Being turned down by an agent
...what it means, and how to peel yourself off the floor and move forward
Q: An agent asked to see the first chapter/100 pages/the entirety of my manuscript and then turned me down. Why?
A: An agent will offer to represent you for one reason only: She believes she can sell your book. This doesn’t mean you’re not a good writer, or that your material isn’t saleable. It doesn’t even necessarily mean that the agent didn’t like it. It means that, because of her own tastes and contacts and her perception of the state of the market at that particular time, she doesn’t think she can sell it. If you’re lucky, you may get a personal note or even a phone call (I got one, once) to explain her position. This can be helpful, not just for the chance to hear a professional opinion of your work and its prospects, but to soothe your understandably bruised ego.
Nobody likes to be turned down, whether it’s a marriage proposal or a spin around the dance floor or a novel manuscript. Unlike marriage or dancing, however, the decision not to represent a manuscript for publication isn’t personal. Yes, it’s based on some factors that are, such as your talent and skill and professionalism. But it also has to do with a bunch of intangibles. Maybe, for instance, this spring is huge for books about penguins, but the agent knows that, in the 18 months it would take between selling your penguin manuscript (to Penguin/Putnam, perhaps?) and having it appear on store shelves, the trend will have peaked. That’s just market savvy, not personal ill will.
Or maybe she likes and admires your manuscript very much, but simply doesn’t know the editors who might be interested in publishing it. This happens fairly frequently (it did to me), and a really cool agent might recommend you to a colleague, or vice versa. She may offer to take a look at other things you’ve written, even ask for changes to the present manuscript that might then cause her to re-consider it. You can do the latter or not as you choose, depending upon how badly you want to work with that particular agent, and on how much, if any, other interest from agents you’ve had. You have to trust your gut on this one. I would be very leery of an agent who suggests multiple lengthy re-writes (doesn’t she have anything else to do but read your drafts?), or who makes blanket statements such as, “I never represent manuscripts written in the first person” (would she turn down Charlotte Bront??⬨¬¥ or Melville or Dickens?). On the other hand, she may very well not represent historical romance or thrillers or books about penguins, in which case you should move on quickly and without regret to someone who does.