Sunday, April 30, 2023

Eight agents at Canadian agency P.S. Literary seek fiction and nonfiction for adults, teens and kids

The Inkwell Chronicles by J.D. Peabody
represented by P.S. Literary

P.S. Literary Agency

2010 Winston Park Drive
2nd Floor
Oakville, Ontario
Canada

http://www.psliterary.com/

Note: You can hang out and chat with quick brown foxes and vixens on my Facebook page (here). Just send a friend request to Brian Henry. Also, if you're not yet on my newsletter list, send me an email, including your locale to: brianhenry@sympatico.ca ~Brian

P.S. Literary is a full-service literary agency with eight agents, representing everything from picture books through young adult, and literary and commercial fiction and nonfiction for adults. Their goal is to support clients from draft to post-publication and to pursue foreign, audio, digital, TV/film, and serial rights on their behalf. P.S. has launched many new authors on their careers.

All eight agents at P.S. Literary are looking for new authors – fiction and nonfiction, for adults and young people.

Stephanie Winter is an Associate Agent. She first joined the agency as an intern before becoming the agency’s Relations Assistant. Stephanie holds a B.A. from the University of Toronto in English Literature and an M.A. in English: Issues in Modern Culture, from University College London.

Stephanie acquires across three main pillars: nonfiction, graphic novels, and picture books for young readers, in addition to select adult fiction in upmarket and thriller categories. Stephanie lovingly describes her list as geeky, young at heart, and queer-affirming. Some of Stephanie’s projects include Danny Loves Pasta (DK, 2023), The Case for Cancel Culture (Macmillan, 2023), and The Embroidered Closet (Abrams, 2022).

Query Stephanie at: query@psliterary.com

Include the first 10 pages of text or the full text of fiction or nonfiction picture books pasted into the body of your email. If your work is illustrated, please include a link to your portfolio or sample art. Address your query to Stephanie’s attention.

***

Note: Stephanie will be the guest speaker for our upcoming online How to Get Published  workshop, Saturday, May 27, 2023Details here.

***

Rose Ferrao is an Associate Agent and is the newest member of the team at P.S. Literary. Like all new agents, she needs authors. Rose began her career in publishing in London, working in nonfiction at Bloomsbury and in science fiction, fantasy and horror at Orbit Books. She has a B.A. in English Literature and Film from Queens University and an M.A. in publishing from University College London. 

Rose is acquiring both fiction and nonfiction.

In fiction, she is looking for commercial romance, adult and crossover fantasy, science fiction, horror, upmarket thrillers, contemporary fiction, and select young adult fiction. She is drawn to stories that embrace genre conventions from a fun, fresh angle.

In nonfiction, she is looking for cookbooks and food writing, sports, pop culture, music, psychology, lifestyle and wellness, especially when approached from a specific, unique perspective.

She welcomes and encourages submissions from neurodivergent writers.

Query Rose at: query@psliterary.com

Include the first 10 pages of text pasted into the body of your email. If your work is illustrated, please include a link to your portfolio or sample art. Address your query to Rose’s attention.

Cecilia Lyra is an Associate Agent and is acquiring a wide range of both fiction and nonfiction for adults. 

In terms of nonfiction, no title is too serious or too accessible for her taste, and she is seeking original and provocative expert-led proposals in psychology, history, current affairs, science, politics, narrative journalism, nature and the environment, wellness, spirituality, business and economics, mathematics, parenting, lifestyle, pop culture, and memoir.

As for fiction, Cecilia’s taste gravitates towards books by women, for women, whether commercial, upmarket, or literary. She can’t get enough of: family sagas, female friendship, edgy psychological suspense, closed-setting novels, anti-heroines, smart romances, comedy of manners, found family, and stories with light speculative elements. Above all else, Cecilia is looking for a story she can’t put down.

Query Cecilia at: query@psliterary.com   

Include the first 10 pages of text. If your work is illustrated, please include a link to your portfolio or sample art. Address your query to Cecilia’s attention.

Maria Vicente is acquiring fiction and nonfiction for readers of all ages. She looking for literary fiction and upmarket speculative fiction {fantasy, magical realism, horror}; young adult novels, middle grade novels, graphic memoirs, and graphic nonfiction; and narrative nonfiction for kids, teens, or adult readers about culture, arts and entertainment, history, and science topics.

“She welcomes and encourages submissions from BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and disabled creators.”

You can view her detailed manuscript wish list here

Query Maria at: query@psliterary.com  

Include the first 10 pages of text or the full text of fiction or nonfiction picture books pasted into the body of your email. If your work is illustrated, please include a link to your portfolio or sample art. Address your query to Maria’s attention.

Eric Smith is eagerly acquiring fiction and nonfiction projects. 

He’s actively seeking out new, diverse voices in young adult (particularly sci-fi and fantasy), middle grade, and literary and commercial fiction (again, loves sci-fi and fantasy, but also thrillers and mysteries).

In terms of nonfiction, he’s interested in cookbooks, pop culture, humor, middle grade, essay collections, and blog to book ideas.

You can view his detailed manuscript wish list here

Query Eric at: query@psliterary.com  

Include the first 10 pages of text. If your work is illustrated, please include a link to your portfolio or sample are. Address your query to Eric’s attention.

Claire Harris is acquiring both fiction and nonfiction projects for adults. She’s actively seeking projects that spotlight people, places, and events that are often overlooked or not given the attention they deserve. 

In fiction, she’s looking for adult rom-coms, contemporary fiction, psychological thrillers, select horror, and cozy mysteries – all for millennial audiences. Claire is happiest when reading manuscripts with unexpected endings or new twists on classic genre tropes.

For nonfiction, Claire is seeking a range of projects, including lifestyle guides, pop culture celebrations, pop psychology, cultural criticism, humor, true crime, essay collections, and illustrated books for adults.

Query Claire at: query@psliterary.com 

Include the first 10 pages of text. If your work is illustrated, please include a link to your portfolio or sample are. Address your query to Claire’s attention.

Carly Watters is currently acquiring both fiction and nonfiction.

In terms of fiction, she is seeking women’s fiction, upmarket adult, commercial adult, domestic suspense, literary mystery and thrillers, historical, contemporary romance, and smart book club fiction.

In terms of nonfiction, she is looking for pop science, business, psychology, cookbooks, unique memoirs, lifestyle (health, wellness, relationships, parenting), narrative, and platform-based nonfiction (must have demonstrable expertise and a quantifiable market). 

Query Carly at: query@psliterary.com  

For fiction queries, format your email subject line as: Fiction: TITLE / GENRE / AUTHOR NAME

For nonfiction queries: TOPIC / TITLE / AUTHOR NAME

Include the first 10 pages of text. If your work is illustrated, please include a link to your portfolio or sample are. Address your query to Carly’s attention.

Curtis Russell is currently acquiring both fiction and nonfiction. 

In terms of fiction, he is seeking literary, commercial, mystery, thriller, suspense, romance, young adult, middle grade, and picture books.

In terms of nonfiction, he is looking for business, history, politics, current affairs, memoir, health, wellness, sports, humor, pop culture, pop science, and pop psychology.

Query Curtis at: query@psliterary.com  

Include the first 10 pages of text or the full text of fiction or nonfiction picture books pasted into the body of your email. If your work is illustrated, please include a link to your portfolio or sample art. Address your query to Curtis’s attention.

See P.S. Literary’s full submission guidelines here.

Katie Hearn, Editorial Director at Annick Press
will be the guest speaker for our Kid Lit workshop
Sunday, June 25, 2023. Details here.

If you’re interested in meeting an agent and in getting published, don’t miss our upcoming How to Get Published workshop. Details here.

If you’re particularly interested in writing Kid Lit, don’t miss our upcoming Writing for Children and for Young Adults workshop. Details here.

Check out upcoming Writing Retreats here {and scroll down}.

See all upcoming weekly classes, writing retreats, and one-day workshops here.

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 interviews with literary agents or a literary agent who represents a particular type of book, check out this post.

 

Saturday, April 29, 2023

April 29 is Independent Bookstore Day - and here are a few of the {many} great indepedents

Ben McNally Books, Toronto
April 29, 2023, is Independent Book Store Day. Here's a few of the book stores in Ontario:



A Different Drummer Books, Burlington

BOLTON: Forsters Book Garden

BRACEBRIDGE: The Owl Books

BRIGHTON: Lighthouse Books

BURLINGTON: A Different Drummer Books {which hosts many book launches}; 
By the Lake Books (A great used bookstore just around the corner from where I teach my in-person classes in Burlington. ~Brian) 



ELORA: Magic Pebble


GODERICH: Fincher's

Want some ideas on what books to buy? Check out this post and this one, and for more books and 70+ other gifts for writers, check out this post.  

GUELPH: BookShelf

HALIBURTON: Master's Bookstore


Indigo/Chapters has branches all over the place. {Yes, I know it's not an independent, but it's not Amazon, either.)

KINCARDINE: Fincher's

KINGSTON: Novel Idea

Bookshelf, Guelph


MISSISSAUGA: The Book Wardrobe 

NEW LISKEARD: Chat Noir


ORANGEVILLE: BookLore

ORILLIA: Manticore Books


PARRY SOUND:Parry Sound Books

PETEROROUGH: Hunter Street Books



Novel Idea, Kingston

ST. CATHARINES: Someday Books



UXBRIDGE: Blue Heron Books


WINDSOR: Biblioasis

Looking for gifts for writers? See here {and scroll down}

See Brian Henry’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.


Friday, April 28, 2023

Online Writing Kid Lit workshop with Katie Hearn, Editorial Director of Annick Press, Sunday, June 25

The Final Trial, a middle grade novel
by Kelley Armstrong, a NYT #1 bestselling author
and one of Brian's students

Writing for Children and for Young Adults

  ~ The world’s hottest market

With Katie Hearn 

   ~ editorial director of Annick Press

Sunday June 25, 2023
 1:15 – 5:00 p.m.
Online via Zoom and accessible wherever there’s Internet

If you want to write the next best-selling children’s books or just want to create stories for your own kids, this workshop is for you. Learn how to write stories kids and young adults will love and find out what you need to know to sell your book. This is your chance to speak with someone within a publishing company in a small group setting and to pull back the curtain and see how it all works. Be sure to bring your questions – we'll have lots of time for interaction.

Special option: Participants are invited to submit the opening couple pages (first 500 words) of your children’s book or young adult novel (or up to 1,000 words if that gets you to the end of your picture book or to the end of your first chapter). Email your pages to me prior to our workshop. We want to do some peer critiquing for everyone, and Katie and I will publicly critique about half a dozen submissions so everyone can see what works, what doesn’t, and how to improve your story-telling. If you’re not currently working on a children’s story, don’t worry, we’ll get you started! ~Brian

Guest speaker Katie Hearn is the editorial director at Annick Press. Annick has been publishing books for young readers, including board books, picture books, early readers, and middle grade and young adult fiction and nonfiction, for almost 50 years. The publishing house is perhaps best known for the classic picture books The Paper Bag Princess by Robert Munsch and Kathy Stinson’s Red is Best.

As editorial director, Katie’s responsibilities include overseeing the acquisition and development of Annick's publishing program, which consists of 20–25 new titles a year. She also acquires and edits select titles in a wide range of formatsPrior to her time at Annick, Katie worked in both educational and adult trade publishing. 

Learn more about Annick here: Web | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Newsletter

Workshop leader Brian Henry has been a book editor, author, and creative writing instructor for more than 25 years. He publishes Quick Brown Fox, Canada’s most popular blog for writers and is the author of a children’s version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (Tribute Publishing Inc). But his proudest boast is that he’s has helped many of his students get published.

Read reviews of Brian’s classes and workshops here.

Fee: $45.13 + 13% hst = $51 paid in advance by mail or Interac

To reserve a spot now, email: brianhenry@sympatico.ca

See all of Brian’s upcoming weekly writing classes, one-day workshops, and weekend retreats here.