Hello, dear readers. Meet Jennifer Laughran, today’s spotlighted agent. In case you’ve missed previous posts, I’m focusing on agents attending the Backspace Conference in May who represent novels in the young adult genre.
Agent Profile: Jennifer Laughran, agent at Andrea Brown Literary Agency
(Image linked from Andrea Brown website)
Status: Accepting Submissions (as of 4/20/12)
About: Jennifer Laughran began her career in agenting after working as a long-time children’s bookseller and buyer. She is also the founder of the extremely popular YA event series “Not Your Mother’s Book Club”. She joined Andrea Brown Literary Agency in 2007. Always on the lookout for sparkling YA and middle grade fiction with unusual and unforgettable characters and vivid settings, she is drawn to all kinds of books, whether realistic comedies or richly imagined magical adventures. However, the common thread in her favorite stories is an offbeat world-view. Jennifer adores simplicity, but she is not interested in the conventional, predictable, mechanical, gimmicky or ordinary. Jennifer loves funny books, thrilling books, romantic books, books that make her cry, and all-around un-put-downable books… and her true favorites are all of the above. (Link)
About Andrea Brown: “We are a mid-size literary agency based in California celebrating over 2,000 titles sold. We bring the best of both worlds to the table—the personal client attention of a small agency and the clout of a larger one. We invest a great deal of care in each project and each client. We devise a strategy at every stage of the writing process, from conception, to editorial, to publication, that is tailored to the client and will enable us to find the best publisher for his or her books. We are seeking long-term relationships with writers and illustrators whose careers we can develop and whose talent we can foster.” (Link)
Genre’s she is currently seeking (as of 04/20/12):
Young Adult
Middle Grade
*Jennifer is looking for realistic YA and MG –humor, mystery, adventure, light fantasy and YA romance. (Link)
Jennifer’s Advice to Writers: “Most problems I see in slush would be solved if the author was a better reader. If you want to be a good writer, read a lot. Read a lot of children’s books, read a lot of adult books, read a lot of classics, read weird things on subjects you don’t normally touch. Now read some more. No no, that isn’t enough, read more.” (Link)
Where to find Jennifer on the web:
Her blog: http://literaticat.blogspot.com/
At Andrea Brown Literary Agency: http://www.andreabrownlit.com
Twitter: @literaticat
On Publisher’s Marketplace: http://www.publishersmarketplace.com/members/jennla/
The “Not Your Mother’s Book Club” blog: http://www.booksinc.net/blog/NYMBC
Notable YA clients:
Jackie Dolamore, author of MAGIC UNDER GLASS
L.K. Madigan, author of FLASH BURNOUT
Tara Kelly, author of HARMONIC FEEDBACK
Submission Guidelines (as of 04/20/12 –please verify before submitting!):
Query via email
- Type QUERY as the subject of your email and send with NO attachments.
- Paste query and sample pages into body of email
- Indicate if submission is simultaneous or exclusive
No snail mail
FAQ page here: http://www.andreabrownlit.com/how-to-submit.php
Ms Laughran looks like an agent that might be interested in my stuff. Hmmm. I wonder if she represents self-published works?
Erin, thanks for all the info you’re providing about agents. This is useful information!