May 29, 2017

Query Kombat Round 1 Match-Ups!

The big reveal is done as to who was on our Query Kombat teams - now it's time to find out who the Kombatants will be going up against in the first round! The first round will start on Friday at 8:00 am and the match-ups will span all our blogs


Child and Family Services vs Stands By Until He Doesn't
The Nose Knows vs. The Lake of Haunted Memories
Bounty and the Beast vs. The Marizpan Pizza
Men Aren't Dying vs. Super Powers and Problems
Mother of All Custody Battles vs. Muslim Girl to the Rescue
Boy Band Ninja Assassins vs. Girl Takes Back the White House
There is Stardust in My Eyes vs. Hero By Default
Girls Can Be Princes, Too vs. Kaza
When Bugbots Attack vs. Alabama Witch Hunters
Fibs Taste Cruddy vs. Super Space Nerd


TB Ruined My Day vs. The Barringer Museum
The Half-Orphan's Handbook vs. Quaker Rain Forest
She's Fast, He's Furious vs. Beards
Cheshire 💜s Alice vs. I Kissed My Step-Nephew
Ooh, Crown Molding vs. Alternative Facts
This Selkie Can't Swim vs. She's Better than 4:20
We Kinda Destroyed Paris vs. Feeling Fictional
Bust the Bubble Wrap vs. Putt-Putt Pro
Books Boys Gone Wild vs. Mars Bars and Snickers
Dogs and Chicken and Dragons, Oh My! vs. Wolf in Witch Clothing
Perfectly Imperfect Princess vs. Monsters are Real

Boomerang vs. Three Men and an Actuary
Moving On Is Never Easy vs. I Fell For a Convicted Felon
Pitt Bull Seeks Custody vs. From Gutters to Galleries
Switcher vs. Grocery Store Zombies
Aliens, Catapults, Car Chases vs. Asteroid Snacks
Talking Sword FTW vs Life as a Dumpster Fire
My Dad Bought Me This Tattoo vs. Nowhere Land
Rye'd or Pie vs Estella + Ayron
Worth vs. Delicious Vicious Cycles
Evil Spirit Goes AWOL vs. Girl of Your Nightmares 
Golden Geezers vs. Be Grateful for Cookies


BEST OF LUCK KOMBATANTS!

May 26, 2017

Kombatants of QK 2017






The choice was hard. Each of the hosts agonized, weighing this query against that 250. There were so many great entries. Of course, making it into a contest is no indication of the quality of your query. Many people who don't make it into contests find agents the tried-and-true way, by querying. (Ahem, me.) Thanks to everyone who entered and everyone who made the Twitter party so fun! To those who didn't make it into the tournament, you donned your armor and dared to dreamed of victory. You boldly walked into an arena filled with 340 gladiators, and you didn't so much as flinch or break a sweat. There are none braver than those who try, fail, and try again. I'm begging you to be brave, because all you need is talent and drive. Luck and success will follow. Don't give up. Don't doubt yourself. And...if you do, tweet me. I'll find an army to come and lift your spirits if I have to. You will succeed. All you have to do is believe in yourself.

To those who made it--CONGRATULATIONS! Out of 350+ entries, you made it into the top 64. You bit, you clawed, you bled, and you MADE IT! Celebrate! And do it loud. And in the midst of your celebration, I want you to help me lift the spirits of those who didn't make it. Use the QueryKombat hashtag to connect with and celebrate your fellow slushies. Tweet your sagest query advice, or that quote that kept you going when you were down and out, or your grandmother's secret tapioca pudding recipe ('cause everyone love tapioca!). We're more than a community; we're a family. So spread the love. The matchups of who you will face will be coming shortly. Watch the blogs.

Now for my picks for the contest. To see Michelle's and Laura's picks, check out their blogs. Kombatants don't miss the rules on judging and commenting included at the bottom of this post.


Adult
Boomerang
I Fell For a Convicted Felon
Pitt Bull Seeks Custody
Grocery Store Zombies
Aliens, Catapults, Car Chases
Life as a Dumpster Fire
Star-Crossed in the South
Child and Family Services
The Lake of Haunted Memories
Bounty and the Beast
Super Powers and Problems
Mother of All Custody Battles

Young Adult
Worth
My Dad Bought Me this Tattoo
Estella + Ayron
Girl of Your Nightmares
Girl Takes Back the White House
There is Stardust in My Eyes
Kaza

Mid-Grade
Golden Geezers
When Bugbots Attack
Super Space Nerd


Important Information for Kombatants:


The first round will start on Wednesday, June 1st on all three blogs. We will try to post all the match-ups by 8:00 am EST, but please don’t rush to comment for reasons we will spell out under the judging section.

There will be 64 Kombatants (including two Free Pass winners) and these will be paired into 32 posts for the first round. Yes, we will try to match age categories and genres together. This will totally depend on numbers. As you can imagine, we received a much lesser number of NA entries and a much greater number of YA entries. We’ll do the best we can to make the match-ups fair, but we are not limiting our Kombatant picks by requiring so many numbers of each age group. We are picking what we think are the best entries.

In the event a Kombatant has to drop out of Query Kombat there will be two possibilities. If they drop out before the first round begins, they will be replaced with an alternate Kombatant contestant. (Alternate Kombatants will not be announced beforehand. We don’t want people hoping someone drops out. We may announce them after the contest ends.) If a Kombatant drops out after the contest has started, their opponent automatically advances to the next round. Any Kombatant that receives an offer of representation will please notify us so we may withdraw them. Receiving a full request or partial is not grounds for withdrawal.

 
Judging:


Our fantastic judges will give their votes under their assumed nicknames in order to be able to vote honestly and freely. Go here to see the nicknames they have chosen. The voting for the first round will take place from June 1st until June 4rd at 8:00 pm EST. (For more information on the dates of the other rounds go here.) The winners of the first round will be announced on June 4th.

Judges will vote as follows: VICTORY to Kombatant nickname Then they may give more information as to why they voted that way. How much feedback they give is completely up to that judge. There are a lot of entries to read and a lot of rounds to go through. This is a long contest. But we’re sure the judges will do a fantastic job of sharing their thoughts.

To prevent favoritism, the judges have agreed not to vote on match-ups where they are close friends to a Kombatant or where they have beta read or critique partnered. Due to the length of this contest, judges have been assigned to rounds and may decide not to vote in all the rounds.

In the event of a matchup vote tie, we'll call for more judges, then the round host will cast the tie-breaker vote if necessary.

Now here comes the unique and important part! We would like the judges’ votes to be easily located. Therefore, we are asking the judges to place their votes as a reply to the first comment in each match-up post. As soon as all the match-up posts are live, the round host will go through and made a first comment. Something like: This comment is reserved for judges’ votes. Please do not reply to this comment unless you are a judge. Then the judges can do their thing and leave their votes as replies to that comment.

BUT in order for this to work, people cannot rush to comment. The hosts have to have time to get the first comment up on all 10 or 11 posts of the first round and subsequent rounds. No matter how excited you are to share your feedback, please give the host time to get the first comment done before you comment. Any other first comments but the hosts’ will be deleted.

We understand that everyone is human and votes may not end up in the proper spot. All judges’ votes will count no matter where they end up.



Commenting:


Due to the nature of the head-to-head competition, commenting is a delicate subject. We don’t want feelings hurt. We don’t want people to go away angry. 32 people will be knocked out in the first round. That is brutal. And like any contest of this nature, the results will be subjective. Wonderful entries will be eliminated. Because not everyone will be seen by an agent, we do want to allow commenting as that may be the only feedback a query and first 250 entry will get.

Therefore, especially in the first round, we want a ton of comments. And we want those comments to be super constructive and helpful. In other words, be specific. Don’t just rave about a Kombatant’s entry like a fangirl/guy. Tell us why you liked it. Mention things like the query set out the mc’s motivation and stakes clearly, the query had a super voice, the query was confusing because…, the pages really showed the mc’s personality because…, the page felt flat because…, the concept was unique because…

Please no cheerleading comments in the first round or second round. (Friendly cheerleading will be allowed in the final rounds.) In the early rounds, if you want to cheer on your friends and CPs, do it on twitter. Try and give equal time to both Kombatants in a match-up. Don’t let someone be left out. If you see a match-up that isn’t getting many comments, we ask that you jump in and do your stuff.

We don’t want this contest to only be about fun and agents. We want all the entries to get helpful advice to make their queries and page stronger. Please remember this and be kind and thoughtful. Writers are amazing people. They go out of their way to help. We are sure we can count on you.

Enough preaching. Here are some more commenting rules:

We would like each Kombatant to give feedback on at least 6 match-ups.You’re on your honor system here, we won’t be monitoring this. We’ve got enough to do. We’d also like each person who entered Query Kombat to leave at least one comment on a match-up, but feel free to do many more! And please we ask that Kombatants who are eliminated, come back and leave comments on the next round. We still want to hear what you think. We need you to make this contest a success!

Kombatants, please don’t comment on your own entry, whether that is to thank people or to explain/rationalize your entry. There will be so many comments that we ask you to wait until the last day of voting to offer thanks or congratulate someone, or leave any other type of comment on your own entry. If you want to thank people before the last day of voting, twitter is the place.

We are counting on there being no hard feeling comments. If there are, they will be deleted. We warned you’ll need a thick skin and it’s true. But we believe this can be done in a friendly manner.

Getting knocked out of the contest or not getting picked is no indication of a story’s quality. After all, we only have snapshots to go upon. All the hosts are very excited for Query Kombat to start, and we hope you are too. Feel free to leave us questions in the comments or just shout out your excitement. Follow us on twitter for more updates.

May 16, 2017

Query Kombat Submission Window is OPEN!!!

The submission window is NOW OPEN until May 19 at noon EDT. There is no cap on entries.



If you don't receive email confirmation within an hour of submitting your entry, contact us via Twitter and let us know. Kontestants will be revealed on May 26, and the tournament will kick off on June 2.

IMPORTANT: The Query Kombat team reserves the right to disqualify any entrant, at any time, for any reason. If an entrant is disqualified/drops out before the agent round, an alternate from the same host will take its place. If an entrant is disqualified/drops out after the agent round, the opposing entry will automatically advance to the next round. If an entrant is disqualified/drops out after the agent round but before new match-ups are assigned, match-ups will be assigned by random number generator with one random entry moving forward without a match. The only time we will ever disqualify an applicant is if you say or do something to blemish the spirit of query contests. Query Kombat is supposed to be fun…

So no fighting!

In order to enter the contest you MUST follow formatting guidelines, and submit during the contest window. All entries that follow said guidelines will be considered. 

In the event that we receive more than the available 64 spots (this is highly expected), Michelle, Laura, and I will savagely attack the slush pile in attempts to build the best team. We will pick (and announce) three alternates in case a submission is disqualified.

Entries should be sent to:  QueryKombat (at) gmail (dot) com.

We're asking for a $5 - $10 donation with each entry so we don't have to start charging a fee for the contest. Donations may be sent via the Query Kombat icon in the sidebar.

Formatting Guidelines:

Font: Times New Roman (or an equivalent), 12pt font, single-spaced with spaces between each paragraph. No (I repeat: NO!) indentations.
Subject line of the Email: A short, unique nickname for your entry [colon] your genre (audience included). Do not skip this step or your entry will be deleted. (ex. I Fell in Love with a Ken Doll: Adult Erotica)

For the nickname, make it as unique as possible so that there are no duplicates. These will be the names used in the tournament (or an abbreviated version if it's too long) so keep it PG-13 and try to have it relate to your story in some way.

In the body of the email (with examples):

Name: Michael Anthony
Email address: myboyfriendwasbittenbyashark (at) gmail (dot) com.
Twitter Handle: @BarbforSenate36

Title: Eunuchs and Politics
Entry Nickname: I Fell in Love with a Ken Doll
Word count: 72K
Genre: Adult Erotica (If Ownvoices, please list here)

Query: 

Barbara B. Doll seemed like a woman who had it all, from the perfect body to her own dream house, McDonald's and a variety of vehicles. She even managed to become a U.S. Senator and go to the moon! However, something seemed missing. She didn't have any idea what it was until she met Ken.

Ken Dahl is funny, good-looking, and may have ties to the Illuminati. Barbara is immediately drawn to his shiny, perfect hair and teeth. When he offers to teach her surfing, they hit it off instantly. Everything seems to be going perfectly until Barbara discovers Ken has no genitalia. She must search within herself to determine whether love can overcome plastic, non-removable underwear.

EUNUCHS AND POLITICS is adult romance, complete at 75,000 words.

***THIS is NOT a PITCH but your FULL query. You may include greeting and closing. Do not include a bio or comp title.

First 250:

Words, words, and more words.

___

Do not include the chapter title.
Do not include a bio or comp title.

If the 250th word puts you in the middle of a sentence, you may go up to 258 to finish that sentence. Do not abuse and send 258 words or more. Both Pages and Google Docs will return incorrect word counts if you have hyphens, em-dashes, and ellipses. Microsoft Word counts correctly.

Please use this site to give you an accurate word count if you are concerned about your standard word counter: https://wordcounter.net/. If you must, count by hand. A properly hyphenated word is one word. Words separated by an em-dash or ellipse are two words.

All queries submitted are FINAL. We will not edit them in any way, shape, or form. Please read, reread, and rereread your submission before you hit send. You have several weeks to polish your work. Take advantage of it. Competition will be fierce.



Best of luck in the tournament!



TWITTER PARTY!

Contests need to be fun. To help keep you from worrying as the hosts read through the emails, we're having a party! These are the daily topics, but feel free to start your own as well.


May 16th    Before the big day arrives tweet your category and genre. Ask questions about genre if you’re unsure where your manuscript fits.

May 17th  After 8:30AM tweet when you’ve submitted your entry to our QK email. Nerves and jitters can be calmed by sharing with others. All day long tweet out what your entry Nickname is and why you chose it.

May 18th   Day 2 of submissions! Judges get fun secret names. Entrants get to create nicknames. Your poor hosts are left out. Create nicknames for Laura, Michael and Michelle!  (Keep it clean. We blush easily.) And tweet your favorite comp title.

May 19th    Last day to submit. We close at noon. Tweet your main character’s name and a special tidbit about them. See what sorts of names are popular and if anyone else shares MC’s names with you.

May 20th    Tweet what you find the hardest about writing. Is it keeping out telling? Writing action scenes? What’s hard for you? Anyone have tips for making them easier?

May 21st   Say hi to an entrant you’ve never talked to. Wish them luck in the slush round. If you need to let out some nerves, see if your new friend will lend an ear.

May 22nd     Tweet something about how you write. Do you use music or prefer silence? Morning or late at night? We celebrate our differences.

May 23rd     Tweet us your villain’s name and something evil about them.

May 24th      If you’re looking for some beta readers or CP, now is the time to tweet about it.

May 25th     Tweet us your favorite line from your novel. If you read any you like, favorite it. Have any favorite lines from a novel that’s not yours? Tweet those too!

May 26th     Tweet your thanks to the agents, editors, and judges of Query Kombat 2016. They’re dedicating a lot of time to help out. The least we can do is take a day to celebrate them! The big reveal is today! (We'll be running around like crazy gerbils getting everything ready.)

May 12, 2017

Agent of Query Kombat 2017 (partial list)

We have 33 agents and counting joining us this year. Some are new. Some are established. All are looking to make requests! To everyone entering this year, best of luck! It's gearing up to be our biggest year yet.

If you need a refresher on the submission guidelines (the are a lot of them), click here.

Quick reminders before we get to the good stuff:
Don't miss the submission window from May 17th - May 19th.

Also,On May 12 (today), we'll be hosting a Twitter party where writers can reach out to the Judges and ask questions about their entries, writing, querying, etc. Join us at 3:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. EST. We'll be using the hashtag #QKChat.  Be sure to take the opportunity to follow our Judges

If you haven't signed up for our new forum, head on over and create a profile. We have some updates coming to the forum really soon, so be on the look out!

Lastly, please consider a small donation to the QK Crew. We have a lot of great ideas we want to implement to make Query Kombat a better experience for kombatants, as well as entrants and spectators. That requires an immense amount of time away from our jobs, families, and our own WIPs. Some of our ideas (like the chat room that will soon open in the forum) isn't free, and if we want to keep it up next year, we're going to need your help.




now for what you've all be waiting for...

Agent of Query Kombat 2017!


Leon Husock - L. Perkins Agency

Prior to joining the L. Perkins Agency, Leon was an associate agent at Anderson Literary Management. He has a BA in Literature from Bard College and attended the Columbia Publishing Course.

Leon is actively building his client list.

He has a particular interest in science fiction & fantasy, young adult and middle-grade novels filled with strong characters and original premises, but keeps an open mind for anything that catches his eye.

He is also looking for historical fiction set in the 20th century, particularly the 1980s or earlier.

Twitter


Caitlen Rubino-Bradway - LKG Agency

I joined the LKG Agency in 2008, thereby disproving the theory that no English major ever does anything with their degree. Before that I worked at another literary agency, Don Congdon Associates, where I had the behind-the-scenes thrill of seeing Kathryn Stockett’s The Help first come in (and getting one of the first reads). And before that I was getting my Masters in English and Publishing from Rosemont College. I have enjoyed my apprenticeship under Lauren very much, and I am now actively looking to build my own list, which includes (after a surprisingly minimal amount of begging and pleading on my part), securing Lauren’s agreement to open the agency to considering middle grade and young adult fiction.

In my spare time, I am an author in my own right (or is that write?). My first book, Lady Vernon and Her Daughter, which I co-wrote with my mother, was released by Crown in 2009. We also contributed to Jane Austen Made Me Do It, published by Ballantine in 2011. My first middle grade novel, Ordinary Magic, was published by Bloomsbury Children’s in 2012.

Twitter


Clelia Gore - Martin Literary Management

It was when Clelia first read Charlotte’s Web in the first grade that she got hooked by the magic of books. Her love of children’s books carried through adulthood and she is delighted to dedicate her life to bringing quality books and stories to young (and whimsical adult!) readers.

Clelia is originally from the suburbs of New York City. She has a bachelor’s degree in English literature from Boston College. She received her J.D. from American University, Washington College of Law and practiced law as a corporate litigator in New York City.

In 2011, she decided to dedicate her career to books and reentered graduate school at Emerson College, where she received a master’s degree in Publishing and Writing. While she was studying publishing and taking creative writing courses at Emerson, Clelia gained firsthand experience in the publishing industry working in the children’s book division at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and in academic books at Oxford University Press. She also taught academic writing and research courses to freshman students as a graduate student faculty member at Emerson College.

Clelia attends writing and publishing conferences. She also sits on the board of directors for Poetry Northwest magazine.

Clelia acquires picture book, middle grade and young adult books. She is particularly interested in developing her nonfiction clientele. With apologies, Clelia is no longer accepting new adult fiction queries at this time.

Twitter
Agent Website


Jaida Temperly - New Leaf Literary

Jaida’s primary focus is adult fiction, with a special affinity for literary fiction, magical realism, historical fiction, upmarket fiction, horror, and speculative. She also loves stories that shed light on marginalized experiences and question the “status-quo”, as well as titles that include #OwnVoices themes, international settings, political commentary, conspiracy theories, and alternate histories. Some of her all-time favorite adult fiction titles include: THE VEGETARIAN by Han Kang, THE SELLOUT by Paul Beatty, THE DINNER by Herman Koch, JONATHAN STRANGE & MR. NORRELL by Susanna Clarke, and A THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME by Mark Haddon.

Jaida is also interested in select prescriptive nonfiction with a commercial edge, such as YOU ARE A BADASS by Jen Sincero and THE POWER OF HABIT by Charles Duhigg, and forgotten/untold stories like HIDDEN FIGURES by Margot Lee Shetterly and the film LAND OF MINE. She enjoys narrative nonfiction titles that explore the darker corners of the human experience, such as STIFF by Mary Roach and SMOKE GETS IN YOUR EYES by Caitlin Doughty.

Finally, Jaida is on the lookout for outstanding YA and MG titles. Similar to her adult taste, she loves magical realism, literary fiction, fantasy, historical, and speculative titles, as well as those that push the boundaries between YA/adult. Some of her all-time favorite children’s titles include: CARAVAL by Stephanie Garber, THE HATE U GIVE by Angie Thomas, THE GREENGLASS HOUSE by Kate Milford, THE MYSTERIOUS BENEDICT SOCIETY by Trenton Lee Stewart, and NIGHTBIRD by Alice Hoffman.

Prior to joining New Leaf Literary, Jaida studied biology at The University of Wisconsin-Madison, and briefly attended medical school before moving to NYC to intern at Writers House. She loves art history, traveling, logic puzzles, secret societies, antiques, and numerous other topics that come in handy for Trivia Night and crossword puzzles.

Instagram
Pinterest


Lauren Spieller - TriadaUS

Literary Agent Assistant Lauren Spieller comes to TriadaUS with a background in literary scouting and editorial consulting. She has a sharp editorial eye, and is passionate about author advocacy. Lauren is seeking Middle Grade and Young Adult fiction, as well as select Adult fiction and non-fiction. Whatever the age category or genre, Lauren is passionate about finding diverse and underrepresented voices.

In MG, she’s drawn to heartfelt contemporaries, contemporary fantasy and magical realism, and exciting adventures. Some of her recent favorites are Rules for Stealing Stars, George, The Thing About Jellyfish, Wonder, Hour of the Bees, and Rooftoppers. In YA, she’d love to find authentic teen voices in any and all genres. She is especially fond of fantasy, magical realism, and space operas; contemporary stories with a hook; and anything with a feminist bent. A few favorites include Dumplin’, Scorpio Races, An Ember in the Ashes, OCD Love Story, Six of Crows, The Raven Boys, and Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda.

In Adult, Lauren is seeking commercial fiction, particularly female-driven psychological thrillers (a la Lauren Beukes and Gillian Flynn), and immersive literary fantasies, such as The Night Circus, The Miniaturist, and A Darker Shade of Magic. She is also interested in female-driven Upmarket General Fiction, especially if it's funny or has a touch of magical realism (note that she is NOT looking for Romance), and unique non-fiction with an existing platform. She's particularly hungry for counter culture books, cocktail books with a twist/theme, or narrative nonfiction with a unique hook (if you’re the next Lindsey West, Roxanne Gay, or Lauren Duca, she wants to hear from you).

Twitter

Mark Gottieb - Trident Media Group

Mark Gottlieb’s focus on publishing began at Emerson College, where he was a founding member of the Publishing Club, later its President, overseeing its first publication and establishing the Wilde Press.

After graduating with a degree in writing, literature and publishing, Mark began his career with the Vice President of Berkley Books (Penguin), working with leading editors.

His first position at the Trident Media Group literary agency was in foreign rights, selling the books of clients around the world. Mark later worked as Executive Assistant to Robert Gottlieb, Chairman of Trident, with responsibility for organizing/managing diverse authors and their complex business transactions. He next assumed the position of audio rights agent. Since Mark has managed the audio rights business, the annual sales volume has more than doubled. Mark showed great initiative and insight in identifying talented writers.

In passing the Audio Department's torch, Mark is building his own client list of writers. He is excited to work directly with authors, helping to manage and grow their careers with all of the unique resources that are available to Trident. Since that time he has ranked as high as #1 in Agents on publishersmarketplace.com in Overall Deals and other individual categories.

Twitter


Danielle Burby - Nelson Literary Agency

I was always the class bookworm, but, for some reason, I spent most of high school convinced that my future was in Broadway. In fact, I felt really bad for the English teacher who told me she thought I was destined for a career in books because she was so very wrong. Turns out she knew me better than I thought! Of course, looking back, the fact that I never left the house without a minimum of two books (the book in progress and at least one backup) should probably have tipped me off.

I double majored in creative writing and women’s studies at Hamilton College (both “impractical majors” that have been incredibly practical for me) and figured out that creative writing classes do a really great job of honing your editing and critiquing skills. After internships at several top literary agencies and publishers, I spent four years at New York Agency and began building a client list before moving to NLA in January 2017.

As an agent based in New York City, I primarily represent YA and MG along with very select mystery and women’s fiction. I look for a strong narrative voice and a cast of characters I want to spend time with (which doesn’t necessarily mean they need to be likeable!). Something all of my clients have in common is the ability to sweep me up in their writing and make me grateful for a chance to spend time in their worlds. When I finish a novel and immediately want to thank the person who wrote it, I know I will have the enthusiasm to fight tooth and nail for that author.

Twitter


Lisa Abellera - Kimberley Cameron & Associates

Lisa Abellera joined Kimberley Cameron and Associates in 2013 with a background in management, marketing, and finance. She has studied creative writing, design and business, earning her B.A. in Strategic Management from Dominican University of CA and her M.F.A. in Creative Writing from University of San Francisco.

Lisa had a successful career in the corporate world before joining the world of publishing. After editorial internships with an independent press and Kimberley Cameron & Associates, she now follows her true passion for books and writing. She leverages her business and marketing expertise to help authors navigate the complexities of publishing. She is excited to develop talented authors and help advance their careers. She is looking to form long-term, collaborative relationships with writers who are committed to putting forth their best work.

Lisa responds to well-crafted prose with strong hooks and high personal stakes, to idiosyncratic, sympathetic characters, to a tangible sense of place, to multicultural aspects and international settings, to page-turning twists, and to emotionally immersive fiction that explores the human condition, especially within family and close relationships.

Twitter


Amanda Jain - Inklings Literary

Amanda Jain has loved books for as long as she can remember. When she was a kid, Amanda always had her head in a book. In her room, in the car, in the bathtub, wherever. She probably would have brought a book to the dinner table every evening if that was allowed.

After earning a BA in English, she worked in the trade department at W. W. Norton for seven years before leaving to pursue graduate studies. She graduated in 2011 with a MA in the history of decorative arts. Amanda then joined Inklings in 2014, first as an intern and then as Michelle’s assistant.

Amanda is primarily interested in adult fiction in the following categories: historical fiction (in all genres), women’s / book club / upmarket fiction, romance (particularly historical, suspenseful, or with a comedic bent), mysteries (particularly historical or cozy, or historical cozies), and narrative nonfiction in the areas of social history, archaeology, art history, material culture, etc. She is also interested in select YA and MG projects with unique hooks and a strong voice.

Twitter
Facebook


Alison McDonald - The Rights Factory

In her eighth year at The Rights Factory, Ali is the lead agent specializing in children’s literature. She represents a select list of authors with projects ranging from novelty, board books, picture books, early readers, chapter books, and graphic novels, to middle grade, young adult and new adult fiction and non-fiction. She enjoys working primarily with debut authors, but also has the distinguished pleasure of representing literary stars among her international clients, including New York Times bestselling author Laura Nowlin (If He Had Been With Me and This Song is (Not) For You), Hugo-award-winning Emily Pohl-Weary (Not Your Ordinary Wolf Girl), and multi-award-nominated and Best Book-listed author Jo Treggiari (forthcoming Blood Will Out), among others. Ali is living the dream of having a job she loves.

In the wild, Ali can be seen typically reading a book (kidlit, of course), watching guilty pleasure TV (currently Ash vs The Evil Dead, Scandal, and Riverdale), instructing at the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies Creative Writing Program, or chatting with writers at meetups!

Elevator pitch: Ali is Anne of Green Gables meets Jerry Maguire.

Twitter

Andrew Buckley - Curiosity Quills Press

Hi, my name is Andrew and I’m the Acquisitions Manager for CQ which means I oversee submissions of new titles, assign them to a beta reader for approval, and then send contracts the authors.

I’m a professional writer and published author who loves comic books, movies, and has a secret agenda to take over the world (shh, don’t tell anyone)

I tend to read a lot of fantasy these days including Robert Jordan, Anne Rice, Douglas Adams, Neil Gaiman, and most recently, Blake Crouch. I’m also a massive geek and am currently following multiple comic book series’ with Marvel, DC, Image, and Boom and devour genre-heavy TV shows like Hannibal, Ray Donovan, Arrow, Dominion, and TBBT.

I believe humor can combat anything. Except Liam Neeson. Nothing can beat Liam Neeson.

Twitter

NEW ADDITION
 

Jordy Albert - The Booker Albert Agency

Jordy Albert is a Literary Agent and co-founder of The Booker Albert Literary Agency. She holds a B.A. in English from Pennsylvania State University, and a M.A. from Millersville University of Pennsylvania. She has worked with Marisa Corvisiero during her time at the L. Perkins Agency and the Corvisiero Literary Agency.

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HUGE thanks to the agents participating this year. Remember, this is only a partial list. Visit Michelle and Laura for their portion.