Want to know what agents and editors we have for Query Kombat? WE HAVE THIRTY-TWO, AND COUNTING!! There are so many publishing professionals participating, we can’t fit them all on one blog! View one-third of them below, then click on over to Michael’s and Laura's blogs to see the rest.
We’ve got both well-established agents/editors and some newer professionals who are actively seeking to build their lists. Query Kombat 2017 is going to be an AWESOME Kontest.
Don't miss the submission window from May 17 - May 19, 2017!! We’re giving you three days to get your entries in! And consider donating to keep the contests rolling:
For more information on how to enter when the window opens, please click here. Otherwise, scroll down to meet the agents and editors!
Lindsay Mealing of Emerald City Literary
Lindsay has been writing stories since she could first hold a pencil. It wasn’t until she sat down to edit a manuscript for the first time she realized her true love was not on the writing side of the publishing industry, but the business side. She began interning for Mandy in early 2015 and quickly realized agenting was what she wanted to do forever more.
Lindsay is a self-proclaimed nerd, loving everything science fiction and fantasy – from epic tomes to gaming. She fell head over heels with the SFF genre when she read KUSHIEL’S DART by Jacqueline Carey (she even has Phedre’s marque tattooed on her back).
Lindsay represents both adult and young adult fiction. In adult she’s primarily looking for fantasy and science fiction, but is also interested in psychological thrillers, women’s fiction, and romance. In YA, she loves all genres – contemporary, fantasy, horror, romance – anything!
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Margaret Bail of Fuse Literary Agency
Margaret Bail has a BA in English and an MFA in Creative and Professional Writing. With years of experience editing manuscripts, as well as teaching university-level English and writing, she looks forward to working closely with new and established authors to help develop their voice and craft.
Her lifelong love of stories and storytelling has her looking for books that transport her into the heart of the story, so much so that she’ll forget where she is and lose track of time while she reads.
Margaret is interested in adult fiction in the genres of romance (no Christian or inspirational, please), science fiction (soft sci-fi rather than hard), mystery, thrillers, action adventure, historical fiction (not a fan of WWII era), and fantasy. In nonfiction, Margaret is interested in memoirs with a unique hook, and cookbooks with a strong platform.
Fiction genres Margaret is NOT interested in: YA, MG, children’s books; steampunk, Christian/religious literature, chick lit, women’s fiction, literary, poetry, screenplays.
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Caitie Flum of Liza Dawson Literary Agency
Caitie Flum joined Liza Dawson Associates in July 2014 as assistant and audio rights manager. She graduated from Hofstra University in 2009 with a B.A. in English with a concentration in publishing studies. She interned at Hachette Book Group and Writers House. She was an editorial assistant then coordinator for Bookspan, where she worked on several clubs including the Book-of-the-Month Club, The Good Cook, and the Children’s Book-of-the-Month Club.
Caitie is looking for commercial and upmarket fiction with great characters and superb writing, especially historical fiction, mysteries/thrillers of all kinds, romance, and book club fiction. She is open to science fiction and fantasy that crosses over to a young adult market.
She is also looking for Middle Grade and Young Adult projects, particularly romance, historical fiction, mysteries and thrillers, science fiction and fantasy, and contemporary books with diverse characters.
In nonfiction, she is looking for narrative nonfiction, especially history that’s impossible to put down, books on pop culture, theater, current events, women’s issues, and humor.
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Lauren Galit of LKG Agency
Agent: such a loaded job description. It’s the word you scream into the phone when you get stuck in an airline or cable company’s automated loop. AGENT! Or it might call to mind images of a classic real estate or Hollywood agent with slicked-back hair and too-sharp clothes. But that’s not who I am. My client, Clinton Kelly, once wrote in the acknowledgments of Freakin’ Fabulous: “Lauren Keller Galit, a totally chill agent who’s not even a jerk.”
Being a literary agent is my dream job (but then again, I was a literary geek at Harvard): I get to work with writers all day long, helping them craft their book ideas and editing their proposals. And then, once the proposal is complete, I get to connect with editors to sell them on something I have passionately committed myself to for the past few months. And I get to chat — a lot (but hopefully not too much). With writers, with editors, with Caitlen. All good.
I also get to be a world-class dilettante. For each new project that comes along, I delve deep into that writer’s world and expertise, learning all I can, so that I can speak knowledgeably about the subject. What could be bad about exploring a new angle on parenting or fitness or style every few months? My closet is certainly the better for it; hopefully my kids, too.
I started my agenting career in 2002 at John Boswell Associates, a literary agency and book packager that’s most noted for creating 365 Ways To Cook Chicken, as well as countless other best sellers. Because Boswell was a packager as well as an agent, he taught me how to do more than just craft a proposal and sell it; he showed me how to create a book from scratch, working with designers and production people along the way. It is that attention to detail that I bring to my current projects, even if we aren’t packaging them. I help my authors envision what their books could be.
Before becoming an agent, I was a magazine editor for 10 years, starting at GQ (Gentleman’s Quarterly) and ending at GH (Good Housekeeping). That’s where I learned to edit and copy edit, to read and reread until an article or caption or pull quote was just so. It is a skill I bring to every proposal I work on with a writer. It won’t go out until it is just so, because the proposal should beautifully and accurately represent the idea an author is dying to bring to the world.
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Christa Heschke of McIntosh and Otis
CHRISTA HESCHKE graduated from Binghamton University with a major in English and a minor in Anthropology. She started in publishing as an intern at both Writers House and Sterling Lord Literistic, where she fell in love with the agency side of publishing. Christa has been at McIntosh and Otis, Inc. in the Children's Literature Department since 2009 where she is actively acquiring for all age groups in children’s.
For YA, she is especially interested in contemporary, thriller/mystery, fantasy and horror. She looks for a compelling voice and a strong hook that will set a YA novel apart in the flooded market. She is open to all types of middle grade and especially enjoys adventure, mystery, and magical realism. For both YA and MG, she is interested in unique settings and cultural influences, interesting structure, complicated romances, diverse characters, sister or friendship-centric stories, and stories that feature artists of any kind. In picture books she is drawn to cute, funny stories (as opposed to sweet and quiet) that will grab kids as well as the occasional nonfiction biography on a subject whose story has yet to be told.
Christa is not looking for any Adult fiction or non-fiction, paranormal or dystopian at this time.
CHRISTA HESCHKE graduated from Binghamton University with a major in English and a minor in Anthropology. She started in publishing as an intern at both Writers House and Sterling Lord Literistic, where she fell in love with the agency side of publishing. Christa has been at McIntosh and Otis, Inc. in the Children's Literature Department since 2009 where she is actively acquiring for all age groups in children’s.
For YA, she is especially interested in contemporary, thriller/mystery, fantasy and horror. She looks for a compelling voice and a strong hook that will set a YA novel apart in the flooded market. She is open to all types of middle grade and especially enjoys adventure, mystery, and magical realism. For both YA and MG, she is interested in unique settings and cultural influences, interesting structure, complicated romances, diverse characters, sister or friendship-centric stories, and stories that feature artists of any kind. In picture books she is drawn to cute, funny stories (as opposed to sweet and quiet) that will grab kids as well as the occasional nonfiction biography on a subject whose story has yet to be told.
Christa is not looking for any Adult fiction or non-fiction, paranormal or dystopian at this time.
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Literary Agent Assistant Mallory C. Brown is seeking young adult, women’s fiction, adult, and non-fiction. She is especially drawn to pieces with strong character-driven plots and witty humor. She loves contemporary fiction, fantasy, magical realism, and romance. Mallory also appreciates a well-placed comma and hopes you do, too.
Some of Mallory’s favorites at the moment are: The Presidents Club, Bringing up Bébé, The Charlotte Holmes trilogy, Alex and Eliza, and Leave Me.
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Andrea Somberg of Harvey Klinger Literary
A literary agent for over fifteen years, Andrea represents a wide range of fiction and nonfiction, including projects for adult, young adult and middle grade audiences. Her clients’ books have been NYTimes and USABestsellers, as well as nominated for The Governor General’s Award, the Lambda Award, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award and the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award, and have been chosen for ABA’s Indies Introduce Program. Andrea is a guest instructor for MediaBistro and Writers Digest.
Her clients' books have been NYTimes and USABestsellers, as well as nominated for The Governor General's Award, the Lambda Award, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award and the VCU Campbell First Novelist Award. Andrea also teaches courses for MediaBistro and Writers Digest on topics such as nonfiction, memoir, mystery and thrillers, fantasy and sf. Her client list is quite full, however she is always actively looking to take on new authors who write in the following categories: Fiction: literary, commercial, book club fiction, romance, thrillers, mystery, paranormal, fantasy, science fiction, young adult, new adult, middle grade. Nonfiction: memoir, narrative, popular science, pop-culture, humor, how-to, parenting, self-help, lifestyle, travel, interior design, crafts, cookbooks, business, sports, diet, health & fitness.
A literary agent for over fifteen years, Andrea represents a wide range of fiction and nonfiction, including projects for adult, young adult and middle grade audiences. Her clients’ books have been NYTimes and USABestsellers, as well as nominated for The Governor General’s Award, the Lambda Award, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award and the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award, and have been chosen for ABA’s Indies Introduce Program. Andrea is a guest instructor for MediaBistro and Writers Digest.
Her clients' books have been NYTimes and USABestsellers, as well as nominated for The Governor General's Award, the Lambda Award, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award and the VCU Campbell First Novelist Award. Andrea also teaches courses for MediaBistro and Writers Digest on topics such as nonfiction, memoir, mystery and thrillers, fantasy and sf. Her client list is quite full, however she is always actively looking to take on new authors who write in the following categories: Fiction: literary, commercial, book club fiction, romance, thrillers, mystery, paranormal, fantasy, science fiction, young adult, new adult, middle grade. Nonfiction: memoir, narrative, popular science, pop-culture, humor, how-to, parenting, self-help, lifestyle, travel, interior design, crafts, cookbooks, business, sports, diet, health & fitness.
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Renee Nyen of KT Literary
Several years in the editorial department at Random House’s Colorado division provided Renee with the opportunity to work with bestselling and debut authors alike. After leaving Random House, she came to KT Literary in early 2013. She loves digging into manuscripts and helping the author shape the best story possible. Though this is great for her profession, it tends to frustrate people watching movies with her. With a penchant for depressing hipster music and an abiding love for a good adventure story, Renee is always looking for book recommendations. Even if that means creeping on people reading in public. Which she does frequently. She makes her home in Arizona with her husband, and their two children.
In both YA and MG I would love to see some more gothic stories. Secret societies, creepy old mansions, and morally questionable science experiments always get me excited. I even have a soft spot for serial killer stories–especially if they’re heavy on the psychological thrills and not gore. I adore Maureen Johnson’s Shades of London series. She balances humor and horror in the most compelling way.
Specifically in YA, I love thrillers with twists! I will never forget the way I felt when I read Daphne DuMaurier’s REBECCA for the first time. Or Elizabeth Wein’s CODE NAME VERITY. Or everything Gillian Flynn has ever written. I love them dark; I love them twisty. It’s fascinating to push characters to the very edge and see how they respond.
In both YA and MG I would love to see some more gothic stories. Secret societies, creepy old mansions, and morally questionable science experiments always get me excited. I even have a soft spot for serial killer stories–especially if they’re heavy on the psychological thrills and not gore. I adore Maureen Johnson’s Shades of London series. She balances humor and horror in the most compelling way.
Specifically in YA, I love thrillers with twists! I will never forget the way I felt when I read Daphne DuMaurier’s REBECCA for the first time. Or Elizabeth Wein’s CODE NAME VERITY. Or everything Gillian Flynn has ever written. I love them dark; I love them twisty. It’s fascinating to push characters to the very edge and see how they respond.
Another thing I’d like to see more is reworked classics. Not necessarily Jane Austin or William Shakespeare; those have been done. (Though I love “Clueless” and “10 Things I Hate About You” as much as the next girl.) TILL WE HAVE FACES by CS Lewis is one of my favorite books of all time. It’s mythology and sisters. I’m a sucker for both of those things. So, someone write that for me, please? Retellings of classics are great for a few reasons, they make classics accessible to a new audience and they spark nostalgia for those of us who loved the original.
Sci-fi and fantasy: For YA or MG I would love to sign something akin to “Firefly”. I’m not sure if I love the rebel-with-a-cause attitude or the ensemble cast more. Typically, I prefer my sci-fi set in space, not on earth. The beauty of sci-fi is the boundless universe. I like to get off planet earth and discover what else is out there. Also, I would love to see more LGBTQ characters in sci-fi and fantasy. For me, the most exciting stories reinvent typical tropes! Go ahead, send me characters who break the rules.
What you’re hearing is: I love plot/action driven books. Character development, beautiful prose, and romantic tension are important, but action keeps me reading into the wee hours of the morning.
Sci-fi and fantasy: For YA or MG I would love to sign something akin to “Firefly”. I’m not sure if I love the rebel-with-a-cause attitude or the ensemble cast more. Typically, I prefer my sci-fi set in space, not on earth. The beauty of sci-fi is the boundless universe. I like to get off planet earth and discover what else is out there. Also, I would love to see more LGBTQ characters in sci-fi and fantasy. For me, the most exciting stories reinvent typical tropes! Go ahead, send me characters who break the rules.
What you’re hearing is: I love plot/action driven books. Character development, beautiful prose, and romantic tension are important, but action keeps me reading into the wee hours of the morning.
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Jess Dallow of Brower Literary
Having grown up with the same name as her favorite Sweet Valley High twin, Jess has always had a love for books, especially those that feature well developed, strong female characters. She is fascinated with complex characters and a world that she can fall in love with, stories that make her want to sob and laugh within minutes of each other, and a book that she can’t put down no matter what time it is or what rerun of SVU is on. She has a BFA in Writing for Film and Television from the University of the Arts and worked in entertainment for eight years before returning to her home state of NY where she worked at a literary agency for two years before joining Brower Literary & Management.
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Hattie Grunewald of Blake Friedmann Literary
Hattie is looking for women's fiction, crime and thrillers outside of the 'male cop, dead woman' mould, speculative fiction and realistic YA and middle-grade fiction. In non-fiction, she is looking for personal development, accessible books about politics, economics and science, and funny and clever narrative non-fiction. She is not currently accepting fantasy or fiction set before 1900, and she hates sport - sorry!
Specifically (but not exclusively), Hattie loves: love stories, especially slow-burners or ones disguised as something else; dysfunctional families (particularly step families, or dads who are neither deadbeats nor heroes); large sprawling casts of diverse and believable characters; authors from under-represented backgrounds; books that aren't afraid to call themselves feminist; books about mental health; blogs and tweets and writers that understand social media; pop culture; anything to do with food.
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Jennifer Azantian of Azantian Literary
Founder Jennifer Azantian graduated with a B.S. in clinical and developmental psychology from the University of California, San Diego where she was an executive editor for the Trition Psychology Report. In 2011, she began her agenting career, first as an intern and then as an assistant and associate, at the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency. In 2014, while working with senior agent and entertainment lawyer Paul Levine, Jennifer opened her own agency specializing in speculative fiction.
Jennifer is particularly interested in stories that explore meaningful human interactions against fantastic backdrops, underrepresented voices, literary science fiction, historical fantasy, creepy stories for young readers, humorous space operas, well-crafted and hopeful futures, internally consistent epic fantasy, obscure retold fairy tales, modernized mythologies, and eccentric protagonists. She brings to her clients a passion for literature born of a writer's heart, an editorial eye honed from reviewing thousands of projects, and contract knowledge empowered by guidance from her mentor Paul Levine. She is also a conference and convention regular who has spoken at and provided critiques for SCBWI, ConDor Con, SCWC, WNBA-LA, Literary Orange, GLAWS, Cascade Writers' Workshop, and more.
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Ashley Hearn of Page Street Publishing
Ashley is an Associate YA Editor at Page Street Publishing.
Prior to joining Page Street, she earned a degree in communication arts from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and worked as a producer for the football and basketball coaches’ television show while interning at Entangled Publishing. She is an addictive coffee drinker, a Gilmore Girls fanatic, and a proud Gryffindor. When she ferrets away enough gas money, she can be found scouring the Georgia and South Carolina Sea Islands for ruined plantations, folk magic, and a fresh story.
Ashley is seeking only YA at this time. She’s drawn to high concept stories with a unique twist and an unforgettable voice. She’s especially interested in fantasy, gothic horror, paranormal, magical realism, quirky contemporary, and historicals—with a special affinity for atmospheric stories that offer a strong sense of place and time. Anything “Southern” and/or “sporty” is her kryptonite.
Recent favorites include HALF BAD by Sally Green, BEWARE THE WILD by Natalie C Parker, THIS MONSTROUS THING by Mackenzi Lee, THE STAR-TOUCHED QUEEN by Roshani Chokshi, and HOW WE FALL by Kate Brauning.
Website|Twitter
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Steven Salpeter of Curtis Brown
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