Jess Regel of Helm Literary agency seeks adult, young adult, and children's fiction and nonfiction

Represented by Jess Regel

Helm Literary

New York, NY

https://helmliterary.com/

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Helm is a single-agent full-service literary agency, representing fiction, nonfiction, and children’s book authors.  Jess, Regel, Helm's founder, says, “I've hired a team of industry veterans to support me in my back office and in my subsidiary rights department, that way I can focus on selling books.”  

Jess Regel moved from Iowa to New York in 2002 to intern at the Jean V. Naggar Literary Agency. Over the next decade, she worked my way through each department: royalties, contracts, audio, foreign, film, and domestic. She also began taking on her own clients (most of whom she still represents).    

In 2013, she moved to Foundry Literary + Media where, she says, “I continued to grow my list of award winning, bestselling writers. (And truly just wonderful people.)” 

In 2020, she founded Helm Literary.

Jess represents fiction and nonfiction in both the children’s and adult markets.

Fiction: In adult, young adult and children’s fiction {picture books and up}, she’s looking for books that are compulsive, contagious, and creative. She’s particularly interested in “conversation starters,” books that bridge the literary-commercial divide, combining a high-concept with beautiful writing, and voice-driven contemporary stories. 

She’s always looking for diverse stories, characters who tell a story from a unique perspective, and through which we see the world differently. She’s drawn to ambitious projects, coming-of-age stories, charming and stylized love stories, atmospheric magical realism, dark and twisty suspense, and genre-bending literary fiction.  

Nonfiction: In adult, young adult, and children’s nonfiction, Jess specializes in memoir, with an emphasis on female voices, humor, and journalism. She loves nonfiction that combines memoir and cultural criticism, journalism and storytelling, any type of hidden history, and memoirs about kids doing incredible things. 

Like everyone else, she’s passionate about discovering underrepresented voices.

Query Jess at: submissions@helmliterary.com

Paste the first five pages of your work into the body of the email. No attachments.

Literary agent Maria Vicente

If you’re interested in meeting n agent and in getting published, don’t miss our online How to Get Published workshop Saturday, Aug 14, with literary agent Gordon Warnock of Fuse Literary (see here).

If you’re especially interested in writing for children, don’t miss  Writing Little Kid Lit course, offered online Thursday afternoons, July 8 – Aug 26 (see here) and Writing for Children and for Young Adults workshops online Sunday, July 11, with literary agent Maria Vicente of P.S. Literary (see here).

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

Writing retreat:

Algonquin Park: Writing Retreat at Arowhon Pines Resort, an island of luxury in the middle of a wilderness. Friday, June 11 – Monday, June 14.  Details here.

Summer classes:

Online: Exploring Creative Writing, an introductory, low pressure course to get the creative juices flowing, Wednesday, afternoons, July 7 – Aug 25. Details here.

Online: Writing Little Kid Lit {Picture Books, Early Readers, Chapter Books & Middle Grade}, with two accomplished children's authors as guest speakers, Thursday afternoons, July 8 – Aug 26. Details here.

Online: Intensive Creative Writing, a challenging course to help you grow as a writer. Offered at two different times:  Tuesday afternoons, July 6 – Aug 24, and Wednesday evenings, July 7 – Aug 25. Details here.

Details of all summer classes here.

July workshops

Online: Writing for Children and for Young Adults with literary agent Maria Vicente of P.S. Literary. Sunday, July 11. Details here.

Online: Writing Conflict, Saturday, July 17. Details here.

Online: How to Write Great Dialogue, Sunday, July 25. Details here.

August workshops

Online: How to Get Published, with literary agent Gordon Warnock of Fuse Literary, Saturday, Aug 14.  Details here.

In-Person: How to Write Great Characters, Saturday, Aug 21. Details here.

September ~ Weekly classes 

Online: Writing Personal Stories, 9 weeks of creativity and companionship. Monday afternoons, Sept 27 – Dec 13 {no class Oct 11 or Oct 26}. Details here. 

In-Person: Writing Personal Stories, 9 weeks of creativity and companionship, Tuesday afternoons, Sept 28 – Nov 30, in Burlington. Details here.

In-Person: Intensive Creative Writing, a challenging course to help you grow as a writer. Tuesday evenings, Sept 21 – Dec 8. Details here.

Online: Intensive Creative Writing, a challenging course to help you grow as a writer. Offered at two different times: Thursday afternoons, Sept 23 – Dec 16 {no class Oct 21}, and Friday mornings, Sept 17 – Dec 10 {no class Oct 22}. Details here.  

Writing retreat:

Lake Joseph in Muskoka: Sherwood Inn Writing Retreat: this elegant little resort in the heart of the Muskoka’s will be the site for our fall retreat. Friday, Oct 22 – Monday, Oct 25.  Details to come.