How do I find a literary agent?

How can I find a good Literary agent around Lawrence County Ohio?

• Answer:

  Finding a reputable agent is very difficult, especially if you limit your search to one county. Most agencies have thousands of manuscripts sent to them every year and typically, they only select a few that are worthy to represent. DO NOT submit to anyone that requires up front money or "reading" fees. Good agencies will read your book for nothing if they are interested. Reading fees are a rip off. You can check on legitimate agencies at the Preditors & Editors website. They keep an up to date list of current agents and any problems writers have had with them. Once you find an agency, you need an excellent query letter to get their attention. Search the web for examples. If your query letter is sloppy or has misspelled words, you're TOAST. Get an editor to help you, if you can afford one. Then, once the agency reads your query and agrees to look at your manuscript, MAKE SURE IT IS PERFECT before you send it off to them. Again, grammar problems or poor spelling will doom you from the start. Pay an editor to proof your work--it's worth a few hundred bucks to get your foot in the door with an agent. And don't forget to send a reply envelope with postage on it, or you may never hear back from the agency. Then, be prepared to wait up to 3 months for an answer. DO NOT submit to more than one agency at a time. That's the kiss of death with agents. If your work is good, an agency will offer you a contract. From there, it's another 3 month wait (often) for them to find you a publisher. Once you get a publisher, it takes about a year to actually see your book in print. From there, who knows. I hope this helps. If you're serious about getting published, you can make it happen. It takes time, patience and a lot of luck. And as a note of reality, of all the books published in a given year, only about 13% ever sell more than 1,000 copies. Most (75%) sell fewer than 500. Contrary to popular belief, most authors don't get rich. I know, I'm one of them.... Jon F. Baxley (Author, Editor, Ghostwriter and Proofreader) THE SCYTHIAN STONE THE BLACKGLOOM BOUNTY (For a FREE copy of The Scythian Stone or a full color, four chapter illustrated demo of The Blackgloom Bounty, email me at [email protected]).