4 Creative Ways to Find Yourself an Agent

The Unexpected Way I Found My Agent

Photo taken at the event “Notes of a Dirty Old Man” © Jaap Beyleveld. Permission to use for the author. Author depicted.

For years I dreamed about getting a publishing deal and now I’m as close as I can possibly be.

Some agents scour the internet and approach writers who speak to them. Since that hasn’t happened to me yet, I found creative ways to turn the tables and increase the chance of landing an agent myself.

The first method was a bullseye shot, let’s dive in.

Readings

Let’s start with the unexpected way I found my agent. In September 2019 I participated in my first ever literary reading. In a jampacked pub in the east part of Amsterdam (with the fitting name Bar Bukowski) I read one of my short stories in front of about 100 people.

It was nerve-wracking and exhilarating at the same time. I felt like a teenager going on his first date with the girl of his dreams. And when I was reading, I felt like we were in a successful relationship.

I was lucky because a friend of mine hosts these reading nights. Normally, the authors who speak are established writers with books in the charts. The woman who spoke before me just won the most prestigious Dutch prize awarded to a work of fiction. Right after me was a woman who’s debut was sung with 5-star reviews in every newspaper.

These two authors were part of the same agency. Therefore, five employees of the agency showed up to see their talent read. My friend introduced me to the ensemble and after the night was over I lingered and drank a beer with a couple of them. They were curious about who I was and what my writing journey had been like. They never heard of Medium and they were fascinated by the fact that I self-published my books through Amazon. I was fascinated by how their industry worked.

The next day I send one of them a connection request through LinkedIn. Just in case…

At the time, I was not even halfway through my Fantasy novel. Besides, I wrote that in English. In November 2019, however, a strange sequence of events led me to call my gran and ask her about a Mondrian painting she’d sold in 2018. A portrait from 1902 depicting my great great grandmother.

Although Mondrian is famous for his abstract work with the squares, he started his career like any other artist. Trying to find his style. To get by, he needed to give painting lessons and paint portraits. My great-great-grandfather appeared to be one of his best friends and supported him throughout his career.

Baffled by this information, I went on a quest through the history of my ancestors. It led me to secret paintings and art history archives with files about my family’s relation with Mondrian. The men and women in my family were truly fascinating. And the portrait my gran used to own has seen everything happen in front of her dried up layers of paint. From my the freemasons to art to the resistance in the Second World War, I had found myself a mesmerizing story.

So, half a year later I contacted the agent through LinkedIn, pitched my idea and now I’ve handed in my book proposal.

The moral of the story? Get out there. The more people you meet who are in the writing and publishing industry, the higher your chances to meet someone who can help you realize your dreams.

Conventions

Which leads me to conventions. Although this part of the publishing industry has now completely come to a halt, they will be organized again in the future.

There’s a convention for every genre of writing. And at those events agents wander about exploring.

Find a future convention about the genre you write in. Check who is going to be there if that information is provided. At least see which agencies and publishing houses are present.

Discover what the agents who work at those agencies are looking for. Most websites have a section with their agents and what they love reading or are looking for in their next project.

Prepare a short pitch for them. Try to find them at the events. Pitch. Try to exchange contact information. And then send them your proposal or manuscript.

Your network

Perhaps an open door, but it can never hurt to state the obvious. I don’t know how involved you are in the publishing industry, but chances are if you read this, you hardly know anyone. That’s what you want to learn, right?

Try to approach it differently. Do you have any artsy friends or acquaintances who might have contacts in the publishing industry? The world of art is well-connected.

Since I often discuss my writing projects with friends (and frankly anyone I meet) I collect great contacts. A friend who is a photographer is friends with the director of a major Dutch publishing house. Naturally, I will ask for the introduction when the time is right.

I’m currently working on a freelancing gig for a museum/library. The board members are people from all walks of life, all with an impressive network. Two of them are involved in the publishing world.

Do you know anyone with ties in the industry? Ask around. And if you dare, try via social media? You’ll find out if you ask for it. Be creative and find connections in the unexpected

Create a spreadsheet with candidates

A colder approach than the ones above and perhaps more common than others, but nonetheless effective.

For my English Fantasy book, I’m almost ready to see where the traditional publishing route might lead to. That world seems a bit farther apart. Especially since I don’t live in the UK or the US.

Luckily, there are websites such as firstwriter that list agents in different genres per country. You’ll have to subscribe to their service though, but it’s a good investment and you can cancel at any time. Otherwise, Google is your friend.

I created a spreadsheet of UK agents specializing in Fantasy. I looked at what the individual agents look for and included that in my sheet, as well as everything I need to send them. I also ranked them according to the ones I hope to work with most.

Next step: approach them.

Conclusion

I hope these ways inspire you to find yourself an agent. I realize some approaches require lockdowns to be alleviated, but you can make a mental note and focus on that manuscript or idea first.