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Writer Beware's 20 Worst Agents

Gillhoughly

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Until someone comes up with more details, you can put the name of the agency into your search engine with the words "scam" or "rip off" to see if anything pops up.

And you *might* find help on this list. It's mostly for the US, but there might be UK names on it.

http://anotherealm.com/prededitors/
 

victoriastrauss

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Are there one's to avoid in the UK as well please?

There are fee-charging agents in the UK, but not anywhere near the numbers of them that there are in the States. Writer Beware does collect complaints about UK agents (actually, about agents in any country--we've also heard from writers in Australia, Ireland, South Africa, and Germany) but with a few exceptions (such as the late unlamented Christopher Hill, who is no longer in business) they don't match up to the complaints we get on an ongoing basis about the US agents on our list.

If you have a question about a specific agent, please contact Writer Beware (see the URL in my signature).

- Victoria
 

James D. Macdonald

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Okay, we have the worst 20. Is there a 20 best list?

Such a list would be meaningless. What genres are you talking about? The best agent for romance and the best agent for mystery would be different people. Then there's personal chemistry. The best agent for you and the best agent for me would be different people (all else being equal).
 

trwithe

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victoriastrauss

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Who to trust? An agent with a verifiable track record of sales. A publisher that can get its books into actual physical bookstores. Stick with these two criteria in your agent or publisher search, and you'll eliminate 99% of the uncertainty.

- Victoria
 

DaveKuzminski

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And remember that "sales" to vanity publishers or self-publishing outfitters are not legitimate sales for any literary agents.
 

SusanH

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Are you referring to Kristin Nelson? If so, she's wholly legit. (I'm not an expert on these affairs, however, so please wait for 2nd and 3rd opinions.)

You can visit her blog here: http://pubrants.blogspot.com/

Yep, she's legit; puts out a great newsletter......turned me down twice....said she wasn't taking on new clients.....if that isn't true, I would rather she had told me that she didn't like my book. It is right up her alley.....sigh....
 

playdatemom

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Thanks for this list

I haven't got me an agent yet but I'm hoping one day. I'm writing a book of life stories. Kind of like Chicken Soup books, but with one writer. I've had some interesting experiences and some sad ones. I'm so gald my coworker told me about Absolute. This is a great site. Thanks, y'all.
 
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I didn’t pick this moniker willy-nilly; it’s a public service for novice writers with intact hymens. When you see that name—Harris Literary Agency—run, don’t walk, to grab the nearest stake and hammer. Two hundred and fifty bucks to learn your novel’s been submitted to DC comics. Also watch out for Barbara Baur and, unless you’re a masochist, Debbie Fine.
 

acousticgroupie

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Half the job of writing your book is placing it--and that takes tons of research in this industry!!!
 

Georgina S.

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Does anyone have a similar list?

Are there one's to avoid in the UK as well please?


Agents in Uk seem to be more difficult to track. Does anyone know which agents should be best to avoid in the UK? Is there a list I could have a look at?
 

Georgina S.

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UK's possible list of most unwanted agents

Many thanks Emerita. I will definitly give it a go. I know there must be more than one person out there trying to get this information straight! Georgina
 

Momento Mori

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Georgina S.:
Agents in Uk seem to be more difficult to track. Does anyone know which agents should be best to avoid in the UK? Is there a list I could have a look at?

Start with the current edition of The Writer's And Artist's Year Book, which is a directory of all agents in the UK. Your local library should have the most recent copy or you can buy it for around £13 from any book store (it's a useful resource on top of being an agent directory as it includes articles on preparing manuscripts, querying and the writing process). Then cross-check agents against this Forum and P&E.

MM