Monster List of Picture Book Agents -- Lori Nowicki, Painted Words

Painted Words is an agency founded by Lori Nowicki in 2006. They represents many award winning books and many author/illustrators. They represent a few authors who do not illustrate as well.

You can find Lori Nowicki at Publisher's Marketplace. While it looks like she tends to focus on author/illustrators she does say, "We are currently looking for submissions from authors in the areas of picture books, beginning readers, and chapter books (ages 4-8), as well as Middle-Grade fiction (ages 9-12)."

You can find Painted Words on Facebook, on Twitter @painted_words, and on tumblr, which looks to be filled with the most content. Lori Nowicki does have a profile on Linkedin. Painted Words has a Linkedin page as well.

There is not much information about Lori Nowicki online. I have queried Lori and got a nice, personal reply from her assistant. Looking at Lori's list of clients and award winning books to me, made her an agent to definitely consider. Lori was listed as one of the top 20 picture book agents according to sales in 2013,

Be sure to peruse the entire Painted Words website to get a feel for the type of stories they represent. If you would like to submit your work to Painted Words please see their submission guidelines.

Painted Words represents Connie Schofield-Morrison & Marilyn Sadler.





This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have an additions or changes you think should be made to this listing please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Agent Jodell Sadler Talks Picture Books

Have you heard? It's Kidlit Week over at Sub It Club! So far we have picture book critique giveaways from authors Amy Dixon and Katy S. Duffield, as well as a proofread from Dori Kleber. We have feedback opportunities and great posts for picture book writers and illustrators alike from Mark Fearing and Sarah Frances Hardy. Plus you can enter to win an autographed picture book from Corey Rosen Schwartz. And now I'm going to give you a scoop: Tomorrow on the Sub It Club blog we'll be giving away a free participation in agent Jodell Sadler's online course, Pacing Picture Books To Wow!

Jodell's agency, Sadler Children's Literary, represents authors as well as and author-illustrators. Jodell is open to picture book submissions and is here to talk about what she looks for when it comes to picture books in part 1 of my interview with her. You'll be able to find part 2 tomorrow on the Sub It Club blog. For now, read on to learn what Jodell looks for in picture book submissions and more:

Why do you choose to represent picture book authors?

I love picture books! Picture books remain that toy that spans from 1 to 101 and has staying power. I love the power of words and their magic and it feeds into my study on Pacing Picture Books to Wow. I have a picture book that I have kept a long time. It was one that was held by the many generations in my family, and I love it. It made it through my childhood, managed to escape a dog incident, and escorted me into my college years at Mount Mary University.

What types of stories do you see a place for in today’s picture book market?

Many. Whatever is in a writer’s heart-- if they can carry it onto the page in an original way. I know, not fair, but really, the minute we think a book cannot be done, one is birthed into the world. Picture book are just a visual and aural treat for kids. What would the world be like without them?

What types of picture books do you represent (or not represent) specifically?

I’m not a fan of message-driven, but love any type of picture book, fiction and nonfiction. I also enjoy graphic novel manuscripts that fit into that little older genre. 

How do you feel about picture books written in rhyme?

I love a rhyming picture book if it is done well. It has to be visual and concrete and so well done that it sings. When I see one that works, it will work. But it’s a tough write. A writer has to be 100% committed to do what it takes to make it move forward with a strong story arc.

On your website you say, “I’m really interested in working with you to get your story all sparkly and ‘just right’ and right into the hands of the right publisher.” In general, how much revision do you do with clients to get their picture books submission ready?

I love working with clients on picture book revision. It’s fun to work to really polish a piece of writing. I just recently worked on a picture book that was so honed, but only had a few words here and there that needed to be considered and challenged. The writer and I went back and forth until it we both felt like each word was ‘just right.’

If you take on a client because of their mass market appeal picture books, would you also represent other things they wrote, such as educational or board books, if they had merit?

Yes. I do work with clients from fiction board books to young adult (and new adult), but I also enjoy nonfiction picture books to nonfiction proposals. I would go outside my scope for titles my writers were working on like an adult memoir, for example.

What are some of the elements you think a picture book needs to be successful?

I completely believe in Pacing a Picture Book to Wow and really look for all the tools I talk about in my online 4-week course: words, rhythm, repetition, etc. because the musicality of language, the ability to get on the page of your writing, and really slow and speed the unfolding of a story to enhance reader experience is a must in today’s competitive marketplace. If you’d like to see more about this, please visit my website: http://www.sadlercreativeliterary.com/pacing-2-wow-class.html.  

Are there common mistakes you see in picture book submissions in particular?

Yes. I see cover pages that are far too long, poetry that is very abstract, and concepts that have been done so often they would be hard to sell like seasonal books. I also see books that have not been honed down to some 500 words. Writers really need to take the time to pull their words back and make their picture books an infectious experience. We should want to hear it again and again. In my recent Pacing Picture Books to Wow class for January, we had a few books like this. It’s a lot of fun to find that manuscript that is ready for editorial eyes.

Do you have any upcoming projects that you'd like to share with us?

We have a few upcoming projects: a MG nonfiction story about strong women, a great author-illustrator picture book about a feisty witch and even feistier cat, a picture book about a very small creature that one man works to save, and an illustrated MG series—and so much more in the works. We’ve done a game project and covers this past season as well, and I hope we will do a whole lot more in 2015, including one really exciting project that hugs my heart. 

Thank you so much, Jodell, for talking picture books here with us! Everyone, please come over to the Sub It Club blog to read part 2 of my interview with Jodell where she talks submissions and is giving away a chance to win her Pacing Picture Books To Wow! course to one lucky winner. 

Monster List of Picture Book Agents - Janine Le, Sheldon Fogelman Agency

Janine Le has been an Assistant Agent at the well established Sheldon Fogelman Agency in New York since 2010. She started there as an intern in 2009. Janine is an agent building her list which is a good opportunity for those of you looking to connect with an agent.

Janine's bio says, "Janine is building her list of clients and is open to picture books through YA. She is most drawn to stories with a strong emotional core that influence the way readers view the world, themselves, and the people around them. She is also fond of complex characters and relationships, unique cultural perspectives, and stories with a touch of humor, romance, or both."

There isn't much extra online information on Janine, but Sheldon Fogelman Agency is a top notch agency that has some amazing clients. Agents such as Marcia Wernick and Linda Pratt established themselves as agents there as well as my great agent Sean McCarthy.

Some of Janine's information is posted as Janine Hauber or Janine Hauber Le.

You can find Janine on Twitter @LoveableLines.

Read first page critiques that Janine did on Kathy Teaman's blog. There's a picture book critique in there!

YA author Karen Denise posted about signing with Janine and talks a little bit about how the agency works.

You can read about Janine Le's background experience on Linkedin.

Janine is listed on the Sheldon Fogelman Agency website. Please see their submission guidelines. If you are submitting picture books you may include two manuscripts.

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents - John Cusick of The Greenhouse Literary Agency

Update 7/1/2015 - John has moved to Folio Literary Management and is only seeking picture book author-illustrators.

John Cusick is an agent at The Greenhouse Literary Agency where he joined in 2013. Before that, he was an agent at Scott Treimel NY. He's also the author of GIRL PARTS and CHERRY MONEY BABY.

John's current agency is a great one. Headed up by veteran agent Sarah Davies, the transatlantic agency has a fantastic approach to agenting. They also host the yearly Greenhouse Funny Prize. You can read what Greenhouse Literary strives to offer their clients: here.

John has kindly put a list of his interviews on his blog.

Update: 7/24/2014 - John was kind enough to do a picture book centered interview with me! He gives loads of great details on what he's looking for and how he works. And I have to tell you that he is a super nice guy! Go read our interview. You'll learn lots.

Some of the best picture book-centric info I could find was in this interview at SCBWI Squam Lake Writing Retreat where John said, "I’ve also just opened to picture book submissions, so the right pithy, character-driven story is high on my wish-list." 

He said he sees too many queries about "the power of imagination" in this super informative Query. Sign. Submit. interview at I Write for Apples.

And he has some great advice in his interview at Kathy Teaman's blog.

John is pretty active on Twitter @johnmcusick

You can read some of John's response times on Querytracker.

John Cusick represents:
Chana Stiefel, her picture book DADDY DEPOT will be published by Feiwel & Friends in 2016.
Vin Vogel whose debut picture book THE THING ABOUT YETIS is scheduled to be published by Dial BFYR in 2015.

Please see the submission guidelines at Greenhouse Literary if you are interested in submitting. At the time of this posting John's submission guidelines at Publisher's Marketplace look like they need to be updated (I always go with the agency page's guidelines!) but his #1 submission requirement is always true: "Make sure your work is absolutely as good as you can make it. Revise, critique (repeat, repeat) before sending. Don’t waste your opportunity!"

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents - Tracey Adams of Adams Literary

Update 7/1/2015: Adams Literary is only interested in author-illustrators at this time. But do check their submission guidelines to see if this policy has changed, and if it does let me know! :)

Tracey Adams has a wealth of experience in the field of children's publishing. You can see the agencies and publishers Tracey worked for before co-founding the well respected Adams Literary in 2004 on her about page. Adams Literary exclusively represents children's through young adult literature, including illustrators. Adams Literary has an extensive list of clients.They also talk about managing careers and what types of clients they have on the client page. Be sure to check it out.

At Michelle4Laughs there is a great 2013 Query Questions with Tracey. You will want to read how many queries Adams Lit gets in a week and how many manuscripts they usually read. Make it good people!

There's a quick 2013 post at PubSmart where Tracey tells what kinds of books she's looking for.

There is a really informative interview with Tracey at Humor Me.

Tracey did an interview at Multiculturalism Rocks! where she talks about editorial and how involved after a book is published.

At this interview at Dreams Can Be Reached she tells the piece of advice she gives most to writers.

Suite 101 has an interview where Tracey talks about the types of children's books she does not represent. And rhyming.

Here's a quick read at the SCBWI blog with Tracey's thoughts on smaller publishers.

Cynthia Leitich Smith interviewed Tracey for SCBWI Bologna 2008, I know that's a while about but the information is still relevant. Tracey tells how she got her start as an agent, cover letters, and the realities of children's book publishing.

At Literary Rambles you can read some information straight from Tracey regarding sales numbers and query tips.

Learn more about Tracey's work life at A Day in the Life of Adams Literary on Carol Baldwin's blog.

You can find Adams Literary on Publishers Marketplace, Twitter, and Facebook.

Submissions to Adams Literary are accepted only through their online submission form. Be sure to download and read the submission guidelines on the right hand side of the form.

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents - Erica Rand Silverman of Sterling Lord Literistic

7/26/2016 Update: Erica Rand Silverman has moved to Stimola Literary Studio.

Sterling Lord Literistic is a successful, established literary agency that has been in business for over 60 years. Erica Rand Silverman is one of the many agents there. She joined Sterling Lord in 2008 and represents, "authors and illustrators of children's literature, picture books through YA, and nonfiction about children, parenting and education." Read Erica's bio on the Sterling Lord Literistic website. (scroll down)

I found a 2012 interview with Erica at the Writer's Digest Guide to Literary Agents blog.

Couldn't find a date on this, but there is a report by Emily Goodman at SCBWI Metron NY of "A Night with Three Agents" that Erica participated in where she gives some excellent advice about making your agent decision.

There is a 2/9/2012 report at Publisher's Weekly of a panel Erica participated in, How to Navigate a Changing Business? Children's Agents Shed Some Light.

Erica wrote an article published 8/15/13 for Well Rounded NY titled Baby Books by Stages where she recommends a number of books for little ones.

She also is part of the educational consulting company, Room 228 and has an informative bio there.

Erica's professional profile can be found on her page at Linkedin.

You can follow Erica on Twitter @ericarsilverman

Updated 5/6/2014 via Erica Rand Silverman herself, here are some of the picture book authors and illustrators she represents:

They Lydia Freeman Foundation (CORDUROY)
David Goldin
Todd Goldman, aka Todd H. Doodler
Tim Miller (illustrating books to be published through Viking and Enchanted Lion in 2015 and 2016)
Joyce Hesselberth (SHAPE SHIFT Henry Holt/Christy Ottaviano Books 2015)
David Weinstone of Music for Aardvarks (MUSIC CLASS TODAY/Farrar, Straus & Giroux 2015)

At Sterling Lord Literistic they only take snail mail submissions. Please read the submission guidelines on the website.

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Once Upon a Time a Writer Found the Perfect Agent

Once upon a time there was a girl who liked to write. The more she wrote, the more she liked it. The more she liked it the more she wanted to see something she wrote turned into a book. And when that actually happened she then wanted to see something else she wrote turned into a book because, as she had learned, writers are never finished, they just move onto the next project.

Many times she felt all alone and like she needed advice. Along her travels she made many writing friends. She liked them so much she started a club where they shared writing secrets with those who knew the secret handshake. But she longed to find that one brave knight who would help her find her way through the publishing forest.

One day, when she was wallowing in the depths of the murky river of writing woe, the knight magically appeared telling her how wonderful her writing was and that he was there to help her make her way through the forest and…

WAIT A MINUTE!

Whose story is this? Well, it’s mine. Sort of. But it didn’t happen quite that way.

I did (and do) write. A lot. I’ve had a bit of success along the way.

I have great writer friends. 

And now I do have the perfect agent for me. I found him the best way I knew how—by querying!

Was there magic involved? Perhaps a little. I wrote a story I really liked. I got it critiqued. Revised it. A lot. I studied agents, made a list of what I thought were the best matches, and queried them. Guess who was my top choice? Sean McCarthy. And amazingly enough he was busy starting his own agency when I was ready to query.

When I read the news about Sean McCarthy Literary Agency I got my submission ready immediately. But I didn’t send it. What if he didn’t like it? Was I ready to be disappointed? Apparently I talked about it quite a bit because my daughter finally said, “Mom, just send it to him already! He's going to love it!” (When your daughter rolls her eyes at you because you’re being childish it can really help you do the things you need to do.) So I did. Click. Done. Wait.

I didn’t have to wait too long.

You want the fairytale ending? Sean did like my manuscript. And he read a bunch more of my work and liked that too! Plus he’s thoughtful, understanding, concerned, informed, open, honest, helpful… all those things you hope to find in an agent. Heck, look at his fabulous list of recent books! So yes, now I can say,

I am represented by Sean McCarthy of Sean McCarthy Literary Agency! 

As for the rest of the tale? It has yet to be written. 

But I think I'll end this story with... 

                                                       ...and they lived happily ever after.

Monster List of Picture Book Agents - Mary Cummings of Betsy Amster Literary Enterprises

Mary Cummings is the literary agent representing children's writers at Betsy Amster Literary Enterprises where she has been since 2008. According to the website, Mary represents children's fiction and poetry but not nonfiction.

There isn't too much online information on Ms. Cummings but I learned from a former client that, "she is kind, professional, and supportive, she loves lyric and she loves sweet!" Also, Mary works book by book.

There is a 2009 article, Made in Minnesota: The Rise of Agent Mary Cummings at Children's Literature Network.

You can see a few comments on submissions writers have made on Mary Cummings' listing at Querytracker.

Writer Maria Ashworth lists that she is represented by Mary Cummings on her website.

Mary Cummings can be queried via email with the entire picture book manuscript pasted into the body of the email. Read her entire submission guidelines on the Betsy Amster Literary website.

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents - Carly Watters, P.S. Literary Agency

Update 10/7/2015: Carly Watters is not looking to represent picture books at this time. Please check her "Who We Are" listing on the P.S. Literary website for the latest in what she is looking for.

Carly Watters is a literary agent at P.S. Literary Agency. She's quite active online and you can learn a lot about her to help you decide whether or not she might be the right agent for you.

Carly's website, carlywatters.com is a great place to start. She has a blog, a list of clients, and a What I'm Looking For page where she lists, "High Concept Picture Books." From looking at Carly's sales page it looks like she has one picture book sale, ELLA AND THE BALLOONS IN THE SKY, written by Danny Appleby and Illustrated by Lauren Pirie, both of whom are clients. Carly's post on picture books on her blog goes into a bit more detail about what she's interested in when it comes to picture books.

There's an informative November 2012 interview with Carly at Mother. Write. (Repeat.) There's an interesting tidbit or two at Literary Rejections about Ms. Watters' career and she has done a lengthy interview there as well. Missouri Writers' Guild has a January 2013 interview.

At the P.S. Literary website, you will find Carly's Bio on the About Us page. specific submission guidelines along with some specific query letter instructions and approximate response time. Their FAQ's may be of interest as well. You might also want to read Carly's post on pitching your book.

Carly Watters is quite active on Twitter. You can find her at @carlywatters. She is also on Linkedin and Instagram.

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents -- Carly Watters, P.S. Literary

Carly Watters is an agent at P.S. Literary Agency. She is looking for "high concept picture books". You can read Carly's bio on the P.S. Literary About Us page. You can also read her about page on her blog agentcarlywatters.wordpress.com. Ms. Watters keeps a great list of her links on the bottom of her about page. Love that! Go there to find links to her interviews and articles and her list of clients.

I could only find one picture book sale, and it's on the P.S. Literary website news page. Carly posted about signing the author, Danny Appleby on her blog.

You can find Carly Watters on Twitter.

That's it. Short and sweet!

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents--Evan Gregory, Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency

Evan Gregory is an Associate Agent at Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency who is actively looking for clients. You can read his short bio on the agency website: http://www.ethanellenberg.com/

Writer's Digest has an interview with Evan Gregory on their website.

You can see some response time statistics for Evan on Querytracker.

Evan has a little used but interesting blog: http://flaubertpyramid.blogspot.com/ as well as a little used Facebook page. You can also read about Evan's work experience on Linkedin.

The place where you can learn the most from Evan Gregory is on twitter. He's funny and he talks a lot about queries: http://twitter.com/EvanJGregory

Before you submit to Ethan, be sure to go over the agency's very thorough submission guidelines. There are instructions on how to submit by both snail and email. The instructions do say, "if applicable" to include sample illustrations. They say they are open to all genres and no where does it say only author-illustrators so I take it that providing sample illos doesn't apply to non-illustrators. Also if you have read through the links you will see that Evan says he does consider picture books.

The Ethan Ellenberg Agency represents Candace Fleming and Marthe Jocelyn.

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents - Sally Apokedak, Leslie H. Stobbe Literary Agency

Sally Apokedak is a new children's book agent who has recently joined the Leslie H. Stobbe Literary Agency as their Children's Book Specialist, although she will be representing all genres according to the News Flash post on the agency website. where it says that, "Sally Apokedak has worked as editor for Suite101, and as Children’s Book editor for Bella Online. She currently serves as YA book editor for DMOZ and as YA contributor for Novel Rocket. She has had short works published in a variety of venues, including Highlights for Children." (scroll down to read the post.) You can also learn more about her from reading her bio.

Sally has a great website, www.Sally-Apokedak.com, and looks to be very internet savvy. You can follow her on Twitter, Facebook, Pinterest, Google+

You can read some of Sally's picture book reviews on her personal blog, Reading, Writing, and Ruminating on Young Adult Books.

Be sure to read her post, What I'm Looking For.

You also can read Sally's thoughts, and how she works *right now* in this post. Be sure to have a look around her blog and read some posts like this one, Replying to Rejections.

Sally's submission guidelines can be found on her website, not on the agency site at this time.

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

How Diana Murray got Her Agent, plus an interview with Brianne Johnson of Writers House

Not too long ago I featured Brianne Johnson of Writers House on my Monster List of Picture Book Agents. That led me to talking to Diana Murray, a fabulous picture book author who is represented by Brianne. Today I am happy to have Diana here to share with us how she signed with her agent. (I can't help but love hearing about her kicking the cyber-street to the curb!) Diana and Brianne were also kind enough to do a little question and answer for us! First, here's Diana's post:

How I Got My Agent

At first, I wasn’t even sure I wanted an agent. For one thing, I had always heard that getting an agent for picture books if you weren’t a) already published, b) also writing novels, and/or c) also an illustrator, was pretty much impossible. On top of that, I wrote exclusively in rhyme. Seemed like a sure recipe for rejection, according to the word on the cyber-street. In addition, I’d read about many agented writers who seemed unhappy or frustrated. Why bother? I figured I might as well continue subbing to publishers on my own. But then...
December 22

I read about Brianne Johnson on Verla Kay’s blueboards and headed over to the Writers House website to investigate further. It was like reading a personal ad and thinking, “Hey! I like long walks on the beach too!” I immediately felt in my gut that it might be a good match. Also, I felt particularly excited about the prospect of working with a go-getter junior agent at a big house. Seemed like a great opportunity. I decided to sub immediately, even though it was just days away from Christmas.

January 17

After a few weeks, I was excited to see an email from Brianne in my inbox. I did a double-take to make sure I wasn’t imagining things. It was true! Brianne said she really liked my manuscript and was getting some reads from colleagues. In the meantime, she wanted to see if I had any other work. Luckily, I had written lots of other picture book manuscripts over the years. But how to choose? I based my decision mostly on the feedback I had received during various SCBWI events, and on reactions from my own critique group. I chose to send her five. One manuscript was similar to the first one she liked (it was character-driven, wacky, had plenty of conflict, and was in the range of 500-700 words). Three of the manuscripts were much shorter, younger, and simpler. And the last manuscript was a humorous poetry collection.

I reset my email program to check for new mail “every 1 minute”. And I waited...

Feb 6

Twenty days later, I received a response! But before opening it, I had to go make a sandwich. I couldn’t face this news on an empty stomach, especially since no matter the outcome, there would probably be some cabernet involved.

When I finally opened that email, I read that Brianne liked my writing and wanted to speak with me!

Feb 7

On the phone, Brianne immediately made me feel comfortable and we had a great conversation. That was another good sign that we could work well together. She was enthusiastic and complimentary, but didn’t promise me the moon. Brianne was clear that rhyming picture books were a tough sell in the current market, and I didn’t disagree. By that night, I was signing a contract with her. Within a few months, she sold one picture book to Roaring Brook Press and then another (in a two-book deal) to Katherine Tegen Books.

Take that, cyber-street!

And now I’ve changed my mind about agents. It’s true that they’re not an absolute necessity when you write picture books. But when you find the right agent for you, it can make all the difference in your career.

Here are a few answers from Brianne Johnson at Writers House:

What kinds of picture book manuscripts tend to catch your eye?

Funny ones! I love clever, character-driven, LOL-funny manuscripts that leave a lot of room for art, feature somewhat offbeat protagonists, and hold up to repeat readings. In that sense, Diana and I are a truly great match (that, and our shared love of long walks on the beach). When I first read her work I could really see them as picture books, and her sense of humor is amazing. Absolutely no one can read NED THE KNITTING PIRATE or GRIMELDA without literally laughing out loud… I’ve read them both about a million times and LOL every time. You’ll see!

What are some common mistakes you see in query letters for picture books?

Not including the manuscript pasted below the letter! You’d be surprised how many queries I get that leave off the MS itself and just include the pitch. To be honest, with picture book queries, I skim over the letter quickly—paying attention mostly to the intro (big points for a personalized letter) and the bio, particularly if there’s previous publishing experience listed—and skip down to let the manuscript speak for itself. If the manuscript is really great I’ll go back and read the letter more carefully.

Are there certain picture book topics you’re particularly tired of seeing in your submissions pile?

Personally, I’m probably not the best fit for super-oozy-sweet, I-love-you-my-baby-muffin kind of manuscripts. I mean, I’ll always take a look, but I tend to gravitate toward somewhat edgier, funnier stories. Who knows, though? My query scouting style is largely instinct-based and very subjective. Try me! If I love it, I love it.

For those who write both picture books and novels, what do you recommend they query with first?

Probably the novel, although it’s worth mentioning in the letter that you have a picture book text or two up your sleeve.

-----
Diana Murray is the author of forthcoming picture books, NED THE KNITTING PIRATE: A SALTY YARN (Roaring Brook Press/Macmillan, 2014) and GRIMELDA, THE VERY MESSY WITCH (Katherine Tegen Books/HarperCollins, 2014). Diana was awarded the 2010 SCBWI Barbara Karlin Grant and has many poems published and forthcoming in magazines including Spider, Highlights for Children, and Highlights High Five, as well as the And the Crowd Goes Wild! sports-themed poetry anthology. Diana lives in New York City with her husband, two children, and a goldfish named Pickle. You can find Diana on her website, www.dianamurray.com and on Twitter.

Monster List of Picture Book Agents - Natalie Fischer Lakosil of Bradford Literary Agency

Natalie Fischer Lakosil is an Assistant Agent at Bradford Literary Agency. She was formerly at Sandra Dijkstra Literary agency for four years. According to her bio she is looking for "short, quirky picture books."

You can learn a whole bunch from Natalie on her blog, Adventures in Agentland. In her post, What I Like And Why I Like It, from October 2011 she says, "The only kind of picture book I’m really looking for is along the lines of Square Cat by Elizabeth Schoonmaker – short, funny text, preferably character-driven (650 words or less) – and I’m being VERY very selective on PBs."

You can see some on Natalie's sales on her Publisher's Marketplace page.

Natalie says she does not want ABC or boy books, and gives lots of other great info in her interview at Mother. Write. Repeat.

Natalie's article, From Pitch to Sale, at Wovenmyst is about YA but you might gain some insights from it regarding her process.

Beware, I learned that she doesn't like potty humor in her interview at Beyond Words.

You can find Natalie on Linkedin and Twitter.

Natalie represents Rosanne Thong and Kitty Griffin.


This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents - Brianne Johnson of Writers House

Brianne Johnson is a junior agent at the well known agency, Writers House. I would assume that as a junior agent that Brianne is still building her list, which is always a good opportunity for writers on the agent hunt!

According to her Publisher's Marketplace profile she is open to, "truly delightful" picture book texts and she also says, "The one link I have throughout the many genres I'm interested in is humor. It doesn't necessarily have to be silly humor--sometimes it's more interesting to find humor in darker settings--but I do love a story can illuminate something about humanity AND make me laugh. Life is serious enough--reading should be a joy."

Added 9/7/2012: Mother. Write. Repeat. has a great Interactive Interview with Brianne.
I found posts from a couple of happy clients:
http://cinnamongirlbook.com/2010/07/08/my-jr-agent-got-her-first-deal/
http://margokelly.blogspot.com/2011/12/i-have-agent-wahoo.html

You can see some response time stats for Brianne on Querytracker.

Brianne has a couple of nice picture book sales by her authors (of course this is just what I can find online.) She represents Diane Murray Her first picture book, NED THE KNITTING PIRATE: A SALTY YARN will be published by Roaring Brook Press/Macmillan (Spring 2014). A note for rhymers, Diane's bio says her writing includes rhymes.

Added 9/7/2012: Read Diana Murray's guest post about how she got her agent along with an interview with Brianne here on my blog.

Brianne also represents Jacqueline Tourville whose book, ALBIE'S FIRST WORD, inspired by the true story of Albert Einstein's childhood  is scheduled to come out with Schwartz & Wade in 2014.

Brianne Johnson accepts email queries. You can find her email address on her Publisher's Marketplace listing. And don't forget to personalize that cover letter!

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents - Scott Treimel, S©ott Treimel NY

Update 11/7/2013 -  Scott Treimel has closed to unsolicited submissions but will still be accepting submissions from conference attendees and through references. You can find out all the details by reading the new Submission Policies page.

My last post featured author Ame Dyckman and her debut picture book, BOY + BOT. Ame is represented by Scott Treimel so there's no time like now to feature Scott on the monster list! Ame had two more books forthcoming. I can see why she refers to Scott as "super agent"!

At SCBWI Hawaii, they have a bit of what Scott said regarding craft, how he agents, and what he wants to see in a query. It's from 2005 but relevant. (There are two separate paragraphs. Scroll down.)

There is a nice list of Scott's sales at AgentQuery.

You can see Scott's amazing resume at Linkedin.

Board books through teen novels is listed under genres at Publisher's Marketplace.

Diary of a Children's Book Writer has some interesting notes from the SCBWI NJ 2009 conference.

You can see some response times at the Querytracker website.

You can learn a ton on the S©ott Treimel NY website. There is of course, an about us page and submission guidelines (be sure to use their submission form if you decide to submit). There's also a blog you won't want to miss. There is an offer to "try to answer any and all your STNY-specific or industry-related questions" in the sidebar. What a great opportunity!

You can also find Scott on Twitter.

Scott also represents: Barbara Joose, Maribeth Boelts, and Ellen A. Kelley.

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents--Sara Sciuto, Full Circle Literary

As promised in yesterday's Monster List of Picture Book Agents post, here is an extra agent listing. Why? Am I mad? Well, as I was gathering information on agents I actually had duelling posts and they were both so good that I couldn't wait to share them! So, today I am happy to feature Sara Sciuto.

Sara is the newest agent at Full Circle Literary and she is actively building her list. That is a great opportunity for a writer on the agent hunt! Sara states in an interview at Mother. Write. Repeat., “While I'm not specifically seeking out picture books right now, if a superbly well-written PB with a quirky or humorous narrative found its way to me I wouldn't pass it up!” So, if you have something that fits that description you may want to give her a try.

There is a great article by Sara in the Spring 2012 edition of SCBWI L.A. Kite Tales. She talks about what she likes to see in a query and states that she does not want to see picture books over 800 words, and the shorter the better. Scroll down to page 21 to read the article.

Sara introduces herself at the Full Circle Literary blog and you can read Sara’s bio at the Full Circle Literary website. Be sure to read the Submission Guidelines while you’re there!

Stacey O’Neale has an interview with Sara where she gives her opinion on social media for writers, among other things.
You can learn a lot on Sara's tumblr, Mental Slush. She has a post on her query response policy that may be of interest if you're planning to query her.

You can find Sara on Twitter @sarasciuto.

Best of luck with your agent querying!

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents--Michelle Humphrey, Martha Kaplan Agency

Since I am a slacker (Ha ha! I've hardly had a moment of rest in I don't know how long. This running a cafe and a farm, and having three kids in sports stuff is hard work.) and am late on my agent post, I'm going to give you two posts in the next two days--as long as life cooperates! First up, Michelle Humphrey of Martha Kaplan Agency:

Sherrie Petersen has a great interview with Michelle on her blog, Write About Now. Be sure to read the update at the end of the interview. Plus she has tons of great links, so go there and check them out!
You can find Michelle Humphrey on Twitter @m_humphrey.

Michelle lists the books she represents on her Linkedin page where she says, “I'm looking for young adult and middle grade fiction, picture books, and narrative non-fiction (history, pop-cultural criticism, women's studies). Please feel free to send queries to michelle@kaplanagency.net.”

There are some nice comments about Michelle and talk about her response times on Querytracker.

Michelle represents Tracy Marchini and Caroline Starr Rose.

Oh, and she is obsessed with Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Monster List of Picture Book Agents--Deborah Carter, Muse Literary Management

I missed my Monster List deadline, the new one I gave myself even. Ha! But, I have not forgotten!!! So, today I am featuring Debbie Carter of Muse Literary Management because I found her Home Page interesting. On it she states: "Note to picture book writers: Will only consider writers who have at least three complete manuscripts and who’ve taken workshops in writing for young children." Okay, so an opportunity for some, but definitely not all.

Still, I found it helpful that on the Muse Literary Management page she lists her contract expectations right there. Writers looking for an agent can learn a lot from that information. Like no, once you have an agent they do not necessarily take on all of your work! Good thing to know if you didn't already. At the bottom of the page she also has some links to articles she's written so you might want to check those out.

If you are going to query Deborah Carter, be sure to read her Publisher's Marketplace page. She asks that you mention your favorite authors in your query.

She does have a couple of picture book authors on her Client Page and she lists some picture books on her Bookshelf.

You can learn a bit about Deborah in her Agent Advice interview at the Guide to Literary Agents blog and in an interview with her at the New York Public Library blog where she talks about her views on ebooks.

There is also an interesting response times thread for Muse Literary on Verla Kay's Blueboard.

Debbie is on Twitter and Facebook.

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!

Monster List of Picture Book Agents--Sean McCarthy, Sean McCarthy Literary Agency

11/10/2013 - Sean McCarthy has opened his own agency, Sean McCarthy Literary. Please see his agency website mccarthylit.com for his current info and submission guidelines.

1/10/2014 - I am represented by Sean McCarthy! You can read my announcement, Once Upon a Time a Writer Found the Perfect Agent.  You can also read a bit about my agent journey in my post, How I Found the Right Agent for Me on the Sub It Club blog.

Sean McCarthy is an agent at the Sheldon Fogelman Agency. His bio states that he is "actively looking to build his client list" along with a little bit of what he is looking for in picture books. Here are some more links to help you decide if Sean might be a good match for you and your work:

Best to read this  interview at Mother. Write. Repeat. first off. Sean says, “In order to consider a picture-book writer, I'd like to see at least three manuscripts, or work in different genres (e.g. middle grade).” He also talks about word count and what types of stories he’d like to see.

Tara Lazar posted her notes from an agent chat session with Sean.  So did Kathy Temean: http://kathytemean.wordpress.com/2009/04/04/sean-mccarthy-assistant-agent-sheldon-fogelman-agency/

JM Tohline has a great blogpost titled The Biggest Mistakes Writers Make When Querying Literary Agents. He asked around 100 agents this question. Sean McCarthy was one of the agents that responded. If you scroll down a bit there is a paragraph from Sean but the entire piece is definitely worth reading.

It looks like response may vary depending on if you e-sub or snail sub. It also looks like Sean may not respond unless interested from these few comments on Querytracker. Good to be aware of. But I did find a response time at the Absolute Write Water Cooler which I will paste here since you have to scroll down to find it, "queried Sean on 1/31, and got a snail rejection dated 4/7." See the Sheldon Fogelman Agency submission guidelines for the best info.

You can find Sean McCarthy on Twitter @sean_j_m

Sean represents author Jamie Swenson who has sold three picture books since signing on with Sean.

BIG RIG - Disney-Hyperion fall 2013, illustrated by Ned Young

BOOM BOOM BOOM - FS&G - spring 2013 illustrated by David Walker

IF YOU WERE A DOG - FS&G – pub date TBA, illustrated by Chris Raschka

Wow! Way to go Jamie & Sean!

This post is part of the Monster List of Picture Book Agents. If you have any changes that you think should be made to this listing, please contact me or leave them in the comments. Thanks!