luck. (My 2 cents. Feel free to ignore it.)

Don Raden · Sep 28, 2012

Ken said:
... to be honest, it doesn't sound like you're ready to do anything at this point. You're pretty clueless about marketing your book as it seems and have no idea what's what. That's perfectly fine. You've just gotta learn the ins and outs of the biz. That's not going to happen overnight or by reading one thread on this site. So take your time. Give it a few months at least before making a decision about what to do. G'luck. (My 2 cents. Feel free to ignore it.)

No problem Ken. I am not rushing anything. It took me 3-5 years to master SEO so I am expecting similar amount of time to know at least 80% in publishing... Suggestions and comments are highly appreciated.

Ken · Sep 28, 2012

Don Raden said:
No problem Ken. I am not rushing anything. It took me 3-5 years to master SEO so I am expecting similar amount of time to know at least 80% in publishing...

... good battle plan. Sure you'll do fine.

KTC · Sep 28, 2012

Don Raden said:
Sorry for my ignorance. My editor is finishing my book and soon I'll have it published. Do I really need an agent? How about going to sites like Lumina Press, Outskirts, etc and purchase one of their publishing packages? It this idea doable?

I really need advice on this one.

Thank you

You don't NEED an agent. It's great to have one. They will get you the best deal and find the best home for your book.

If you don't have an agent, it doesn't mean you need to go the self-publishing route. You can submit directly to publishers. A lot of people mistakenly think there are 2 options--agent or 'publishing packages' as you called them. I just found a home for my 3rd book...without an agent. Self-publishing is not something I would ever do (I'm not disparaging it...it's just not for me). I do have an agent...she is currently shopping my next novel.

Be careful if you go the route of self-publishing and looking into 'publishing packages'. There are legitimate routes and there are places that exist only to part writers with their money.

KTC · Sep 28, 2012

Don Raden said:
Can I first publish it on kindle and if successful, find an agent to handle the traditional publishing?

This HAS happened. But when it does happen, it's news worthy...because it's so rare. Once you publish, first rights are GONE. The only way you would get agents or publishers to touch it after it's published on Kindle is if it became a phenomenon. (One doesn't 'test' publish...in 99.9% of cases, this closes the door.)

Don Raden · Sep 28, 2012

KTC said:
This HAS happened. But when it does happen, it's news worthy...because it's so rare. Once you publish, first rights are GONE. The only way you would get agents or publishers to touch it after it's published on Kindle is if it became a phenomenon. (One doesn't 'test' publish...in 99.9% of cases, this closes the door.)

So you mean no agent will be interested if the book is already available on Kindle? What if I pull it out from kindle after selling like 1000 copies and then find an agent and give all the rights? Am I making sense?

WeaselFire · Sep 28, 2012

Don Raden said:
Can I first publish it on kindle and if successful, find an agent to handle the traditional publishing?

It has been done before, but is very rare. If your Kindle version sells 50,000 copies, a publisher will find you. If it sells 100, no agent will want to hear from you.

On the flip side, if you don't publish it, many agents will be willing to consider a query.

Jeff

shadowwalker · Sep 28, 2012

Don Raden said:
So you mean no agent will be interested if the book is already available on Kindle? What if I pull it out from kindle after selling like 1000 copies and then find an agent and give all the rights? Am I making sense?

Once it's published, it's published. Pulling it doesn't change that.

Don Raden · Sep 28, 2012

shadowwalker said:
Once it's published, it's published. Pulling it doesn't change that.

Now it's clear to me. Thank you. I will try to find an agent first then and I'll start from there. If not lucky enough to get one then I'll have to review my options and go back to the drawing board...

IceCreamEmpress · Sep 28, 2012

What are your goals for the book? That's a big factor in deciding which publishing strategy is your best bet.

I think that self-publishing is great for some books and some authors, and publishing with a large commercial house (HarperCollins or Random House or whatever) is great for some books and some authors, and publishing with a small press is great for some books and some authors, and publishing with a university press is great for some books and some authors, and "buying a publishing package" is rarely a good choice.

If you're writing in English, you can query agents in any English-speaking country, no matter where in the world you're currently residing; once you've found an agent and agreed that they will represent you, they'll submit your book to publishers in that country. So that's another question you have to answer about your goals for this book---do you see it as something you would want to publish in the US? Or the UK? Canada? Australia? New Zealand?

Don Raden · Sep 28, 2012

IceCreamEmpress said:
What are your goals for the book? That's a big factor in deciding which publishing strategy is your best bet.

I think that self-publishing is great for some books and some authors, and publishing with a large commercial house (HarperCollins or Random House or whatever) is great for some books and some authors, and publishing with a small press is great for some books and some authors, and publishing with a university press is great for some books and some authors, and "buying a publishing package" is rarely a good choice.

If you're writing in English, you can query agents in any English-speaking country, no matter where in the world you're currently residing; once you've found an agent and agreed that they will represent you, they'll submit your book to publishers in that country. So that's another question you have to answer about your goals for this book---do you see it as something you would want to publish in the US? Or the UK? Canada? Australia? New Zealand?

Good question. The book is in English. My goal is reach English speaking readers whether electronically or hard-printed. I think my real problem is self-confidence when it comes to querying agents. I just don't have enough self-confidence even though my editor told me that the book has a great potential and has a great story.

I read a lot of stories from frustrated writers/authors having their work rejected dozens of times and I think this is something that worries me, and keeping me discouraged when speaking about agents.

Little Ming · Sep 28, 2012

Don Raden said:
Good question. The book is in English. My goal is reach English speaking readers whether electronically or hard-printed. I think my real problem is self-confidence when it comes to querying agents. I just don't have enough self-confidence even though my editor told me that the book has a great potential and has a great story.

I read a lot of stories from frustrated writers/authors having their work rejected dozens of times and I think this is something that worries me, and keeping me discouraged when speaking about agents.

I suggest you read around, especially the Agent forum and the Query Letter Hell forum.

And unfortunately rejections are apart of the game. There are members here who have been rejected more than a hundred times before they finally signed an agent.

But regardless of which path you ultimately decide to take, you need to be knowledgeable about how publishing works. So read around. Good luck.

jjdebenedictis · Sep 28, 2012

Rejection is no big deal. You shouldn't be afraid of it, and you definitely shouldn't let the idea of rejection keep you from striving toward your goals.

With the right mindset, rejection is something you grumble at but don't really pay much attention to. It's like losing a game of Minesweeper; you can always play again, so why be upset?

Remember that they're rejecting the words on the page, not you, and not your abilities. If one collection of sentences you wrote doesn't intrigue them, then you can always query them with a different collection of sentences, so why be upset?

Scribble Orca · Sep 28, 2012

Rejections are the private versions of the public 'didn't like' book reviews - awful but better.

Don Raden · Sep 28, 2012

I haven't rejected yet... I'm just lack of self confidence honestly.. Thanks for encouragement.

VeronicaX · Sep 29, 2012

Don Raden said:
I haven't rejected yet... I'm just lack of self confidence honestly.. Thanks for encouragement.

I have to admit I can really relate to this. As a self conscious perfectionist, I decided some time ago that Kindle Self Publishing had to be my only option for now, to somehow build up my confidence and "test the water" so to speak. Now however, I am in doubt. Have been in doubt on and off for quite a while, actually.

Where I come from agents and the like is not common, we don't have any of that from what I know of, we just deal directly with the publisher, hoping one of them find interest in our manuscript. I've heard about one established author here trying to get an agent in US, but have yet to find one.

The fear of being "rejected" is hurting many from trying to find an agent and rather go for the easy option which is self publishing. I was never a fan of it until lately, but is self publishing the way to go? Probably not.

But yes, I do think it depends on the book.

(not sure how helpful this post was, just my 2 cents...)

Is it really necessary to have an Agent?

Don Raden

Vindicated

Except when I'm not

Scribble Orca

Cetacean Skin

Don Raden

Old Hack

Such a nasty woman

blacbird

Don Raden

GeekTells

Tick tock...

Don Raden

Ken

Don Raden

Ken

KTC

Stand in the Place Where You Live

KTC

Stand in the Place Where You Live

Don Raden

WeaselFire

Benefactor Member

shadowwalker

empty-nester!

Don Raden

IceCreamEmpress

Hapless Virago

Don Raden

Little Ming

jjdebenedictis

is watching you via her avatar

Scribble Orca

Cetacean Skin

Don Raden

VeronicaX