Submitting To Agents
You’ve done your research, you’ve got your list of agents based on traffic light system. You have edited and polished your manuscript and you are ready to submit. What next? For the UK, agents will normally ask for three items as part of the submission package:
1. Cover letter
Very important as it’s where you get the chance to make your first impression as the cover letter will be in the body of your email instead of an attached file like the synopsis or opening chapters. Writing a novel falls under creative writing however publishing is a business and submitting to agent is no different than applying for a job which means that the cover letter needs to be professional. A standard cover letter for UK submission should have the following sections:
Intro about the book you are submitting — title, word count, genre and a one-line description of your novel.
One or two paragraphs summarising the premise of your book. This is similar to the blurb you would find at the back of a book
Comp titles — Comparative or comp titles are books which are similar to yours. They do not have to matched on every aspect. You can use one title because they share a similar atmosphere or setting and another book because they have similar themes. For example in my letter I used Lucy Foley’s THE HUNTING PARTY for its similar isolated setting, and Kate Elizabeth Russell’s MY DARK VANESSA for its similar themes. If you can, use contemporary titles (i.e. books published in the last five years). Comp titles will show the agent that you understand where your book will sit on the bookshelves in a book shop.
Bio — some info about yourself and any relevant experience. For example if you have any publishing credentials — completed a creative writing course, had anything published (short stories, articles, essays, etc…), if you have placed in a competition, etc… Don’t worry if you don’t have any they are not mandatory to be published.
Complimentary closing — the one I used on my own letter: “Thank you for your time and consideration. Sincerely,”
Signature — full name, email address, a contact telephone number, website address if you have one.
If you want more detailed information on the cover letter, my agent has a great blog post on her site about the perfect cover letter. When I was writing my own cover letter I found author Will Dean’s YouTube video about his letter extremely useful. Don’t be afraid as well to tweak your letter based on the responses you get from agents. Halfway through my submission process I decided that the initial comp titles I was using and the blurb were misleading for agents after I got several requests for the full manuscript but I didn’t get any offer of representation from those. After the changes, things fell into place quickly and I found my agent.
2. Synopsis
Most UK agencies will ask for a 1-page or a 500-word synopsis. The synopsis is a roadmap of your book from beginning to end, including all spoilers, twists and the ending. This is not a place to be coy or showcase your voice, that’s what the cover letter and the opening chapters are for. The purpose of the synopsis is to show the agent — should they choose to read it (not all agents do) — that your story arc makes sense and that there are no obvious plot holes. So far I’m yet to find a writer that enjoys writing a synopsis and that includes a fair few published authors. It’s just one of those necessary evils. There is no way to make a synopsis sound sexy or compelling, it is just an utilitarian document, and I believe the less important of the documents included in the submission process.
3. Opening chapters
Check the agency submission page for what they require i.e. opening 3 chapters, or if you have very short chapters either the first 10,000 words, or first 50 pages.
Some useful Do & Don’t:
Do use a standard font (Times New Roman, Ariel, Calibri) 12 point with a 1.5 or double spacing.
Do make sure to proofread for any spelling, typos or missing words, if possible have a friend have a read too (sometimes a different pair of eyes will see things that we don’t pick up in our own writing.). An agent won’t reject you if there is the odd typos or spelling mistakes but they will be seriously put off if your opening is riddled with them.
Don’t send chapters from the middle of your books or the part where you think things happening. This sends the message that you are not confident about your opening and will ring alarm bells for the agent. Also they want to judge if your opening is strong enough to pull a reader in.
It’s recommended to send out submissions in batches. Select about 6 agents (about 2 from each tier) and send those out. You don’t want to contact all your top-tier agents at once otherwise if an agent comes back with feedback and you need to do some editing you don’t want to burn out all your chances at once with your top-choice agents. My agent was in my top-tier and I ended up only submitting to her after I made changes based on the initial responses I received.
When I started submitting I had a spreadsheet where I listed, the agents, their agency, what their submission requirements were, any relevant reason to submit to that agent (i.e. they rep X author who I admire, had negotiated a deal for a similar book, met them at a workshop, etc…). I sent to an initial batch of 6 submissions, then updating the spreadsheet with the date sent. When I received a request for the full MS, I would add the date when I sent it. As and when I got responses back and sent 1 or 2 new submissions and updated the spreadsheet. It’s easy to lose track if you don’t have something to centralise all info.
When you start getting rejections (it will happen) wait until you have a few and see if you can sense a pattern and adapt accordingly.
If you receive any request for the full manuscript make sure to inform the other agents you submitted to, same if you receive an offer of representation. Agents don’t want to miss out on the next great book so knowing that another agent expressed an interest can nudge them to move your submission to the top of their pile.
If an agent asks you to meet them (face-to-face or on the phone) to discuss representation, remember that it is a two-way process: they are choosing you and you are choosing them, so make sure to ask plenty of questions such as:
What’s their vision for your book and where do they see it sit on the shelves at a book shop?
What are their editorial notes for the manuscript?
How do they handle foreign rights?
What’s their style (are they hands-on, do they enjoy working on edits with their clients, etc…)?
How would they pitch your book to editors? Which publishers would they submit to?
What happens if this book didn’t sell? (important question to ask, you want to be confident that your agent is prepared and plans for every eventuality)
Remember to trust your gut too. You will be working closely with your agent so you want to make sure that you can get along and that they will be the right champion and representative for your book and for yourself as an author. It’s an important decision so don’t be afraid to take your time. I ended up meeting with three agents and I explained to each one of them that I planned to take up to a week to make my decision. They didn’t have any issues with that.
I hope you’ll find all of this useful. The next blog will continue on the path to publication and cover what happens once you get an agent.
