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Thursday, November 7, 2019

7 Literary Agents Actively Seeking Nonfiction, Memoir, YA, Literary Fiction and more

Updated 8/27/23

Here are seven agents actively building their client lists. Maile Beal is seeking nonfiction and YA. Maggie Cooper is seeking historical novels, cookbooks and unclassifiable projects. Heather Carr is seeking nonfiction and literary novels. Ian Bonaparte is actively acquiring in the areas of journalistic reportage, current events, science, creative memoir, and history, and is especially interested in social justice. Abigail Frank is passionate about stories for young people, especially those that are hilarious, poetic, quietly heartbreaking, and/or swoon-worthy. She is also looking for select adult fiction and nonfiction. Melanie Figueroa is actively looking for fiction and narrative nonfiction. Chelsea Eberly represents authors of middle grade, young adult, graphic novels, and women’s fiction, as well as writer-illustrators of picture books.

Always check the agency website and agent bio before submitting. Agents can switch agencies or close their lists.

You can find a full list of agents actively seeking new clients here: Agents Seeking Clients

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Ms. Maile Beal of Arc Literary Management

Maile Beal joined Arc Literary Management in 2021 after over 5 years at the Carol Mann Agency. She began her career as an intern before becoming subrights manager and assistant to Myrsini Stephanides and eventually growing her own client list. She is passionate about advocating for writers and artists so that they are empowered to create work that will have a lasting impact - books in which readers will see themselves represented, find tools for social change, learn something new, connect with a different perspective, and deepen their understanding of the world.

What she is seeking: Maile is interested in adult non-fiction as well as children’s, middle grade, and YA fiction and non-fiction. In all categories, she is looking for projects that amplify underrepresented voices and untold stories.

In adult nonfiction, Maile is interested in journalistic, investigative deep dives, narrative retellings of untold histories, business and leadership resources centering underestimated identities, lifestyle and cookbooks with a fresh, personal hook, and unexpected humor and gift books.

In children’s, Maile is seeking fiction and non-fiction in all age categories. In picture books and MG, she gravitates toward heartfelt, earnest stories that use humor and silliness to connect with readers. In YA, she’s drawn to voice driven projects focusing on community and relationships with strong, complex characters that will stick with readers beyond the last page.

How to submit: Use her Query Manager HERE.

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Ms. Maggie Cooper of Aevitas Creative Management

Maggie Cooper comes to Aevitas from the world of of small presses, academic publishing, and literary journals. A 2016 graduate of the Clarion Writers Workshop, she holds a degree in English from Yale University and earned her MFA in fiction from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, where she served as an editor for The Greensboro Review.

What she is seeking: Maggie is a passionate reader with a taste for imaginative, genre-bending fiction; capacious historical novels; beautifully told queer stories; and smart, feminist happy endings. Her other loves include unclassifiable book projects, food and cookbooks, and writing that interrogates whiteness, capitalism, and the heteropatriarchy.

How to submit: Use her Query Manager HERE. Note: Maggie will re-open to queries at a later date.

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Ms. Heather Carr of The Friedrich Agency

“After two and a half years at Trident Media Group, I joined The Friedrich Agency in March 2018 and am thrilled to be part of this small, close-knit team."

What she is seeking: "I’m drawn to voice-driven nonfiction that teaches me something new while never losing personal warmth and/or zaniness. There’s a specific kind of alchemy that happens for me when a nonfiction writer marries their command of a subject with personal vulnerability. I’m also interested in long-form journalism of any type, but especially as it relates to gender and sexuality. In fiction, I love literary novels about dysfunctional families and friendships, high-concept commercial fiction, and anything with a singular voice." 

How to submit: Query Heather at hcarr@friedrichagency.com

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Ian Bonaparte of Janklow & Nesbit

Ian began his career in publishing at Farrar, Straus & Giroux, where he worked at the nexus of sales, publicity, and marketing. Having booked tours, pitched and edited essays from authors across Macmillan, and rescued numerous readings from disaster and near-miss, he departed for the agency world, joining Janklow & Nesbit in 2016. A graduate of the Columbia Publishing Course at the Columbia Journalism School, Ian holds a B.A. in English with a focus in Creative Writing from Vanderbilt University.

What he is seeking: He is actively acquiring in the areas of journalistic reportage, current events, science, big idea, creative memoir, and history, and is especially interested in social justice, radical thought, and moving the Overton window of discourse. He is able to help writers place journalism and op-eds. With an extensive background in editing fiction, he is also seeking a select list of fiction writers, and is interested in seeing any novel that is both moving and plot-driven.

How to submit: For email submissions, please send your material to submissions@janklow.com. Please see the website for detailed instructions.

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Abigail Frank of Sanford J. Greenburger Associates

Abigail joined the Greenburger team in 2017 after interning at Writers House. Formerly an assistant to Brenda Bowen, she now assists Faith Hamlin with her extraordinary and eclectic list of clients. Abigail graduated with a degree in English Literature from Swarthmore College and worked in healthcare before pursuing her passion for books. Find her mostly retweeting @abigailcrfrank

What she is seeking: Abigail is passionate about stories for young people, especially those that are hilarious, poetic, quietly heartbreaking, and/or swoon-worthy, and she cares about voice, above all. She gravitates towards picture books that feel entirely original, chapter books with big personalities, and novels about unforgettable teens falling in love. She is committed to advocating for the work of marginalized authors and artists, and she’s actively looking for stories that allow young readers to recognize themselves in the books they love. She is also looking for select adult fiction and nonfiction.

To submit your work: Query Abigail at afrank@sjga.com under the subject line “QUERY – project title.” Please include a brief bio in your cover letter and your full manuscript or proposal as an attachment. If you are a visual artist, please also include a link to your portfolio. If Abigail believes your work might be a good fit for her list, she will be in touch within 4-6 weeks. Due to the volume of queries she receives, she is unable to respond personally to each submission.

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Melanie Figeroa of Root Literary

After graduating with an MS in writing and book publishing from Portland State University, Melanie worked as an editorial project manager at Quarto and then as a freelance editor for several years before joining Root Literary in 2018. She lives in Anaheim with my husband, a local sous chef, and a pack of animals currently comprised of two cats, one dog, and a geriatric turtle.

What she is seeking: "I'm actively looking for fiction and narrative nonfiction. I'm especially excited to find high-concept commercial and literary leaning general fiction, young adult novels with a strong voice and propulsive pacing, and heartfelt and humorous middle grade novels across genres. I was born and raised in Southern California in a multi-cultural, blended family, so I have a soft spot for books that shine a spotlight on the nuances of family relationships and identity."

How to submit: Please send a query letter and the first 20 pages of your manuscript to Melanie via her Query Manager form.

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Ms. Chelsea Eberly of Greenhouse Literary Agency

"I began my publishing career as an editor of Kindergarten and Pre-K reading textbooks at McGraw-Hill, which gave me a solid respect for everything the School/Library market does, but I always knew that children's book publishing was my true passion. After attending the Columbia Publishing Course, I joined Random House Books for Young Readers, where I rose to become a Senior Editor. I've had the pleasure of publishing multiple award-winning and New York Times bestselling books, editing authors such as Tamora Pierce, Leigh Bardugo, Marie Lu, Sarah J. Maas, Matt de la Peña, Mark Siegel, Julia Walton, and Jessica Cluess to name only a few."

What she is seeking: Chelsea Eberly represents authors of middle grade, young adult, graphic novels, and women’s fiction, as well as writer-illustrators of picture books. "I am actively building my list and am primarily interested in fantasy, magical realism, contemporary fiction (particularly romance, thrillers, and humor), and graphic novels—though please surprise me with an excellent read that I didn’t know I needed! I have a soft spot for literary when there’s a strong plot propelling the reader forward. I am interested in projects from underrepresented and marginalized voices. I am also interested in reads that thoughtfully address mental health and learning disabilities as part of the story but not necessarily the main focus. I am open to non-fiction with a unique point of view and/or a platform-driven project."

How to submit: See site for submission guidelines.  Note: Chelsea Eberly is closed to queries except by referral. She will reopen at a later date.

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