Finding a literary agent willing to look at your cookbook can seem troubling but I am here to tell you that it isn’t as hard as it seems. There isn’t a high demand for cookbooks but this doesn’t mean that you can’t find a literary agent for your cookbook. Being able to get your cookbook in front of the right people is only a few steps ahead of what you are probably already doing. There are many tips that I could give you for find a literary agent for your cookbook but I am going to rummaged through all the ruble and give it to you straight forward so that you can cut through the chase and get on with getting your cookbook published.
The internet is a great source for many things including finding a literary agent willing to look at your cookbook. If you really want to find a literary agent for your cookbook look to sources like google and type in the keywords. Agents are just like other businesses and they rely on the internet to bring them the best of the best. I have found many writing jobs through the internet and also many agents that are popular and willing to except manuscripts or details related to your cookbook.
Once you find your literary agent for your cookbook you are going to want to get the ball rolling. Most literary agents are now excepting emails instead of having their postal mail bombarded with letters. Use the internet to your advantage and send them something that they will truly admire.
If you don’t know what to send a literary agent in an email I can give you a few steps that will help you just as getting to know the agent. There are many cookbooks in book stores and libraries; you are going to want an agent that has had a book published at least once. Inside of the cookbooks there will be a section either in the beginning or at the end of the book that states what literary agent published it. Once you know of some good agents you can use the internet once again to find out how to contact these literary agents for your cookbook.
What you should send in your email should be your name, address, contact number, what the book includes, and why you feel that it would be a good choice for them.
When you send them an email stating what the cookbook includes you should give them an outline. Some people send a bullet letter showing each chapter or items that the cookbook covers and this might be a good idea.
Keep in mind that there are hundreds of literary agents out there so don’t give up even if you receive a rejection letter. Rejections are meant for us to learn from.
If you are not contacted within a few days, send the literary agent a follow up email or letter. Some agents are so busy that they forget that you exist even though they were meaning to contact you. A follow up is like giving them a nudge and reminding them that you are still here.
If you find a literary agent willing to help you get your cookbook on the market and then you are contacted by another, weigh your options but don’t weigh them for too long so that you don’t keep them waiting. If you have already signed with a literary agent and another one contacts you, reply to them and let them know that you went with another agent, don’t be snobby or tell them that they never contacted you so you went with another agent. The trick is to be as friendly as possible since you never know when you might need another agent in the future.
