How to reference check agents

You can always try QueryTracker! That's a good source for people to share their experiences with agents.

QueryTracker is a good suggestion, but the truth is apart from out-and-out unprofessionalism (which you'll find cases of both here and on Writer Beware), it's hard to get specific data about agents. One piece of that is a lot of the agent/writer relationship is chemical: an agent that works spectacularly well for one writer won't necessarily click with you personally. You'll get some of your best information once you're actually on the phone with an agent, fielding an offer.

Beyond that, looking at an agent's author list and the length of time they've been with that author can tell you a lot. Even that, though, isn't a good metric in isolation; many agencies mentor junior agents, and agents new to the business can be excellent.

Before I queried this time, I went through open agents one by one, and did research. Some fell off because I read unprofessional things about the agent or the agency; others because, based on what was written about them on the agency site, I suspected they wouldn't really resonate with my work. I turned down one R&R because the agent, although both likable and reputable, was asking for changes I didn't agree with.

newbiewr said:

You make good points, lizmonster. I agree. I'm thinking it will call for a fair amount of individual agent research to get a good sense of the person. How much research did you do before you felt comfortable enough to query the agents on your list?

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Not a lot, tbh.

I checked them out here, and at QueryTracker. I went to their agency web sites and checked out their client list, as well as their bios. The vast majority of the time, when I took someone off the list it was because their bio or their client list didn't really seem to mesh with what I was doing. I think there was only one agency (maybe two?) that I took off the list because of stories I read here on AW.

The truth is, you learn the most about an agent when you begin engaging with them about your work, and that's not going to happen without a query. If an agent is open to queries and you're comfortable with what your preliminary research tells you, there's pretty much no reason not to query them.

newbiewr said:

Thanks for sharing lizmonster. It really helps to know how others are going about the process. Makes me feel less stressed out.

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You are very much not alone. Querying is full of anxiety minefields. I personally found it most useful to remember I was seeking out a business partnership, and despite my emotional connection to my work, I had to treat the agent search as a professional process. And I still had a heart attack every time I clicked "send" on a query.

Good luck.

You can check for agencies or agents here in the Bewares and Recommendations subforum, too. See if they're http://aaronline.org/abouthttp://aaronline.org/about.

Basically, a good agent has sold books you can fine in your local libraries and brick and mortar book stores; the books need to be in both places.

A good agent talks about / posts about their clients books (not their clients lives).

See this Stickie post too: On Agents.

When/if you get to the point that you are deciding on whether to go with an offering agent, you might consider paying for one month access to Publisher's Marketplace to research recent deals by the agent. I did that, and it was helpful. Just remember to cancel after your first month. You can also use it to learn about top publishers in your genre.

It is worth Googling "[agent name] interview" for those you are considering.

You can also check out the manuscriptwishlist.com blog which carries various types of articles about agents and writers. Some posts carry the writers and their agents in conversation. I've also seen posts where the writer talks about why they like their agent. Good luck!