The Complete Guide to Hiring a Literary Agent: Everything You Need to Know to Be Successfully Published
Author: Laura Cross
Paperback: 288 pages(also available as paperback, Kindle and audiobook)
Publisher: Atlantic Publishing Company (June 1, 2010)
Synposis: If you want to know what’s covered in Laura Cross’s new book let’s just say it covers the five questions:
How do I get an agent?
Why do I need an agent?
When do I get an agent?
Where do I find an agent?
What should an agent do for me?
Who makes a good agent?
In short, The Complete Guide to Hiring a Literary Agent probably takes you through the entire agent-writer relationship from your pre-agent days to the need to someday leave your agent. And all the good days in between!
Review:
Recently I led a workshop for beginning writers—they had a LOT of questions. I should have brought a bottle of water. I also should have brought Laura Cross’s book! It would have been the perfect answer to one attendee’s question: Well, what does an agent do anyway and can’t I do that myself and keep the 15 %? Answer: An agent does A LOT. And yes, in theory you could do it but you wouldn’t do it as well and isn’t your job writing not agenting?
Laura Cross’s book seems to cover everything, even questions you hadn’t even thought of yet. How to find an agent, recognizing bad agents, how to be a desirable client(surprise: it isn’t all about your writing!), firing an agent, figuring out what genre you’re writing in, queries, proposals, conferences, pitches. I was amazed she packed so much info in one book. She also breaks up the text with expert advice stories from writers and agents to tell you how it works in the real world of publishing. There are also plenty of examples of queries, proposals, and synopses to help you go through the pain of crafting your own.
This is a book every writer should read—whether your unagented by choice or simply because you haven’t found your agent yet. It will help the former decide if it’s the right decision for them and help the latter land, not just any agent, but the right agent for them and their writing career.
Note: The cover shown above is for the e-book version of her book. The print copy has a man and woman in business attire(they must be agents because I don’t know any writers who dress like that). But I love the e-book version of the cover! Same helpful info on the inside.