New Stuff at The Write Stuff 2011

Tammy Burke, GLVWG’s 2011 Write Stuff

Conference Chair, has had business articles published

 in magazines on the northeast coast and won an award for best mid-length article in 

2001.  She is currently working on her first YA book "Uriah’s Window."

Over drinks after The Write Stuff 2010 conference had just concluded, Tammy Burke, then Conference Co-chair, was already contemplating who she might invite to be the keynote speaker for the 2011 conference. She sighed and said she’d give herself a week off, as if she were being indulgent, before starting work on this year’s conference. Yes, it takes a year and a whole lot of work to plan a successful, well organized Write Stuff conference. Many wondered how she would repeat last year’s success with James Frey as keynote speaker and preconference presenter. Tammy enthusiastically took up the challenge and delivered by booking Donald Maass as keynote speaker and preconference workshop presenter, along with a second preconference workshop with Lisa Rector-Maass, in addition to a whole slate of great presentations by renowned writers and publishing professionals. With The Write Stuff 2011 conference weeks away, Tori Bond, GLVWG President Ex Officio  interviewed Tammy Burke, Conference Chair, and Donna Brennan, Conference Co-chair, to find out what’s new this year, get advice on how to get the most out of the conference, and much more.

Tori Bond: Each year the Write Stuff conference seems to get better and better. What’s new this year?

Tammy Burke: Since our last year’s two day preconference workshop How to Plot Like the Pros by James N. Frey was so well received, we decided to include the preconference workshop again. However, this year it’s been expanded to include three workshops by two well-known presenters. Donald Maass, president of the Donald Maass Literary Agency and well known author and workshop leader will be teaching an 8 hour session Writing the Breakout Novel on Thursday, March 24, 2011 and 4 hour session Fire in Fiction on Friday morning, March 25, 2011. His wife, Lisa Rector-Maass, independent editor and owner of Third Draft NYC will be teaching a four hour Sagging Middle workshop on Friday afternoon, March 25, 2011. The price
we are able to offer these workshops for is exciting as well.

Tori: For anyone that has not registered yet, can you explain the difference between the pre-conference workshops and the conference? Does one have to sign-up for the conference in order to take one or both of the preconference workshops?

Tammy: Let me answer the second question first. No. One does not have to sign up for the conference to sign up for the preconference workshop(s). You can choose to sign up for all three: the conference, the Donald Maass workshops, and the Lisa Rector workshop. Or you can pick and choose as you please among them. The only restriction is the cutoff date of March 12, 2011 or when our venue fills, whichever comes first.

As to the differences between the conference and the preconference workshops, the conference itself offers more variety and activities than the preconference workshops while the preconference workshop runs longer and offers a more in depth concentration of topic discussion and material by renowned workshop leaders.

For example, the conference opens Friday evening, March 25 with a choice of sessions, Tuning Your Pitch: The Essential Notes led by literary agents Blair Hewes and Katie Grimm OR Page Cuts, a limited enrollment session where the participants have the first page of their manuscript read by a moderator and critiqued by a panel of agents, editors and/or published authors. Afterwards, conferees can attend the reception party. Saturday has a great line-up with 11 wonderful presenters for 17 concurrent 50 minute sessions, a two hour workshop with New York Times Bestselling author, Jonathan Maberry and celebrated nonfiction writer, Janice Gable Bashman, keynote speech Writing 21st Century Fiction by Donald Maass, an opportunity to sign up for a 10 minute pitch session with one of our six agents or two editors, along with a Flash Fiction Contest, and Book Fair with giveaways and door prizes.

Tori: Will we see a return of Write Stuff Writers Café on Thursday night? Is there a topic of discussion planned yet?

Tammy: The Writers Café was well received last year and we will repeat it again this year. For those not familiar with the Writers Café, it is a gathering of writers that meet monthly to talk about various aspects of the craft and marketing of writing. We will be holding a Write Stuff version of the Writers Café on Thursday night at 7:30 – 9:30 PM. It is a great time to interact, network, share and learn with fellow writers.

Our moderator, Bart Palamaro, plans on opening the discussion to topics that the attendees wish to discuss. It’s very likely that the conversation will turn to pitches so if you have a pitch you’d like to try out, please bring it along.

Tori: Also last year, the hotel provided a buffet dinner on Friday night, making it possible for conferees to get a quick meal between the end of the workshop and the beginning of Friday night’s activities. Will the hotel provide this again this year? What is the cost and what time will the buffet be available?

Tammy: There is limited time between the end of the preconference workshop and the beginning of the conference which made the buffet dinner at the hotel on Friday night a hit last year. I personally enjoyed last year’s buffet myself. The buffet will be open from 5 – 6:30 pm on Friday, March 25, 2011. The cost will be $16.96 (includes tax and gratuity). Additionally, the hotel offers sandwiches and other quick foods at the front desk for those looking for another option.

Tori: I’ve heard rumor of an activity or social event being planned for conferees that will be at the hotel Wednesday evening, March 23rd. Can you confirm the rumor? What’s being planned?

Tammy: My co-chair, Donna Brennan, and I spoke with the hotel catering manager about doing an informal happy hour Wednesday evening. What we discovered is the hotel runs a happy hour Monday through Friday 5 to 7 with discounted prices on selected appetizers and drinks. We’ve decided to take advantage of the happy hour and invite all those wishing to come out and interact with their fellow conferees before everything kicks off. Please come and join us.

Also as an FYI, Friday night after the conference reception ends, the hotel bar will remain open and there will be a DJ and music.

Tori : What advice would you give to someone new to the Write Stuff conference? For instance, make sure you check out… or don’t be shy about… What’s the best tip you can give to conferees about getting the most out of the conference?

Tammy: Our conference is well know for the quality and the fact that YOU can talk to the presenters, the agents, and editors at the reception party, maybe in line at Saturday lunch, at the book fair, possibly during the scheduled breaks, etc. And with saying that, my first tip is to make the most of the opportunities presented. Not only is this a great environment to learn but also to network. I would recommend preparing a 30 to 60 second elevator speech on what you write (for when you get asked), a handful of business cards (for when you want to trade contact info with someone), and the willingness to get out there and talk with other conferees and presenters.

I also would recommend looking over the schedule and deciding which sessions most appeal to you ahead of time. I know I’m going to have difficulty decided which ones I’m attending. They all look so good. Please be aware that some of the choices have limited enrollment. For example, the Interviewing workshop by Jonathan Maberry and Janice Bashman is now currently full with a waiting list being filled.

And for individuals electing to schedule a pitch appointment with one of our agents or editors, please check out our Tip page.    We also have a great Flash Fiction contest. If you’re interested in entering, the rules are here and even if you choose not to enter the contest, please make it a point to vote for your favorite entry.

Tori Bond, GLVWG President Ex Officio, writes women’s fiction and humor, has won 

honorable mention in the 76th Annual Writer’s Digest Writing Competition and is currently 

pursuing an MFA in creative writing at Rosemont College.

(to be continued on Friday, February 18, 2011 )  

Also keep in mind - Early bird registration ends February 25, 2011!

Polish Your Pitch & Meet Agent/Editor Chair Kathryn Craft

One of the annual staples and highlights of the Write Stuff conference is the opportunity to pitch to and network with agents and editors. The person in the know about this year’s panel is Agent-Editor Chair Kathryn Craft, a developmental editor at Writing-Partner.com, who writes women’s
fiction and memoir, and was an arts journalist for 19 years. She has spoken about writing and the publication process in person for writers groups, libraries, and schools, and on television and radio as well. She blogs at Healing Through Writing and at The Blood-Red Pencil, where she is a
contributing editor. GLVWG President Ex Officio Tori Bond asked Kathryn to share her tips on pitching at the Write Stuff 2011 conference.

Tori Bond: For those who have signed up for an agent or editor pitch session, what’s the most important thing they can do to prepare for their pitch?

Kathryn Craft: Learn the difference between a pitch and a plot. We’ll be talking about this at the pitching workshop I’ll be giving at Palmer Library on Feb. 26. Many times I heard one of my (many) favorite Write Stuff presenters, Molly Cochran, say: “What’s your book about?—but don’t tell me the plot!” I found that baffling for the longest time, and my first pitch showed it. I went on and on, saying that this happens then that happens, leaving the poor agent to try to collect the pieces into a cogent whole. You, as author, should know the cogent whole! Boil the essence of your book down to two or three sentences. I’ll show you how at the workshop.

For more information the Kathryn Craft workshop, “Learn to Pitch: It's Catching!" Click here.

T: A pitch session is ten minutes long, which doesn’t sound like much time to sell an agent or editor on a book. What advice would you give conferees about making the best of their ten minutes?

K: First, relax. Ten minutes is more than enough time. The pitches at the Philadelphia Writers Conference are five minutes—that, too, is plenty of time, if you have the essence of your book boiled down to two or three intriguing sentences. The idea isn’t to tell all, it’s to make the agent want to hear more.

After introducing yourself, give your initial pitch, then sit back and let what you’ve said sink in a moment. It’s possible this agent just heard 14 other pitches in a row, and there are other conversations going on in the room to distract him, so he might want to ask a follow-up question.  Even if not asked, try to steer the subsequent conversation around to why you’re the perfect person to write this book, because this can be a compelling reason for them to have faith in your ability to write it well. (“I was in Montserrat when the volcano blew, and helped rescue the victims!”)

One last piece of advice: if she says “Sounds great, I’d like to have a look,” and slides you her business card, don’t lose your marbles yet! Continue in a professional vein with this important question: “What would you like me to send?” She might say the first three chapters and synopsis, the first 50 pages, or the whole thing. Then ask, “Would you like me to send a hard copy, or e-mail it as a word attachment? .doc, or .docx?” Many agents are very specific about how they want to receive your materials, and extending yourself this way will make a good impression.  Then, once outside the room, write what they asked for on the back of the business card so you don’t forget. THEN jump up and down!! A request for the full manuscript does not by any means guarantee an offer of representation—but on the other hand, you can’t possibly get published unless you get the manuscript read by the right professionals, and you’ve made a great start!

T: There are other opportunities besides a pitch session to network with agents and editors at the conference. Can you talk about these opportunities and what advice would you give about when and how to approach them?

K: The Friday night party is a good place to talk to agents and editors, but since this is primarily a social occasion, try a softer sell. Start a conversation, show your knowledge of and interest in their work. This could result in an invitation from the agent to tell them about your work—after which, of course, you could say, “May I send you some sample chapters?”—and you’re on your way. You also might honor the social nature of the occasion by saying that you hope to pitch to her this weekend, but couldn’t get an appointment. Might she be able to meet with you sometime during the conference tomorrow? She might just say, “How about now?” Or she might give you a time the next day. The lobby has several comfy conversational groupings that could work for a pitch, as does the hotel restaurant.

In recent years I’ve heard some agents say that it’s not so cool to pitch them at lunch. They are human beings, they’ve been “on” all morning, and they would like to relax and refuel the tank. And breakfast might just be too darn early—frankly, I’ve noticed many agents do not attend our breakfast, so that they aren’t accosted so early. That said, these agents are here to find their next great client, so don’t lose an opportunity at lunch if an agent is sitting right next to you. You might want to think about using one of the soft sell techniques, above. And hopefully it goes without saying: we all deserve privacy in the bathroom! Just don’t wait until the Saturday afternoon social: most of the agents are eager to catch the 3:45 pm bus back to New York.

Here’s a list of genres represented by this year’s line-up of agents and editors. Check it out:

Literary fiction - 4
Literary horror
Literary thrillers
Commercial fiction - 2
Crime fiction (mysteries) - 4
Horror
Historical fiction - 2
Women’s fiction - 2
Romance
Paranormal romance
Science fiction - 2
Thrillers - 2

Fantasy
Urban fantasy
Westerns
Inspirational fiction
Young adult - 5
Middle grade - 2
Children’s
Short story collections
Short fiction
Short story collections
Novellas
Memoir - 4
Narrative nonfiction - 4
Serious nonfiction - 3
Cookbooks

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Meet Keith Strunk

Keith Strunk is an actor, teacher, author, co-founder and Managing Director of River Union Stage, and a partner in Interlude Group LLC, a company specializing in training and development.  Keith will present “Writing Dialog That Works” and “The Author as the Storyteller,” at the Write Stuff conference. Tori Bond interviewed Keith about how his acting experience impacts the way he writes and what writers can learn from an actor about writing and self promotion. For Keith’s full bio, click here.

Tori Bond: As a writer who is also an actor, what do you feel is the biggest mistake writers make when writing dialog?  What do actors know about writing scenes that writers often overlook?

Keith Strunk: In a good script, every scene, every sentence, every word should drive the story forward.  Because of this, an actor knows that they have to fully bring each and every word that the author gives them to life.  The question is, how?  The answer lives largely in one word – SPECIFIC.  Every choice made in articulating the words of the author has to be specific.  The worst possible direction an actor gets is, “you’re being too general.”  For an actor, a scene, and the dialogue that drives it, being too general is the kiss of death.  The biggest single mistake I see writers make in writing dialogue for any genre is not being specific regarding objective, point of view, and action.  The hardest thing actors have to do is to take general, poorly written dialogue and make it sound real.  I’ve found that books on screenwriting such as Screenplay: The Foundations of Screenwriting by Syd Fields or Story: Substance, Structure, Style and The Principles of Screenwriting by Robert McKee provide valuable insight on writing good dialogue regardless of genre.

T: How does your experience and training as an actor impact the way you write?

K: Actors have a passion for fully realizing a character within a story and breathing life into the words of the author.  Our actor’s training gives craft to that passion and sets us free to explore and create living, breathing people from words on a page.  The craft of creating characters lies at the heart of my process as writer.  Characters fascinate me.  Any story that I create starts with them.  I tend to focus on who they are and what drives them well before the pieces of the story fall together.  For me, the story evolves through the very real needs of the characters, which in turn, push the plot points of the story.  I find that I tend to write dialogue scenes first and build out from there.  Even Prallsville Mills and Stockton, my book that captures local oral history is driven by the colorful characters of the town as described in the stories told to me by the locals.

T: In today’s publishing world, writers are required to do most or all of the marketing for their books, forcing them to be public personalities, or as you’ll be presenting at the conference, “Author as the Storyteller.” Many writers are shy introverted types. How can the shy writer begin to put themselves out there more comfortably? Do you have any tricks to help the author as storyteller calm their nerves during a public reading?

K: We are, all of us, characters in our own right.  We each have distinct aspects of our personality that either add to or detract from our “public persona” as authors and writers.  If there is a “trick,” it’s in understanding how our audience or “public” perceives us and using the truthful aspects of ourselves to support that perception.  There is comfort in knowing that the public interacts with a selective portion of ourselves that we choose to share.  We feel less out of control when faced with an audience when we control the content of our “public persona.”  In addition, having a clear sense of our own “story” – beginning, middle, and sequels – gives us more control of the public conversation about and perception of us as authors.  As for nerves, we’ll discuss in the workshop why they are not only necessary, but essential for doing an effective public reading, presentation, or performance.

T: You’ve been quoted in Writer’s Digest January 2011 article “Joining Forces” for being a successful Liar. In that article you stated that being a member of the Liar’s Club has given you clout with agents and editors.  What can other writers glean from the Liars Club model to help them market their books and gain access to agents and editors?

K: In author Marie Lamba’s January 2011 Writer’s Digest article, “Joining Forces,” Jennifer DeChiara of the Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency says, “It greatly improves a book’s chances if the author has a solid record of self-promotion.”  Jennifer’s comment makes clear that successful, author-driven promotion is essential in today’s world of publishing.  Although, we all bring any number of skills to the table that are useful in promoting our work, rarely, do we bring ALL the skills needed for success in this realm.  Bring together a number of authors with a diverse set of promotion skills and suddenly self-promotion becomes a lot less onerous and downright fun.  The Liars Club model simply says, “There’s power in numbers.”

T: I’ve attended a Liars Club event which was informative and enjoyable for the audience, but the Liars looked like they were having fun too, while also promoting their books. What is the most enjoyable aspect of being a Liar? What is the most challenging part of book promotion?

K: I think the most challenging part of book promotion can be summed up in three words, “The Long Haul.”  All of us have attended or had events that are successful and fun.  Promoting a book or yourself as an author is made up of ongoing events, signings, leading workshops (yep, I’m self-promoting), talks, book club appearances, interviews, conferences, panel discussions, etc, etc.  It can be an exhausting and, at times, demoralizing long haul if you do it all on your own.  Throw together some like-minded authors, with an optimistic view of the business (this is crucial), an irreverent sense of fun (also crucial), and the ability and drive to get things done, and “the long haul” is still long but the trip is a lot more fun and productive.  As for “the most enjoyable aspect of being a Liar.”  For me it’s the group’s ability to focus on what is possible in an unpredictable and sometimes impossible world.  And the drinks and food, of course.

T: What’s next for you? What writing projects are you working on?

K: The emergence of eBooks as a viable path to publication is creating the same kind of energy as the independent film movement did 30 years ago.  For that reason, I’m exploring publishing my illustrated children’s book, FF Manny Thing and Me, as an eBook.  It’s beautifully illustrated by artist Barry Sharplin and a lot of fun to read out loud.  My partner Laura Swanson and I are working on an adaptation of Shakespeare’s As You Like It for 4th and 5th grade students in River Union Stage’s outreach program (the real thing not watered down).  Finally, I’m working on a YA novel set in a film noir/steampunk world.

Meet Publisher Karen Syed

By Kathryn Craft

Karen Syed, Publisher at Echelon Press, is becoming quite a friend of The Write Stuff conference. In her last few visits with us she has signed authors Kieryn Nicolas, Jon Gibbs, Ralph Hieb, and Carla Veno Jones.

About Echelon Press
Echelon Press is a small independent publisher of trade paperbacks and e-books. Its divisions include Quake (young adult), Explorations (SF, Fantasy, Horror) and Shorts. General submissions are for electronic publication only; titles for paperback publication are acquired by invitation only. The most effective way of securing an invitation is by in-house author referral, or by meeting with Karen at The Write Stuff!

What they are looking for: They accept queries in all fiction genres, including romance, mystery (including cozy, hard-boiled, police procedural, noir), thrillers, westerns, inspirational, women's fiction, historical, young adult, science fiction, fantasy, horror, novellas, and short fiction. Submissions must include a detailed marketing strategy.

What they are not looking for: Erotica, non-fiction.

About Karen Syed

Karen Syed is the president and COO of Echelon Press, LLC. Every day is a new success story for her as she continues to grow along with her business. She has seen seven of her own novels published (writing as Alexis Hart), along with numerous articles and short stories. As a former bookstore owner, she garnered a nomination from Publishers Weekly for their Bookseller of the Year award. She is committed to helping and encouraging everyone she comes in contact with to seek a healthier and more positive quality of life by reaching for their dreams. Her newest fascination is Steampunk, which is feeding her minor obsession with the Victorian era. She is currently embarking on her own Steampunk series, Petticoat Junction. 

For more on Karen

Check out some of her blog posts:

On what to do and what not to do when seeking a publisher.

On what makes a good author.

On e-books, and musings about J.A. Konrath.

On "Why I Do This," featuring GLVWG's Kieryn Nicolas.

Meet editor Juliet Grames

By Kathryn Craft


When Juliet Grames last came to our conference, in 2008, it was as Editor at Overlook Press. This year she will represent Soho Press, where she is the Crime Fiction Editor. Soho Press was last represented at our 2005 conference, by co-founder Juris Jurjevics.

About Soho Press
Soho Press is an independent book publisher based in New York City. They publish a superior roster of hardcover and softcover trade books that are primarily publishes fiction, with the occasional autobiography or cultural historical account. Completed manuscripts should be 60,000 words or more. While many of their published works arrive here through agents, they place a high priority on publishing quality unsolicited materials from new writers. Authors on the Soho Press backlist include Oprah winner and National Book Award finalist Edwidge Danticat, Sue Townsend, Maria Thomas, Jake Arnott, Stephen Fry, John L'Heureux, Delores Phillips, and Jacqueline Winspear. 


What they're not looking for: Though eager to accept a wide range of literary fiction, they do not consider formula fiction, young adult dramas, stock romances, juvenile literature, short story collections, cookbooks, how-to books, self-help, fantasy, and anything that might recommend itself as a "quick read."


Click here for recent releases.


About Juliet Grames
Juliet is Editor at Soho Press, where she acquires and edits for the Soho Crime imprint. Now 20 years old, Soho Crime specializes in mystery and crimes series set in other countries and cultures. At Soho Crime, cultural components and rich atmospheric settings are almost as important as the mystery itself. If you have a great mystery—preferably the first in an envisioned series—set in a locale outside of the United States, and whose detective or amateur sleuth is native to the locale in question, you should definitely let Juliet know!


In August, after I invited her to the conference, Juliet wrote back:

I would just LOVE to attend! I think you already know how much fun I had in 2008 with you guys.

Just to give you a feel of my new landscape, Soho is freakin' awesome. We do half crime fiction, half literary fiction, and we do acquire from unagented authors. So I'm happy to do pitch sessions, etc. I'm personally the crime specialist here—I do all the crime acquisition and curating—so if you'd like a crime workshop, or some other talk, etc, I am very happy to do one.

And with that, her 2011 Write Stuff session, "Elements of a Bloody Good Crime Novel," was born.


We asked Juliet:

In what ways does your past experience as a bookseller inform your work as an editor? 
I think all editors should work in bookstores at some point—it gives you a great idea about what categories are being sold in retail stores, who buys what, which genres move the most copies, which covers customers react well too, what people are buzzing about. I simply can’t imagine not having that experience before starting in editorial! But I’ve seen it happen where really top-notch editors buy books that end up flopping because there’s no good category for them in bookstores. That’s a mistake a former bookseller would never make!

What is your favorite aspect of your job, and why?
I’m kind of a dork about editing. I love to edit. I love taking something that’s 80% perfect and making it 100% perfect. I love working with authors, exchanging ideas, and collaborating as a team to reach a goal. It’s just so satisfying. Creative people are also generally wonderful people to work with, and I feel really blessed to maintain friendships with authors long after books are published.



For more about Juliet

To get more of a sense of Juliet, check out this letter she wrote to her new company back in May. If you click on the link at the end you'll learn more about Soho Press as well:

Dear Soho Press,

It’s me here, Juliet Grames, your new editor. You know, the one who just started. So I know it’s not exactly elegant for me to come out and say, but I’d better just put it out there, lest it nag at our blossoming relationship. So here goes.

I have a big crush on you.

There, I said it.

It’s true–I’ve had a crush on you for a while, ever since I read my first Soho book... (read more)

Get to know Soho better through Juliet's blog entry about Rock Paper Tiger, a recent release by Lisa Brackman:

Soho publishes two new hardcovers a month: one international detective novel for Soho Crime, and one literary novel or memoir for Soho Press. When I started in May, Ailen, the Marketing Director, slipped me a shiny new copy of Lisa Brackmann’s Rock Paper Tiger, the story of Ellie, a 26-year-old Iraq vet living in China... (read more)

Meet literary agent Alia Hanna Habib

By Kathryn Craft

About McCormick & Williams
McCormick & Williams is an independent literary agency specializing in literary and commercial fiction and quality non-fiction, including memoir, history, narrative, biography, lifestyle, sports, self-help, and pop culture. Devoted to representing authors at every aspect of successful publishing, their agents are closely involved in each stage of a project, working in tandem with authors to develop ideas, craft proposals, and edit manuscripts to achieve the best marketplace results. Looking beyond the immediate deal, they make certain that their authors are well-served throughout the publication process, with a hands-on approach to editing, design, publicity, marketing, and sales. And as an agency built on the talents and promise of their authors, they take an active role in career management, helping their authors reach their widest possible audience through all available avenues, including magazine writing, lecturing, and the sale of foreign, film/tv, and subsidiary rights throughout the world. Check out some of the recent titles they represented.

About Alia Hanna Habib
After graduating from Barnard College, Alia Hanna Habib began her publishing career at Houghton Mifflin as a publicity assistant to the Director of Cookbook Publicity. There, she says, she "discovered two unexpected loves: cookbooks and breaking out new talent." From reading cookbooks, she learned to cook, and after reading the manuscript of Everything Is Illuminated by Jonathan Safran Foer, she volunteered to work extra hours to help with the publicity campaign. In 2002, she left Houghton to pursue a graduate degree in nineteenth-century British literature. After graduate school, she lived in Italy, where she volunteered on organic farms throughout the Italian peninsula. On returning to New York, Habib was re-hired by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt as a publicity manager. Some of her most notable campaigns include How We Decide by Jonah Lehrer, Whatever It Takes by Paul Tough, Mrs. Astor Regrets by Meryl Gordon, Finding Nouf by Zoë Ferraris, and Hello, Cupcake! by Karen Tack and Alan Richardson. Habib is now a literary agent at McCormick & Williams in New York City. She lives in Brooklyn and says she still loves to cook.

What she represents: Narrative non-fiction, memoir, and cookbooks, as well as the occasional novel that strikes her fancy (among them, literary fiction and mysteries).


For more about Alia:
Interview in ASJA Monthly [expanded bio information above is excerpted from this interview by Barbara DeMarco-Barrett] that includes how Alia uses her publicity background as an agent.


Have a subscription to Publisher's Marketplace? You can see Alia's most recent deals here.

Meet literary agent Katie Grimm

By Kathryn Craft

About Don Congdon Associates
Early in his career as a literary agent, Don Congdon developed an enviable reputation as a skilled editor, tough negotiator and shrewd judge of talent. While still a young editor at Simon & Schuster, he championed the early stories of Ray Bradbury (you may have heard of him!), who became one of his first clients after he became a full-time literary agent in 1947. “I married Don Congdon the same month I married my wife,” Bradbury said in a speech to the National Book Foundation in 2000. “So I had 53 years of being spoiled by my wife and by Don Congdon. We’ve never had a fight or an argument during that time because he’s always been out on the road ahead of me clearing away the dragons and the monsters and the fakes.” Bradbury dedicated his novel Fahrenheit 451 to Congdon. In 1983 Congdon started his own agency, Don Congdon Associates. He died in 2009 at the age of 91, and since then the agency has been run by his son, Michael. The agency represents over one hundred authors, many of whom have appeared on best-seller lists and have won numerous awards, including: Pulitzer Prize and George Polk Award for Journalism winners Russell Baker and Edna Buchanan; National Book Award recipient Ellen Gilchrist; New York Times Best Seller Kathryn Stockett (The Help); James Thurber Prize winner David Sedaris; and Edgar and Grand Master of Horror award winner Richard Matheson.

About Katie Grimm
Katie Grimm joined Don Congdon Associates in 2007 and is a member of the AAR and SCBWI. A self-described "insatiable reader," she worked in a library before starting as the agency's literary assistant/office manager. She is now building her own list.

What she is looking for: Vivid literary fiction, transportive historical fiction, up-market women’s fiction, cohesive short story collections, lurid mysteries and thrillers with exotic or historical settings, high-concept young adult, and middle grade with heart and humor. Most importantly, she hooked by fiction with emotional resonance and longevity, and in her opinion, this requires an authentic voice, relatable characters, and a twisting plot that keeps her intrigued. For non-fiction, she is looking for offbeat narrative non-fiction, history, memoir with distinct voice, multi-cultural, and counter-culture.

What she is not looking for: Romance, high fantasy, adult speculative fiction, hard sci-fi, thrillers with terrorist plots, how-to, or inspirational.

For more about Katie:
Interview at Chuck Sambuchino's Guide to Literary Agents blog that includes why she loves "surprising protagonists."

Interview at WordHustler including what she likes in a query and why she loves YA/MG.

Interview at Middle Grade Ninja that includes her favorite books, movies, and shows and a description of her ideal client.