Our annual Literary Agents Issue explores what agents wish you knew, including straight talk from the experts on how to connect, what it takes to sell your book, and how fast they should be answering your e-mails; a profile of Julia Phillips, author of the novel Bear; our twenty-fourth annual roundup of the season’s best debut fiction; a special report on the closure of Small Press Distribution; tips for getting indie bookstores to say yes to your book event; a poet’s account of the writing life in Alaska; plus writing prompts, contest deadlines, and more.
July/August 2024
Features
Hope and Terror: A Profile of Julia Phillips
In her second novel, Bear, Julia Phillips takes inspiration from a Brothers Grimm fairy tale to tell the haunting story of two sisters who encounter a mysterious creature in the woods that forces them to confront an unexpected truth.
First Fiction 2024
Laura van den Berg, Jessamine Chan, Akil Kumarasamy, Ayşegül Savaş, and Julie Buntin introduce the authors of this summer’s best debut fiction: ’Pemi Aguda, Jiaming Tang, Michael Deagler, Yasmin Zaher, and Gina María Balibrera.
What Agents Wish You Knew: Straight Talk From the Experts on How to Connect, What It Takes to Sell Your Book, and How Fast They Should Be Answering Your E-mails
I’ll Read What She’s Writing: Advice for Agent Speed Dating
Agent speed-dating sessions can often be sweat-slicked, stressful situations. A literary agent clarifies expectations from her perspective to help writers optimally navigate their limited time with each person they meet.
When It Happens to You: What to Do When an Agent Makes Contact
Getting fan mail from an agent is a great thing! An agent and writer share about the beginnings of their partnership and emphasize the importance of taking your time to find people who are in community with your work.
Fair Expectations: What Can a Writer Expect From Their Agent?
Writers understandably want an agent who can do it all and more—while that might not always be in the cards, you should feel justified seeking a trusted advocate who communicates clearly and shows respect to you and your work.
Persistence, Partnership, and Keeping the Faith: What Your Agent Wishes You Knew While You’re Out on Submission
After years of work, the submission process is another nail-biting endeavor on the journey to publication. An award-winning author compiles agent advice to soothe anxious nerves and encourages writers to believe in their book-to-be.
News and Trends
The End of Small Press Distribution
The closure of Small Press Distribution, a nonprofit that served nearly four hundred publishers, is prompting a reimagining of how books get into readers’ hands as independent publishers search for viable alternatives.
Page One: Where New and Noteworthy Books Begin
The first lines of a dozen noteworthy books, including Call This Mutiny: Uncollected Poems by Craig Santos Perez and The Road to the Country by Chigozie Obioma.
A New Imprint for Latinx Authors
Primero Sueño Press, which translates to “First Dream Press,” envisions deeper recognition for historically underrepresented Latinx readers and authors with an out-of-the-box, bilingual, bicultural imprint led by Michelle Herrera Mulligan.
The Anthologist: A Compendium of Uncommon Collections
A look at two new anthologies, including Rescue Party: A Graphic Anthology of COVID Lockdown, edited by Gabe Fowler.
Connecting Writers to Agents of Color
The Equity Directory is just one of the resources that the Literary Agents of Color initiative has developed to increase visibility of BIPOC agents and encourage new, fruitful relationships between agents and authors.
Small Press Points: Airlie Press
Founded seventeen years ago to support poetry from the Pacific Northwest, Airlie Press is a nonprofit publisher guided by a unique rotating editorial board of poets from Oregon, Washington, and Idaho.
Literary MagNet: Shze-Hui Tjoa
The author of The Story Game, a debut memoir, introduces some of the journals that helped her explore the interplay between memory and storytelling, including So to Speak and Colorado Review.
The Written Image: Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House Library Books
Twenty tiny books, including poetry collections, short tales, plays, and other works, were added this year to the miniature library collection in Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House to celebrate the royal dollhouse’s centennial anniversary.
Q&A: Arleta Little Leads the Loft at Fifty
The executive director of the Loft Literary Center, a literary arts nonprofit in Minneapolis, celebrates the organization’s fifty years of connecting authors with audiences and reflects on future plans.
The Practical Writer
Publishing Myths: “Agents Don’t Read Your E-mails”
In our column debunking the myths of the publishing industry, a veteran agent breaks down her submissions workflow and assures writers that their queries are getting read—and with care—despite long response times.
Set Your Pitch Apart: Getting Indie Bookstores to Say Yes to Your Book Event
Event coordinators and bookstore owners are often inundated with pitches. An experienced author shares some best practices for getting through the noise to catch booksellers’ attention and see your book in the spaces you love.
Opening Our Pages: An Editor’s Journey to Publishing Incarcerated Writers
The editor in chief of Dogwood describes some of the ways the journal makes itself more accessible for incarcerated individuals, including fee waivers and a commitment to working through the complex prison mail system.
The Literary Life
The Time Is Now: Writing Prompts and Exercises
Write an angsty poem that utilizes sound and diction to guide readers toward the light, a short story that employs subheadings to provide an alternate perspective, or a series of short musings that riff on amusing fragments of language.
Why We Write: How Poetry and Prose Helped Deliver Me From a 241-Year Prison Sentence
A formerly incarcerated writer reflects on the healing power of words and how writing sustained him during the twenty-seven years he served in prison for a crime he committed as a teenager.
The Waiting Seasons: One Poet’s Life in Alaska
From her home just outside of Fairbanks proper, a poet subverts mainstream Alaskan imagery to conjure the reality of her writing life, which includes a local waste transfer site, muddy shoulder seasons, and slow internet.