Literary agents have an important role to play, but the agent route is not for every writer. As I look back on over a decade of work as a lone writer and journalist, there’s a fair amount of advice about how I’ve managed without one.

Here’s how to steer your literary career forward (without an agent).

First, What You’ll Miss Without an Agent

Forget about agented only submissions if this is your chosen route. Publishers and other literary markets will specify in their guidelines, and they do not negotiate their stance. The good news is that most publishers are no longer agent exclusive. If you’re not after a movie deal or international rights negotiations right now, you’ll get by just fine.

I, Author

Agents represent authors, but authors without agents represent themselves.

Where literary agents would negotiate rates or press appearances, individual authors fulfill the same role. Writers become business people, not to be taken lightly.

Biographical information, from LinkedIn to About the Author, is yours to update. Relationships with publishers (and editors) are yours to seek and strengthen.

Agents do market research, meaning you’ll have to do that, too. Monitor your market niche from the business side of things. The best ways are bestseller lists, industry news, and Google Trends. Publishersmarketplace.com is a good start.

Press

Good and bad press make up a large part of any agent’s job. Snag headlines, get profiled for features, and navigate the endless sea of podcasts and internet radio.

PR work takes patience, time, and material to build an audience. Establish some conversation starters about your own work, and stay in touch with stations, blogs, local businesses, and publications.

Actually, agents generate press, and so should you. “Out of sight, out of mind” is a true fact for authors, and at least one good interview every three months or so keeps you in the public thought.

Contracts Sans Agents

Agents protect their clients by negotiating contracts on their behalf, often as a middle-person between two fields. Congratulations, lone writer, you’ll want to learn your way around basic contract terms (very) fast.

https://www.writersdigest.com/get-published-sell-my-work/publishing-contracts-101
https://www.morse.law/news/book-publishing-contracts/ 

Understand rights, and know how you are selling or leasing your intellectual property. Agents can sell something well, but agents also know how to re-sell older work (and when it’s legal).

Never sign blind. Research, spend time on it, and negotiate. That’s what business is about. Writers often hold back, but agents never do. That’s often why they’re successful.

Legal Insurance (For Writers)

For big or long-term contracts, a lawyer is especially advised.

The affordable answer to this is a legal business insurance plan. Available through financial providers and some legal firms, you can get coverage (of up to a certain amount of legal costs, document drafting, and legal representation) for a monthly fee.

Without an agent to stick up for your rights, learn to hold your own. If you ever have to pay a lawyer by the hour to look at a contract, you’ll wish that you had legal insurance.

https://www.legalzoom.com/articles/legal-insurance-for-businesses

You can also join the Author’s Guild for guidance and access to legal help as well as legal insurance.

“Market Potential” 

Market potential is the literary world’s unique selling point.

Writers know language, while an agent has consumer psychology and business planning skills. Writers are often artistically inclined, whereas agents keep their mind on business.

How much do you think this idea is going to sell and can you get the other side to agree? “Potential” isn’t a tangible object, but can be measured with a convincing pitch and similar industry statistics.

Courses in business proposals and projections (like EdX and Coursera) can give you the upper hand, and basic training in how to get a publisher on the same page about an idea.

The Bigger Cut

A literary agent can take up to 15 percent of local sales, and a higher figure might go for international rights.

My first short story was released in another language, and I have connected with the publisher for its translation. I won’t need to pay an agent to write three emails to ask, I just asked. As a lone writer, you’ll administrate your own rights, and get to take a bigger slice of the literary dessert home with you.

It’s great responsibility, but as a writer, you will always remain in control. That’s a huge part of the worthwhile reward of self-administration, assuming you do your homework.

Bio: Alex J. Coyne is a journalist, author, and proofreader. His features have been published in a wide array of international publications: Caribbean Compass, Bridge Canada, People Magazine, Writers Weekly, Yoga International, Great Bridge Links, and more.
 

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