Looking to publish? Meet your dream editor, designer and marketer on Reedsy.

Find the perfect editor for your next book

1 million authors trust the professionals on Reedsy. Come meet them.

DIRECTORY

The Best Literary Agents Seeking Thriller Submissions

Showing 262 agents that match your search.

Yfat Reiss Gendell

💼 Agency: YRG Partners

🌍 Location: New York, US

🧑‍💻 Website: https://yrgpartners.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Action & Adventure, Commercial Fiction, Historical Fiction, Science Fiction, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Nonfiction, Memoir

Previous clients: Ernest Cline, Denise Kiernan, Karla Cornejo Villavicencio, Reese Witherspoon

Query Tracker | Agent Query

Cassandra Rodgers

💼 Agency: 5 Otter Literary

🌍 Location: Toronto, CA

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

📣 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

Suzie Townsend

💼 Agency: New Leaf Literary & Media, Inc.

🌍 Location: New York City, US

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

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Fantasy, Romance, Science Fiction, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Mystery, Narrative Nonfiction, Memoir

Previous clients: Laura Steven, Victoria Aveyard, Natalie Lloyd, Jennifer Ryan, Brigid Kemmer, Christine Day

Interested in debut authors

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | MSWL

Looking for an editor to polish your query letter?

The best professionals are already on Reedsy, come meet them. Create your free account to request free quotes today.

Learn more about the Reedsy Marketplace.

Simon Trewin

💼 Agency: Simon Trewin Literary and Media Rights Agency

🌍 Location: London, GB

🧑‍💻 Website: https://www.simontrewin.co.uk/

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Graphic Novel, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, Thriller

Previous clients: Andrew Motion, John Boyne, Andrew Miller, Lalline Paul, Mackenzie Crook, Keith Lowe, Isabel Greenberg

Chris Bucci

💼 Agency: Aevitas Creative Management

🌍 Location: Boston, US

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

📣 Preferred contact method: Online submission form

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

Previous clients: Bob Rae, Timothy Caulfield, Susan Delacourt, Jowita Bydlowska, James Grainger

Query Tracker

Jennifer Jackson

💼 Agency: Donald Maass Literary Agency

🌍 Location: New York City, US

🧑‍💻 Website: http://maassagency.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

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

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

Interested in debut authors

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | Agent Query

Marc Gerald

💼 Agency: Europa Content

🌍 Location: New York, US

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

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Thriller, Nonfiction, Business Book, Cookbook, Spirituality, Sports, Children's Book

Previous clients: Eminem, Mel Robbins, Kevin Hart, 50 Cent, Isa Moskowitz, Quincy Jones

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | Agent Query

Rachel Ekstrom Courage

💼 Agency: Courage Literary

🌍 Location: New York City, US

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

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Crime Fiction, Fantasy, Literary Fiction, Mystery, Science Fiction, Thriller, Women's Fiction, Young Adult, Middle Grade, Business Book, Spirituality

Previous clients: Rachael Lippincott, Kristin Fields, Nina Laurin, Jeff Garvin, Sandra Block

Interested in debut authors

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | MSWL

Russell Galen

💼 Agency: Scovil Galen Ghosh Literary Agency

🌍 Location: New York City, US

🧑‍💻 Website: http://www.sgglit.com/

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Action & Adventure, Fantasy, Science Fiction, Nonfiction, Narrative Nonfiction, Business Book, Children's Book, Commercial Fiction, Cookbook, Historical Fiction, Horror, Literary Fiction, Memoir, Middle Grade, Mystery, Politics, Romance, Spirituality, Sports, Thriller, Young Adult, Diverse Fiction

Previous clients: Terry Goodkind, Diana Gabaldon, Norman Spinrad, Mercedes Lackey, Joan Schenkar, Nick Tosches

Query Tracker | Publishers Marketplace | Agent Query

Allison Hunter

💼 Agency: Trellis Literary

🌍 Location: New York City, US

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

📣 Preferred contact method: Email

Genres: Fiction, Commercial Fiction, Humor, Literary Fiction, Women's Fiction, Nonfiction, Memoir, Narrative Nonfiction, Politics, Romance, Thriller, Business Book, Chick Lit, Diverse Fiction, Historical Fiction, LGBTQ, Mystery, New Adult, Spirituality, Young Adult

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

Interested in debut authors

Query Tracker

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

Recommended books

Reedsy | Editors working on Query Letter | 2023-10

Submitting your query letter?

Professional editors can help your query stand out for the right reasons.

Reedsy Marketplace UI

1 million authors trust the professionals on Reedsy. Come meet them.

Enter your email or get started with a social account: