Non native English speaker - is there a chance to get UK/USA literary agent?

[Lady Winter Rose]

My goal is to publish in less dead market, than the one I live in, so I plan to publish my work in UK, USA, would that be possible?

Do I get less chance if I live and don't speak English as my first language?

It's something I search over the web, but can't find. Most of them say I don't have to live in UK/USA, but does language matter? I don't have ready text, so I need to know should I write in English or my native language, so help from forum should be more helpful. I feel at ease with both languages.

[Derfel Cadarn]

If you write it in your native language, no point submitting to UK/US agents as they won’t understand it. 
 

If you want a US/UK agent, wrote in English and maybe get someone very fluent in English to read it over first to give feedback

[Lady Winter Rose]

10 minutes ago, Derfel Cadarn said:

If you write it in your native language, no point submitting to UK/US agents as they won’t understand it. 

would they accept it, though? Is there any point in even trying?

 

10 minutes ago, Derfel Cadarn said:

If you want a US/UK agent, wrote in English and maybe get someone very fluent in English to read it over first to give feedback

definitely

[Derfel Cadarn]

If you check the sites of the major agents, they should have guidance on what they accept.

I don’t think they’ll take non-English submission, though, for the simple reason they won’t understand the language. Agents get a LOT of submissions.

If you want to write in your first language (and absolutely no reason why not) submit to agents in the same country/language. They can see about translation deals etc.

[Zorral]

Mostly how this works is you publish a book in your nation in your language and it gets good attention.  Your agent in your country then works to sell foreign rights.

 

[Lord Patrek]

US/UK agent will consider material, no matter where it's coming from as long as it's in English.

 

[Lord Patrek]

The only issue I can see might be tax purposes. I remember having to fill up some tax-related documents because I'm a Canadian citizen and I signed a contract in the USA.

[Peadar]

There will be no issue, provided the book is in good English and the manuscript excites them. Just to pick one example, Aliette de Bodard, who lives in France, but writes in excellent English, has an agent.

[Seli]

Aliette was the example I was going to bring forward.

In YA there are some Dutch writers who as far as I am aware write and publish in English primarily: Corinne Duyvis, Marieke Nijkamp. Both of them seem to have agents (at this point in their career) going by their sites.

edit: of course there are also authors from smaller countries with English as an official language that have representation in the US/UK. For exameple Neon Yang.

[Lady Winter Rose]

thank you all

[polishgenius]

In all honesty I would not be choosing what to write and how to write it with the choice of agent in mind. Write what you're gonna write then consider what agents you're gonna send it to. And definitely don't try to write it in English just because you think it will sell better- obviously if you're comfortable doing that and it's what you want then sure but putting the blood sweat and tears of writing in a second language purely coz you think it will sell better if you're not as strong in it seems like a recipe to writing a worse book and then having the heartbreak of seeing it rejected.

[Peadar]

3 hours ago, polishgenius said:

In all honesty I would not be choosing what to write and how to write it with the choice of agent in mind. Write what you're gonna write then consider what agents you're gonna send it to. And definitely don't try to write it in English just because you think it will sell better- obviously if you're comfortable doing that and it's what you want then sure but putting the blood sweat and tears of writing in a second language purely coz you think it will sell better if you're not as strong in it seems like a recipe to writing a worse book and then having the heartbreak of seeing it rejected.

To be fair, "the heartbreak" of rejection is the norm. Most successful writers can point to boxes full of rejections before they make it and sometimes, even after 

[Lord Patrek]

I agree that the heartbreak of rejection is the norm.

What the OP must keep in mind is that the level of her written English must be on par with that of the pros writing today. As polishgenius pointed out, it's rather pointless to go through the process of writing an entire novel in a second language if it's a doomed endeavor. 

[polishgenius]

8 hours ago, Peadar said:

To be fair, "the heartbreak" of rejection is the norm.

True and I should have been more clear: it's a long and difficult and long-shot prospect and OP doesn't need to make it any harder for themself by putting in months or years writing in a language that is gonna make their acceptation less likely. So basically what Pat said.

[Lord Patrek]

Aliette de Bodard is also the exception rather than the rule, I think.

For example, all Scandinavian Noir bestselling authors speak perfect English, and yet write in Swedish and then get their books translated into other languages.