I am quite confused about finding an agent and finding a publisher. Would it matter where I lived? Do agents want to physically meet up with you first etc? Thanks
Nope, in this electronic day and age, it doesn't matter where you hang your hat. Or keyboard. As always, what matters is writing something people will pay to read.
Agents do not need to physically meet with you, although be mindful that all it takes to be an agent is a business card that says you are. So you will want to do research beforehand, figure out which agents are right for you -- in terms of experience, the genres they work with, whether they have openings, and so on -- because you probably won't be able to actually meet them in person, and there's a greater chance of getting scammed by an agent you don't know in person. (Note that by "scam" I'm including those agents who are interested in negotiating a deal you did all the work for, but aren't interested in actully sending your work to editors. That is unprofessional; it means they just want free money and don't want to work for you. I've heard some bad things about that from professional writers in romance and science fiction, both, so be careful.) Research is also key when submitting work to editors, but your location shouldn't matter much. Read their guidelines. Make sure they're willing to publish the language and the genre your book is in. Write a good query / pitch letter and send it in along with however many pages the publisher asks for. Some writers say you have to have an agent to submit stories; other writers say that the "no unagented manuscripts" is just a way of discouraging amateurs, and I've seen studies showing that about a third of first-time fiction novels nowadays are sold without an agent's help. Obviously this varies by genre; children's books need an agent much more than science fiction and fantasy books do. But your location won't matter much. You likely won't meet your agent face to face if you live away from New York, and that's okay; you can correspond through the mail. And you sure as shooting don't need to talk to your publisher face-to-face, either. Just do your research, make sure you present yourself in a professional manner, and send your work off. A publisher in London or Paris or New York won't care about the city you live in if your book is good and it meets all their requirements.
That would depend on where you're living now. If you're a resident of Kandahar, for example, your chances may be somewhat diminished. Or at least your writing may be subject to Draconian censorship. But I'm guessing your somewhere else!
it doesn't depend on where you're living to the agent/publisher, as long as you can get your work to them... and a determined writer can always find a way to get a ms out of even the most freedom-restricted country... it's done all the time... the trick it to not get caught!
