Who Chases Whom? Write a Great Manuscript So Literary Agents Pursue You

Here's the good news: self-publishing has opened the industry to everyone. In this new world, no author needs an agent, but an agent's access to financial clout is still very desirable. Like team managers, agents recruit heavy hitters and stock up on dependables, so hundreds of authors end up fighting for a few open slots. That's the imbalance, so don't chase.

Before you query, agents expect a coherent manuscript, professionalism, evidence that readers love your work, and marketing savvy. They won't fix your novel, hold your hand, or give you money. Our advice: focus on writing a great manuscript for your target readers. Do that, and agents may well pursue you.

Sufficiently strong writing can make agents come to you.

Every couple of weeks we meet an author who asks us to "just" find them an agent, manuscript unseen. This post won't dwell on where their confidence comes from; instead, it will look at what agents do to show why this attitude is counterproductive. No author needs an agent; finding one should be one of the last, and perhaps unnecessary, steps in your novel's journey to publication. You should focus on producing a great manuscript. In fact, agents don't want and certainly won't help fix a weak project. Sufficiently strong writing, in contrast, can make agents come to you.

To explain this point, let's look at publishing from an agent's point of view. Our goal is to understand the power imbalance that leads authors to chase agents, rather than the other way around. We won't cover how to write query letters, nor will we weigh self-publishing against indie presses and traditional publishers; those are separate issues. We'll cover

what agents do and why
the risks and rewards they face
how these create expectations for authors
what agents won't do
and, what it all means for you

Let's start with a motivating positive frame.

Publishing Today

Here's the good news. Self-publishing has opened the industry to everyone, fostering a transformation that has not been fully resolved. In Bardsy's view, this is a very good thing; it makes publishing possible for a much broader range of authors. The role agents play continues to evolve, yet their place in this new dynamic seems relatively clear. Most importantly, finding an agent and traditional publisher is not the whole ball game, although that duo still has unmatched financial power.

Here's some data, with fair warning: financial information on our industry is scarce and unreliable. Our best guesstimate (the full table appears in this YouTube video) holds that the five big traditional publishers (the Big Five) get two thirds to three quarters of the money new novels earn per year while handling only a few percent of the titles. Per novel, the gap is stark: a Big Five novel brings in $20,000 to $50,000 in total sales in its first year, an indie press novel (not to be confused with self-publishing) $2,000 to $5,000, and a self-published one $150 to $500. Of course, these are averages, and self-publishing has the highest variation, with many titles earning zero even as some hit the jackpot.

So, the pie is much bigger at the traditional end. Still, there is pie at every level. Good career planning would have you continue to write fantastic manuscripts and take maximum advantage of opportunities as they arise.

What Agents Do

So what do agents do, and what brought them into being? Agents largely act as a filter for publishers. An agent effectively certifies your intellectual property (IP) and, more recently, human authorship. From a legal standpoint, publishers would much rather deal with a few professionals than a crowd of random authors. That's the primary reason.

In fulfilling this role, their main job is to find clients, pitch books, and negotiate deals. They also bring insider knowledge: relationships with presses, a feel for the market (what's hot, what's not, what a work is worth), and, most elusive of all, taste, i.e., having an educated intuition that a novel will please a particular audience. Finally, an agent will cultivate your career if it's worth it to them. We've seen agents do phenomenal things for authors.

Agents' Risk and Reward

Now, let's get inside the agent's head. Start with time. Any client requires attention, new clients triply so. To find one, they have to narrow hundreds of query letters to a list of possibles, then to the one worth signing. So they use tricks. Here's one often used when evaluating academic dissertations: read a random middle chapter. If it's good, the rest are probably worth a closer read. Next comes reputation. An agent who takes you on is putting themselves on the line. Representing you is a bigger investment, with contractual obligations, than simply recommending your work to a colleague. If you implode, it blows back on them.

Remember, agents get paid only when they sell your book: typically 15 percent of domestic earnings and 20 to 25 percent of foreign and subsidiary rights. Let's be honest: this is a business. It's reasonable to question an agent who earns money from authors rather than from sales, or one who can't make a living selling books.

Agents' Quest to Build Portfolios Reinforces the Power Imbalance Authors Face

Here's the key point. Consider the agent's position. They have a reputation to protect and limited time, so what to do? The answer is portfolio theory, which works for ball teams, the stock market, and nearly everything else where your livelihood depends on many choices with somewhat random chances of success. A typical agent has about 25 to 50 author slots. So, like a team manager, they aim to recruit heavy hitters (who bring in most of the income) and, as a fallback, accumulate solid middle players.

That's the imbalance: hundreds of authors competing for a handful of open slots. Every so often, the agent adds someone new. That opening is your opportunity, and they're looking for someone who makes the team better, increases the portfolio's value, and has the potential to become big. Landing this spot isn't easy, so a rejection (even multiple rejections) should not suggest your project is worthless. It could be bad luck. Or, maybe there is a problem. It's hard to say without reading the manuscript and having some market context.

Hence, our recommendation: prepare well, query wisely, but don't chase. The odds, while not insurmountable, are against you, especially early on. Now for the reversal. A great manuscript will attract readers, make them happy, and get them telling others. That starts a virtuous cycle that ends in success and agents contacting you. Yes, we've seen it happen. And when an agent does chase you, you might even say no, because your career is going well enough without one.

What Agents Expect

How do you prepare? Agents expect four things:

1. A coherent manuscript with an impactful minimum complete story. This is the big one: a compelling story that makes an agent say "wow." Have it in hand before you query. Don't be the author who won't write on spec (short for speculation); you are always writing on spec. And it should be ready ready, not almost ready. Ninety-nine times out of 100, agents won't touch anything but a fully polished manuscript.

2. Professionalism. From an author's very first message, they get a sense of the person behind it. Don't raise red flags, from spelling mistakes to poor thinking and exaggeration. Professionalism also concerns other conduct. For example, don't join the mob that surrounds famous agents after a conference panel, all asking, "Can you read this?" or "What makes an attractive query?" The answer to the first is not now; the answer to the second is easy to find.

3. Evidence. Show proof of concept, evidence that your project attracts readers and makes them happy. The best evidence is sales. For a debut, that might mean enthusiastic (well-contextualized) beta reader retelling, contest victories, or a short story that found an audience. Your story also provides evidence: if it's a horror novel, for instance, prove it's scary by scaring the reader, not by claiming it's scary. Agents must pick from a sea of hopefuls, and those with evidence stand out. A sizable following on social media or other platforms, as well as relevant expertise, such as a career in the CIA for a spy novel, may also demonstrate value.

4. Marketing savvy and effort. The very worst thing you can say in a query letter is that your project will appeal to everybody; that signals either delusion or amateurism. You don't need millions of TikTok or Instagram followers, but you should understand social media and how the publishing industry is shaped, and put real energy into both. That work separates you from authors who either don't know or don't care.

What Agents Don't Do

And especially for beginners, here's what agents don't do:

1. Fix your novel. You can't hand an agent a broken novel and say, "Help me." It's a nonstarter.

2. Hold your hand or adapt to your schedule. If they want a call, you call on theirs. It just isn't going to happen the other way around.

3. Give you money. Your interests are aligned: they sell your book and take a percentage. Any other exchange is suspect. A legitimate agent never charges you, whether for reading, editing, or anything else.

The Real Deal

So what's the lesson for you? Start by asking where you are and where you want to be. Is your writing a hobby, a side gig, or your calling? Any of these is fine; it's your preference, no judgment. With your level of commitment decided, inventory your talent and resources, and make a realistic plan.

Early on, don't worry about promotion or anything else outside the manuscript. A debut author's main focus should be perfecting their debut novel. This may sound troubling, but it can take several novels before one hits for a particular audience. Rebecca Yarros, among others, published more than 15 books before Fourth Wing landed big displays, including T-shirts, at Target. And Fourth Wing came out from an indie press.

Critically, it isn't worth querying or promoting a bad novel, and it can hurt you. Query a weak project or put it up on Amazon, and you may have more to overcome in the future. Instead of a virtuous cycle, you get a vicious one.

So know your target and satisfy those readers. Know your genre, not just mystery or horror but your particular niche on Amazon, and produce the story that appeals to it. Do that, and you start making readers extremely happy. That's sufficient evidence for pursuing a career. Always remember that your job is to write a good manuscript. If an agent picks it up, great. If not, move on to your next step.

We look forward to your thoughts or questions at joinus@bardsy.com.

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