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How to find a literary agency without getting scammed is a challenge for any new writer. Anyone can call themselves a literary agent or a publisher. The listings in t

According to USFDA, a combination product is one composed of any combination of a drug and device; biological product and device; drug and biological product

he literary agency directories are not necessarily vetted, or checked by the publisher. Literary agents vary widely in ethics, dedication and competence.

Here's what

; or drug, device, and biological product and fixed dose combination would include two or more combinations of drug.

Examples of combination products may in

to watch out for with literary agents:

• Charging the author a fee up front, to be accepted as a client. This fee can be called a reading fee, or a monthly “office e

lude drug-coated devices, drugs packaged with delivery devices in medical kits, and drugs and devices packaged separately but intended to be used together.

penses” charge. The best agents, and most successful ones, only charge a percentage fee of royalties the author earns, typically 15%. Suppose a realtor charged you a

here is enormous increase in the number of combination products entering the market in the recent years. Combination products have proven advantages but fixe

fee to come over and tour your house before getting the listing? How quickly would you show that realtor the door. . .

• Charging back unusually large “postage and c

d dose combinations are still in the process of convincing regulatory authority on their advantages over the single ingredient formulations.

Combination pro

pying fees” to send out an authors’ work. One crooked agency accepts almost every client that contacts them, but in the fine print of the contract they charge “postag

ucts have become life saving products for the pharmaceutical companies who doesn’t have many innovative molecules in their product pipeline and have been inc

and handling” of up to $10 per submission they send out on your behalf. It doesn’t cost $10 to send a letter and a sample chapter of a book to a publisher. This com

easingly used in the product life cycle management. Even the companies having product patents are trying to extend their product life cycle through the combi

any makes a fortune from these fees whether or not they successfully market any of their clients work.

• Directing authors toward specific editing services or giving

nation products and maximize the revenues. But the companies involved in this practice are overlooking that they are burdening the patients both economically

uthors’ names to these services. Sometimes they even own the editing service. Some agents make a significant portion of their income from referral fees from these s

and physically. They need to rightly judge the benefits of the combination products and they have to even look at the risks involved when combining the produ

rvices.

• Demanding that a critique be completed before the agency decides to offer representation. The fee for the critique may be minimal, perhaps even less than $

ts. Some of the combination products were well accepted by physicians while others suffered. Companies involved in development of combination products are fi

00. But if the average agency is contacted by 90 writers a week that fee can add up.

• Terms in agency contracts with writers vary widely. The contract must be read

ding difficulty in defining their combination products and facing various challenges from selecting a combination to marketing it.

Following aspects would a

carefully.

• The agent contacts publishers pretty much at random. The agent’s value to you is in the relationships they have with publishers, so that if the publish

dd to the challenges in developing combination products:

Which markets to tap where the combination products can do fairly well?
Which combination prod

r hears from them, they know the book is worth taking a look at. Ask to see copies of rejection letters that come back from publishers. If it looks like just a form

cts are meaningful and rational?
Which therapeutic categories to select?
Which Combinations can address unmet needs of the patients?
Do combin

etter response, rather than a letter you would send to an acquaintance, you can bet the agent may be just picking names out of a directory of publishers.

• The agent

tions increase the patient compliance?
What would be the developing cost?
How to tackle the risks encountered during combination product developmen

efuses to provide the names of clients or titles sold. Sales are an agent’s life blood and reputation. If an agent won’t name names it could be because there aren’t a

t?

As combination products don't fit into the traditional categories of drugs, medical devices, or biological products, the USFDA is in the process of devel

y sales.

• Puts forth a weak effort or gives up on the client’s project after a few months. You have a right to ask how active the agent is going to be. How many pu

ping new procedures for reviewing their safety, efficacy and quality.

Professional from academic institutions, pharmaceutical industries, health care indust

lishers are they going to contact, how will they follow up? You have a right to periodic reports as to whom they have contacted and the results. You must determine h

y and representatives from various regulatory agencies are working out to design the regulatory requirements for manufacture and sale of combination products

w much time and attention they are really going to give you.

A critical reason it is imperative to have a reputable agent is that the publishing house typically pays

.

As there is an increasing trend of the combination products companies manufacturing such products should be able to tackle the problems involved in the de

he agent, who deducts their “cut” and sends the remainder to the author. It’s a frightening thought that a less than honest person gets their hands on the money you’ve

elopment. They need to be wiser in analyzing the market trends and the regulatory requirements.

Companies that provide selfless information through particip

earned from sweat, blood, and even tears.

Now you know how to find a literary agent without getting scammed. And remember:

A bad agent is worse than no agent.

tion in industry events and feedback to regulatory authorities would be able to face the challenges and will be successful in developing combination products

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