How do we know if literary agents really know what they are doing? Are they really producing good books?

All Answers To Questions

Research. Find out who some of their clients are and then check out their book sales. What publishers do they have an in with? What are their connections to the publishing community?

Here's how you know what they're doing: You buy yourself a copy of Agent's Market and or Writer's Market. They have listings of the best agencies out there. You go on their websites and look up a list of their clients. If they don't have a list of clients, request to see one. If they don't give you one, then you know they're frauds. Preditors and Editors is also another site you can go to see if the agent you want is reputable. Most authors who have acknowledgements in their novels thank their agents, so if you have books with acknowledgements, read them and scan for the literary agent. That's another way you can tell if they're doing a good job or not. Absolutewrite.com also hosts threads from time to time where actual agents will come and answer your questions. Those agents are generally big agents and represent clients who become bestsellers. Good agents should never ask you for money in any form what-so-ever. If they need to make copies of your manuscript, they generally deduct the pay from your pay check. Other than that, they only receive money through the royalties your novel makes from sells. If they ask you for money period, drop them. But you need to make sure to do your research. If you find the name of an agent that with an author you like, research that agent and find out what credentials they have. I can name you a few agents who I know are reputable: Barry Goldblatt Nathan Bransford Jodi Reamer