The Trendsetter

I have just completed nanoing and have returned to my manuscript to continue revising. I noticed I have started to tinker around with it. So, I guess I’d better stop tinkering and move on to the next stage in my effort to establish myself as a writer, again, for the second time.

Seriously, I was kind of squinting at first when I stepped-out from my writing burrow into the open world. A writer is a loner when writing, but has to be social when they shop their manuscript around for an agent.

So this is what I’m doing right now. I did a lot of reading on my favorite novels to find out who the authors used for their agents. In fact, I had been doing my research during the summer, reading and building my short list of agents.

Now, I’m ready to shop.

So, if you haven’t finished your revision yet, finish it. And for those who are ready to look for an agent for representation, here are the steps I performed to assemble a list of agents I’m interested to send my query letter:

1. Get Jeff Herman’s book. In this book you can browse agents who represent your genre. There is a section for book publishers if you want to write directly to them and are not looking for an agent. You can also check with www.agentquery.com to learn more about the agents.

2. Visit the agents’ (on your list) websites to learn about their background and their submission guidelines. You can also learn a lot about the agent through their blog. I love reading agents’ blogs or websites especially those who generously share their knowledge about their experience helping by showing sample query letters that made them say yes to the author. Many of the agents aren’t the right ones for me and my genre, but I can learn much by reading their blog.

3. Read your favorite novels to learn who is the writer’s agent. I sought writers whose novels are similar with mine, in genre and category wise.

4. Do a little investigating online—on www.absolutewrite.com to find out if the agent on your list has been reviewed by other writers. Writer’s opinions of agents are an important source of information.

5. Continue researching on and offline about the agents until you’re confident that the one’s you’ve selected are the right ones.

You can attend writing conferences as well to pitch your query letter, meeting with agents and editors or networking with other writers. I’ve not yet gone to my first conference. Right now I’m taking the advantage of all the information available on the Internet in the comfort of my writing burrow.

Now the list is growing and you’re ready to compose your query letter.

Let’s do it.