GATEKEEPERS

Once upon a time literary agents didn't exist, and authors submitted their work directly to publishers who'd wade through piles of manuscripts searching for the next best seller.

When the first  literary agents made their appearance they were regarded with suspicion, and authors were advised to steer well clear of them. However, publishers soon began to see the value of using agents to sort through their slush piles as it freed up their own time to attend to more important matters.

As the years rolled by the power and influence of agents increased, and they began to exert a strangle hold on unpublished authors ambitions to secure a traditional publishing deal. Indeed, even today, most large publishers still refuse to accept unsolicited submissions from first-time authors. Mind you, publishers also ended up at the mercy of agents who demanded increasingly higher advances for their authors work. 

Getting an agent to represent you has becoming increasingly difficult. The advances in technology have enabled a far greater number of people to submit their ideas. As a result, most literary agents are swamped with queries. Sadly no response, no interest has become the norm for many agents. Fortunately, a savvy few are still able to use technology to provide authors with some kind of response.

Becoming established as an agent is just as hard as getting noticed as an author. Few agencies pay new agents a salary, and so they often need to work second jobs whilst they build up enough sales to provide them with an income. The size of publishers advances has also reduced over time which affects an agents short-term income. This hand to mouth existence isn't good for anyone, and this includes the author. The temptation is always there for a struggling agent to sell a clients work quickly rather than hold out for a better deal.