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The Best Literary Agents Seeking Fiction Submissions

Showing 519 agents that match your search.

Carrie Pestritto

πŸ’Ό Agency: Laura Dail Literary Agency

🌍 Location: New York City, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through QueryManager

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Memoir, Middle Grade, LGBTQ, Chick Lit, Fantasy, Narrative Nonfiction, Business Book, Crime Fiction, Feminism, Historical Fiction, Horror, New Adult, Self-Help

Previous clients: Kalyn Josephson, Jon Birger, Lily Chu, Graci Kim, Claire Kann

Open to queries

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | MSWL

Victoria Doherty-Munro

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, Young Adult, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Narrative Nonfiction

Previous clients: Alexandra Ott, Jennifer Sommersby, Eliza Gordon

Open to queries

Query Tracker | MSWL

Cristina Concepcion

πŸ’Ό Agency: Don Congdon Associates

🌍 Location: New York, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Crime Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Nonfiction, Narrative Nonfiction, Politics, Commercial Fiction, Cookbook, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction

Previous clients: David Sedaris, Susan Allen, Russell Baker, Jane Cleland

Open to queries

Query Tracker | Agent Query

Daniel Lazar

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, Graphic Novel, Historical Fiction, Humor, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Middle Grade, Diverse Fiction, LGBTQ

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

Open to queries

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | Agent Query

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Jennifer Jackson

πŸ’Ό Agency: Donald Maass Literary Agency

🌍 Location: New York City, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Science Fiction, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, African-American, BIPOC, Crime Fiction

Previous clients: Jim Butcher, Elizabeth Bear, Tamsyn Muir, Saladin Ahmed, Anne Bishop, Seth Dickinson

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | Agent Query

Theresa Park

πŸ’Ό Agency: Park, Fine & Brower Literary Management

🌍 Location: New York, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Literary Fiction, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Young Adult

Previous clients: Nicholas Sparks, Frances Cha, Deborah Harkness, Emily Giffin, Janice Lee, Robert Whitaker

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | Agent Query

Cameron McClure

πŸ’Ό Agency: Donald Maass Literary Agency

🌍 Location: New York, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through online form

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

Previous clients: Robert McCammon, Robert Jackson Bennett, Ada Palmer, Amy Alkon

Open to queries

Query Tracker | Agent Query

Laurie Liss

πŸ’Ό Agency: Sterling Lord Literistic Inc.

🌍 Location: New York City, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Diverse Fiction, LGBTQ, Spirituality

Previous clients: Richard Paul Evans, Rachel Maddow, Matt Richtel, Hannah Gadsby, Shankar Vedantam

Query Tracker | Agent Query

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

Open to queries

Query Tracker | Agent Query

Jennifer DeChiara

πŸ’Ό Agency: Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency

🌍 Location: New York, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Chick Lit, Commercial Fiction, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Memoir, Self-Help, Spirituality, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Picture Book, Diverse Fiction, LGBTQ

Previous clients: Brent Hartinger, Richard Mintzer, Jeff Anderson, Franco Aureliani

Open to queries

Query Tracker | 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.Β 

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.Β 

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 2025

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

Recommended books

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