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The Best Literary Agents Seeking Children's Book Submissions

Showing 181 agents that match your search.

Emily van Beek

πŸ’Ό Agency: Folio Literary Management

🌍 Location: New York City, US

πŸ§‘β€πŸ’» Website: http://www.foliojr.com/

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fantasy, Young Adult, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Picture Book, Diverse Fiction, Graphic Novel

Previous clients: Jenny Han, Lois Lowry, Morgan Matson, Julie Morstad, Tamora Pierce, Jordan Scott

Open to queries

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Veronique Baxter

πŸ’Ό Agency: David Higham Literary Agency

🌍 Location: London, GB

πŸ§‘β€πŸ’» Website: https://www.davidhigham.co.uk

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Crime Fiction, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Thriller, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Politics, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Diverse Fiction, BIPOC, Feminism, LGBTQ, Commercial Fiction, Women's Fiction

Previous clients: Diana Wynne Jones, Richard Adams, Nick Butterworth, Jonathan Stroud, Alix Nathan

Open to queries

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Holly McGhee

πŸ’Ό Agency: Pippin Properties

🌍 Location: New York, US

πŸ§‘β€πŸ’» Website: http://www.pippinproperties.com/

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Graphic Novel, Young Adult, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Picture Book

Previous clients: Kate DiCamillo, David Small, Jandy Nelson, Doreen Cronin, Harry Bliss, An Na

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Gail Hochman

πŸ’Ό Agency: Brandt & Hochman Literary Agents, Inc.

🌍 Location: New York, US

πŸ§‘β€πŸ’» Website: https://brandthochman.com/

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Literary Fiction, Thriller, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Politics, Children's Book, Young Adult

Previous clients: Scott Turow, Michael Cunningham, Leah Stewart

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Tracy Marchini

πŸ’Ό Agency: BookEnds Literary Agency

🌍 Location: Newark, US

πŸ§‘β€πŸ’» Website: http://www.bookendsliterary.com/

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through QueryManager

Genres: Fiction, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Picture Book, Diverse Fiction, #ownvoices, BIPOC, LGBTQ

Previous clients: Jennifer Robin Barr, Charlene Chua, Sally Deng, Margaret Finnegan, Rita Lorraine Hubbard

Open to queries

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Rebecca Sherman

πŸ’Ό Agency: Writers House

🌍 Location: New York City, US

πŸ§‘β€πŸ’» Website: http://www.writershouse.com/

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Young Adult, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Picture Book, Graphic Novel

Previous clients: Daniel Salmieri, Andrea Beaty, Grace Lin, John Hendrix

Open to queries

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | MSWL

Alison Fargis

πŸ’Ό Agency: Stonesong

🌍 Location: New York, US

πŸ§‘β€πŸ’» Website: https://www.stonesong.com

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Literary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Business Book, Narrative Nonfiction, Self-Help, Children's Book, Middle Grade

Previous clients: Susan B. Anderson, Sara Bliss, Michael Buckley, Erin Gleeson, Eric Gorges

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | MSWL

Jodi Reamer

πŸ’Ό Agency: Writers House

🌍 Location: New York City, US

πŸ§‘β€πŸ’» Website: http://www.writershouse.com/

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction, Thriller, Young Adult, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Picture Book, Women's Fiction

Previous clients: Stephenie Meyer, John Green, Dan Santat, Nicola Yoon, Ransom Riggs, Lisa Yee

Open to queries

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David Dunton

πŸ’Ό Agency: Harvey Klinger, Inc.

🌍 Location: New York City, US

πŸ§‘β€πŸ’» Website: https://www.harveyklinger.com/

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Young Adult, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Nonfiction

Previous clients: Lori Culwell, Chris Carlton Brown, Alex McAulay

Open to queries

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Marcy Posner

πŸ’Ό Agency: Folio Literary Management

🌍 Location: New York City, US

πŸ§‘β€πŸ’» Website: https://www.foliolit.com/

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through QueryManager

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Young Adult, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Historical Fiction, Narrative Nonfiction, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Feminism

Previous clients: Joss Ware, Kristi Cook, Susan Hubbard

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | Agent Query

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 your foot in the door of a publishing house β€” and onto the path of getting traditionally published. 

In addition to championing you and your writing and serving as your point of contact with others in publishing, literary agents understand editors’ tastes and the types of books that publishers are looking to add to their lists β€” a crucial component in getting any publishing house to invest in the works of new authors. Since most big publishers don’t accept unsolicited submissions, getting a literary agent who’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 don’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 send 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. 

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.

Resources for new authors landing a literary agent in 2024

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

Whether you’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

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