15 questions to ask a literary agent before you sign

If you’ve been querying literary agents for a while, you might be at a very desirable and exciting stage where you have interest or an offer of representation – but there are some questions that are very useful to ask a literary agent before you sign with them.

The agent might have offered you what querying writers have dubbed “The Call”. This is an offer of a phone call, which generally, but not always, results in an offer of representation. It’s a very exciting moment!

A phone call is also the ideal time to ask the literary agent questions. You can also ask these via email if you’ve received an offer or have some serious interest in your email inbox. I do always recommend talking to the agent on the phone or a video call, though, as it can help you to get acquainted with them.

Asking questions is particularly important because it can help you understand the agent’s style, their experience, and their plans for your manuscript. That way, you can determine whether they’re the best fit for you and your book.

You don’t have to ask the literary agent all of these questions – you might not think some of them are necessary! But you may feel that some of them are important enough to you to warrant bringing up with the agent.

1. What editorial changes might need to be made to the manuscript?

One of the main things on your mind is probably the manuscript itself. You’ve probably done a lot of self-revision, and the agent might have even asked you to revise as part of a revise and resubmit request.

It can still be useful to ask what further editorial changes might be needed. The literary agent might only have light edits in mind, or they could be thinking of asking you to carry out hefty structural changes.

Making sure you are aligned on this can shape expectations – you can find out how editorial the agent is, and what type of edits they typically carry out with their authors. It also ensures you aren’t agreeing to any editorial changes you will fully disagree with.

2. Do you have any editors or publishing houses in mind?

Asking about editors and publishers can highlight how experienced and connected the agent is. If you’ve written a fantasy romance, you want to make sure the editor can target imprints and editors who publish and love the genre, and that they know the right people to pitch to.

To tie in with this question, you can also find out a bit more about the agent’s submission strategy to get a feel for the process. Do they submit once, and that’s it? Do they do “rounds” of submissions to give you the chance to revise in between if you want to?

You should also consider the size and types of publishers the agent has in mind. If they only seem to have connections to smaller presses and you really want to aim for the Big 5, then that could create a mismatch later.

3. Can you tell me about some other authors in this genre you represent and similar books you’ve sold?

This is another great way to get a sense of the agent’s experience. If they represent authors writing in your genre, chances are they have sold some similar books. Agents don’t mind if you ask about these directly or if you ask them about books they’ve sold.

They might already have a list of these authors and books on their agency website, but it’s still a good idea to ask them about it, and hear about the process they went through with other books first-hand.

4. Can you put me in touch with some of your clients?

Asking to speak directly to the literary agent’s other clients is always a good idea. You can find out more about how the agent works and their current clients’ experiences.

The one drawback of this is that you likely won’t be able to speak to any clients the agent has parted ways with. But it’s still a solid tip to get some insight into what becoming a client might be like.

5. Is the offer for this book alone, or for all my future works as well?

Don’t assume the agent is offering to represent your entire career – always ask! There are cases where a literary agent will make an offer, but only for one book. If you want someone in your corner to represent future books as well, this is a crucial question to ask.

6. How do you handle selling subrights such as foreign rights?

Subrights and foreign rights can bring in more money for authors outside of the advance they receive from the publisher they sign with. Subrights includes things like audiobook rights, film/TV rights, radio adaptations, and so on.

Foreign rights is when your book is sold to publishers in other countries outside of your main territory, so it can be translated and published elsewhere. For example, if you receive an offer of publication from a US publisher, the book can then be pitched and sold in countries and territories outside of the US.

Ask your agent about how they handle this. Some literary agents don’t handle foreign rights themselves and hand all of this over to the publisher. In that case, your publisher will be the one pitching and selling your subrights and foreign rights.

Some literary agencies, though, are extremely savvy with foreign rights and handle it themselves.

If subrights and foreign rights are important to you (and remember, they can be so helpful for bringing in additional money), make sure to find out how the literary agent will deal with this.

7. How big is your literary agency?

Some authors prefer to work with a literary agent who is with a smaller agency, because they feel they will receive more of the agent’s time and attention. But this could also mean the agency isn’t as experienced as you might like them to be.

As with many things in the industry, it’s all quite murky. Smaller agencies can be wonderful, and larger agencies don’t necessarily mean you will be ignored, as you’ll be assigned to one literary agent anyway.

Still, it’s worth getting a sense of the size of the literary agency, and asking some questions about how they work, before you sign. You may also want to ask what will happen if the literary agent decides to move to another agency – will they take you with them, or will you be shifted to another agent at the same agency you signed with?

8. What’s your preferred communication style?

A mismatch in communication style is one of the major reasons that authors become unhappy with their literary agent, so it’s really important to nail this down right away. Find out if the agent prefers to communicate by email or phone call. Will everything be done by email? Can you request a voice or video call to talk through edits? Will the agent mind if you send them a text message if you have a quick question?

In terms of manuscripts you send them, you could also ask what their rough turnaround time is for reading or editorial notes and when you can expect a response.

Setting up communication expectations early on is crucial. It’s more likely that you’ll have a positive experience if you discuss this before you sign.

9. How will you receive updates when you go on submission?

The publisher submission process is shrouded in mystery for most writers, which is why I recommend talking to the agent about it before you sign with them! When they’ve talked you through their strategy, be sure to ask about updates as well.

Will they forward you all of the rejections and feedback (and, if you’d prefer, can you ask them not to)? Will they update you if anything major happens, such as an editor showing serious interest in your book or taking it to an acquisitions meeting?

Some writers prefer to be in the dark about all this, and only want to know when there is an offer on the table, which is fine! Make sure you let the agent know if that’s the case.

10. Can I see your agency agreement?

The agency agreement is the contract between you and the literary agent. It lays out all the terms of business – the commission the agent will take, details of money and payments, what to do if you’d like to terminate the contract, and so on.

You can ask to see this before you make a decision. Some writers like to have this looked over by someone who is experienced in contracts, or by an organisation for authors such as The Society for Authors, though it’s not strictly necessary.

11. What will we do if this book doesn’t sell?

Find out what will happen if the book the agent first signed you for fails to sell. If they’ve chosen to represent you and any future works, odds are, you’ll simply move on and write a new book for the agent to submit.

There have unfortunately been cases of authors being dropped by their agent if one book fails to sell – so be sure to ask so you know that the agent will be with you for the long-haul.

12. How much commission do you take?

You’ll find out the answer to how much commission the agent will take if you request to see the agency agreement. Regardless, it’s something you may want to quickly ask on a call or email as well.

The standard is 15% for domestic publication rights and 20% for foreign publication rights. Film and TV can also be around 15–20%.

Remember that reputable and legitimate agents shouldn’t charge you any money upfront, such as reading fees or charges for signing with them. They only get paid when you do, and take a small cut.

13. Will you represent other genres I want to write in?

If you can see yourself writing in other genres in the future, you may like to ask the agent if they will represent these as well. Find out what genres they’re interested in and would be willing to move forward with.

The same applies to age categories – if you primarily write adult but have an interest in writing for children, find out if this is something the agent would support you with, or if you’d have to find a different agent to represent your children’s writing.

14. What happens if we don’t agree on future projects?

This can be an uncomfortable question to ask, but it’s well worth bringing up! If the agent is taking you on for your entire career, not just one book, you need to know how you’ll go about handling disagreements or discussing projects that the agent might feel aren’t viable.

The literary agent might have a process of having their authors “pitch” and discuss ideas with them, before going away and writing them. This can help the writer to avoid wasting time on manuscripts that might not be commercially viable.

You could also find out if the agent is open to you taking other routes with manuscripts they might not feel are commercially viable – such as self-publishing or targeting more specialist, niche presses.

It’s always a good idea to know what the agent’s process is for new ideas, and for projects they might not think are suited to the market.

15. When do you need a decision?

If the agent has offered to represent you, don’t feel pressured to give them a yes or no right away. It’s common practice for the agent to give the author time to consider, and even to set a deadline for saying yes or no, especially if you have existing submissions to other agents that are outstanding.

Make sure you have plenty of time. Don’t agree to an overly short deadline!

If you have other submissions in progress, this is the time to notify those other agents that you have an offer of representation. That way, they can consider your work before the deadline and decide if they also want to offer.

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I hope this post gave you some ideas for what questions to ask a potential literary agent if you find yourself with an offer. Good luck!