5 agents you can query today 💌

Agents who have newly opened to queries (August 19-25)

Happy Monday, writers! As the summer winds down and the kids head back to school — and publishing professionals start returning to their desks — it’s the perfect time to jump back into querying and get your manuscript in front of fresh eyes.

Here are the agents who opened to queries in the past week (August 19-25), along with information about what they’re looking for, some of their published titles, and their query link.

Best of luck, and happy querying!

Note that this newsletter is purely informational and is not an endorsement of any particular agent or agency.

Susan Hawk of Upstart Crow Literary

Susan represents work for children and teens only: picture books, chapter books, middle grade, and young adult, along with some non-fiction for young readers. She doesn’t represent adult projects. Books that tell the stories of people, places, and cultures that have been overlooked and ignored for too long are at the top of her list. 

She’s drawn to projects that are character-driven, tightly plotted, and have a singular, specific voice. Here are some more details about the types of books she’s looking for: 

• Layered, flawed, completely human characters.

• Writing that’s confident, vivid, addictive; work that’s both ambitious and wise.

• Humor is important, even in a narrative that’s dark or sad or edgy.

• Sense of place matters—precise, expressive settings delight her.

• Both literary and commercial work. Send her your high-concept and hooky; your award-winners; the books that will become backlist gold.

• She wants to be surprised—there’s nothing like the feeling that you’re reading something entirely new.

She looks for projects that know kids are smart and perceptive and feeling deeply; that make the reader feel seen. If you’re creating work that could be described as generous, nuanced, and at ease with complexity, she’d love to read it. 

Some published titles: A Taxonomy of Love by Rachael Allen, Birdie and Me by J.M.M. Nuanez, Ever Since by Alena Bruzas

Link to query 💌