As someone who is also hunting for a new agent and who also writes in multiple different styles and age groups, I feel this Ventor's pain on a deep and personal level!! I'm afraid I have absolutely nothing wise or helpful to add other than, you are not alone lol!!
Oh, this is actually a favorite topic of mine! So, when I queried my first agent, I had a new manuscript, obviously. Ditto second. Third I queried with an anthology proposal. Fourth I queried with a new manuscript again. But I left my fourth after I think less than a year, after they'd landed a two-book deal for me (and the first book had not yet released), and there was NO WAY I was going to be able to write anything else for someone new but I had so many books in the mix, I also couldn't go without representation. There had, however, been an agent I'd *really* loved - I'd been deciding between her and the agent I ultimately went with and fairly quickly left for round four - and I dashed back to her with my tail between my legs and begged her to take me and luckily she did.
So, first things first are that I absolutely agree with JJ and would finish a manuscript and query with it, because it doesn't sound like you're in a position where you're juggling too much (e.g. open contracts) to do that, and it's always my default unless it's really not possible. But to answer what I sent to query my agent when I couldn't write something new, it was this:
1. A spreadsheet with my book ideas laid out, so she could see my plans and get an idea of what I wanted to be doing going forward.
2. An anthology proposal I'd done for my option
3. A proposal for a book I wanted to move forward with at some point. (10k + 1pg synopsis)
4. Information on which of my subrights were available for which books (Which I was wrong about, due to a misunderstanding with someone at my old agency, but I digress.)
There are also services out there where you can just ask an agent for general career advice, too! Manuscript Academy comes to mind. If needing an agent comes more down to wanting a sounding board or professional opinion about where to take your career, you can get freelance opinions before deciding which project to work on.
Oh, this is so interesting to read! I have two small press books forthcoming in 2026, along with a couple pieces in anthologies this summer, and have won a national award in my genre as well as been short-listed for another. I do have a completed manuscript that I'm querying, but I'm still struggling to secure representation for this new work. I try to focus on the positive and appreciate the validation of my deals I've secured on my own, but man, sometimes it's hard to feel like everyone likes your work except the people you desperately need to like it!
That can be so frustrating when we have wins that anyone would say are big deals, but then the subjectivity of our industry makes it where folks we need to get our career going can still “not connect as much as they hoped”. Sending all the good energy your way!!
This is a great topic. I got all my deals without an agent, and when I did have an agent, nothing happened and I’ve left my agent and tried querying since and the doors are still closed. You strive for so long to ‘make it’ and then when you do ‘make it’ you still can’t ’make it’ 😂 It’s such a hugely tough and unpredictable industry!
As someone who is also hunting for a new agent and who also writes in multiple different styles and age groups, I feel this Ventor's pain on a deep and personal level!! I'm afraid I have absolutely nothing wise or helpful to add other than, you are not alone lol!!
Oh, this is actually a favorite topic of mine! So, when I queried my first agent, I had a new manuscript, obviously. Ditto second. Third I queried with an anthology proposal. Fourth I queried with a new manuscript again. But I left my fourth after I think less than a year, after they'd landed a two-book deal for me (and the first book had not yet released), and there was NO WAY I was going to be able to write anything else for someone new but I had so many books in the mix, I also couldn't go without representation. There had, however, been an agent I'd *really* loved - I'd been deciding between her and the agent I ultimately went with and fairly quickly left for round four - and I dashed back to her with my tail between my legs and begged her to take me and luckily she did.
So, first things first are that I absolutely agree with JJ and would finish a manuscript and query with it, because it doesn't sound like you're in a position where you're juggling too much (e.g. open contracts) to do that, and it's always my default unless it's really not possible. But to answer what I sent to query my agent when I couldn't write something new, it was this:
1. A spreadsheet with my book ideas laid out, so she could see my plans and get an idea of what I wanted to be doing going forward.
2. An anthology proposal I'd done for my option
3. A proposal for a book I wanted to move forward with at some point. (10k + 1pg synopsis)
4. Information on which of my subrights were available for which books (Which I was wrong about, due to a misunderstanding with someone at my old agency, but I digress.)
Don't know if that's helpful, but!
DAHLIA, THIS IS SO, SO, SO HELPFUL! Thank you for this!
There are also services out there where you can just ask an agent for general career advice, too! Manuscript Academy comes to mind. If needing an agent comes more down to wanting a sounding board or professional opinion about where to take your career, you can get freelance opinions before deciding which project to work on.
Thanks, Crystal!!
Oh, this is so interesting to read! I have two small press books forthcoming in 2026, along with a couple pieces in anthologies this summer, and have won a national award in my genre as well as been short-listed for another. I do have a completed manuscript that I'm querying, but I'm still struggling to secure representation for this new work. I try to focus on the positive and appreciate the validation of my deals I've secured on my own, but man, sometimes it's hard to feel like everyone likes your work except the people you desperately need to like it!
That can be so frustrating when we have wins that anyone would say are big deals, but then the subjectivity of our industry makes it where folks we need to get our career going can still “not connect as much as they hoped”. Sending all the good energy your way!!
This is a great topic. I got all my deals without an agent, and when I did have an agent, nothing happened and I’ve left my agent and tried querying since and the doors are still closed. You strive for so long to ‘make it’ and then when you do ‘make it’ you still can’t ’make it’ 😂 It’s such a hugely tough and unpredictable industry!
Aren't the arts a wild Catch-22 sometimes?!