2024 Agent Money Report

How much money I made my 1st year agenting & where it came from

I’ve been looking forward to writing this post … well, ever since I started this Substack! One of my “things” as I get deeper into the publishing industry is transparency, when possible. Pulling back the curtain, opening the door, *insert metaphor of choice.*

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: this industry is opaque. In industries where everything is veiled/hidden, it truly makes it easier for bad actors to take advantage of honestly ignorant people who don’t have access to information—and as a consequence, raises the barrier for entry, because it’s hard to take a leap when you don’t know what you’re leaping into. (Knowledge is power!!!!!!)

Real information about the financial side of this career is lacking, in my humble opinion, and I’m happy to toss out my numbers in case it helps anyone considering this career path, or embarking on it, and wondering how it all plays out in real life.

I realize that sharing money information feels vulnerable to many, and I’d like to make a quick clarifying point: I don’t think everyone should go around sharing how much money they make. There are many good reasons to keep that information close. But… to me, at the ripe age of 41, and especially as someone just getting their start as a literary agent, how much I make doesn’t feel that personal to me—or that risky to just put out into the world. Like… it is what it is. Idk?

Anyway! No more preambles—let’s get down to it!

First, I’m defining “1st year” as 2024, just for simplicity’s sake, since I plan to make this a recurring series over the years. Technically, I didn’t open to queries until mid February, so if we’re being more precise (in my little brain, at least), this is 10 1/2 months of agenting, with the first 1 1/2 months of the year spent on training and onboarding. But for purposes of this post, whatevs! We’re calling it a year.

There are three sources of agent income for me this year:

1. Conferences

2. Books I’ve sold

3. And finally… this Substack (yep)!

Let’s take a closer look…