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The Best Literary Agents Seeking Submissions in New York City

Showing 117 agents that match your search.

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

Katie Kotchman

πŸ’Ό Agency: Don Congdon Associates

🌍 Location: New York City, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through QueryManager

Genres: Nonfiction, Business Book, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Self-Help, Politics

Previous clients: Jill Althouse-Wood, Lauren Berger, Jenny Dearborn, Tom Faley

Open to queries

Query Tracker | MSWL

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

Query Tracker | Agent Query

Anne Hawkins

πŸ’Ό Agency: John Hawkins & Associates

🌍 Location: New York City, US

πŸ§‘β€πŸ’» Website: https://www.jhalit.com/#Home

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Nonfiction, Politics, Feminism

Previous clients: Tasha Alexander, Taylor Stevens, Miranda Beverly-Whittermore, William Kowalski

Open to queries

Query Tracker | Agent Query

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Ginger Knowlton

πŸ’Ό Agency: Curtis Brown, Ltd.

🌍 Location: New York City, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Young Adult, Middle Grade

Previous clients: Gail Carson Levine, Wendelin Van Draanen, Jonah Winter, Helen Frost

Open to queries

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | Agent Query

Anna Ghosh

πŸ’Ό Agency: Ghosh Literary

🌍 Location: New York City, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction

Previous clients: Alia Malek, Caroline Heller, Roby James, Garin Hovannisian, Chris Impey

Query Tracker | Agent Query

Laura Langlie

πŸ’Ό Agency: Laura Langlie Agency

🌍 Location: New York City, US

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Crime Fiction, Historical Fiction, Humor, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Romance, Thriller, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Memoir, Politics, Diverse Fiction, LGBTQ, Feminism, Middle Grade

Previous clients: Emily Arsenault, Mignon Ballard, Melanie Benjamin, Jessica Benson, Marissa Burt, Meg Cabot, Sarah Dooley, Joan Druett, Jerramy Fine, Robin Hathaway, Mary Hogan, Lauren Lipton, Malinda Lo, Thomas Maltman, Leslie Margolis, Emil Ostrovski, Delia Ray

Open to queries

Query Tracker | Agent Query

Allison Hunter

πŸ’Ό Agency: Trellis Literary

🌍 Location: New York City, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through QueryManager

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Literary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Romance, Thriller, Chick Lit, Diverse Fiction, Historical Fiction, New Adult

Previous clients: Rosie Walsh, Lauren Ho, Randall Klein, Alexandra Borowitz, Katie Heaney

Open to queries

Query Tracker

Susan Golomb

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, Literary Fiction, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Historical Fiction, Women's Fiction, Cookbook, Self-Help

Previous clients: Jonathan Franzen, Krys Lee, William T. Vollman, Rachel Kushner, Imbolo Mbue

Open to queries

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace

Jessica Sinsheimer

πŸ’Ό Agency: Context Literary Agency

🌍 Location: New York City, US

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

πŸ“£ Preferred contact method: Submit queries through email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Crime Fiction, Fantasy, New Adult, Romance, Science Fiction, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Nonfiction, Cookbook, Children's Book, Middle Grade, Diverse Fiction, BIPOC, LGBTQ, Narrative Nonfiction, Self-Help

Previous clients: Margot Harrison, Shannon Alexander, Jonathan Chesner, Gwen Hayes

Query Tracker | MSWL

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 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

Get a professional opinion on your query letter

Reedsy editors have worked as agents and acquiring editors. Ask for a "query letter review."