New Literary Agency with 4 agents seeking new authors

Author Kristin Vayden
is represented by ArtHouse Literary

ArtHouse Literary Agency

https://arthouselit.com/

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Latoya Smith from LCS Literary and Felice Laverne from Art + Deco have launched a new agency, ArtHouse Literary Agency, which will "acquire talent across genres in the adult and young adult markets while proudly standing at the forefront of our cultural shift." In addition, they have two associate agents: Shauna Turnmire and Danielle Colburn. None of the four agents seems to have nuch of client list yet, so they're all in need of new authors.

Shauna Turnmire graduated with her masters in Arts Management from Columbia College Chicago. She is currently back home in Orlando and is excited to help authors develop their stories and be their biggest cheerleaders.

Shauna is looking for New Adult Fiction, Young Adult Fantasy, and Historical Fiction, including books that give a particular glimpse into the Holocaust and the French Revolution. Favorites in this genre: The Tattooist of Auschwitz by Heather Morris and Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

Shauna is often drawn to stories that are a little strange, and especially ones that use speculative or fantastic elements in beautiful, original ways. Across the board, she’s looking for an inclusive cast of characters, across gender, sexual orientation, race, religion, and mental health spectrums. Of course, if any manuscript that is submitted to Shauna makes her see the world through a new perspective (i.e. Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi) then this is an extra plus plus!

Shauna is mostly looking for YA and New Adult fantasy with major character development. She loves to see fantastical and unique worlds but needs to see the characters overcoming challenges and learning about themselves. If there is an epic or dark romance interspersed, even better! She loves reading about strong, badass women as well in all genres! Favorites in this genre: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas, Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo, Hibiscus Daughters Series by Lana Popovic

Shauna is also looking for contemporary or commercial romance. She is extremely interested in books that delve into complicated relationships and don’t have a pretty bowtie ending. Shauna has a background in the music industry and loves stories centered around bands writing music.  Favorites in this genre: Daisy Jones and the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid, Stolen by Lucy Christopher, The Hating Game by Sally Thorne.

She would love to see anything centered around Irish or Celtic history and lore/mythology.

Query Shauna through the agency’s submissions page here.

Danielle Colburn is actively building her list of authors. She graduated from Smith College with a B.A. in English Language & Literature and History, and she also completed previous internships at Candlewick Press and the Quarto Group. 

A fan of SFF and historical fiction, Danielle is currently looking for manuscripts that feature layered world building and conflict or which place LGBT+ characters and narratives in the spotlight.

Danielle is fascinated by science fiction/fantasy that breaks the mold and pushes the speculative genre past what is to what could be, à la Tamsyn Muir’s Gideon the Ninth and This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone. She is looking for dark thrillers, brainy mysteries, and select literary/upmarket fiction. She’s interested in both genre and highbrow fiction that can provide complex, fully realized characters and an addictive narrative and, like everyone else, especially wants stories with leads from underrepresented communities. Sapphic or otherwise LGBTQIA+ characters will always turn her head, but any story with compelling conflict and a distinctive central voice is welcome. 

Danielle can easily get lost in historical fiction that questions dominant historical narratives while focusing on marginalized perspectives, such as Sarah Waters’ Fingersmith (and its film counterpart, The Handmaiden). Women-centric stories of any kind – especially well-researched feminist or queer retellings, like Madeline Miller’s Circe and Song of Achilles – are after her own heart. She gravitates towards speculative fiction that draws inspiration from fresh sources, particularly non-medieval or non-European history, such as R. F. Kuang’s The Poppy War. Layered world building that focuses on postcolonial tensions or the impact of empire, with a keen understanding of structural oppression in our own world, is also a huge plus for Danielle. She’s a fan of cross-over/hybrid books as well, seeking manuscripts that can skillfully combine genres in new and fascinating ways to strengthen the story.

Query Danielle through the agency’s submissions page here.

Loytoya C. Smith began her career as an admin assistant to New York Times bestselling author Teri Woods at Teri Woods publishing. In 2006, she got her first full-time publishing job after graduating at Kensington, then moved to Grand Central Publishing, an imprint of Hachette. She moved to Samhain Publishing as Executive Editor and acquired short and long form romance and erotica.

Latoya is looking for projects in both the fiction and nonfiction categories. For fiction, she absolutely loves a good women’s fiction story, chock full of relatable characters, plot twists, and of course, a compelling voice. She is also open to LGBTQ stories, fast-paced thrillers, suspense, and horror. Romance is her first love, so she’s always on the hunt for a good story, driven by love, but with strong emotional conflicts. She prefers the following subgenres in the romance category: contemporary, romantic comedy, romantic suspense, cowboys, and sweet romance.

Latoya is also looking for young adult fiction across the spectrum.

For nonfiction, an established platform is a must! She is open to the following subgenres: Memoir, How-to/Advice and Relationships, Health and Wellness, Politics/Current Events/Social Justice, Sports, Pop-culture, Business/Entrepreneurship.  

Query Latoya through the agency’s submissions page here.

Felice Laverne earned her bachelor’s degree in English, Creative Writing, from Georgia State University. She started her career at About Words Agency directly after college where she worked as an agent until leaving to complete her master’s degree in Publishing at Kingston University in London, England. There, Felice specialized in Diversity & Inclusion in Publishing.

For fiction, Felice focuses on contemporary literary, upmarket, commercial fiction and select fantasy novels. Fiction that explores the subtleties and complexities of language, while still being firmly rooted in modern or futuristic living – whether character or plot-driven.

Felice is also looking for select nonfiction with a unique viewpoint by authors with a well-developed media platform, particularly in the areas of foodie culture/cookbooks, incisive commentary on marginalized cultures and pop culture essay collections.

Bottom line: Felice is looking for art on a page and fresh perspectives, writing that says “NO!” to clichés and formulaic tropes, and you can wow her with writing that offers an energetic voice and a deep sense of place.

Felice has a soft spot for brainy novels set on college campuses à la The Secret History by Donna Tartt, The Dreamers by Karen Thompson Walker and Loner by Teddy Wayne; clever whodunits set on estates like The 7 ½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton and the 2019 film Knives Out; highbrow fiction written around characters of color such as The Emperor of Ocean Park by Stephen L. Carter and A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara; contemporary Southern Gothic fiction such as Catherine Lacey’s Pew; novels featuring multicultural Millennials in high-powered workplace situations; and witty and satirical upmarket women’s fiction that reveals a nasty side to a major industry (i.e. fashion, film, etc.) as in The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger. 

She is intrigued by novels that can introduce readers to a new world, make us think differently about one we already know or tap into the cultural climate. Like everyone, Felice is interested in finding and uplifting writers from marginalized communities, particularly writers of color.

Query Felice through the agency’s submissions page here.

Literary agent Gordon Warnock

If you’re interested in meeting an 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).

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

August workshops

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

September ~ Weekly classes 

Online: Welcome to Creative Writing, 10 weeks of discovering your creative side, Tuesday afternoons, Sept 28 – Dec 7, 2021 {no class Oct 26}. Details here.

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, Wednesday evenings, Sept 29 – Nov 24, in Burlington. Details here.

Online: Intensive Creative Writing, a challenging course to help you grow as a writer. 
Offered online at two different times: Thursday afternoons, Sept 23 – Dec 16, 2021 {no class Oct 21}, and Friday mornings, Sept 17 – Dec 10, 2021 {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 here.