How many agents should you pitch to?

by . .
5th April 2013

Every literary agent likes to believe that they are your first choice. So is it good politics to pitch to just one agent at a time? Or should you adopt a blanket approach and contact as many as you can find?

Replies

Blanket approach I think. And an excel sheet with their names and status under the following categories, perhaps: Will contact, Response pending, has not responded in 12 weeks (or whatever time period you are prepared to wait) and (ugh) Rejected. Just to keep track of what is going on.

Profile picture for user santwana_24228
Sonya
Kar
270 points
Ready to publish
Film, Music, Theatre, TV and Radio
Poetry
Short stories
Fiction
Business, Management and Education
Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Adventure
Autobiography, Biography and Memoir
Middle Grade (Children's)
Picture Books (Children's)
Comic
Media and Journalism
Speculative Fiction
Popular science, Social science, Medical Science
Practical and Self-Help
Historical
Philosophy and Religion
Romance
Sonya Kar
08/04/2013

Ruth, I visited an online Agency. Under submissions it said, 'We are not a beauty contest, do not send your manuscript to us if you are considering sending it to other Agents. How arrogant of them.

I crossed their name off my list.

Profile picture for user Adrian
Adrian
Sroka
19900 points
Ready to publish
Fiction
Historical
Middle Grade (Children's)
Young Adult (YA)
Adventure
Adrian Sroka
06/04/2013

I think you should do the blanket response, because as Adrian mentions you could wait 2 or 3 months before you recieve a reply.

I did see on one agents website a comment saying don't send me your manuscript if you're sending it to many, which I found to be quite rude considering how hard it is to be picked up for representation.

Profile picture for user ruth2day_25704
Ruth
Bradbury-Horton
270 points
Ready to publish
Short stories
Fiction
Crime, Mystery, Thriller
Adventure
Autobiography, Biography and Memoir
Comic
Historical
Romance
Ruth Bradbury-Horton
06/04/2013