• humor/gift books
• crafts
• how-to ( financial, house and home, health and beauty, weddings)
• Relationships/advice
• Self-help, psychology
• Travel writing
• Narrative nonfiction
  

• Commercial women's fiction
• Comic and cozy mysteries
• Literary fiction with a focus on the arts, culture, and/or  history
• Contemporary young adult.

Chuck's update: According to his LinkedIn profile, Steve left the Dijkstra agency and now works for Amazon (as of Sept. 2009).  In fact, know that the Dijkstra Agency has had lots of changes and departures recently, so double check everything before querying a specific agent there.

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The Sandra Dijsktra Literary Agency, based in Southern California, has added another new agent to its ranks: Steve Kasdin.

The agency has no official Web site, but I can tell you that he reps thrillers, mystery, literary fiction, commercial fiction, current affairs nonfiction and novelty nonfiction.

No one at the agency (seven agents in all) takes e-mail queries.  Use snail mail, and send them to:

1155 Camino del Mar
PMB 515
Del Mar, CA 92014

Prior to becoming an agent, Steve began his career in the book business almost 20 years ago, as a buyer for Barnes and Noble. Since then, he has held a variety of executive marketing positions at St. Martin's Press, Scholastic and Harcourt. Currently handles: 50% fiction, 50% nonfiction.

Nonfiction areas of interest: quality narrative nonfiction on any interesting subject-history, biography or current affairs--as long as it moves, humor. Fiction areas of interest: commercial fiction, thrillers/suspense, crime fiction, humor/satire, offbeat/quirky, true crime. How to contact: Mail query for query/cover letters, 1-2 page synopsis, and sample of ms (no more than the first 50 pages) for fiction. Mail proposal for nonfiction.

Recent sales: Library of the Dead by Glenn Cooper (Harper Collins), Stones of Fire by Chloe Pavlov (Berkley.) 

Davis Wager Literary Agency

419 N. Larchmont Blvd., #317, Los Angeles CA 90004. Phone: (323)962-7741. E-mail: timothy@daviswager.com . Web site: www.daviswager.com/. Contact: Timothy Wager. Seeking new and established writers. Prior to his current position, Mr. Wager was with the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency, where he worked as a reader and associate agent. Established: 2004. Represents: Nonfiction and fiction.

How to Contact: Query with SASE. Submit Author Bio, short synopsis for fiction, full book proposal and outline for nonfiction. Query via e-mail. No fax queries. Actively seeking: "literary fiction and general-interest nonfiction."

Reminder: Newer agencies are golden opportunities for new writers because they're likely building their client list; however, always make sure your work is as perfect as it can be before submitting, and only query agencies that are a great fit for your work. Otherwise, you're just wasting time and postage.

Max and Co., a Literary Agency and Social Club.

115 Hosea Ave., Cincinnati OH 45220. Phone: (201)704-2483. E-mail: mmurphy@maxlit.com .  Web site: www.maxliterary.org. Contact: Michael Murphy. Seeking new and established writers. Prior to his current position, Mr. Murphy was with Queen Literary Agency. He has been in book publishing since 1981. His first 13 years were with Random House, where he was a vice president. Later, he ran William Morrow as their publisher, up until the company’s acquisition and merger into HarperCollins. Established: 2007. Nonfiction areas of interest: Humor/Satire, Memoirs, narrative nonfiction. Fiction areas of interest: literary.

How to Contact: E-queries preferred. Include brief synopsis, author bio and sample writing. Actively seeking: narrative nonfiction, memoir, literary fiction, humor, and visual books. Does not want to receive: genre fiction nor YA and children's books. Recent Sales: Down and Out on Murder Mile, by Tony O'Neill (HarperCollins);Family Sentence, by Jeanine Cornillot (Beacon Press); Hero of the Underground, by Jason Peter (St. Martin's); Familial Ground (Princeton Architectural).

Reminder: Newer agencies are golden opportunities for new writers because they're likely building their client list; however, always make sure your work is as perfect as it can be before submitting, and only query agencies that are a great fit for your work. Otherwise, you're just wasting time and postage.

She's not exactly brand new, but I just learned that Pippin Properties has a new(er) agent: Samantha Cosentino, who joined the agency this past year. Samantha is one of three agents at the boutique agency.

Pippin is a smaller agency that focuses on children's writing. Like the agency's other reps, Samantha is interested in picture books, middle grade and young adult work. To submit, send a one-page query to her at info@pippinproperties.

Thank you to blog contributor
Kristen Howe for this tip.

Previously, I posted some info on a new literary agency, Plainsmart Publishing Agency. Below you can find complete and updated information that was sent to me today.

PlainSmart Publishing Agency

520 Kerr St., #20033, Oakville ON L6K 3C7, Canada. E-mail: query@plainsmart.com ; info@plainsmart.com . Web site: www.plainsmart.com/contactinfo.html. Contact: Curtis Russell. Seeking new and established writers. Established: 2005. Represents 8 clients. 25% of clients are new/unpublished writers. Specializes in: "We take on a very small number of clients per year in order to provide focused, hands-on representation. We pride ourselves in providing industry leading client service." Currently Handles: 50% Nonfiction Books; 50% Novels.

Nonfiction areas of interest: Biography, Business, Child Guidance, Cooking, Current Affairs, Government, Health, How-to, Humor, Memoirs, Military, Money, Nature, Popular Culture, Science, Self-Help, Sports, True Crime, Women's Issues/Studies. Fiction areas of interest: Action/Adventure, Detective/Police, Erotica, Ethnic, Family Saga, Historical, Horror, Humor, Juvenile, Literary, Mainstream, Mystery/Suspense, Picture Books, Romance, Sports, Thriller, Young Adult, Women's.

How to Contact: Query with SASE. Submit: Synopsis (for fiction) and Author Bio. Accepts e-mail queries. No fax queries. Accepts simultaneous submissions. Responds in 6 weeks to queries; 6 weeks to manuscripts. Does not return submissions. Does not want: poetry or screenplays. Recent Sales: World Famous, by David Tyreman (AMACOM); What Burns Within and The Frailty of Flesh, by Sandra Ruttan; The Road to a Nuclear al-qaeda, by Al J. Venter (Potomac). Terms: Agent receives 15% commission on domestic sales; 25% commission on foreign sales. Offers written contract. Termination notice: 30-day This agency charges for postage/messenger services only if a project is sold. Tips: "Please review our Web site for the most up-to-date submission guidelines."

Note from Chuck (2009): Ellen formed her own agency in 2007.  In 2009, she took on a new agent - Gary Heidt - and together they formed Signature Literary.  The submission info below about her is still good, but the name and website of the agency has changed.

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Reminder: Newer agencies are golden opportunities for new writers because they're likely building their client list; however, always make sure your work is as perfect as it can be before submitting, and only query agencies that are a great fit for your work. Otherwise, you're just wasting time and postage.

www.signaturelit.com Contact: Ellen Pepus. New agency actively seeking clients. Prior to her current position, Ms. Pepus was employed at Graybill & English Literary Agency. She worked in foreign rights as well. Adheres to AAR canon of ethics. Specializes in: fiction - both genre and literary. Narrative nonfiction is sought out, though Ms. Pepus will consider other nonfiction. Currently Handles: 30% nonfiction; 70% novels.

Nonfiction areas of interest: Animals, Anthropology/Archaeology, Art/Architecture, Biography, Parenting, Cooking/Foods, Crafts, Current Affairs, Ethnic/Cultural, Gay/Lesbian, Government, Health, History, How-to, Humor, Interior design, Language, Memoirs, Military, Money, Music, Nature, New Age, Photography, Popular Culture, Psychology, Science, Self-Help, Sociology, Translation, True Crime, Women's Issues. Fiction areas of interest: Action/Adventure, Police/Crime, Erotica, Ethnic, Family Saga, Fantasy, Feminist, Gay/Lesbian, Historical, Literary, Mainstream, Mystery, Psychic/Supernatural, Romance, Thriller, Women's. Actively seeking: Actively seeking literary and commercial fiction, narrative nonfiction. Does not want: Does not want to receive children's, young adult, poetry, short stories, screenplays, science fiction or horror.

How to Contact: Query with SASE. Submit book proposal or first 5 pages (if fiction). E-queries are preferred. No fax queries. Accepts simultaneous submissions. Responds in 2 weeks to queries; 8 weeks to mss. Returns materials only with SASE. Terms: Agent receives 15% commission on domestic sales; 20% commission on foreign sales. Offers written contract. Termination notice: 30 days. Writer's Conferences: Washington Independent Writers, Society of Southwestern Authors, North Carolina Writers Network, Southern California Writers Conference, Space Coast Writers Guild Conference.

Post Update: It appears that this valuable link below is now off limits to non-members of Verla Kay's site. The good news is it should be very easy to become a member of her site and forum, so sign up.

Jennifer Laughran, a reader for the Andrea Brown Literary Agency in California, just wrote a long post on Verla Kay's chat board regarding her possible jump into the agenting business.

It seems that Jennifer is trying to become a full-fledged agent, and needs clients to do so. She focuses on middle-grade and young adult work, and tells all about what she doesn't want to receive, as well. She mentions that she is only interested in queries/etc. that have not been turned down by Andrea Brown agents previously.

This seems like a golden opportunity for writers, so check out the full post!

It's been in the works for a while now, but it now seems to be official.

Two great midsize literary agencies in Manhattan - Imprint Agency and the Peter Rubie Literary Agency - have merged into FinePrint Literary Management .

The new Web site is up . Both agencies are part of the Association of Authors' Representatives. Make submission changes if necessary.

Imprint Agency consists of:
      Stephany Evans
      Gary Heidt
      Meredith Hays
      Janet Reid, formerly of JetReid Literary

Peter Rubie Literary Agency consists of:   
      Peter Rubie
      June Clark
      Amy Tipton

Update: As of April 2009, it looks
like this agency
is closed.

- Chuck

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Reminder: Newer agencies are golden opportunities for new writers because they're likely building their client list; however, always make sure your work is as perfect as it can be before submitting, and only query agencies that are a great fit for your work. Otherwise, you're just wasting time and postage.

P.O. Box 47594, 946 Lawrence Ave. E., Unit 2, Toronto ON M3C 1P0, Canada. Phone: (416)850-8767. E-mail: spiridon@rogers.com. Contact: Alethea Spiridon. Seeking new and established writers. Prior to becoming an agent, Ms. Spiridon was an editor for Harlequin Books in Toronto. Established: 2007. This agency specializes in romance and women's fiction. "I lived and breathed romance fiction for 6.5 years while an editor. I know what editors are looking for and can guide writers so they can land that much coveted first or next contract."

Currently Handles: 25% nonfiction books, 25% novels, 25% short story collections, 25% juvenile. Nonfiction subjects of interest: Business/Economics, Child Guidance/Parenting, Cooking/Foods/Nutrition, Current Affairs, Health/Medicine, History, How-To, Juvenile nonfiction, Language/Literature/Criticism, Memoirs, Nature/Environment, Popular Culture, Self-Help/Personal Improvement, Women's Issues/Studies. Fiction subjects of interest: Action/Adventure, Confession, Erotica, Experimental, Family Saga, Fantasy, Feminist, Glitz, Historical, Humor/Satire, Juvenile, Literary, Mainstream/Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense, Picture Books, Romance, Young Adult.

How to contact: Query with SASE. Submit:Outline/Proposal, Synopsis, Author Bio, 50 pages if submitting fiction, SASE. Accepts e-mail queries. No fax queries. Accepts simultaneous submissions. Responds in 4 weeks to queries. Responds in 6 weeks to manuscripts. Returns materials only with SASE. Actively seeking: Actively seeking romance, women's fiction, young adult, middle grade, nonfiction, mysteries, literary fiction and commercial fiction.

Terms: Agent receives 15% commission on domestic sales; 20% commission on foreign sales. Offers written contract. This agency charges for office expenses, such as postage and photocopies. Tips: "Think of the agent as your first reader. Do a meticulous self-edit of your work to ensure you present your best possible writing. Observe how other books are marketed by reading tons of back cover copy and then write a blurb for your own book. If you’re struggling, you might not have a clear sense of direction for your work. You need to have a solid sense of your manuscript so you can present it seamlessly to agents (and then editors). Be clear. Be concise."