Agent Interviews

What made them want to write this book.

Previous publications, relevant expertise, and anything that would be helpful to gauge whether they are the best person to author this book.

I want to know anything related to their writing or publishing careers. Are they previously published? Did they win any awards? Are they active in their writing community? Have they attended any writing programs, workshops, etc?

Anything interesting or relevant--if your novel is about cooking and you were once a chef, please let me know!

I need a few sentences that are relevant to your writing. I do not care where (or if) you went to college or how many pets you have. If I like your work, I will call you and get to know you organically. I do want to see your social media, and I will check all of the links.

Not are huge amount at this stage - ideally a couple of sentences and any relevant writing experience. Though many authors don't have relevant writing experience, and that is okay! Agents can learn more about an author when they have the chat about representation.

Enough to pique my interest. The most important things are their writing experience and their ideas for future books.

For fiction, I want a quick paragraph packed with relevant information—your work, your writing and publishing journey, and your inspiration. Otherwise, though, you should be focusing more of your query on your book's premise. For nonfiction, send me more! I need to know more about your background and experiences, because I need to know—and be able to share with editors—what makes you the perfect authors for this book.

See above answer

Any publishing credentials (or not). Whether we've met, or I've considered something else by them previously and liked it. Whether they've been recommended to send me something, and who recommended them. Which authors they think their writing is like, or whose writing they enjoy, and what readership they see for their book. (Often we get word count, number of chapters, chapter titles, other statistics - this isn't so relevant.)

I just want to read the work.

Brief bio is fine, including any publishing history

I want to know only pertinent biographical information: Tell me whether you’ve been previously published, if you have self-published, if you have contributed to literary journals, if you are an active member of any organizations such as SCBWI, Mystery Writers of America, Horror Writers Association, etc., if you have won any writing awards or mentorships, what your educational and professional background outside of writing is, what you have degrees in. Information that helps an agent understand the “what” of who are you alongside your pitch and sample, which gives insight into the “who” of who you are.

As much as I can. It's a marriage of sorts and as much as I want to love the work, I need to know this is someone I can actually work with. Are they teachable or do they know it all? Do they have expectations that aren't realistic? Do they even understand the industry?

I like when writers include a bio in their query letter that gives me a sense of who they are and what their lives look like. Their background, where in the world they live, what they do for work, maybe a hobby or two.

A short bio paragraph is usually enough of a starting point. That paragraph should contain relevant writing experience, writing credentials, and a link to an author website or author social media pages. It is fair game to mention what the inspiration was behind writing their manuscript, or how they first became inspired to become a writer in the first place.

Not much unless it's relevant. It's fine to be a world renowned open-heart surgeon if you're writing about open-heart surgery. It's not really of interest if you're writing a YA fantasy space opera. Common sense dictates what to reveal. Writing a Southern Gothic novel and you live in South Carolina--great! Put that in your bio. Writing a novel about Mohawk ironworkers 80 stories up while building a Manhattan skyscraper and you're a Mohawk ironworker--perfect! Pretty simple, really.

If I read and connect with a manuscript and am talking to an author about potential representation, the three questions I always ask are:
(1) Are you receptive to feedback on your work?
(2) Are you willing to be an active participant in the marketing of your work?
(3) What else do you plan to write? (because I see this as a long-term partnership and want to make sure that your intended genre / career track is one that I am suited to help you with).

Unless your experience is particularly relevant to your work, a short one or two line biography is plenty. If you have been previously published or represented, I would also like some brief details that relate to this.

I tend to connect with people who are authentic and honest, so if you like a book I’ve worked on, I’d love to hear it. If not, I’m just eager to jump in and hear what your book is about. If someone has a job working with kids or books or is in an MFA program for writing or a member of the SCBWI, I love to know. It’s always refreshing when people have done their homework about the business as well as honed their craft before querying.

A good paragraph about their writing or other credentials and background is usually enough. Certainly, in a number of genres publishers are looking for highly platformed people, so substantive social media or other promotional vehicles the potential author drives should be shared; especially in practical nonfiction categories.

I want to know about their background as a writer, as well as a little information about what's important in that writer's personal life. I do want to know just a sentence or two that helps me see that writer as a unique person, beyond their craft.

Qualifications, past publications, information about why they are in a position to write about a topic and ways they can draw an audience.

I need to see an author bio in the query letter. If I want to see a proposal or manuscript, I will need to see marketing ideas, etc. If I am interested in representing an author, I'll have a get-to-know-you call before offering representation. It's good for us to get to know each other!

For fiction: just a short bio with publishing history (if any). The bio does not need to include family info, but if the author has relevant experience or interesting tidbits that are germane to the story that will catch the eye of an editor, please include. I do not need authors to self-identify just for the sake of self-identifying. That in itself does not come into the selection process for representation. It's the manuscript.
For nonfiction: be a subject matter expert in the area you are writing. Let me know your qualifications, education, professional associations -- any information about you that supports your authority to write the book.

Anything relevant. If you work in STEM for example and have written a sci fi novel based on your area of expertise, I want to know that! If you did a mentorship or a residency, I want to know that. Otherwise, basic information about who you are and what you do when you're not writing is always welcome as are any social links.

Do they have a degree in writing? Do they have a professional background in writing? (Not a dealbreaker, but good to know.)
Why did they write the book? Who did they write it for (audience)?
Why are they sending the manuscript to me?

Only things relevant to their manuscript - publishing/writing credits, things that show they have authentic knowledge about their subject/plot, etc.

I'm interested to learn about an author's platform and writing experience.

The need to knows - and enough to leave me wanting more.

I don't initially need to know every little detail but I do like to know what is relevant about their writing career/experiences (if they have any), what makes them the best person to write this book, and what makes it -- and them -- unique.

I personally like to know a little about their family, hobbies, interests, education. But I need to know what fits them, equips them, drives them to write this project. I don't need a resume (waiting tables in college only matters at this stage if the novel has a college waitress main character) and honors that don't directly relate to either the topic or credentials for the topic are unnecessary to mention. That other information may help build our relationship if we become agent and client. But in the early stages, I need to know publishing history and writing training and less about degrees or GPA.

I like a brief bio, but no need to send me a tome. I have some fun (optional) questions to lighten up the process and helps me get to know the authors outside of the standard query format.

I want to know a paragraph of information. Namely, I want to know if you've had any writing experience before, what you do in your regular life, what prompted you to write this book, and why you're the right person to write it.

A brief About the Author paragraph is welcomed at the end of your query letter.

I don't need to know much to begin with - but if there's information that's relevant to your submission then that's useful. It's nice to have a bit of a sense of who you are, where you're based etc, but I don't need a full history.

I'd like at least a couple sentences about the author. Perhaps a bit more if they have writing credentials, awards, accolades or writing organization members, etc. Otherwise, when I request additional material, I typically ask for a full bio.

I would be interested in knowing if they have any previous publishing credits or experience that is related to the subject matter of their book. If it's a nonfiction project, I would love to learn more about their promotional platform and their ability to market the book.

As I said, I like to know a little something. It's a pleasant part of the transaction. Do they have seven kids? Do they teach the age level they are writing for? Do they adopt rescue animals? Do they have a background in theater? Getting to know the person makes me understand the submission better.

Top line prior publications, education (if it's relevant), what drew you to the nonfiction story you propose (or, if it's particularly relevant and the kind of thing that would come up in an author interview, your personal connection to the subject of your novel). I'm not super interested in writers you have studied with or met at workshops.

I don't need to know a huge amount. I like to know a sentence or two about someone's life outside of writing and if they have a personal connection to the story they've chosen to write. If someone has previously published a novel, that's great to know, but I'm not usually concerned with whether or not a writer has prior publication credits.

I want a brief bio with anything that could help me understand why they are best qualified to be writing this particular story.