Due to the numerous different types of literary book agents in the market, it's often difficult to choose the right one to help you achieve your goals.
Step one in finding a literary book agent to represent your work is to find one who specializes in your book's subject type. For example, if your book is fiction, look for a book agent who specializes in fiction. If you've written a poetry book, search for a book agent that specializes in poetry and so on.
Step two is finding a book agent who is trustworthy. This can be a difficult task primarily because there are not a lot of really good agents in the business. Yes, there are many who claim to book agents but in reality are scammers. You need to find someone who has been in the business a while and gained a reputation as someone who is trustworthy.
So what are the traits of a good book agent?
A good book agent will not only work hard to get your book in front of a publisher, but he will also be honest in evaluating the chances of a publisher picking up your book.
A good book agent will not ask you for money before your book is sold. Instead, he will take a percentage of the amount you are paid on a book that is sold.
A good book agent will edit your book as needed without a charge, as this is part of their job.
A good book agent will be willing to show you their client list. Conversely, a book agent scam artist will offer all sorts of excuses why he can't reveal his client list - and the answer will probably be that he does not have a client list.
A good book agent will also offer book revisions for free.
In short, a good book agent can be very hard to find, but finding the right one will greatly ease your path to being published and can be very easily worth his weight in gold.
