Agent or Small Press?

I have entered a number of the twitter pitch contests. By tweeting my pitch, I was looking for an agent, not a publisher, but when I received a few requests from small press editors, I wondered what to do.

At first I politely declined, stating I appreciated their interest, but I was looking for an agent. And I do feel having an agent would be best not just for my first manuscript, but for the career I want in writing. But eventually I did send off fulls to a couple of small presses. I guess I figured, why not?

So why not?

Since I've sent off my manuscript to the small presses, I've gotten additional requests from agents. I don't think the small presses are who an agent would submit to, anyway, but I feel bad. Maybe I didn't send off enough queries to agents (I sent off far fewer than most people). Maybe I gave up too soon. Or maybe sending fulls to small presses isn't giving up at all, but being smart in a rapidly changing publishing landscape.


Are you looking for an agent or a publisher? Would you accept an offer from a small press, or would you hold out until you got an agent, even if it was for a different manuscript?

All I can say is, it gives me a lot to think about and I'm glad I believe in providence. The right thing will work out when it is supposed to.