Six agents at Canadian-based literary agency Transatlantic seek new authors

Sister Dear
by Hannah Mary McKinnon,
represented by Transatlantic

Transatlantic Agency

2 Bloor Street East,Suite 3500

Toronto, Ontario, Canada 

http://transatlanticagency.com/

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Transatlantic Agency offers a full spectrum of career representation to authors (Adult, Children’s & YA, and illustrators) and storytellers (Speakers, Industry leaders & Influencers) across all genres and formats for book, content development, speaking and TV & Film. Six agents at Transatlantic are currently open to queries.

Evan Brown is an Associate Agent currently developing his list of authors. Evan has been in publishing since 2012. Prior to joining Transatlantic in April 2019, he worked at a major trade publisher based in Toronto as a marketing specialist for adult and YA novels, including multiple New York Times bestsellers across a wide range of genres; as an acquisitions committee reader; and in online rights, helping authors combat digital piracy and plagiarism. He has experience copyediting, proofreading and freelance editing.

Evan holds an MA in 18th Century Studies from the University of York in the UK and a BA combined honours in Early Modern Studies and English from Dalhousie and The University of King’s College, where he was editor-in-chief of the Early Modern Studies programme student journal, Babel, in 2009.

Evan is looking for submissions in the following genres:

Literary fiction, featuring unique voices, intriguing characters, writing ranging from real to the surreal, and stories that ponder big questions – even when narrow in scope.

Historical fiction, literary rather than genre, featuring epic settings, multi-generational legacies, and compelling character drama.

Fantasy fiction written for adult readers, meaning mature themes more than mature content, laced with intricate lore, tangled politics, and relatable motivations.

Science fiction set in unique and evocative locations, challenging elements of contemporary society through a futuristic lens or alternative reality.

Sports history and memoir, ideally narrative driven and reflecting to some extent on bigger issues or the wider world beyond sports.

Query Evan at: evan@transatlanticagency.com

Include a synopsis and 20-page sample in Word or PDF.

Note: Evan will be our guest speaker at the How to Get Published workshop Saturday, Oct 3, in Toronto. Details here.

Devon Halliday joined Transatlantic as a Literary Agent in the summer of 2020, with prior experience at Sanford J. Greenburger Associates, Susanna Lea Associates, Writers House, Maria B. Campbell Associates, and Folio Literary management in agenting and scouting. She grew up in Athens, Ohio, and studied Comparative Literature at Brown University. After years in the New York City publishing scene, she has returned to Ohio and is excited to build a list at Transatlantic.

Devon represents both fiction and nonfiction. On the fiction side, Devon leans toward adult fiction, but will also consider YA and cross-over projects. She is interested in literary and upmarket fiction with sharp, insightful writing and vivid characters. She’s partial to speculative fiction, women’s fiction, contemporary fiction, metafiction, light psychological suspense, and romcoms. She is not the right agent for most thrillers, horror, mystery, or historical fiction.

On the nonfiction side, Devon is on the lookout for creative and narrative nonfiction, investigative journalism, broad-perspective memoir, and popular science/ psychology/ medicine/ philosophy. She’s interested in any strong narrative voice that can bring a complicated or niche subject to the average reader.

Across the board, her interest is always piqued by manuscripts that feature tangled-up morality; internet culture; climate change; millennials; unusual story structures; or love stories between flawed characters. She seeks to represent a diverse range of voices and perspectives. For more detail on what she’s looking for, please view her website or her #mswl tweets on Twitter.

Query Devon at querydevon@transatlanticagency.com

Include a 20-page sample (for fiction) or a proposal (for nonfiction). Please include “Query” in the subject line, and notify her if another offer of representation is received.

Amy Tompkins has worked in publishing since 2002 and has been with the Transatlantic Agency since 2007. She represents children’s authors, adult authors, and select illustrators.

On the children’s side, she represents authors working in all levels and genres, everything from board books through young adult, with a particular fondness for children’s nonfiction.

She also represents select illustrators and will consider submissions from author-illustrators and graphic novelists. She is particularly looking for Own Voices authors and illustrators.

On the adult side, she is interested in nonfiction, literary fiction, and commercial fiction with fabulous writing. In adult books she’s not a fan of genre fiction in the areas of horror, science fiction or fantasy.

Guidelines: Please send submissions through this link.

 Submissions should include a short biography, past publishing credits, and a 20-page writing sample in Word or PDF format, or a link to your portfolio or dummy.

Carolyn Forde would love to see literary fiction (especially speculative and horror), commercial fiction, narrative nonfiction by experts in the field and is open-minded to a broad range of topics and styles – as long as it engages her.

There are a few things she’s not keen on – medical/disease related memoirs, police procedurals, climate thrillers, military or CIA fiction, cozy mysteries, books about film and tv behind the scenes.

Previous to joining Transatlantic Agency as Senior Agent, Carolyn was a literary agent and International Rights Director at Westwood Creative Artists for 14 years.

For the last decade Carolyn has traveled to both the London Book Fair and the Frankfurt Book Fair and New York regularly and will continue to do so. She represents Hannah Mary McKinnon and Karma Brown, who many followers of Quick Brown Fox will be familiar with, and she’s represented authors who have won or been nominated for just about every award going. Carolyn is also an active member of the literary community, having been a speaker or mentor at many conferences.

She has lived and worked in Japan, Mexico and the Czech Republic and is a dual citizen of Canada and the UK.

Query Carolyn at: carolyn@transatlanticagency.com

Include the first 20 pages for consideration, within the body of your query – attachments will not be opened (double spaced and 12 pt font).

Chelene Knight is primarily interested in literary fiction and memoirists. For fiction, she is drawn to character-driven narratives with rich language that push boundaries (think Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye). She also looks for books that encourage the setting to be a living character (think Amber Dawn’s Sub Rosa).

For memoir, beyond a compelling story, she needs an unconventional structure that amplifies the narrator’s experiences and contributes to the reflective voice in a unique way (think Lidia Yuknavitch’s Chronology of Water).

“I have a soft spot for gritty stories where human nature, resilience, and experience take centre stage,” says Chelene. “The ‘grit’ lends its qualities to books where the story and its characters have some of the roughness, imperfection and complexity of the real world.”

She especially encourages BIPOC writers to submit.

Chelene has worked on the editorial side of publishing and in the magazine industry for years. She is the author of the poetry collection Braided Skin and the memoir Dear Current Occupant, winner of the 2018 Vancouver Book Award and long-listed for the George Ryga Award for Social Awareness in Literature. Her essays have appeared in multiple Canadian and American literary journals, plus the Globe and Mail, the Walrus, and the Toronto Star. Her work is anthologized in Making Room, Love Me True, Sustenance, The Summer Book, and Black Writers Matter, winner of the 2020 Saskatchewan Book award.

Chelene has worked as a substantive editor for manuscripts in literary fiction, historical fiction, hybrid and traditional memoir, and most recently, children’s books. She has juried for many literary prizes, including the Amazon First Novel Award. She’s also been on many arts boards’ granting juries, including the Canada Council for the Arts, and participated in numerous literary festivals across Canada.

Chelene was the previous managing editor at Room magazine and festival director for the Growing Room Literary Festival in Vancouver. She is now founder and CEO of Breathing Space Creative Literary Management. She often gives talks about home, belonging and belief, inclusivity, and community building through authentic storytelling. She teaches poetry at the University of Toronto online.

Query Chelene through her query manager here. 

Please include a 20-page sample of your work. Do not query by email.

Sandra Bishop represents notable nonfiction and award-winning fiction authors who write across a variety of categories.

Sandra is currently only interested in considering commercially viable non-fiction submissions on pop-culture, celebrity memoir, cooking, hobbies, travel, lifestyle, parenting, and relationships from authors with an established platform, online or media presence, or recognized expertise.

Sandra is not taking on new fiction authors, but she will consider representation of established romance authors seeking new representation. She will also consider complete manuscripts from fiction writers she meets at conferences, or via referral from current clients or industry associates. No erotica, academic, or textbooks, please.

A literary agent since 2008, Sandra Bishop represents a boutique list of notable nonfiction and award-winning fiction authors.

Sandra passionately supports her clients closely from idea through negotiation and beyond, and works alongside an author’s editor, publicist, and marketing team to help create opportunities for success.

Sandra is a former Marine, and is also a Portland, Oregon native who doesn’t like ale, drive a Subaru, wait two hours in line for brunch, or live in a treehouse with a lumberjack (much to her dismay.) She does enjoy hiking, live music, paddle-boarding, sunshine, star gazing, and working out of her home office located halfway between the scenic Columbia River Gorge and the rugged Oregon coast.

Query Sandra at:  querysandra@transatlanticagency.com

See full submission details for all agents at Transatlantic here.

Scholastic Books Executive Editor
Anne Shone

If you’re interested in meeting an agent and in getting published, don’t miss our upcoming online How to Get Published workshops Saturday, Oct 3, with Evan Brown of Transatlantic Literary Agency (see here) and Saturday, Oct 24, with Paige Sisley of the CookeMcdermid agency (see here).

 And if you’re specifically interested in writing and publishing Kid Lit, don’t miss our online Writing for Children and for Young Adults workshop with Anne Shone, Executive Editor, Scholastic Books, Saturday, January 30, (see here) and the Writing Kid Lit weekly class Tuesday afternoons in the new year, Jan 26 – March 23. For details, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

 Beyond that, Brian’s schedule continues to take shape...

Online: Writing Personal Stories, Tuesday evenings, Oct 13 – Dec 15. Details here. {wait list only}

Online: How to Write Great Characters, Saturday, Oct 31. Come in costume! Details here.

Bestselling author Kelley Armstrong

Online: How to Write a Bestseller, with New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong,  Saturday, Nov 7. Details here.

Jackson's Point: Writing Retreat at the Briar's Resort & Spa on Lake Simcoe: The ambiance of a country estate and the comforts of a modern resort – a perfect place to write. Friday, Nov 13 – Monday, Nov 16. Details here.

 Weekly classes starting in January:

Online: Exploring Creative Writing, an introductory, low pressure course to get the creative juices flowing Thursday evenings, Jan 21 – March 25. 

Online: Writing Personal Stories, nine weeks of creativity and fellowship. Thursday afternoons, Jan 28 – March 25.

Online: Writing Kid Lit, Picture Books, Chapter Books, Middle Grade books, and Young Adult novels, with enormously talented and experienced authors as guest speakers for two of the classes, Tuesday afternoon, Jan 26 – March 23. 

For more details or to register for any of these, email brianhenry@sympatico.ca

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.