What do literary agents really want?

"Are you completely mad?" one of my authors asked me. "I thought your agency was deluged by manuscripts – why ask for more?"

He was wondering why Curtis Brown, one of the UK's largest literary agencies, which receives between 600 and 800 manuscripts a month, wanted to welcome yet more at Foyles in central London last month. "Discovery Day" – an open day for any unpublished writer to pitch to an agent – was designed to open up the doors of the seemingly inward-looking publishing industry.

Eight minutes of expert feedback were followed by a 15-minute surgery in the café to probe further, and then a panel discussion with a leading author, a publisher and an agent to round off the day. Three hundred and fifty writers signed up within two days.

To be honest, we didn't know what to expect. Hundreds of smartly attired, serious minded and slightly nervous writers trickled through the doors. A 15-year-old schoolgirl who told me she was serious about her writing; a mournful-looking accountant who had quit the profession to finish his first novel, which sadly was not worth quitting the profession for; a heavily accented artist who was willing to listen to edits as long as they didn't change any element of the story. One woman told me about her eco mystery, which sounded good aside from the terms "eco" and "mystery". We turned it into a high-concept thriller with global impact.

A woman came from Texas, another from Cyprus and daytrippers from Southampton and Belfast. One young dad pitched with a baby strapped to his front who remained silent during the whole thing like a true pro. A new breed of writer is emerging. Savvy, informed, focused and in control.

So what advice did we give? Drill your story down to 10 words and then build up; if your novel has too much back story it is not a novel but an explanation; speak your dialogue out loud to test if everyone sounds the same ... and so on.

Publishing is going through a revolution – bookshops are in turmoil, self-publishing is on the rise, the big six publishers are on the run – and yet one truth remains. We all want a good story, told well. So, to my author's question "why ask for more?", I say: why ask for less?