Wendi Gu, new literary agent at Janklow & Nesbit, seeks picture books, middle grade and young adult, plus adult literary fiction and nonfiction

South and West by Joan Didion,
represented by Janklow & Nesbit

Janklow & Nesbit Associates

285 Madison Ave
21st Floor
New York, N.Y. 10017
http://www.janklowandnesbit.com/

and

3A Hillgate Street,
London, W8 7SP

http://www.janklowandnesbit.co.uk/

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Janklow & Nesbit is a powerhouse literary agency with offices in New York, and London. Clients include Anne Rice (Interview with a Vampire), William Goldman (The Princess Bride), Bill O'Reilly (The O'Reilly Factor, Culture Warrior), Malcolm Gladwell (The Tipping Point, Blink), David McCullough (Truman), Michael Moore (Fahrenheit 9/11), and many other top authors, including bestselling YA authors such as Angie Thomas (The Hate U Give).

Total number of clients: about 1,000.  They’ve represented books that have appeared on The New York Times Bestseller Lists cumulatively for more than 9,100 weeks between 2010 and 2016, and their authors have garnered every major accolade from the Pulitzer Prize to the Academy Award.

The newest member of the team is Wendi Gu, who is actively building her client list.  

Wendi grew up in the sleepy suburbs of Chicago and studied Creative Writing at Northwestern University. As an undergraduate, she interned with children's book agent Brenda Bowen at Sanford J. Greenburger Associates, and continued working there as a literary assistant after graduation.

She soon began representing her own picture books, middle-grade, and young adult titles with a special interest in girl power, family relationships, and the immigrant experience. She likes stories that root for the underdog. Her favorite books have voices that range from warm and lyrical, to witty and deadpan.

She is lucky enough to work with authors of new and forthcoming titles like Sterling, Best Dog Ever by Aidan Cassie (FSG Books for Young Readers, Spring 2018) and Paper Son: The Story of Tyrus Wong by Julie Leung and illustrated by Chris Sasaki (Schwartz & Wade, Fall 2019). 

For illustration, she enjoys elegant and eclectic color palletes, and looks for nuanced character expression and dynamic composition. She is very interested in unconventional illustration mediums like cut paper and photo illustration.

Wendi is always on the lookout for nonfiction picture book biographies on little-known heroes in history. 

Wendi also represents adult titles in adult literary fiction and nonfiction that speaks to cultural identity negotiation, displacement, and race relations. 

She has a hands-on, editorial approach to agenting. On the weekends, she works at Dou Yoga in Brooklyn. She tweets here.

Query Wendi at: submissions@janklow.com

For fiction, include a brief synopsis and the first ten pages in the body of the email.

For nonfiction, include a full outline and the first ten pages of the manuscript. 

New York Times #1 bestselling author
Kelley Armstrong

If you’re interested in and finding an agent or publisher (someday soon or down the road), don’t miss our “How to Get Published” mini-conference, with literary agent Martha Webb, author Hannah McKinnon, and HarperCollins editor Michelle Meade on Saturday, Nov 18, in Guelph (see here).

You’ll also want to register for the “From the Horse’s Mouth” seminar, with literary agent Stacey Donaghy, House of Anansi Press editor Douglas Richmond, and Simon & Schuster managing editor Patricia Ocampo on Saturday, Dec 2 at Ryerson University in Toronto (see here).

And be sure not to miss the “Writing a Bestseller” workshop with New York Times #1 bestselling author Kelley Armstrong on Saturday, Oct 21, in Oakville (see here).

Brian is also leading a “Writing Kid Lit” weekly course on Thursday mornings in Oakville, starting Oct 5 (see here) and a one-day workshop, on Saturday, November 11 in London (see here).

Literary agent Martha Webb

Also, in the fall, Brian will lead a “How to Make Yourself Write” workshop on Saturday, Oct 14, in Toronto (see here), a “Secrets of Writing a Page-turner” on Saturday, Oct 28, in Caledon at the Bolton Library (see here), “Writing with Style” on Saturday, Nov 4, in Barrie (see here) and “How to Build Your Story” on Saturday, Nov 25 in Burlington (see here).

For more information or to reserve a spot in any workshop, retreat, or weekly course, email brianhenry@sympatico.ca

Read reviews of Brian’s courses and workshops here.

See Brian’s complete current schedule here,  including writing workshops and creative writing courses in Algonquin Park, Bolton, Barrie, Brampton, Burlington, Caledon, Georgetown, Guelph, Hamilton, Ingersoll, Kingston, Kitchener, London, Midland, Mississauga, Oakville, Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Saint John, NB, Sudbury, Thessalon, Toronto, Windsor, Woodstock, Halton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Muskoka, Peel, Simcoe, York Region, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

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