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The Best Literary Agents Seeking Submissions in Canada

Showing 28 agents that match your search.

Curtis Russell

๐Ÿ’ผ Agency - P.S. Literary Agency
๐ŸŒ Location - Toronto, CA
๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Website - https://www.psliterary.com/
๐Ÿ“ฃ Preferred contact method - Email
โ˜‘๏ธ Interested in debut authors

Genres

Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Humor, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Business Book, Memoir, Politics, Self-Help, Sports, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Picture Book

Previous clients

Pamela Beason, Nick Powdthavee, Gail Vaz-Oxlade, Gerry Dee, Tommy Europe

Query Tracker | MSWL | Agent Query

Carly Watters

๐Ÿ’ผ Agency - P.S. Literary Agency
๐ŸŒ Location - Toronto, CA
๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Website - https://www.psliterary.com/
๐Ÿ“ฃ Preferred contact method - Email
โ˜‘๏ธ Interested in debut authors

Genres

Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Cookbook, Narrative Nonfiction, Children's Book, Diverse Fiction, LGBTQ

Previous clients

Colin Mochrie, Mary Akers, Danny Appleby, Jay Onrait, Taylor Jenkins Reid, Lorene Sauro

Query Tracker | MSWL | Agent Query

Cecilia Lyra

๐Ÿ’ผ Agency - P.S. Literary Agency
๐ŸŒ Location - Toronto, CA
๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Website - https://www.psliterary.com/
๐Ÿ“ฃ Preferred contact method - Email
โ˜‘๏ธ Interested in debut authors

Genres

Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Literary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Nonfiction, Business Book, Memoir, Diverse Fiction, BIPOC, Feminism, LGBTQ

Previous clients

Lene Andersen, Jenna Ferrey, Amy Rosen, Jessica Hinkson

Query Tracker | MSWL

Cassandra Rodgers

๐Ÿ’ผ Agency - 5 Otter Literary
๐ŸŒ Location - Toronto, CA
๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Website - https://fiveotterliterary.com/
๐Ÿ“ฃ Preferred contact method - Email

Genres

Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Historical Fiction, Thriller, Nonfiction, Business Book, Memoir, Politics, Sports

Previous clients

Dayle Furlong, Gabriele Wills, James R. Wallen, Kath Jonathan

Query Tracker

Helen Heller

๐Ÿ’ผ Agency - The Helen Heller Agency
๐ŸŒ Location - Toronto, CA
๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Website - https://thehelenhelleragency.com/
๐Ÿ“ฃ Preferred contact method - Email
โ˜‘๏ธ Interested in debut authors

Genres

Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Literary Fiction, Historical Fiction, Thriller

Previous clients

Khaled Hosseini, Bruce Holsinger, Nora Murphy

Query Tracker | MSWL

Chelene Knight

๐Ÿ’ผ Agency - Transatlantic Agency
๐ŸŒ Location - Toronto, CA
๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Website - https://www.transatlanticagency.com/
๐Ÿ“ฃ Preferred contact method - Email

Genres

Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Literary Fiction, Nonfiction, Memoir

Previous clients

Garvia Bailey, Amanda Brugel, Bee Quammie, Kai Thomas

Query Tracker

Brenna English-Loeb

๐Ÿ’ผ Agency - Transatlantic Agency
๐ŸŒ Location - Toronto, CA
๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Website - https://www.transatlanticagency.com/
๐Ÿ“ฃ Preferred contact method - Email
โ˜‘๏ธ Interested in debut authors

Genres

Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery, Science Fiction, Thriller, Young Adult, Crime Fiction

Previous clients

Mark Sampson, Kathleen Doughty, Genoveva Dimova

Query Tracker | MSWL

Kathryn Willms

๐Ÿ’ผ Agency - The Rights Factory
๐ŸŒ Location - Toronto, CA
๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Website - https://www.therightsfactory.com/Agents/Kathryn-Willms
๐Ÿ“ฃ Preferred contact method - Online submission form

Genres

Action & Adventure, Cookbook, Historical Fiction, Self-Help, Sports

Previous clients

Lisa Brahin, Krista Towns, Laura Pratt, Michelle McIvor, Karen Pierce

Amy Tompkins

๐Ÿ’ผ Agency - Transatlantic Agency
๐ŸŒ Location - Toronto, CA
๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Website - https://www.transatlanticagency.com/
๐Ÿ“ฃ Preferred contact method - Online submission form
โ˜‘๏ธ Interested in debut authors

Genres

Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Graphic Novel, Literary Fiction, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Children's Book, Diverse Fiction, #ownvoices

Previous clients

Holly Bennett, Michelle Mulder, Kit Pearson, Kate Inglis

Query Tracker

Sandra Bishop

๐Ÿ’ผ Agency - Transatlantic Agency
๐ŸŒ Location - Toronto, CA
๐Ÿง‘โ€๐Ÿ’ป Website - https://www.transatlanticagency.com/
๐Ÿ“ฃ Preferred contact method - Email

Genres

Nonfiction, Cookbook, Memoir, Self-Help

Previous clients

Maureen McQuerry, Carolyn Pizzuti, Rachel Stafford, Rebecca Eanes

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace

What do literary agents do?

A literary agent represents your book to acquiring editors who want to publish it. In other words, an agent gets the foot of new authors in the door of a publishing house โ€” and onto the path of getting traditionally published.ย 

In addition to championing you and your writing and serving as your point of contact with others in publishing, literary agents understand editorsโ€™ tastes and the types of books they are looking to add to their lists โ€” a crucial component in getting any publishing house to invest in the works of new authors. Since most big publishers donโ€™t accept unsolicited submissions, getting a literary agent whoโ€™s accepting submissions is the most realistic route to traditional publication, particularly for debut authors.

Aside from getting your foot in the door, what else do literary agents do?

  • They are expert negotiators, combining publishing acumen with a nose for the value of good, sellable writing;
  • They act as mediators between you and your publisher (when you donโ€™t want to hurt your working relationship with an editor by talking brass tacks);
  • They manage the financial and marketing side of things while you concentrate on the writing; and
  • They often have strong editorial skills, helping refine your manuscript before you submit it to a publisher.

As you might've guessed, literary agents are especially important for debut authors, who often don't have a starting point in the vast maze that is the publishing industry. That's what a literary agent will become for you: a guide to help you throughout the publishing process, and kickstart your publishing career.ย 

New authors might be intimidated by the wealth of information and cautionary signs in the industry. It's especially tricky to research literary agents when some are open to submissions from new authors, and some are not.

If you're one of those debut authors, don't fret! We've got you covered with the resources that you need to gain your bearings.ย 

Resources for new authors landing a literary agent in 2023

You might think that a great book is all you need to catch a literary agentโ€™s attention. But youโ€™ll need to put in a good amount of work to land them โ€” and that includes everything from the careful study of each agent's wishlist to personalizing your query letter for each candidate..

Whether youโ€™re a new author learning how to research literary agents or an experienced writer refining your query letter, here are the resources that can give you a headstart.

Free online materials for debut authors

Recommended books

Save agents to shortlist them

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