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The Best Literary Agents Seeking Commercial Fiction Submissions

Showing 326 agents that match your search.

Annelise Robey

💼 Agency: Jane Rotrosen Agency

🌍 Location: New York City, US

🧑‍💻 Website: https://www.janerotrosen.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Online submission form

Genres: Fiction, Chick Lit, Commercial Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Literary Fiction

Previous clients: Terri Garey, Monica McCarty, James Hayman

Interested in debut authors

Query Tracker | Agent Query

Laura Blake Peterson

💼 Agency: Curtis Brown, Ltd.

🌍 Location: New York, US

🧑‍💻 Website: https://curtisbrown.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Chick Lit, Commercial Fiction, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Christian, Memoir, Spirituality, Children's Book, Middle Grade

Previous clients: Kathleen Dean Moore, Wendy Corsi Staub, Thor Hanson

Query Tracker | Agent Query

Sarah Hornsley

💼 Agency: Peters Fraser + Dunlop

🌍 Location: London, GB

🧑‍💻 Website: https://petersfraserdunlop.com/agent/sarah-hornsley/

📣 Preferred contact method: Online submission form

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Crime Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Horror, Literary Fiction, Science Fiction, Thriller, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Cookbook, Memoir

Previous clients: Ciara Attwell, Olivia Beirne, Roxie Cooper, Drew Davies, Nick Hollin

Query Tracker | MSWL

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Stephanie Rostan

💼 Agency: Levine Greenberg Rostan Literary Agency

🌍 Location: New York, US

🧑‍💻 Website: https://lgrliterary.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Crime Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Self-Help, Spirituality, Chick Lit

Previous clients: Gillian Flynn, Lisa Lutz, Wendy Wax, Julia Dahl, Heather Swain

Query Tracker | Agent Query

Daniel Lazar

💼 Agency: Writers House

🌍 Location: New York City, US

🧑‍💻 Website: http://www.writershouse.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Graphic Novel, Historical Fiction, Humor, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Diverse Fiction, LGBTQ

Previous clients: Hannah Kent, Chandler Baker, Raymond Villareal, Ingrid Law, Jennifer McMahon, Matt Rothschild

Interested in debut authors

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Michelle Brower

💼 Agency: Aevitas Creative Management

🌍 Location: Boston, US

🧑‍💻 Website: https://aevitascreative.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Online submission form

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Literary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Thriller

Previous clients: Erika L. Sánchez, Tara Conklin, Hazel Gaynor, Erika Swyler, Viet Dinh

Query Tracker | MSWL | Agent Query

Amy Giuffrida

💼 Agency: Belcastro Agency

🌍 Location: New York City, US

🧑‍💻 Website: https://www.belcastroagency.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Online submission form

Genres: Fiction, Horror, Romance, Thriller, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Cookbook, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Diverse Fiction, #ownvoices, BIPOC, LGBTQ, Commercial Fiction, Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction

Previous clients: Maria Tureaud, Jax McQueen, Sarah Elynn, Haley Hwang

Interested in debut authors

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | MSWL

Donald Maass

💼 Agency: Donald Maass Literary Agency

🌍 Location: New York City, US

🧑‍💻 Website: http://maassagency.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Crime Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Horror, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction, Thriller

Previous clients: Nnedi Okorafor, Brent Weeks, Anne Perry, Todd McCaffrey

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | Agent Query

Alex Glass

💼 Agency: Glass Literary Management

🌍 Location: New York City, US

🧑‍💻 Website: http://www.glassliterary.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Humor, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, African-American, BIPOC, Children's Book, Cookbook, Middle Grade, New Adult, Self-Help, Spirituality, Young Adult, Sports

Previous clients: Haylie Pomroy, Chad Kultgen, Matt Bondurant, Jon Cryer, Da Chen, Marcy Dermansky, Jennifer Esposito

Interested in debut authors

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | Agent Query

Jodi Reamer

💼 Agency: Writers House

🌍 Location: New York City, US

🧑‍💻 Website: http://www.writershouse.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Fantasy, Mystery, Romance, Science Fiction, Thriller, Young Adult, Children's Book, Self-Help, Middle Grade

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

Interested in debut authors

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 the foot of new authors in the door of a publishing house — 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 they are looking to add to their lists — 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 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. 

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 — 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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