Literary Agents For Poetry Books?
Q. Dear Writers Market, I write poetry and just wanted to inquire to if you have any suggestions or know of any agents who may consider taking poets on there…
Q. Dear Writers Market, I write poetry and just wanted to inquire to if you have any suggestions or know of any agents who may consider taking poets on there books? Many Thanks.
- Jason
A. I'm sorry, Jason, but literary agents do not take on poetry books - at least 99.9% of the time they do not. Collections of poetry (chapbooks) are traditionally self-published by poets. Yes, some big-name poets do get work represented, but these are usually Poet Laureates, or fiction writers who have also written a collection of poetry. Beware any literary agent who reps poetry because they are likely a scammer. And if you see an agency that advertises how it reps poetry, oh man, run like hell.
Chuck Sambuchino is a former editor with the Writer's Digest writing community and author of several books, including How to Survive a Garden Gnome Attack and Create Your Writer Platform.
