Claire co-founded Holroyde Cartey, a literary agency representing authors and illustrators in children's publishing, licensing, film and television.
She has worked in children's publishing for over twenty years, including as Art Director at Hodder Children's Books and in design for Random House.
The agency only accepts submissions via email and only deals in proposals for the children's market. Cover letter: state who you are and why you're in touch with the agency. Authors (fiction/picture book): please email a synopsis and the full manuscript as separate attachments formatted in Word (other formats slow response time). Label the attachment with the title and your name rather than 'sample' or 'first_three_chapters'. Picture book authors: ideally up to three finished texts but one is fine. Non-fiction authors: send a CV, three-page proposal and market analysis. Illustrators: send a portfolio of a dozen or so images in Jpeg or PDF format, up to 5MB in size. Do not worry about resolution. Submit the portfolio directly rather than links to websites or file transfer sites like Dropbox. Submit to either Claire or Penny, not both.
Penny is a literary agent at Holroyde Cartey, representing authors and illustrators across fiction and non-fiction. She has worked for publishers Walker Books in the UK and Candlewick Press in the US and later as an agent with Caroline Sheldon. She has a particular love for the picture book.
Genres:Children's Books · Other Non-Fiction
John Ash is a literary agent at CAA Publishing, representing literary fiction, upmarket general fiction and serious nonfiction. He began his career at PEW Literary, where he spent six and a half years before joining CAA in 2023. His fiction interests range from literary fiction and epic fantasy to upmarket general fiction, while his nonfiction interests include history, memoir and reportage.
Genres:Commercial Fiction · Contemporary Fiction · Fantasy · Historical Non-Fiction · Literary Fiction +3 more
Natalie is an agent at Originate Literary Agency, seeking game-changing stories across fiction, non-fiction, young adult and children's books. She represents Sir Lenny Henry's children's publishing. Her taste has been shaped by writers such as Toni Morrison, James Baldwin and Octavia E. Butler, and by a lifelong search for diverse voices and backgrounds in books.
Genres:Biography · Children's Books · Commercial Fiction · Literary Fiction · Memoir +3 more
Nemonie is a director of Jonathan Clowes Ltd. She has represented Nobel laureate Doris Lessing and comedy legend David Nobbs. Nemonie was agent and editor of Diaries of an Unfinished Revolution, a New York Times 'Book of the Times'.
Genres:Commercial Fiction · Literary Fiction · Other Non-Fiction
Elise is a literary agent based in London, representing literary and general fiction and non-fiction. She became an agent in 2012, having previously worked as a commissioning editor at Virago Press. She co-founded the Diversity in Publishing Network in 2004 and has judged several literary prizes, including the OCM Bocas Fiction Prize and the SI Leeds Prize.
Genres:Biography · Commercial Fiction · Contemporary Fiction · Literary Fiction · Memoir +2 more
Harriet focuses on narrative, voice-driven non-fiction, pop culture, memoir, comedy, journalism, and platform talent. She joined CAA in 2023 after serving as editorial director at Hodder & Stoughton. Prior to Hodder, she held positions at Hodder Studio, Audible, and The Hanbury Agency.
Genres:Historical Non-Fiction · Memoir · Narrative Non-Fiction · Other Non-Fiction
Adam heads the books division at PFD and represents a wide range of prize-winning and bestselling authors, among them Sunday Times and New York Times names. He joined the company in 2010, after completing a Masters in English Literature at King's College London. The Bookseller named him its Shooting Star in 2017.
Genres:Commercial Fiction · Crime · Historical Fiction · Historical Non-Fiction · Memoir +5 more
