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DHH Literary Agency

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DHH Literary Agency

Tag Archives: DHH Literary Agency

Harry Illingworth promoted at D H H Literary Agency

10 Wednesday Feb 2016

Posted by harryillingworth2014 in General

≈ 1 Comment

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David Headley, DHH Literary Agency, Fantasy, genre fiction, Harry Illingworth, Infernal, Literary Agent, science fiction

David Headley, managing director of D H H Literary Agency, has promoted Harry Illingworth from associate agent to literary agent with immediate effect.

Illingworth will be tasked with aiding the agency in the development of its science fiction and fantasy list, which he is currently “actively building”.

Illingworth, who along with Headley also works for Goldsboro Books, has been at the company for nearly three years and in that time has helped the company build its growing profile by promoting the agency’s blog and utilising social media. He has been “hands on” in helping Headley with his list of authors whilst dividing his time between the companies. Headley and Illingworth also recently sold Mark de Jager’s debut fantasy novel, Infernal, to Del Rey UK.

Headley said: “With Harry’s passion for genre fiction, the agency directors feel that the time is now right to make a step forward and promote him to actively build a high profile list of science fiction and fantasy authors.”

Illingworth said: “I’m thrilled to be in this position and can’t wait to help D H H grow our genre list. Science fiction/fantasy is my passion and discovering and working with authors from start to finish is a dream come true. Whilst I’ve got a few projects currently in the works, I can’t wait to get started on building up an exciting list of talented authors.”

http://www.thebookseller.com/news/d-h-h-literary-agency-promotes-harry-illingworth-322420 

Follow Harry on Twitter: @harryillers

Submit to Harry: hi.submission@dhhliteraryagency.com

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The Promise of Publication by Alison Bruce

01 Monday Feb 2016

Posted by harryillingworth2014 in Author Posts

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Alison Bruce, Broo Doherty, Cambridge, Cambridge Blue, Constable and Robinson, DC Gary Goodhew, DHH Literary Agency, Police Procedural, The Promise, The Silence

In the weeks running up to the launch of a book I think I reflect on that book in a different way to at any other time. The point has passed when any changes can be made but, it is too soon to know how it will be received; maybe this ought to be the nerve wracking bit, but it isn’t. For me it’s probably when my thoughts on being a writer are their most clear.

My latest book, The Promise, will be released on 4th February and is the sixth in a series. That’s far enough in to know where the series is heading and to look back on its origins, it’s also a good time to consider its strengths and pitfalls.

The Promise alison bruce

The first thing to confess is that I never set out to write a series. I had one idea for one book, it wasn’t a police procedural but the story of a woman anonymously calling an incident hotline to tip them off about a murderer. Part way through I realised that I did, in fact, need a police officer to follow up on these leads and created DC Gary Goodhew as an incidental character. He slipped into a second chapter, then a third. By the time I completed the final pages I was crying, partly in relief that I’d actually reached the end, partly through exhaustion as it was my third night with no sleep, but mostly because I had grown attached to Goodhew and couldn’t bear the thought of saying goodbye to him.  As I wrote those last few hundred words I decided that I needed to make him the lead character in a series.

In the first book, Cambridge Blue, Goodhew is twenty five years old, he’s the youngest DC at Cambridge’s Parkside Station and working on his first murder investigation. I liked the idea of following a character from the start of his career. Many of the crime novels I read early on seemed to ‘reset’ the characters at the end of each story, but I find it hard to believe that there wouldn’t be a cumulative emotional effect from each difficult case and Goodhew does change over time. This is also why each book in the series has become darker than the last.

Luckily for me Gary Goodhew has endeared himself to many readers who have loyally followed him through some disturbing cases and have been waiting for him to be put through new traumas in the sixth instalment. And it is precisely that which is the beauty of writing a series. The longer story arc allows the reader to experience better paced and more emotionally complex character development, and from the writer’s point of view there is the opportunity to gain a readership that is loyal to the series rather than just the writer. At the launch of my fourth Goodhew novel, The Silence, I suddenly realised that a high proportion of the guests were people I didn’t recognise – and not because my patient friends and family had abandoned me after loyally turning out for the three previous launches – but because people had turned out for Goodhew.

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Just as I’m glad I chose Goodhew as my protagonist I’m also relieved that I chose to set the books in Cambridge rather than a fictitious town. There is a long tradition of inventing locations for novels but there aren’t many situations when I can see an advantage to this. Many readers are attracted to locations they know and Cambridge has worldwide renown. I could never invent somewhere as diverse and still make it believable. I spend time walking around the areas of the city that I choose for each book and end up with a view of the city that’s very personal to the way I see it.

Writing a series has worked well for me but with every upside there must, unfortunately, be a downside too. I guess most writers have more ideas than they ever have the time to write. I think of plots that won’t work for Gary and scenarios that can’t happen in Cambridge, I can’t switch to another era or tackle the kind of crime that doesn’t involve the police. At this point there are other books I know I’ll write, but I’m not leaving Goodhew behind yet…

I write in a shed in my garden, it’s cold in the winter but if I put the heating on I doze off, so I sit with my legs in a sleeping bag, wearing hat, coat and blankets, and type wearing fingerless gloves knitted by my friend Claire. Other friends gave me shed warming gifts too: a mug carrying the slogan, Don’t worry about my browsing history – I’m a writer not a serial killer, my Post-it Notes shaped like  corpses and the Agatha Christie mug mat that was delivered in an evidence bag. To one side of the desk is a book shelf containing copies of the Goodhew novels. At some point this week I’ll be adding number six to the collection as I continue to work on number seven. I know Goodhew better than all but one or two real people, I know he’s fictitious but, at the same time, have to admit that he’s great company and my workplace and everything in it has come about because of him.

So I’ll be sitting in my shed with all six books beside me and reflecting on how it feels to be at this point in the series. Of course I hope Goodhew’s fans enjoy The Promise, and of course I hope there are new readers who discover the series for the first time but, most of all, I think I’ll take a moment to toast Goodhew and all the adventures we’re having.

You can order The Promise here

Follow Alison on Twitter: @Alison_Bruce

Calling All Great Writers by David H Headley

08 Friday Jan 2016

Posted by harryillingworth2014 in Agent Posts

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Before I go to Sleep, David Headley, DHH Literary Agency, Pillars of the Earth, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen, The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry

It is a new year and I am looking for exciting new clients. I have been thinking about some of the books that I wished I had represented and I thought that I would share them with you so that you may get an idea of the kind of books that I am looking for.

The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry – Rachel Joyce

I love this book so much. It’s about turning the ordinary of every day life into the extraordinary, and universally meaningful. Rachel Joyce really understands humanity and has got to the heart of human relationships and that need for fulfillment. (I might actually start crying as I write thinking about it again). It’s about the small moments in life that we all experience, which change the course of our existence. I remember sitting down to read it, it took me five hours and I didn’t move from the moment I started to the moment I finished.

I’d love to see books like this in my submission pile. Stories about ordinary people where the emotion of the story and the shared human experience elevate the story into something beautiful.

 

Pillars of the Earth – Ken Follett

This took me a whole weekend to read but for a 900 page book that’s quite quick. Ken Follett has this skill of telling an amazing story without making you feel like you’re reading a long book. I’d go as far as to say that this is like reading a thriller but it’s a sweeping historical novel. Again, it’s about very small people who make a very big difference. It’s one of the best historical novels I’ve ever read and I can see why it’s become a national treasure.

Like Pillars of Earth I’d love to find a book that brings that contemporary thriller feel to an historical story and gives a great sense of the motivations and internal realities of the people.

 

Salmon Fishing in the Yemen – Paul Torday

This is another book I read in one sitting (there’s a theme here…). It’s about belief and wanting to make things happen (which ties into Pillars of the Earth now I think about it). This is a love story between a man and his country and it’s about the lengths people will go to achieve the impossible and the power of collective belief in something. As the reader you’re invested in the characters’ motivations and justifications for what they want to do and you’re right there with them, rooting for them to succeed. It’s absolutely brilliant storytelling.

I’d love to see something that absorbs me in a character’s quest as wholeheartedly as this did. I want to feel like I’m there, believing they can achieve it against the odds and celebrating with them when they do. I want to be completely transported to the world of your characters.

 

Before I Go To Sleep – SJ Watson

On the 3rd September 2010 I sat down to read a bound manuscript for a book which was to become one of the biggest selling psychological thrillers of recent times. I remember the exact date because I remember exactly where I was, and again, I read it in one sitting. The voice is incredibly compelling and I needed to know what was going to happen to this woman who couldn’t remember who she was, where she was, where she was from or where she was going. The story was exciting – there’s no better word for it. The reading experience was thrilling.

Psychological thrillers are big news right now, they may not continue to be as big as they are but they’re one of those perennial genres which are always published and always popular so I don’t think they’re going away completely. But, to succeed the story has to do something new and surprising and the writer has to be able to conjure a unique and engaging voice. That’s what I want to see.

 

If you think your book would appeal based on what I have written I’d love to hear from you. Please do follow my submission guidelines and I look forward to reading your work.

 

Submit to David: Submission@dhhliteraryagency.com

Follow David on twitter: @Davidhheadley

Four Favourites for 2015 by Broo Doherty

15 Tuesday Dec 2015

Posted by harryillingworth2014 in Agent Posts

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A Little Life, Broo Doherty, DHH Literary Agency, Hanya Yanagihara, Kate Morton, Literary Agent, Louise O'Neill, Max Porter

I find this time of year both exhilarating, full of anticipation of a chaotic family Christmas, but wistful as I reflect back on the year just gone, the people whom I’ve lost and the people less fortunate than me who are going to be spending Christmas in difficult surroundings.  But it is also a time to consider the four most impressive books I’ve read this year, each very different, but each memorable in their particular way.

The first, A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara, is a stunning novel which records the meaning of friendship and the value of unconditional love. At times cruel and heart-stoppingly brutal, it is a story that will live with me for years to come.  I haven’t read anything quite so affecting for years.  Louise O’Neill’s Asking for It is another book I won’t forget – powerful and raw it records the long-term effect of a gang rape on a young Irish girl’s family with extraordinary directness. Not for the feint-hearted, and aimed at the YA market, it is a book that took me out of my comfort zone, but it was a journey well worth taking. I’m late to the party as far as Kate Morton is concerned, but I read The Distant Hours and couldn’t put it down. Evocative and atmospheric, it is the beautifully observed story about one girl’s quest to unearth her mother’s past life and it really delivers. The warmth of this author’s storytelling, combined with the love of her characters, is the defining feature of this writer, and in my humble opinion, she deserves all the accolades she has received.  And lastly for something very different: the powerful and utterly emotional wreck-inducing Grief is the Thing with Feathers by Max Porter, the experimental novel that confronts life, love and grief. Very different, highly original and utterly absorbing.

So four books, all different, but all powerful in their own right. What I realise, though, is that the defining feature of them all is the warmth with which their creators deal with their characters.  It is that love for the protagonist which makes these novels – and that ultimately defines what I look for in a novel.  They have taken me to places I would never normally experience in my day-to-day life, but they have opened my imagination to a place beyond – and that has to be the art of true storytelling.

Happy Christmas… and happy reading.

 

You can send your novel to Broo: BD.Submmission@dhhliteraryagency.com

Read more about Broo Doherty

Follow Broo on twitter: @BrooDoherty

All I want for Christmas by Natasha Bardon

11 Friday Dec 2015

Posted by harryillingworth2014 in Guest Posts

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Cecil Court, Christmas, DHH Literary Agency, George R.R. Martin, Goldsboro Books, Harper Voyager UK, Natasha Bardon, Robin Hobb, science fiction

We’re delighted to have a guest post on the D H H Literary Agency blog from Natasha Bardon, Deputy Publishing Director of Harper Voyager UK. We’ve long known Natasha as one of the strongest forces in SFF publishing, she works with everyone from George R.R. Martin to Robin Hobb to Joe Abercrombie. Today we’re thrilled to host her warm and moving post about all she wants for Christmas. 

 

There’s something quite magical about visiting D H H Literary Agency & Goldsboro Books at Christmas. The lights go up in the window, the books are bathed in a warm, golden light as night creeps in at around four and there’s a hushed silence between customers entering and leaving the shop – an exhalation, not of Christmas cheer, though that of course is there in abundance, but of Christmas calm.

It’s much like those closely guarded and precious moments you stumble upon on Christmas day. Moments such as making the tea before anyone else is awake, or just before Christmas dinner when the table is laid out, crackers un-pulled and everyone happy to wait, just for a moment. That’s exactly how I feel when wandering down Cecil Court: scarf, hat and gloves firmly pulled over the extremities. You stand outside that golden window feasting on the hints of what you’ll find inside and you pause, you take a moment, you enjoy the anticipation of stumbling upon a world that will be all your own – that is yours for the taking.

Christmas Carol Ann  window

 

You enter the shop and off you go, meeting agents, authors and customers alike. So though I could list off all of the books that top my Christmas wish list, what I’m wishing for most this Christmas is time to appreciate the moments we all take for granted. Not the main events (they get all the attention), but the moments before something really wonderful happens; before you discover your new favourite book, or before you walk into Goldsboro and find one signed by the very hand that wrote it.

Merry Christmas,

Natasha

 

You can follow Natasha on twitter: @NatashaBardon

Visit www.goldsborobooks.com

What I’m hoping for this Christmas by Harry Illingworth

09 Wednesday Dec 2015

Posted by harryillingworth2014 in Agent Posts

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

A Little Life, All Involved, Anthony Ryan, Asking for It, Cormac McCarthy, David Headley, David Mitchell, Del Rey UK, DHH Literary Agency, Fantasy, Harry Illingworth, Pierce Brown, Rebecca Levene, science fiction, Submissions, YA

At DHH Literary Agency, we’re all about finding talented authors and nurturing their career. Personally, I love the editorial process and work from start to finish with authors to find them a home in the difficult world of publishing. I learn everyday from my mentors David Headley & Broo Doherty. I assist David with all of his authors and we have a very strong relationship and work fantastically as a team. Recently we sold Mark de Jager’s debut novel, Infernal, to Del Rey UK. It is a dark and thunderous fantasy debut. The reason for this article is to tell you about what it is that I am looking for in submissions this Christmas, but also to tell you about my taste as a reader, so that you might get a better sense for what I’d love to land in my inbox.

I am predominantly looking for genre fiction, preferably on the adult side, (although I love YA and will happily also look at it, but certainly with a slant towards adult). Science fiction and fantasy is what I love. Some of my favourite authors are Joe Abercrombie, Pierce Brown, Anthony Ryan, Cormac McCarthy and many more I’ll go on to mention, and many more I won’t have the chance to. I love epic fantasy, in fact I love all fantasy. I like it dark and edgy, or grimdark as it is commonly now referred. Violence is no problem for me, I welcome it, though it doesn’t need to be gratuitous. I love a quest, and morally dubious characters. Abercrombie nails all this as his adult work is violent, yet darkly humorous, and his current YA series is also one of my recent favourites.

I like to get lost in big secondary worlds, anti-heroes and dangerous and dark arts. I like high-concept novels like Hugh Howey’s Wool trilogy and Claire North is magnificent, and I also love literary sci-fi type literature like Emily St. John Mandel’s Station Eleven. It was my favourite novel of 2015. I only recently discovered Ted Chiang’s work but he is pure class, and I’d also love to see some unique space opera stuff come my way. This year I’ve also loved The Hunter’s Kind by Rebecca Levene, her Hollow Gods series is outstanding, and YA crossover books like Sabaa Tahir’s An Ember in the Ashes and Francesca Haig’s The Fire Sermon have been very strong.

I also like to be made to laugh. Science fiction and fantasy doesn’t have to be serious and I don’t confine myself to the above. I just want to be entertained, Scott Lynch being a great example. Although I have to say I do love a strong, angry voice, Pierce Brown’s Red Rising trilogy, and his protagonist Darrow, being the perfect example. It is one of my favourite trilogies ever and finding something like that would be a dream. For me it is all about a strong hook and great writing that immediately affects me; that is bold and won’t allow me to stop reading. A truly fascinating, memorable protagonist is a huge thing, but it’s not just about the protagonist, but the supporting characters as well. And I know that’s what everyone says. To an extent, everything has been done before, but it doesn’t mean it can’t be done again in different ways, I’d love to find something that makes what it is it’s own. Of course I’d like to find something that’s never been done before, too. But doesn’t everyone?

My taste is not confined exclusively to these genres, and many novels cannot be simply categorised. I love novels that cross genre boundaries, like Station Eleven, and anything by David Mitchell. The Shore has been a standout novel this year. Yet like the aforementioned it crosses genres, with a speculative edge. I’ll even be completely honest and say that my two total favourite books this year haven’t even been ‘genre’ books. A Little Life and All involved blew me away, for so many different reasons it could be a blog post of its own. Finally, I can’t write a wish list blog without mentioning Louise O’Neill. Asking For It is not only one of the best I’ve read this year, it is essential, and her writing is class. It is sharp, brutal and contemporary. Again, just what I’m looking for.

The reason I tell you all this is so that you see how varied my taste is. I read very widely, and I hope you’ll see the kind of thing that I’d love to find in my inbox when you come to submit. I’m happy to read anything, but the more I can help you understand my taste, the better for everyone. If you think my novel might be right for me, I’d really love to hear from you.

You can submit to me at: HI.submission@dhhliteraryagency.com. Please do follow our submission guidleines.

Read more about Harry

I’m vocal on twitter and you can find me: @harryillers

The Deepest Cut to Accent Press

03 Thursday Dec 2015

Posted by harryillingworth2014 in General

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Accent Press, DHH Literary Agency, Hannah Sheppard, Natalie Flynn, Rebecca Lloyd, The Deepest Cut

Accent Press have acquired Natalie Flynn’s debut novel THE DEEPEST CUT from Hannah Sheppard at the DHH Literary Agency.

Adam finds himself under the care of a therapist at a local mental health facility when he’s unable to cope with the death of his best friend. Blaming himself for what happened, Adam is unable to talk and has to resort to writing about the events in a notebook. As he details the weeks leading to Jake’s murder the true heartbreak of who is actually responsible for his death is revealed.

Rebecca Lloyd of Accent says:

‘Natalie Flynn’s debut novel, which has grown out of an already successful play on the same subject, tackles the devastating emotional fall-out from knife crime on a group of young people, and one teenage boy in particular. The Accent YA editor squad – a group of keen young readers who check out advance material – were clamouring to read more, drawn in to this difficult subject by the absolute authenticity of the writing and the compelling narrator’s voice. We are hugely excited to have Natalie as part of our new YA list.’

Natalie Flynn says:

‘Accent’s enthusiasm for YA fiction and dedication to working closely with young people as a part of their editor squad is admirable. I’m thrilled and honoured for THE DEEPEST CUT to be published as a part of their new YA list next year.’

Publication is planned for May 2016.

 

Follow Natalie on twitter: @natwritesstuff

Follow Hannah on twitter: @YA_books

 

 

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The Devil is in the Detail by Mark de Jager

24 Tuesday Nov 2015

Tags

Acquisition, Debut, Del Rey UK, DHH Literary Agency, Fantasy, Hannah Shepperd, Literary Agent, Liz de Jager, Mark de Jager, The Bookseller, Worldcon

Last week saw the announcement of the acquisition of debut fantasy novel Infernal by Mark de Jager. Mark’s editor, Michael Rowley of Del Rey UK said, ‘written in a style that reminds me of bestselling authors Joe Abercrombie and Peter V. Brett, I was instantly drawn to the character Stratus, an anti-hero set to take the genre by storm and break new ground. Like a magical blend of Jason Bourne and Jack Reacher, he moves through the world as an unstoppable force of nature in this action-packed, dark and violent fantasy thriller. We’re thrilled to have Mark on the Del Rey list.’

You can view the article here in The Bookseller, announcing news of the deal, announcing a ‘bold new voice in fantasy fiction.’

The full press release can be viewed here on the DHH blog.

 

The past year has proved to me that time is relative. Little over a year ago I was muddling through the second or third draft of my latest manuscript and quite happy with it, toying with the idea that maybe it was in a good enough shape to let someone else read it.

I bit the bullet and sent it off to a few willing and brave friends and then patiently waited, although by patient I mean largely resisting the urge to whatsapp them for an update every 10 minutes. Eventually though, I had my feedback and was surprised to realise how differently some things had been interpreted. One of the problems with living with a story in your head for so long is that you forget that just because you know that X knows the backstory of Y, no one else does!

After another nip and tuck, I was ready to level up and submit it to an agent. Both Liz and I are fortunate in that we’ve been exposed to the industry in one form or the other for some time, initially via the contacts made while running our (now closed) blog, but more handily for me, I had learned my lessons a lot when Liz went through the process with her Blackhart manuscript. My first course of action was to get hold of a copy of the Writer’s Handbook and made a list of agencies who would accept fantasy, but I also approached others who we knew socially to ask them for pointers as to who might be looking. One of those kind people was Hannah Sheppard, who suggested that I add DHH to my list, which I did (and I still owe her a number of drinks for that).

Being a bit of a nerd, I set up a spreadsheet listing the agencies I wanted to approach and then broke each down further to list which agents in particular I should be addressing my cover letter to and what their submission criteria were. The latter is more important than many people realise: ignoring them doesn’t make you a groundbreaking rebel, it just makes you easier to pass over in favour of somebody who can actually follow simple instructions.

There are quite a few dedicated blogs and articles out there about what you should and shouldn’t say in a cover letter, but in the end I just bore it in mind that whether I knew the person I was writing to or not, I was now approaching them in a professional capacity and kept it succinct and neutral-friendly (a description that owes a lot to many years of D&D), again with an eye on their submission guidelines.

For all of the dozens of spellchecks and read-throughs, after I clicked ‘send’ it took me less than 30 seconds to spot the glaring typo on the first page of the extract. Facepalm. I think I might have said something along the lines of “oh golly gosh, what have I done?” *

Three weeks later I received an email from DHH requesting the full manuscript, which I may have read a few times and taken even longer to send a cohesive reply to that wasn’t all in CAPS. A fortnight thereafter I sat down with David Headley and Harry Illingworth and accepted their offer of representation, which felt surreal enough already, let alone that I was talking to people who understood my characters and my world and were so enthusiastic about it. We discussed the structure and character arcs, and I went away and prepared a fresh synopsis charting how I saw the story progressing.

The outline was agreed, and having considered it, I opted to do a full re-write. I knew where the story and characters were going, so it didn’t take anywhere as long as the first draft had. There were a few more revisions, including my first proper full manuscript edit complete with comments and suggestions which I was ludicrously excited about. Eventually it was ready to submit to actual publishers, and away it went, coincidentally accompanied by a spike in the sales of Jura whiskey.

del rey image

Several parties were interested in the manuscript, which was thrilling in itself. Having the DHH team fighting my corner meant that the process was far less fraught than it might have been, the inevitable rejections notwithstanding. Some of these were actually uplifting despite the ‘no’ attached to them- from the perspective of a newbie author, it is still quite a shot in the arm to know that an editor wanted to read your manuscript, and having done so, hasn’t simply replied with ‘are you serious’ or ‘LOL’.

And then I received an email asking me if I would be available to meet with Michael Rowley of Del Rey, as if they really needed to ask. I knew Del Rey, and had in fact raided their stand at Worldcon the year before quite extensively. Michael was as enthusiastic as we were, and had picked up on everything I had been trying to do throughout the manuscript.

He got it, and was keen to take it forward.

Publishing has taught me a lot about patience and managing anxiety, but eventually we received the news that they were making an offer! What a year. It’s been an amazing experience, but wow, it went fast!.

* Not my exact words by a long shot

 

Infernal will publish as hardback in August 2016.

Follow Mark on twitter: @Gergaroth

Follow David on twitter: @davidhheadley

Follow Harry on twitter: @harryillers

Posted by harryillingworth2014 | Filed under Agent Posts

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My First Frankfurt by Harry Illingworth

27 Tuesday Oct 2015

Posted by harryillingworth2014 in Agent Posts

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Broo Doherty, David Headley, DHH Literary Agency, Frankfurt Book Fair, Submissions

Before we went to Frankfurt Book Fair everyone kept telling me how big it is. What they didn’t tell me, or at least, what I couldn’t fully appreciate from their remarks, was just how big it really is. It is enormous. London Book Fair pales in comparison (and I still remember how terrified I was the first time I stepped into Earls Court for the first time). I can’t even describe how vast the whole of Frankfurt fair is. For those of you trying to imagine it now, well, there are shuttle buses that help you get around the area. That’s how big it is. Once you do come to terms with this, everything becomes a lot easier.

Then there’s the people. So many people.  So many meetings. But that is one of the reasons why Frankfurt is brilliant. We met with editors and agents from countries ranging from Germany to Korea and each was fascinating in his or hers’ own way. Hearing first hand what is selling in Italy, and what they are looking for. What have been the biggest deals recently in Korea. What is big in Turkey. This is where you realise just how important these meetings are, as nothing beats sitting across the table from someone and hearing all this information first hand. Sometimes all it takes is for one snippet of conversation to be the catalyst for something in the future. Something as simple as remembering that en editor loved a specific book before it comes to be time to submit to them can be the difference between a yes or a no when it comes to your book…

There’s drinks parties and dinners. There’s lots of these, but they’re all with other agents and editors and so you’re constantly meeting yet more new people. And of course there’s also everyone you already know around the place so at times it does feel like a big networking exercise, but fun. We mingled at the ‘Finland’ stand one evening where they were hosting a drinks party and men were walking around serving vodka shots (other countries were hosting their own similar events). And then seemingly every single person in publishing descends upon the Frankfurter Hoff Hotel come night. It’s a great opportunity to see everyone, if you can find them.

Being my first Frankfurt, I had presumed to somewhat find my feet in my own time, however, this was never going to be the case. After Broo Doherty became ill just before we left, our three-man team of David Headley, Broo and myself was already a man down before we’d even begun. Unfortunately, David’s own health was rapidly deteriorating, so much so that by our last day of meetings he was unable to make it in for any meetings. Cue myself, last representative of DHH and first-time attendee of the fair, taking all of our final meetings solo. It’s fair to say I fell in at the deep end, but it makes the whole experience more rewarding and I enjoyed it all. I’ve no doubt that the whole experience was invaluable for me and will only make me a better agent in the years to come. Now, I need to get on the hunt for some new clients, and I’ll look forward to next year.

(on that closing note, you can see what kind of books I’m looking for here, and I’m eagerly awaiting your submission)

Follow Harry on twitter: @harryillers

Synchronicity & Serendipity: Why it might be simple timing that helps you find an agent by Hannah Sheppard

23 Wednesday Sep 2015

Posted by harryillingworth2014 in Agent Posts

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

DHH Literary Agency, Gothic, Hannah Sheppard, Rejection, Submissions

There’s nothing I like better than hitting the right book at the right time. There’s something magical about the feeling when the book, location and situation all fall into place to create something of an experience.

I’m still haunted by the memory of what was technically a fairly average train journey from Liverpool to London – but because I was reading Helen Dunmore’s The Siege it took on epic and harrowing proportions. The train was delayed in the depths of winter, the heating wasn’t brilliant so I was sat huddled in my coat, gloves and scarf, and, due to staff shortages, they couldn’t open the buffet car. As Anna Levin queued for rations in freezing cold Leningrad, I shivered and shared her hunger. I’m still slightly emotionally scarred – that train journey and the horror of Anna’s situation have blurred in my mind to the point that I now can’t get on a train without buying food first (even if the train is mid afternoon, I’ve already had lunch and will arrive at my destination before dinner) – it’s like a survival instinct kicks in.

There’s a certain synchronicity needed when looking at my submission pile too.

Yes I want to fall in love with a novel and sometimes, if it’s truly outstanding, that can be enough.

But there are so many steps on the path from finding a book I fall in love with to getting that author a publishing deal, and any little synchronicities that can add to the magic help immeasurably.

The last book I signed, a modern gothic, landed on my desk the day after an editor had told me over coffee that she was desperate for a modern gothic for her list. Did I love the writing and the characters? 100%. But did I take it that little bit more seriously because I already knew of an editor who might be interested. Definitely.

I realise this may seem frustrating. As an author looking to submit you can’t engineer these synchronicities – you can’t create that sort of luck (although, you can make sure you’ve followed submission guidelines perfectly)… so I guess the positive I’m trying to put across is that a rejection isn’t always about your book not being good enough.

Keep trying until you hit the right agent at the right time…hold on for serendipity.

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