As promised:

Q: When an agent isn't listed in the author's book acknowledgements, is there a way to search backwards to find that agent from the author, journalistic facilitator or publisher? Thanks for your expertise. —Alice Lazzarini

A: Finding out who was the agent of a particular book can certainly be tricky, especially if the person isn't mentioned in the acknowledgements—which is the publishing equivalent of not thanking your wife during your Oscar acceptance speech. And here you can't blame it on the orchestra playing you off.

There are several other ways to find out who represented a particular book or author, though. The simplest way is by typing the book's title (or the author's name) and "agent" into a search engine, like Google or Yahoo. Click through the top few links and see what you find. Often it can be as simple as going to the author's website and digging around.

If you don't have any luck finding the agent's name on the author's website, you generally can find contact information (most likely an e-mail address) for the author or the author's publicist. Feel free to shoot the author (or the publicist) an e-mail. I wouldn't sit around longer than a few days waiting for a response, but you might get lucky.

When all else fails, you can call the publisher, says Guide to Literary Agents Editor Chuck Sambuchino. "If you see that Knopf published The Neptune Paradox (the book whose agent you want), call Knopf's main line and speak to the operator. Explain your goal and request to speak with the editor who worked on the book. The operator will say, 'Oh, that's Judy Smith. I'll transfer you.' You won't talk to Judy, but rather her assistant. No matter. Ask the assistant if Judy did indeed edit The Neptune Paradox. When the assistant confirms Judy's involvement, kindly request to know who the book's acting literary agent was. She'll be happy to tell you."

When you finally publish your book, be sure to mention your agent in your acknowledgements. Not only will your agent thank you, other writers will too.

Brian A. Klems is the online managing editor of Writer’s Digest magazine.

Have a question for me? Feel free to post it in the comments section below or e-mail me at WritersDig@fwpubs.com with “Q&Q” in the subject line. Come back each Tuesday as I try to give you more insight into the writing life.

Q: I want to get paid for my writing, so I signed up for a journalism workshop at my community college to attain some clips. I’ve written articles for the school paper, but the “editors”—many just out of high school—have added typos to my articles. Can I still use these as clips? Do editors realize that a typo in an otherwise clean clip isn’t the author’s fault?—Linda Pescatore

A: Editors do read clips with a tiny grain of salt and understand that typos can magically appear without the writer realizing it. An editor wouldn’t turn down the next Hunter S. Thompson or Stephen King because his clip read “who” instead of “whom.”

Go ahead and send them those clips. Make a note that typos were added in the editing stage and that you’re actually very meticulous about grammar in your own work. Don’t sound defensive or irritated with the publication that supplied your clips; just state the errors matter-of-factly and professionally.

Brian A. Klems is the online managing editor of Writer’s Digest magazine.

Have a question for me? Feel free to post it in the comments section below or e-mail me at WritersDig@fwpubs.com with “Q&Q” in the subject line. Come back each Tuesday as I try to give you more insight into the writing life.

Q: I’m in the process of authoring books in four different genres. Do I need to enlist four agents?—N. Schad

A: You’re writing four books at once? I can’t handle writing two stories at the same time, let alone four, so I’m impressed. But when it’s time to find an agent, you may want to focus all your energy on one. “You don’t need four agents,” says Mollie Glick, literary agent at the Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency. “When you’re ready to query, pick one genre and start researching agents in that specific genre. Pick a few to go after—ones you think will best fit your book.” She also notes that if you send out simultaneous submissions, it’s extremely important that you’re upfront about it in your query letter.

When an agent starts to nibble on your bait, it’s your call whether you show your other work or not. Glick, who’s had some writers ask her to look at all their work and has had others not mention it all, suggests that you always give the agent the option of reading your other work. “I prefer it when writers let me know about all of their books. It can help them make the sale.”

It’s even more important to mention them if you do land the agent. “If you’ve signed a contract, you may be obligated to show any other works to them first,” Glick says. “If you plan to shop your work elsewhere, make sure any written agreement reflects what genres that agent will be handling for you.”

If your agent turns down your other books, start shopping them around. “Having one agent can be used as an asset,” Glick says. “It’s seen as a positive. If you’ve already landed an agent, others are more likely to listen.”

Brian A. Klems is the online managing editor of Writer’s Digest magazine.

Have a question for me? Feel free to post it in the comments section below or e-mail me at WritersDig@fwpubs.com with “Q&Q” in the subject line. Come back each Tuesday as I try to give you more insight into the writing life.

Q: When a publication requests e-queries and clips, how do you e-mail the clips?
—Nannette Croce

A: Sending clips via e-mail can be difficult. You can try scanning the images, but that sometimes blurs the words and makes the piece illegible. You can copy text into a word processing document and send it, but that doesn’t prove the piece you’re submitting has been published. So what can you do?

First, check to see if the publisher of your work has ever posted it on its website. If so, it may have your work archived. All you have to do from here is copy the link into your e-query and your worries are gone. But what if they don’t archive stories online?

Most magazines, newspapers, newsletters and other types of writing mediums use computer programs to lay out the work and then save that work as a PDF—Portable Document Format. PDFs are the standard format for distribution and exchange of electronic files. In other words, they can be easily e-mailed and accessed whether you’re using a PC or a Mac.

If you don’t have the PDFs of your work already, call the magazine or newspaper that published it and request that they send you the electronic versions. Most media outlets keep archives of all their work, but it’s only been within the past 10 years that technology has led to electronic archiving. The older the clip, the tougher it might be to get. But once you get the PDF of your work, you can send it to anyone through your e-mail.

Brian A. Klems is the online managing editor of Writer’s Digest magazine.

Have a question for me? Feel free to post it in the comments section below or e-mail me at WritersDig@fwpubs.com with “Q&Q” in the subject line. Come back each Tuesday as I try to give you more insight into the writing life.