How to get your first job in a literary agency

Posted on February 29, 2020 in Oxford

Written applications are almost always the first stage of an entry-level job application, but they can also be the most difficult to get right.

Aoife Inman, Agents’ Assistant at Felicity Bryan Associates, has listed some key things to bear in mind when putting together your application:

5 Top Tips for Applying to Entry-Level Roles

1) Look at the key words in the job description and integrate every single one into your cover letter. It might seem monotonous, and simplistic, but job descriptions are there for a reason. Being able to communicate, in a clear, concise way, how your experience and skills perfectly fits the role you are applying for, signposts the interviewer through your application and demonstrates your skill as a writer and editor in the process.

2) Mention the agency you are applying to by name in your cover letter, along with some of the authors they represent. We want to see your enthusiasm, not just for the industry, but also for the specific agency you are applying too. It might seem time-consuming to personalize each job application but it can make all the difference in a pool of a hundred C.V.’s.

3) Make sure your enthusiasm for books comes through in an engaging, but professional, way. Your cover letter is an opportunity to explain to us how your reading tastes make you a perfect fit for the agency. On this note, keep some of your literary references current – mention new titles and debut authors that have been published in the past few years. This is a great way to demonstrate how you are engaging with the publishing world, even as a reader.

4) Think outside the box in terms of your experience. Interviewers are looking for people with specific core skills, but these can come from any industry, or any area of your life, as long as you are able to make it clear how the experience gave you the skills you’ll need to excel in this role. Maybe you’re part of a writing group that offers informal editorial feedback on one another’s work, perhaps you helped organized a local community event, or set up your own blog/magazine/zine. All these things provide you with professional experience, even if they might not have taken place in a traditional professional setting.

5) Read around the industry. Follow publishers and agencies on Twitter, check out the Sunday Times bestsellers lists and The Bookseller online for industry news. Go into your local bookshop and see what books they are promoting – which titles are in their windows, on their front tables, their books of the month. A love of reading is essential within this industry, but demonstrating an active interest in the books that are being bought and sold, the new imprints and initiatives that are being set up to recruit fresh voices – this signals to an interview panel that you are excited by the book industry itself.

Felicity Bryan Associates runs a three-month paid internship scheme at their Oxford offices. The internship runs four times a year and the next application deadline will be the 1^st March, to start on the 1^st April 2020.

To apply please send your CV and covering letter to carrie@felicitybryan.com, with FBA INTERNSHIP and the period for which you are applying in the subject line.