An Insider Look At How An Agent Reads and Evaluates The Requested Sample Pages For Your Novel

By Kristin Nelson, Nelson Literary Agency, LLC
www.nelsonagency.com
 

It’s finished! The novel you have worked so hard on for the last year is revised, proofed, and polished. You have done an extensive agent search and have compiled your agent wish list. You’ve spent hours, days even, perfecting your email query letter. Every writer you know has critiqued it. You know it’s a query to get results.

It’s out. An hour, a day, maybe even three weeks later, a little thrill happens when Outlook beeps to signal an incoming message. The agent wants to see some sample pages. Success! You’ve just taken the first step in securing an agent’s interest.

Now, are you ready to hear what really happens when your sample pages land on an agent’s desk? If so, read on. If you’d rather not know too much, stop now. Beyond here be dragons.

A caveat to start: every agent has her or his own way to deal with partials that have come in the mail. It’s not my goal in this article to research and outline all the different systems various agencies implement. All I can give you is the inside scoop on how partials are handled at my agency, what occurs during the evaluation process, and what ultimately makes us decide to request a full manuscript (and potentially offer representation) or what nudges us to send the dreaded rejection letter.

The Reality in Statistics
Don't be discouraged from pursuing your dream of publication, but do understand that the odds involved in securing an agent or even receiving a request for a partial can be daunting.

On average, my agency receives about 50 email queries a day/300 to 400 a week. Out of those queries, we might request about 50 partials. Ballpark figures mean we see about 1200 queries a month and only look at sample pages for 200 projects. Staggering, isn’t it? At the very least, I want you to understand just how important that query letter is before sending. Don’t skimp on that part of the process. Work as hard on that piece as you did on your full manuscript.

So, my agency is reading only about 200 partials a month—and we are an agency that is growing and actively seeking clients. There are many agents with full client lists who are not considering new writers. Out of those 200 partials, I may request to see one full manuscript on the average (although I’ve had months where I was excited about the possibilities of several projects, and I’ve requested fulls from two or three authors). After reading a full manuscript, it’s 50-50 on whether I offer representation. I have to be 100% enthusiastic and wholly in love with the work before I take it on. More on that later.

The Etiquette on Submitting your Partial
Let’s return to that wonderful scenario outlined in the introduction. Outlook has beeped. There’s a request for sample pages. In our request email, we carefully outline how you should submit to us. Please do every agent a favor and follow the guidelines specified. I know it can be a hassle and it seems like every agency wants something different, but trust me, the guidelines are there for a reason. It streamlines our reading process and allows us to respond in a timely fashion. Authors who disregard them do so at their own peril. Agents have rejected manuscripts for less reason, and if writers can’t be bothered to follow directions, are they really authors we want to work with? I know agents who have slapped on a rejection letter without reading and dropped the partial right back in the mail. I have to admit, I’ve been tempted to do the same on many a day when I was in a bad mood. Why risk it?

Some general thoughts to keep in mind about mailing those pages:

1. Please do not bind or make it difficult to read your sample pages in any way. The pages should be loose, not stapled (and you can use an office clip or a paper clip to secure them for mailing). There is no need for a proposal cover, folder, or hole punch binding etc. It’s just annoying and increases how long it takes to “unwrap” your sample pages to read them. Also, you are sending paper. It’s durable. No need to put it in a huge bubble mailer or wrap it in cardboard. Now, I strongly suggest a box or a nice bubble mailer when sending the full manuscript so it comes in pristine reading condition, but for sample pages, save yourself some money.
2. Please use white paper, Times New Roman 12-point font (which is standard now), and double-spaced on just one side of the paper. We read a lot. Help our poor eyes. I won’t read any sample pages that are single-spaced, on colored paper, or use a weird font.
3. Unless specifically requested, never send your partial by Fedex overnight. You are simply wasting money. It’s very rare that we will read a partial the week it arrives. It won’t make us respond any quicker.
4. Also, never send your sample pages by certified mail or in any way that needs a signature. My building has a reception desk that handles all incoming packages. They will sign on my behalf, so the above doesn’t bother me. I did just talk to an agent friend last week who wasn’t home (and yes, many agents have home offices) when the Post Office attempted to deliver an envelope with a signature request. The Post Person left the yellow announcement on her door. The next day she wasted a morning going to the post office, standing in line for 45 minutes to receive a package that was simply a proposal (and not even one she requested!). She was livid. She opened the envelope. Took out the SASE. Wrote on the author’s cover letter the rejection and a curt note. Tossed the proposal in the recycling bin right there at the post office and dropped the SASE in the post box and walked out.