Last checked November 2017, did a quick check to see if all those listed are still literary agents, removed any who are no longer agents.
I started this list in early July 2016 as part of the article How to Find a Literary Agent for Children’s Picture Books.
Started as a list of about 30 literary agents that represent authors who write picture books, but within a couple of weeks got a strong feeling (rejection, rejection, rejection…) the list of agents we’ll be submitting to is going to grow, so made sense to give it it’s own easier to navigate webpage.
Literary Agents Who Represent Children’s Picture Books
Here’s the quick list of agents, click an agent link to jump to a list of relevant links (their Literary Agencies website, Agent Query page, Query Tracker page, Publishers Marketplace page) etc… for that agent.
Picture Book Literary Agents Quick List
Here’s my current literary agent short list in alphabetical order of literary agents that represent picture book authors.
Heather Alexander of Pippin Properties: no longer an egent- Isabel Atherton of Creative Authors
- Stephen Barr of Writers House
- Emily Van Beek of Folio Literary Management
- Stefanie Von Borstel of Full Circle Literary
- Brenda Bowen of Sanford J. Greenburger Associates
- Jamie Weiss Chilton of Andrea Brown Literary Agency
- Elena Giovinazzo of Pippin Properties
- Karen Grencik of Red Fox Literary
- Kirsten Hall of Catbird Productions
- Elizabeth Harding of Curtis Brown
- Teresa Kietlinski of Bookmark Literary
- Jennifer Laughran of Andrea Brown Literary Agency
- Steven Malk of Writers House
- Holly McGhee of Pippin Properties
- Erin Murphy of Erin Murphy Literary Agency
- Edward Necarsulmer IV of Dunow, Carlson & Lerner Literary Agency, Inc.
- Lori Nowicki of Painted Words
- Anna Olswanger of Olswanger Literary
- Ammi-Joan Paquette of Erin Murphy Literary Agency
- Alexandra Penfold of Upstart Crow Literary
- Rubin Pfeffer of Rubin Pfeffer Content
- Paul Rodeen of Rodeen Literary Management
- Jennifer Rofé of Andrea Brown Literary Agency
- Kathleen Rushall of Andrea Brown Literary Agency
- Abigail Samoun of Red Fox Literary
- Rebecca Sherman of Writers House
- Kelly Sonnack of Andrea Brown Literary Agency
- Rosemary Stimola of Stimola Literary Studio
- Caryn Wiseman of Andrea Brown Literary Agency
Literary agents change their focus from time to time, always check what they are looking for at the time you plan to submit. Not all of these will be open to submissions all the time, see the comment Literary Agents Submission Status below to see this list of agents submission status.
Literary Agents Who Represent Picture Books Research
All links below open in a new window. You’ll see links to Twitter feeds and personal Facebook pages, some literary agents will follow/friend you back. Plenty have reciprocated a Twitter follow and a Facebook friend request from me (my Twitter Feed and Personal Facebook Page). I wouldn’t recommend trying to pitch them that way!
I find it encouraging to see agents, publishers and authors posting about their successes, a very good way to keep track of what’s going to be published soon and by whom. Also there’s the potentially to network with those in your industry, setup critique groups etc…, but don’t try to sell them anything direct, like your book, those direct messages are annoying: don’t burn bridges!
If you are an agent, publisher, author, illustrator or similar (nice to see what librarians and teachers are up to) feel free to follow/friend me, I follow those in the same industry back.
Key
- ?? I’ve queried them, waiting for response
- !! I’ve queried them, response was no
- — Not querying at this time after detailed research
- ## Still to fully research and query
- ### Still to fully research and query AND have to wait for another agent from the same agency to respond
- :( Want to query, but closed to submissions
## Isabel Atherton of Creative Authors: represents children’s picture book authors.
!! Stephen Barr of Writers House: represents children’s picture book authors. Response time (form rejection) for my query was about one day.
- Agent Spotlight: Stephen Barr
- Stephen Barr Twitter Feed
- Stephen Barr Query Tracker
- Stephen Barr Publishers Marketplace
?? Emily Van Beek of Folio Literary Management: represents children’s picture book authors- author/illustrators only.
- Agent Spotlight: Emily Van Beek
- Emily Van Beek Facebook Personal Feed
- Emily Van Beek Agent Query
- Emily Van Beek Query Tracker
- Emily Van Beek Publishers Marketplace
— Stefanie Von Borstel of Full Circle Literary: represents children’s picture book authors. Please note that Stefanie is not accepting rhyming picture book manuscript submissions. (July 2016 http://www.fullcircleliterary.com/our-agents/stefanie-von-borstel/)
- Agent Spotlight: Stefanie Von Borstel
- Stefanie Von Borstel Agent Query
- Stefanie Von Borstel Query Tracker
## Brenda Bowen of Sanford J. Greenburger Associates: represents children’s picture book authors, author/illustrators only.
- Brenda Bowen Personal Website
- Agent Spotlight: Brenda Bowen
- Brenda Bowen Twitter Feed
- Brenda Bowen Facebook Page
- Brenda Bowen Facebook Personal Feed
- Brenda Bowen Agent Query
- Brenda Bowen Query Tracker
:( Jamie Weiss Chilton of Andrea Brown Literary Agency: represents children’s picture book authors. August 2016: She is not currently accepting queries http://www.andreabrownlit.com/agents.html.
- Agent Spotlight: Jamie Weiss Chilton
- Jamie Weiss Chilton Twitter Feed
- Jamie Weiss Chilton Facebook Personal Feed
- Jamie Weiss Chilton Agent Query
- Jamie Weiss Chilton Query Tracker
?? Elena Giovinazzo (previous name: Elena Mechlin) of Pippin Properties: represents children’s picture book authors.
- Agent Spotlight: Elena Giovinazzo
- Elena Giovinazzo Twitter Feed
- Elena Giovinazzo Facebook Personal Feed
- Elena Giovinazzo Agent Query
- Elena Giovinazzo Query Tracker
:( Karen Grencik of Red Fox Literary: represents children’s picture book authors. August 2016: Unfortunately, all Red Fox Literary agents are closed to unsolicited submissions and will only be considering submissions through industry referrals or through conferences at which they present http://www.redfoxliterary.com/submissions.html.
- Agent Spotlight: Karen Grencik
- Karen Grencik Twitter Feed
- Karen Grencik Facebook Personal Feed
- Karen Grencik Query Tracker
## Kirsten Hall of Catbird Productions: represents children’s picture book authors.
!! Elizabeth Harding of Curtis Brown: represents children’s picture book authors.
- Elizabeth Harding Twitter Feed
- Elizabeth Harding Facebook Personal Feed
- Elizabeth Harding Agent Query
- Elizabeth Harding Query Tracker
- Elizabeth Harding Publishers Marketplace
!! Teresa Kietlinski of Bookmark Literary: represents children’s picture book authors. Response time for my query was six days.
- Teresa Kietlinski Twitter Feed
- Teresa Kietlinski Facebook Personal Feed
- Teresa Kietlinski Query Tracker
- Teresa Kietlinski Publishers Marketplace
— Jennifer Laughran of Andrea Brown Literary Agency: “At the moment I am only seeking Middle Grade and YA fiction” (http://www.jenniferlaughran.com/ July 2016).
- Jennifer Laughran Personal website
- Agent Spotlight: Jennifer Laughran
- Jennifer Laughran Twitter Feed
- Jennifer Laughran Facebook Personal Feed
- Jennifer Laughran Agent Query
- Jennifer Laughran Query Tracker
- Jennifer Laughran Publishers Marketplace
!! Steven Malk of Writers House: represents children’s picture book authors. Response time (form rejection possibly with minor customization) for my query was less than one day.
- Agent Spotlight: Steven Malk
- Steven Malk Twitter Feed
- Steven Malk Agent Query
- Steven Malk Query Tracker
See my query letter to Steven Malk : wasn’t a very good query letter, was way too long, part of it was written from the perspective of a character in the book.
?? Holly McGhee of Pippin Properties: represents children’s picture book authors.
- Holly McGhee Personal Website
- Agent Spotlight: Holly McGhee
- Holly McGhee Twitter Feed
- Holly McGhee Facebook Personal Feed
- Holly McGhee Agent Query
- Holly McGhee Query Tracker
- Holly McGhee Publishers Marketplace
:( Erin Murphy of Erin Murphy Literary Agency: represents children’s picture book authors. August 2016: EMLA is closed to unsolicited queries or submissions http://emliterary.com/contact.php.
- Erin Murphy Twitter Feed
- Erin Murphy Facebook Page
- Erin Murphy Facebook Personal Feed
- Erin Murphy Agent Query
- Erin Murphy Query Tracker
- Erin Murphy Publishers Marketplace
## Edward Necarsulmer of Dunow, Carlson & Lerner Literary Agency, Inc.: represents children’s picture book authors.
- Edward Necarsulmer Twitter Feed
- Edward Necarsulmer Facebook Personal Feed
- Edward Necarsulmer Agent Query
- Edward Necarsulmer Query Tracker
- Edward Necarsulmer Publishers Marketplace
## Lori Nowicki of Painted Words: represents children’s picture book authors.
!! Anna Olswanger of Olswanger Literary: represents children’s picture book authors, author/illustrators only. Response time (form rejection) for my query was a few hours.
- Agent Spotlight: Anna Olswanger
- Anna Olswanger Twitter Feed
- Anna Olswanger Agent Query
- Anna Olswanger Query Tracker
- Anna Olswanger Publishers Marketplace
:( Ammi-Joan Paquette of Erin Murphy Literary Agency: represents children’s picture book authors. August 2016: EMLA is closed to unsolicited queries or submissions http://emliterary.com/contact.php.
- Ammi-Joan Paquette Personal Website
- Ammi-Joan Paquette Twitter Feed
- Ammi-Joan Paquette Facebook Personal Feed
- Ammi-Joan Paquette Agent Query
- Ammi-Joan Paquette Query Tracker
- Ammi-Joan Paquette Publishers Marketplace
!! Rubin Pfeffer of Rubin Pfeffer Content: represents children’s picture book authors. August 2016: Rubin Pfeffer is currently accepting submissions through referral only http://www.rpcontent.com/#!submissions/c1ifn.
:( Alexandra Penfold of Upstart Crow Literary: represents children’s picture book authors. August 2016: Alexandra is NOT currently accepting submissions – http://www.upstartcrowliterary.com/agent/alexandra-penfold/.
- Alexandra Penfold Twitter Feed
- Alexandra Penfold Facebook Personal Feed
- Alexandra Penfold Query Tracker
?? Paul Rodeen of Rodeen Literary Management: represents children’s picture book authors- author/illustrators only.
- Agent Spotlight: Paul Rodeen
- Paul Rodeen Twitter Feed
- Paul Rodeen Facebook Personal Feed
- Paul Rodeen Agent Query
- Paul Rodeen Query Tracker
### Jennifer Rofé of Andrea Brown Literary Agency: represents children’s picture book authors.
- Agent Spotlight: Jennifer Rofé
- Jennifer Rofé Twitter Feed
- Jennifer Rofé Agent Query
- Jennifer Rofé Query Tracker
- Jennifer Rofé Publishers Marketplace
### Kathleen Rushall of Andrea Brown Literary Agency: represents children’s picture book authors.
- Agent Spotlight: Kathleen Rushall
- Kathleen Rushall Twitter Feed
- Kathleen Rushall Facebook Personal Feed
- Kathleen Rushall Agent Query
- Kathleen Rushall Query Tracker
:( Abigail Samoun of Red Fox Literary: represents children’s picture book authors. August 2016: Unfortunately, all Red Fox Literary agents are closed to unsolicited submissions and will only be considering submissions through industry referrals or through conferences at which they present http://www.redfoxliterary.com/submissions.html.
!! Rebecca Sherman of Writers House: represents children’s picture book authors, but author/illustrators only. Response time (form rejection from assistant) for my query was twelve days.
- Agent Spotlight: Rebecca Sherman
- Rebecca Sherman Twitter Feed
- Rebecca Sherman Facebook Personal Feed
- Rebecca Sherman Agent Query
- Rebecca Sherman Query Tracker
- Rebecca Sherman Publishers Marketplace
### Kelly Sonnack of Andrea Brown Literary Agency: represents children’s picture book authors.
- Agent Spotlight: Kelly Sonnack
- Kelly Sonnack Twitter Feed
- Kelly Sonnack Facebook Personal Feed
- Kelly Sonnack Agent Query
- Kelly Sonnack Query Tracker
- Kelly Sonnack Publishers Marketplace
!! Rosemary Stimola of Stimola Literary Studio: represents children’s picture book authors. Response time: 4 days.
- Agent Spotlight: Rosemary Stimola
- Rosemary Stimola Twitter Feed
- Rosemary Stimola Facebook Personal Feed
- Rosemary Stimola Agent Query
- Rosemary Stimola Query Tracker
?? Caryn Wiseman of Andrea Brown Literary Agency: represents children’s picture book authors.
- Agent Spotlight: Caryn Wiseman
- Caryn Wiseman Twitter Feed
- Caryn Wiseman Facebook Page
- Caryn Wiseman Facebook Personal Feed
- Caryn Wiseman Agent Query
- Caryn Wiseman Query Tracker
- Caryn Wiseman Publishers Marketplace
Note: publishersmarketplace.com is a premium service, I’ve only linked to that website if the agent is listed in the free version.
Note 2: Some literary agencies like Writers House and Andrea Brown Literary Agency expect you to query one agent (from their agency) at a time. I’m giving each agent six weeks before querying the next agent from the same agency, so could take 6+ months to query all agents within one agency if they don’t respond quickly.
David Law
Related Articles:
Updated July 28th 2016…
I didn’t want to add the submission status for the literary agents in the main article because it would be out of date a month from now. So adding the status here and will try to keep this comment regularly updated (no promises though).
Heather Alexander of Pippin Properties – open
Isabel Atherton of Creative Authors – open
Stephen Barr of Writers House – open
Emily Van Beek of Folio Literary Management – open
Stefanie Von Borstel of Full Circle Literary – open
Brenda Bowen of Sanford J. Greenburger Associates – open
Jamie Weiss Chilton of Andrea Brown Literary Agency – closed
Elena Giovinazzo of Pippin Properties – open
Karen Grencik of Red Fox Literary – closed (open via referrals only)
Kirsten Hall of Catbird Productions – open, I think?
Elizabeth Harding of Curtis Brown – open
Teresa Kietlinski of Bookmark Literary – open
Lori Kilkelly of Rodeen Literary Management – open
Jennifer Laughran of Andrea Brown Literary Agency – open
Steven Malk of Writers House – open, but concentrating on current clients
Holly McGhee of Pippin Properties – open
Erin Murphy of Erin Murphy Literary Agency – closed (open to referrals only)
Edward Necarsulmer IV of Dunow, Carlson & Lerner Literary Agency, Inc. – open
Lori Nowicki of Painted Words – open
Anna Olswanger of Olswanger Literary – open
Ammi-Joan Paquette of Erin Murphy Literary Agency – closed (open to referrals only)
Alexandra Penfold of Upstart Crow Literary – closed
Rubin Pfeffer of Rubin Pfeffer Content – closed (open to referrals only)
Paul Rodeen of Rodeen Literary Management – open
Jennifer Rofé of Andrea Brown Literary Agency – open
Kathleen Rushall of Andrea Brown Literary Agency – open
Abigail Samoun of Red Fox Literary – closed (open to referrals only)
Rebecca Sherman of Writers House – open
Kelly Sonnack of Andrea Brown Literary Agency – closed
Rosemary Stimola of Stimola Literary Studio – open
Caryn Wiseman of Andrea Brown Literary Agency – open
Literary Agents Submission Status
David,
Thanks so much for taking the time to share this information. I am presently creating a prospect agent list, and I find this truly valuable. I hope you continue to do the updates. It’s very kind of you to share this.
Love & gratitude,
Aimee