Mandy Eve-Barnett's Blog for Readers & Writers

Blandish – definition: to coax or persuade with flattery : to cajole

Although flattery might be a temptation, it is probably not the best way to get an agent to recognize your work. Obviously you can mention you have read through their profile, seen the authors they already work with and taken care to submit to their preference. However, blatant cajoling is apt to have the exact opposite result you are wishing for. That is not to say that you can’t use any connections you may have up your sleeve. An introduction or meeting at a conference or another author’s recommendation are excellent ways to open dialogue.

The most important aspect about approaching an agent is to make sure you have thoroughly researched the genre’s they are interested in or promote. A romance agency is not going to accept a science fiction manuscript even if there are romantic elements in it. Wasting the agent’s time is a big no – no! As you can see from these links time taken researching the agency’s website and the individual agent’s will ensure your time is productive.

http://rebeccabradleycrime.com/2013/04/19/querying-that-literary-agent-in-5-simple-steps/

http://chasingthecrazies.wordpress.com/2013/04/15/querying-writers-please-do-your-homework/

The more care we take to polish and correctly submit our submissions the better. An agent will respond more favorably if our pitch is to their criteria. After ‘pressing the submit button’ we can only wait for a reply. Another point to make a note of is the agency’s response guidelines. Some will email back, some not and others may site on their website that if we have not heard in a certain amount of time, our submission has not been accepted.

The waiting is the hard part…!