Your grammar and spelling makes it difficult to understand, but I am going to try and address the questions that you asked after your original post.
First of all, agents should NEVER ask for money up front. They can, in the contract, recover a certain amount for cost such as shipping and photocopying, but they should only recieve this money AFTER they sell your book. The agent gives you money, not the other way around. They get a percentage of the sale (15%), and are incredibly valuable in contract negotiations. Unless you are in publishing law, I would not recommend dealing with a contract on your own.
Agents have contacts with editors that can help get your book read. For an editor, it is a pre-screening process. If you have a legitimate agent then the editor knows that someone objective has read your story and thinks it is good enough to sell (no, your mother is not objective). The big publishing houses almost never look at unagented work anymore.
No legitimate agent or publisher is going to steal your ideas. Do your homework and make sure you are submitting to trustworthy places. Ideas are a dime a dozen, anyway. What you need to do is make sure that you have a fresh voice and perspective on a subject (because I can guarantee that your idea has been written about many times).
You do not need to get an official copyright ahead of time-- you own the copyright from the moment you put the words down on paper. The publisher will fill out the paperwork once they have bought your story. It is the mark of an amateur to do this ahead of time (and can bring some complications once you do the rest of your edits with your publishing house).
As far as who to send it to, we can't answer that question because we have NO knowledge of what your manuscript is about. Different agents specialize in different things, so you can't send a romance novel to an agent that specializes in science fiction and fantasy! So do your own homework. Take a look at the most recent "Writer's Market"... or even better, try the "Guide to Literary Agents".
Also, you will not be seding your manuscript to agents unsolicited! Send them a query letter and see if they ask to see a partial, then a full. If you send the whole thing, it will just get you a form rejection letter. Research each agent's specific submission guidelines and follow their rules!
Here are four websites that can help. Read them thoroughly (especially Miss Snark-- love her!) and research, research, research! These can help you determine if the agent is legit or not:
http://misssnark.blogspot.com/
http://www.agentquery.com/
http://www.anotherealm.com/prededitors/
http://www.publishersmarketplace.com
Again, read Miss Snark. She has attitude, but is a real-life agent and her archives can answer any questions you possibly have. Read, read, read. When you pick up "Writer's Market" or "Guide to Literary Agents", don't just look at the listings, read them! Agent Query is going to be a great site for you to look at, because you can search a database of agents based on genre or other features.
And don't submit to anyone on this list:
http://www.sfwa.org/beware/twentyworst.html
You will face a lot of rejection, but if you really want this then keep at it! Work hard, and good luck!
2007-04-16 10:19:52
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answer #1
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answered by Obi_San 6
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Now Im not one to be talking having been rejected more than 100 times and never accepted but I have read and tried to learn everything I can on what to do to get knowticed.... Most say the first thing to do is write a killer cover page... make sure it covers the idea of the story and catches the publishers attention then they suggest you send a chapter or two with it...... I always send the story in full on diskette as well in txt format to be sure it can be read always.... Now remember to send a stamped adressesed envelope as well to get these items back otherwise they get thrown away many times....... now saying all that many places Ive read say that any more doing somehting diffrent and wild is the way to get knowticed from the piles of others..... some things they talk about is a man that sent a box with wine and card along with his entry in the style they were used in his book (IE: his book was a mytery in which the wine was the center of the mystery).... another send a singing telegram that was a hire actor that did a bit of the skit of of his comedy mystery...... thing like these cost more money but anythiong to set yourself apart they say....
2007-04-16 16:00:54
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answer #2
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answered by completed_01 7
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A newbie writer would BUY the latest guide to editors, agents, and publishers, and start *developing* new contacts and prospects.
As for scriptwriting and movie script submissions, you'd best be sticking to sending out the book first. Because Hollywood is A LOT more brutal than the publishing industry is at the moment.
2007-04-16 17:37:31
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answer #3
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answered by Anonymous
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If you want to be taken seriously you get an agent.
The Association of Author's Representatives:
http://www.aar-online.org/mc/page.do
Publishers do not accept unsolicited manuscripts. You send as many query letters as you can to as many agents as you can and hope you get a bite. You don't send your entire manuscript unless you want it to go straight to the recycle bin. You follow each agents query instructions to the letter - they may ask for a sample chapter, they may not.
But hooking an agent is where you start on your journey to become a published author. Get cracking on writing a terrific hook and get those query letters out there!
2007-04-16 16:00:06
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answer #4
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answered by tngapch 3
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You need an agent, pure and simple.
2007-04-16 15:50:41
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answer #5
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answered by Dove 4
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