Also called: Book Agent
Represents authors, selling their books to publishers and negotiating deals.
A literary agent reads hundreds of query letters, signs a few new writers, helps polish manuscripts, and pitches them to editors, earning 15% of what authors earn.
Commission-based; top agents earn far more.
Approximate: anchored on Bureau of Labor Statistics data for a broader job group.
Bachelor's degree (4-year), about 4 years after high school. Usually starts as an agency assistant.
Ways in: 4-year college, On-the-job training. Training cost: $15k – $60k.
Majors to look at: English, Business, Publishing.
Growing slowly. Stable but small field.
Low risk in 5 years, medium in 10. AI helps sort queries and track deals, but championing authors and negotiating with publishers stays human.
Classes: English literature, Business, Speech and debate, Creative writing.
Official data: O*NET occupation 13-1011.
Career Universe is an early version. Pay, training and AI-risk figures are estimates to start your own research, not verified facts. The research was written with AI research assistants, checked by validation scripts and spot-checked by hand. Check anything important with schools, employers and official sources. How the numbers work.