What type of literary agent should I look for?

Q: When I look for a literary agent, is it better to try to get a big, famous agent to represent me? Or is it better to find someone more junior, because they will have more time for me?

Ah yes, agents.

For whatever reason, this is the most common category of question I get. And for whatever reason, this is the most mystifying part of the whole process for most academics who are hoping to write trade books.

Let me make this really simple. There are ONLY three things that matter when you’re considering a literary agent to work with:

(1) They have SOME kind of respectable track record of selling to major trade presses;

(2) They are willing to take you on;

(3) They seem to ‘get’ your work, are excited to represent you, and you feel that they’re someone you can work with.

That’s literally it.

EVERY agent does the same thing, for the same fee (a straight 15% commission). So just find someone you like and get along with, who seems to have some experience and knows what they’re doing — and stop overcomplicating this!

As for the original question — big agent or small agent? There are pros and cons to each.

If you send your proposal to the BIGGEST hot-shot Manhattan agent, who represents Obama, Kim Kardashian and Stephen King…. Guess what. You’re probably going to be waiting a long time for a response. And when you get the response, it will come from their assistant and will be nothing more than a polite ‘no, thank you’. And if by some miracle, they decide they want to take you on, you will NEVER be their first priority.

On the other hand, if you send your proposal to a 24-year-old kid who literally just decided last week that they want to be a literary agent…. Guess what. They’ll probably be super-excited to represent you and will have all the time in the world for you — but they won’t have the relationships in New York or the experience needed to place your book.

So I think you know what to do, Goldilocks. Find the HAPPY MEDIUM. Find an agent with a solid list of authors and past sales, who is somewhere in the middle of their career, who seems to have the time for you, and who you feel like you ‘click’ with.

That’s it! It’s honestly not more complicated than that.