Self-publishing in e-format and finding an agent

So you're talking about trying to find an agent for the novel(s) you've already published on various websites, not for a new one?

Why would anyone pay for something you've already given away for free?

I tried to get my old agent to see if he could sell the print rights to a self pub with a clear platform and a huge audience and he said that even with 150,000 views and requests for a print version of the book, it would be a hard sell.

Unless that novel accrues a large number of sales (and we're talking five digits), then no, it won't help. It might even hurt. Agents rarely take on self-published books.

Your best bet is to write a new, better book and query that.

Honestly? I wouldn't bother with this book. As soon as an agent gets to the "my novel is currently for sale on Kindle and Smashwords," they're likely to put the query directly into the Rejection pile.

I think it helps if you look at it from the agent's POV - what would he/she gain from taking on a book that's already been in the public eye for sale?

If the sales have been great, the audience has already been exhausted to a degree. If the sales have sucked, why take it on at all?

Write another novel and submit that. IMO, of course.

RS007 said:

Does self-publishing through Kindle, Smashwords, etc undermine my ability to find an agent (or a small-press publisher) for traditional, print publishing?

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For that book, yes.

I have self-published my first novel through those e-publishers and I am now looking for an agent. Does it mean that no agent or publisher will be interested in that novel now that first rights are gone (or are they if this is self-publishing)?

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That's exactly what it means. You've killed off the future for that book in any other aspect of the publishing industry. First rights are gone, so that book is gone. Unless, of course, you write a bestseller and people start looking for anything else you've written. But even then, not a single agent or publisher is going to be interested in something you self-published.

RS007 said:

That's a good perspective to take, thanks.

So basically the unspoken rule is -- if you want traditional publishing, stay away from self-publishing?

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I'd say that's a good bet on a book by book basis.

If you want to be commerically published, go that route and submit via the usual channels. But don't self-pub and hope that an agent is going to pluck your book out of the thousands and make an offer.

It can happen and it has happened - but why burn your first rights on a possibility?

If you want to SP, then go forth and do so - I've put up some short stories reprints that I've already sold once and now have up for sale. Any money I make from them is gravy, since they've already been sold once.

Just be aware that while you can do both it's not advisable to try to do it with the same material. IMO.

RS007 said:

That's a good perspective to take, thanks.

So basically the unspoken rule is -- if you want traditional publishing, stay away from self-publishing?

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Even that is more of a suggested guideline than a rule, because there are always going to be exceptions. Unfortunately, the exceptions are rare because it does take an extraordinary number of sales to get an agent's interest in a previously self-published book.

So yes, if you want to get a book picked up by an agent and sold to a commercial or trade publisher, don't self-publish it.

For the one you've self-published? Probably not.

If you have another novel on the shelf, though, you could seek an agent for that.

Agents want to have a manuscript with its rights intact, because publisher want to have digital rights. Digital rights are now a significant part of a book profitability.

RS007 said:

So basically the unspoken rule is -- if you want traditional publishing, stay away from self-publishing?

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Kind of. If you want traditional (commercial) publishing for a given book, do not self-publish it first.

Some people (including many members here) use both routes for different works - self-publish the more niche titles, often under a pseudonym, and go the agent/publisher route with their more commercial works. There's no one-size-fits-all solution.

Another thing to consider is that if the book looks as if it's not successful on Amazon/B&N/Smashwords, why would anyone assume it would be more successful if they took it on?

This is not always the case, of course, but something to consider.

Don't bother trying to sell an agent on any self-published title.

It may be a completely awesome book with tons of sales, but it's a reprint to a commercial publisher. Agents know that publishers want new books, not reprints, whether they've sold 5 copies or 5,000.

Write a NEW book and shop it. If your ebook was a huge success--and that would be 5K copies sold--you can mention it in your resume, but don't expect anyone to be impressed.

For every Amanda Hocking closing a million-dollar deal, there are hundreds of thousands of epic fails you will never hear of.

She's writing NEW books for that deal, BTW.

Think of it this way: if Jonathan Franzen ran into an agent's office with a copy of Freedom and said "You should represent my awesome book!", even though it's massively successful, the agent would still go "...okay, but it's already published."

Your e-pubbed book is published. What can they do with something that's already been published?

RS007 said:

The one I self-published is actually under my real name. My second novel is under a pseudonym (and I'd like to keep it this way). I am planning to query now for this second novel. Anyone has done that under a pseudonym after self-publishing under a real name?

Any issues here?

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Doesn't really matter. You can publish under whatever name you want.

Ok I'm new to the writing/publishing world so sorry if this is a stupid question, but could someone explain how it works when a self-pub author does get someone interested in their book? I'm thinking specifically of Christopher Paolini and the Inheritance Cycle. I guess I just don't understand how he even got someone to look at it if self-pub is so stigmatized.

Stiger05 said:

Ok I'm new to the writing/publishing world so sorry if this is a stupid question, but could someone explain how it works when a self-pub author does get someone interested in their book? I'm thinking specifically of Christopher Paolini and the Inheritance Cycle. I guess I just don't understand how he even got someone to look at it if self-pub is so stigmatized.

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It happens, but it's so rare we could probably name every single author it's happened to. I don't think there is a set way that it works when it's so rare.

Stiger05 said:

Ok I'm new to the writing/publishing world so sorry if this is a stupid question, but could someone explain how it works when a self-pub author does get someone interested in their book? I'm thinking specifically of Christopher Paolini and the Inheritance Cycle. I guess I just don't understand how he even got someone to look at it if self-pub is so stigmatized.

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I agree with Becca C.

There is no formula and no set way of this happening.

It's like winning the lottery.

I think with Christopher Paolini 's case, after he traveled from state to state from book fair to elementary school to promote his self published book, he got lucky and it was author Carl Hiaasen who happened to read it from recommendation from his stepson and liked it. He then went on to recommend it to his publishing company, who then liked what they read and picked it up.

With Amanda Hocking, she built a gigantic fan base with her books online through self publishing before it caught a publisher's attention. Of course, when you have a fan base in the millions, it's going be attractive to publishers to pick up to make money.

In Paolini's case, he had parents who ran a small press and were willing to bankrupt themselves to print his book. Those connections got the book distributed to actual stores, at which CP had signings - in costume. Hiassan's munchkin dragged him into the store during one such signing and the rest is history.

He was NOT self-published.

Did Paolini's parents already have the press before publishing that book? I missed that part of the story.