Can you publish on Kindle then send it to an agent later?
If I wrote a book thеn self-published οn Kindle fοr a few months, сουld I thеn send іt tο аn agent?
Or doesn Amazon οwn thе copyright οr something similar tο prevent іt being resold anywhere еlѕе?
The copyright remains with you.
It is at the discretion of the agent (or publisher) whether they are still interested in the book, or if they are only interested in a book that has never been published anywhere, in any format. However, publishing is ultimately a business and if an agent thinks that the book has a good chance of becoming a best seller (and therefore making them lots of money,) then chances are they will pick it up.
Some people claim that publishers are only interested in first publishing rights, however this is contrary to my own experience and experiences of some writers that I know personally.
EDIT: Just to clarify, “Some people claim” wasn’t directed at any individual who uses this site. Claim was probably a poor word choice, as it suggests that any opinion that is different to my own is wrong or false, which is not my intention. I agree that it is best to try a traditional publishing route first, then consider self-publishing.
Yes you can. Amazon doesn’t own the copyright, only a non-exclusive license to sell copies of the book, which you can revoke at any time. You can even self-publish it in another store at the same time, as long as they require only a non-exclusive license as well. Many self-published authors do this, as it’s the only way to get the book into the stores that don’t serve the Kindle.
But if you think your book is good enough to be published the traditional way, why not go straight for an agent? They won’t take any notice of the fact that the book was self-published, unless you sold thousands of copies – and you won’t sell thousands of copies unless you spend all your waking hours marketing it. (And if you can sell thousands of copies on your own, why do you need an agent?)
Can you legally? Sure you can.
But bear in mind that very few agents or publishers are going to be interested in reprint rights. You’ve used the first rights when you self-published.
Basically you have to make a choice.
Edit: Kathryn, as far as I’ve heard it’s about gut feeling. If you self-publish a book and it’s brilliant and the agent’s sure it will be a big hit commercially, of course they’re not going to send you away. But almost no self-published books manage that, no matter how good they are. At least you should try the commercial route first…if they say no, you can always try Kindle afterwards and then try again with the commercial publishers if you sell 5000 copies…
Yes, you can self-publish on Kindle and query an agent with the same novel later. However, agents (and publishers) are only going to be interested in your book if you’ve managed to sell a significant amount (ie thousands) and if they think you will sell thousands more once it’s published the traditional way.
No agent or publisher is going to want to publish your novel if it doesn’t sell well as a self-published book.