So you’ve got the perfect manuscript, the perfect query, and the perfect synopsis all ready to go. Your next question of course, is where to send it.
Wrong question.
Before you send anything out, you should first spend some time becoming informed on where not to send it.
I’ve already expressed my general disdain for the self/vanity/whatever publishers who try to convince you that a book printed by them will be taken seriously anywhere but on your own website, so I won’t touch on that further here.
There are a surprising number of folks out there seeking publication for their writing. Enough to support a thriving industry of scam artists who will happily collect cash from would-be novelists without providing any legitimate service in return. The most common tactic employed by these types is the “reading fee”, as in “send me your manuscript and some cash, and I’ll read it.” No agent should ever charge you any fees whatsoever before a contract is signed naming them as your representative. The only fees a legitimate agent will charge between that point and the sale of the book are for duplication and mailing expenses if the agency sends it to the publishers for you via snail mail, and for these you have every right to ask for an itemized expense list.
One of the better articles on bad agents (and more) is the Writer Beware! section at the Science Fiction Writers of America site. Read it and take it seriously.
There are a number of information sources you can use to find lists of agents or publishers who will accept your submission. I’ll touch on a few of the primary ones in the next article. For now what you need to keep in mind is that while you’re compiling your who-to-query list, you should keep the following site open and use it to check out every agent name you come across:
It’s not the best presented or best organized of sites (entries sorted alphabetically by first name?), but nonetheless it is by far your best tool for separating the wheat from the donkey-droppings, agent-wise.