Query Quest: Who Should I Query? (Redux)

Recently, someone asked me what my process is for vetting agents before I query them. Since the question was asked on a social media platform (Bluesky), I could only answer briefly, but I think a longer, more in-depth explanation could be educational. I’ve previously covered this topic on my blog, but that was earlier in my querying journey, and I’ve since refined my process. Now, nothing I do is revolutionary, unique, or even uncommon, but if you’re getting ready to query agents for the first time, you might not know about all the resources available to you. I didn’t. So, let’s dive in.

I should note that my process, such as it is, relies on paid subscriptions to two different services, QueryTracker and Publisher’s Marketplace. Both can be used for free, but the way I use them requires a paid subscription. The total for the two is about fifty bucks a month, which, admittedly, is pretty steep. I don’t think they are completely necessary when you’re vetting agents, but they do make the process a little easier.

Okay, the process.

1) QueryTracker. I start with QueryTracker and search for agents who represent my genre (horror), are based in the US, and possibly also rep an adjacent genre like thrillers or mystery. Currently, these search criteria produce a list of 55 agents currently accepting queries. If I just search for agents who rep horror, I get 77 matches. The only thing to do from this point is to click on each agent and dig a little bit further to see if the agent might be a good fit for my work. Luckily, QueryTracker makes that a little easier by providing links to the agent’s website (or their agency’s website), their Publisher’s Marketplace member page, their Manuscript Wish List page, plus their Twitter account, and a few other possibly helpful links. QueryTracker also gives you a list of known clients, which links you to the author’s Amazon page. Additionally, QueryTracker lets you look at comments left by other querying authors about the agent. Most authors simply note when they queried, what they queried (genre and length), and when they were rejected or received a manuscript request. I find the client list to be a tad more helpful than the author comments, which can take a while to slog through to really glean anything useful. Just my opinion, though.

2) Manuscript Wish List/Bio. From QueryTracker, I usually go straight to Manuscript Wish List to see if the agent has posted a list of what they’d like to see in queried manuscripts. It’s important to note that this will not always match up with the genres listed for the agent on QueryTracker. Most agents, in my experience, list far more genres than a) they want to see currently and b) have worked with on a regular basis. So, I might find an agent that lists horror in the genres they rep on QT, but when I go to their MWL, I’ll find they’re really looking for something else entirely, and it’s clearly not the time to query them with my horror novel. Next, I’ll got to the agent’s website or their agency’s website to read their bio. Often, they’ll list the kinds of manuscripts they want to see here as well. Again, this can differ from what you find on QT, so it’s always a good idea to look at both the bio and the MWL.

What I also look for in the MWL and bio are the peripherals, the stuff that goes beyond genre that will tell me if the agent is a good fit for my book and my writing style. For example, an agent who reps horror and lists some of my comps as favorite books is definitely an agent I want to query. Conversely, an agent who reps horror and wants to see lyrical prose and weird horror is probably not going to dig my Spartan line-level style in a vampire thriller. I’m not salty about any of this, of course. Finding an agent is all about matching your project, writing style, and voice with the right agent. The last thing I want to do is waste my time and the agent’s by querying a novel I’m fairly certain they’re not going to like.

3) Publisher’s Marketplace. If an agent reps my genre on QT and their MWL and/or bio states that they want to see horror manuscripts, the next place I’ll go is Publisher’s Marketplace. What I’m looking for here are the agent’s recent deals, the books they’ve sold, and if those books are in my genre. If I see recent horror sales, that’s definitely a plus, but if an agent has not sold a horror novel, it’s not necessarily a deal breaker, especially if they’ve sold novels in adjacent genres and have expressed a willingness to read horror manuscripts. Agents sometimes expand the genres they represent, and I’m more than willing to query a good agent looking to expand their client list with different types of authors.

One of the things Publishers Marketplace will definitely tell you is how experienced an agent is. It lists all the deals they’ve made past and present, how lucrative those deals were, and where they were made. This brings up a conundrum. Querying an established and experienced agent is appealing because, hey, they’ve got a proven track record, BUT these agents already have a lot of clients and tend to receive a TON of queries. So your chances of getting representation are, well, probably slimmer than usual. On the other hand, a newer agent, with a few good sales under their belt and actively looking to build out their client list is appealing because you might have a better chance of getting your manuscript read and obtaining representation. I’ve queried a little bit of both, though, oddly, I’ve had more luck with the established agents (full manuscript requests), so take my talk of “chances” with a big ol’ grain of salt.

So that’s my process. As I said earlier, you’ll need a subscription to QueryTracker and Publisher’s Marketplace to search like I do and see some of the data I’ve mentioned above, but you can tell a lot about what an agent wants from their Manuscript Wish List and bio, both of which are one-hundred-percent free. Of course, there are other ways to research agents, likely with resources I’m unaware of, so don’t take this as anything even approaching the right or best way to vet agents. These are just the techniques and resources that I’ve stumbled on over the last 50-some queries. If you know of another resource useful for vetting agents, please share it in the comments below.

Happy writing and happy querying. 🙂