Historical Novels

Hello again. I'm back in Florida after a month of vacationing in the Big Apple, the city of my birth. Blog reader Jim asks, "Is there a particular agent that handles certain genres such as historical fiction, or more rightly, fictionalized history? How does the market look to you in regards to new authors in today's stagnant to poor economy?"

Indeed there are literary agents who are open to historical novels. I believe the best resource in locating these agents is the Literary Market Place, followed by Publishers Market Place. You can Google both of these. Public libraries carry the Literary Market Place as well as the ever popular guide books for writers such as Jeff Herman's Guide to Book Publishers, Editors, & Literary Agents. Agents are listed and identified according to their specialities.

My agency is fortunate in representing top writers in the genre. Our client list includes award winning novelist James Alexander Thom (Follow the River, Random House - also made into a major motion picture). We also represent award winning English historical novelist Erastes, whose works in erotica have enjoyed international acclaim. I would be remiss not to mention Tom Willard, a military history scholar whose Black Sabre Chronicles (Forge) represent a signal achievement in depicting the significant role of African Americans in the US military.

Debut authors always face enormous challenges. The current world economic crisis only exacerbates problems for them. My advice is to keep working at developing your skills as a novelist. Publishers can only remain in business when they have the best that writers can offer.