WRITER'S FORUM

There are two ways to getting your book published. The conventional way is to contact a publisher direct or to send your stuff to a literary agent. The agent is precisely what it says on the can, they are agents. They do the weeding out process and leave publishers to - publish.

Agents filter incoming titles, separate the good from the bad but are not good at doing it. Literary agents cherry pick authors with titles they think are most likely to succeed. They then sell them to publishers who they believe most appropriate for the book.

Unfortunately agents are inundated with MSS. Many have fallen into a comfort zone, keeping and encouraging authors already on their books and sniffy about new writers. Trying to attract an agent’s interest, even if one does have a better book than Fifty Shades of Grey, can be soul-destroying.

This is why most new authors, and established writers too, have turned to self publishing on Amazon-Kindle. You are the author, the agent and the publisher. Sure, you are competing with many others but you do that when publishing in conventional ways.

The fact is that some of the biggest successes in online publishing are first time authors selling on Amazon-Kindle. Yes, the bestsellers the agents missed. Agents make their excuses but they would wouldn’t they.

Wasn’t it Decca that turned their noses up at The Beatles? Leslie Thomas, one of Britain’s most successful authors, said that before he ’cracked the agents code’ he could have wallpapered his home with publishers rejection slips. Thank God for online publishing. We offer it for just €150. Eat your heart out, literary agents.