[DMcCunney]

Originally Posted by Steven Lake

And by head hunting, I mean they're watching the book circles for authors who are self published, POD, and PTP, as well as some authors who are published with small houses like myself. So what are they looking for? Successful authors. Simply put, if you can succeed at self publishing, POD, or PTP, and even SPH to some degree, they're interested in you.

And here's the general breakdown of success based on my own research. The actual numbers will vary by publisher, but this does act as a reasonable guide to show you how they do their research. And these numbers are based on the minimum total sales within a single 12 month period required to elicit the listed response.

<...>

And just how do the BPHs determine those sales figures?

I'm having a hard time thinking of any self-published/POD/what have you authors I suspect might fall into the first of those categories, let alone the others.

And if God has worked a miracle to order, and you actually are selling 100,000+ copies a year, you hardly need a BPH, and are likely well aware of it.

Anywho, those numbers are based off my observations and are dependent on the BPH in question. But either way, it's a good goal to shoot for. Also, as a side note, some Agents are going to this method of scouting now too, where they will not accept any unsolicited queries for books, and instead go head hunting based on the total book sales of self published, POD, and PTP authors, as well as some SPH's.

Same question: where do they get verifiable sales figures?

I honestly think that in 10 years or so, the only way to get into a big house, sign with an agent, or even get into a small house in some cases, will be to first self publish, and then prove yourself as an author. Now I may be wrong, but I'm willing to bet that's where they'll both go in the near future.

<shrug> Agents make their living selling books to BPHs. Their interest is in books that they think will sell. I encountered a couple of folks who actually interested a major publisher in a manuscript and didn't have an agent, and were wondering if they should have one and how to get one.

The answer was "Yes, you should. The agent can do a better job than you of negotiating with the publisher and making a good deal. That's their job. And getting one won't be impossible because you have actual interest from a publisher. Approaching an agent with "I have interest from a publisher, and I'd like you to represent me and negotiate the contract for my book" will get far more attention than "I'm an unpublished author looking for an agent..."

You still face the issue of finding an agent working in the area you are targeting who can take on an additional client, but once you've identified one, you have a far better chance of getting their attention.
______
Dennis