Any good literary agents out there?

[aspiringwriter]

Well I was browsing writersmarket.com and came across several literary agents for mystery novels. Does anyone out there know of any decent ones? Ones I should stay away from? I would appreciate it. You can send me a PM as well.

Bill

[Aconite]

Hi, Bill. The first thing to know about literary agents is this: Never, never, never pay one out of pocket. Not for a reading fee, not for an evaluation, not for anything. Not even if it's a small fee. Reputable agents get paid on commission when they sell your book to an advance-paying publisher.

Agents who have to advertise are not agents you want.

Good agents are agents who have sold books you've heard of to publishers you've heard of. Go through your bookshelves, and go to the bookstore, and find out who agented the books there that are like your book. Research them. Find out how to submit to them. There's no way of getting out of legwork.

Helpful resources:
Everything You Wanted to Know about Agents (http://www.neilgaiman.com/journal/2005/01/everything-you-wanted-to-know-about.asp)
On the Getting of Agents (http://nielsenhayden.com/makinglight/archives/004772.html)
Writer Beware (http://www.sfwa.org/Beware/)
Preditors and Editors (http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/)
Also check out the Bewares and Background Check board here on AW, particularly the Index to Agents, Publishers, and Others (http://absolutewrite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=792)

Good luck!

[aspiringwriter]

Thank you and I appreciate it.

[emeraldcite]

agentquery.com

Make sure you find out what they've sold recently and to whom.