I have had many ideas for Children's books over the years but put these to one side because of other pressures. I now have time to dedicate to my writing but when I came to type up the first one of my stories, I found that I became bogged down about how to set it out for submission to an agent, (when I have found one). I have looked at various websites for information and find this all very confusing as paragraph widths, font types, indenting of paragraphs etc differ from website to website and I don't want to continue without making sure that my manuscript won't be tossed aside because it doesn't look right. Can anyone help me with this please?
Thank you very much. That was most helpful.
Kind regards
Agents or agencies have strict requirements on their websites under Submissions.
You must tailor your submission to suit each individual agent or agency.
Bear in mind that a covering letter that suits the UK market might not suit the American market. UK agents will be mostly grounded in traditional English literature, whereas, American agents will be mostly grounded in American literature.
For example, I would mention what English authors influenced your writing in a UK covering letter, and similarly, what American authors influenced your writing in a USA covering letter. That could be the difference between hooking an agent or not.
I would also make sure the agent you submit to is interested in the genre of your novel. Check their favourite reads and what clients they have on their books.
Much or what I have stated may seem obvious to you, but I wouldn't even consider submitting to an agent until I had completed and thoroughly edited my manuscript a few times.
I hope that helps.
Good luck.