Last week we posted a comment on our Facebook page inviting our fans to contribute questions for our Agents Advice column. We received some great questions from writers who wanted to know more about the process of getting the attention of a good agent, writing an intriguing query letter, and, you know, sealing the deal.
There were also some good-natured (we think) jokes about agents. “Are you consistently drunk on the power you possess, fighting every moment to maintain a hold on decorum?” one fan asked of any agents who might have been following the comment thread. “If I had that kind of influence, I’d wield it like an angry hammer.”
We know that the prospect of securing a literary agent is daunting and, for some writers, seemingly not worth the trouble. That’s partly why we decided to launch this, our new Agent Action blog. Here we’ll regularly explore the nuts and bolts of approaching an agent and selling your work, provide news about agents and their clients, and relay some first-hand anecdotes from authors who have had success—and even some who haven’t.
Together we’ll take that angry hammer and break down the wall that seems to separate us from them.
As one agent wrote in response to the Facebook comment above: “Most agents work their butts off to sell books that they believe in, and often fail. Just like writers, we face rejection and discouragement all the time.”
If you have any suggestions for Agent Action, let us know in the Comments field below.