Laurel Symonds joins Bent Agency, seeks Picture Books, Chapter Books, Middle Grade and Young Adult; 11 other Bent agents also seek authors

The Caged Queen by Kristen Ciccarelli
represented by The Bent Agency

The Bent Agency

19 West 21^st Street,
Suite 201
Brooklyn, NY 10010

And

21 Melliss Avenue

Richmond TW9 4BQ

http://www.thebentagency.com/

Note: Don't ever miss a post on Quick Brown Fox. Add your email to the Follow Brian by Email box to the right under my bio, and get each post delivered to your Inbox.

If you’re not yet on my newsletter list, send me an email, including your locale to brianhenry@sympatico.ca ~Brian

Since Jenny Bent left Trident Media in 2009, the Bent Agency has grown into a mid-size trans-Atlantic agency with twelve agents. But it’s still a young agency, and most of the agents there are very actively looking for authors. They represent all sorts of nonfiction and fiction for all ages, and it’s worth checking them out.

Laurel Symonds is the newest member of the team, and like all new agents, she needs author. Laurel specializes in children's and young adult fiction and nonfiction, from picture books to young adult.

Laurel began her publishing career in the editorial department of HarperCollins Children’s Books/Katherine Tegen Books in New York City. In the past decade, she’s also held positions in the marketing department at a small publishing house, in a library, and as a bookseller at one of the nation’s best independent bookstores. 

“What I love about agenting,” says Laurel, “is being the author’s number one cheerleader through all these parts of the publication process!”

Laurel is seeking young adult and middle-grade fiction with earnest, engaging voices set in immersive worlds. Fantasy, contemporary, historical settings, retellings, and manuscripts with unique elements are of specific interest. In particular, {like everyone else in the publishing world}, she’s seeking voices that have previously been underrepresented and stories that have been overlooked. She’s also interested in middle-grade that might lend itself to illustration.

For chapter books and picture books, Laurel is seeking authors and illustrators (or author-illustrators) who bring a unique vision to their stories. In chapter books, she’s seeking sweet realistic or mystery series. Her picture book tastes are diverse, ranging from sophisticated to quirky to gently humorous.

Laurel is interested in art in all mediums, but she especially appreciates a smart use of color and perspective.

In nonfiction for children and young adults, Laurel is seeking biographies, histories, and explorations of STEM elements, especially projects with series potential. She’s also interested in prospective authors with an established expertise and/or platform that lends itself to expansion into the children’s market.

Query Laurel at: symondsqueries@thebentagency.com  

Include the title of your project in the subject line of your email. Then paste the first ten pages of your book into the body of your email. No attachments. Full submission guidelines here.

Author Jennifer Mook-Sang will be one of
the guest speakers for the Writing Kid Lit course

If you’re interested in Writing for Children or for Young Adults, Brian Henry will lead a Writing Kid Lit weekly course on Friday afternoons, Oct 5 – Nov 30 in Toronto (see here) and on Thursday evenings, Jan 24 – March 28, in Oakville (see here). 

He'll also lead a Writing for Children & for Young Adults workshop Saturday, October 13, in Sudbury (see here).

For updated listings of Writing for Children & for Young adult workshops and for weekly Kid lit classes, see here (and scroll down).

If you’re interested in getting published, soon or somewhere down the road, don’t miss the upcoming How to Get Published workshop Saturday, Nov 17, in Mississauga with literary agent Stephanie Sinclair (see here). 

For updated listing of How to Get Published workshops see here (and scroll down).

Also coming soon: How to Build Your Story: Plotting novels & Writing short stories, Saturday, Oct 20, in Waterloo (see here), Saturday, Nov 24 in Alliston (see here) and Saturday, Jan 19 in Oakville (see here).

And don't miss How to Write a Bestseller with New York Times #1 bestselling author  Kelley Armstrong (see here). 

The Briars

Two weekend writing retreats:

November at the Briars Writing Retreat, Friday, Nov 2 – Sunday, Nov 4: two nights and three precious days of writing bliss. Details here.

Algonquin Writing Retreat, Friday, May 31 – Monday, June 3, 2019: four days in the luxurious isolation of Arowhon Pines Resort to get down to some real creative growth. Details here.

In both these retreats, you’ll recharge your creative batteries and get some great writing tips – all in the supportive company of your fellow writers.

Fall courses with spaces still available: 

Writing Personal Stories, Thursday evenings, Oct 4 – Nov 29, in Burlington. See here. 

Writing Kid Lit, Friday afternoons, Oct 5 – Dec 6, in Toronto. See here.

Details of all fall courses here.

Winter courses (Details of all 5 classes here):

Exploring Creative Writing, Thursday afternoons, Jan 24 – April 5 (no class March 14), in Burlington.

Writing Kid Lit, Thursday evenings, Jan 24 – March 28 (no class March 14), in Oakville.

Intensive Creative Writing, Tuesday afternoons, Jan 22 – April 2 (no class March 12); first readings emailed Jan 15, in Burlington.

Intensive Creative Writing, Wednesday evenings Jan 23 – April 3 (no class March 13); first readings emailed Jan 16, in Burlington.

Intensive Creative Writing, Friday mornings Jan 25 – April 5 / 12 (10 or 11 weeks, no class March 13); first readings emailed Jan 16, in Toronto.

            Details of all 5 classes here.

Read reviews of Brian’s courses, retreats, and workshops here.

See Brian’s complete current schedule here,  including Saturday writing workshops, weekly writing classes, and weekend retreats in Algonquin Park, Alliston, Bolton, Barrie, Brampton, Burlington, Caledon, Collingwood, Georgetown, Georgina, Guelph, Hamilton, Jackson’s Point, Kitchener-Waterloo, London, Midland, Mississauga, New Tecumseth, Oakville, Ottawa, Peterborough, St. Catharines, Sudbury, Toronto, Windsor, Woodstock, Halton, Muskoka, Peel, Simcoe, York Region, the GTA, Ontario and beyond.

Navigation tips: Always check out the Labels underneath a post; they’ll lead you to various distinct collections of postings. If you're searching for more interviews with literary agents or a literary agent who represents a particular type of book, check out this post.