Stephanie Winter is a literary agent with K.O. Media Management.

Stephanie holds a B.A. from the University of Toronto in English Literature and an M.A. in English: Issues in Modern Culture from University College London. She is looking for diverse, inclusive voices in a variety of spaces. Stephanie particularly appreciates strong characters who bend stereotypes, genders, and more.

Stephanie is primarily acquiring across three pillars: adult fiction, nonfiction, and graphic novels. She’s actively seeking titles with diverse and inclusive representation that offer smart, culturally aware, and enriching narratives. In fiction, she particularly enjoys commercial and upmarket projects (rom-coms, thriller/suspense, etc.) that offer millennial and/or queer-affirming perspectives. In nonfiction, she’s on the hunt for pop culture, cultural criticism, millennial business and finance, narrative nonfiction, how-to, and lifestyle projects.

Overall, she’s looking for stories that will engage with and change the way we view the world around us.

Marilyn Biderman is a literary agent with Transatlantic Agency.

Areas of Interest: Literary fiction; sweet-spot fiction, that is, accessible but literary in intent (often found at book clubs); literary crime fiction; and women’s commercial and historical fiction. I love memoir with an utterly unique story and brilliant writing; narrative non-fiction on compelling and newsworthy topics that anticipate trends; expert non-fiction of wide appeal from authors with established social media platforms; and biographies of fascinating lives. I don’t handle children’s books, except for young adult novels with cross-over appeal (very selectively, and only by referral); or poetry, screenplays, science fiction, paranormal, and fantasy for adult readers.

Before joining the Transatlantic Agency, Marilyn worked at her own literary agency and consultancy practice for seven years, where she helped launch the careers of début and prize-winning authors. She had previously worked at McClelland & Stewart for twelve years, most recently as Vice President, Director, Rights and Contracts. At M&S, she handled the international rights for many renowned authors, including Leonard Cohen, Alistair MacLeod, and Madeleine Thien.

Marilyn is a member of the Law Society of Ontario, a graduate of Osgoode Hall Law School, and also holds a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto in English Literature. She has guest-lectured at the publishing programs at Humber College, Ryerson University, Simon Fraser University, the University of British Columbia, and taught a course in the publishing program at Centennial College. She has also mentored many publishers under the auspices of the Association of Canadian Publishers and the Canada Council, and has acted as a juror in literary competitions. She has authored several papers on copyright law; served on the inaugural executive of the Professional Association of Canadian Literary Agents; and was a member for many years of the organizing committee for the International Visitors Program of the Toronto International Festival of Authors. She also, for many years, served as a member of the Professional Advisory Council for Sheridan College’s Creative Writing & Publishing Program, and as a board member, most recently as chair, of Canada’s dance magazine, The Dance Current. Marilyn is especially proud of her work with the St. John Ambulance Therapy Dog program.

Ali McDonald is a literary agent and partner with 5 Otter Literary.

In fifteen years as an international literary agent, Ali has represented many award-winning and best-selling authors and illustrators. Specializing in children’s and young adult literature, she works on projects ranging board books, picture books, early readers, chapter books, and graphic novels, to middle grade, young adult, and “new adult” fiction and nonfiction. Ali is particularly interested in genre fiction from underrepresented voices, especially speculative, science fiction, fantasy, thriller, horror, and romance.

Her exclusive list of clients includes international and #1 New York Times best-selling author Laura Nowlin (If He Had Been with Me and This Song is (Not) For You), Crime Writers of Canada Award-winning author Jo Treggiari (Heartbreak Homes), upcoming debut author Matteo L. Cerilli (Lockjaw), and author-illustrator Dr. Syrus Marcus Ware (Abolition is Love), among select others.

Jes Trudel (she/her/mx) is a literary agent with The Rights Factory.

Jes has been devouring stories longer than she can remember. Her favourite childhood books were Jack London adventures (which she never really outgrew). Jes’ experience includes working as a freelance editor for 15+ years, teaching creative writing to people around the globe, and founding WritingCommunity.ca in 2020 when the whole world went digital. She’s been a guest presenter with SCBWI, the 12×12 Picture Book Challenge, Write For Kids, and TSNOTYAW podcast, and has contributed to BoldFace, Children’s Book Insider, and the SCBWI blog. She joined The Rights Factory in 2023 as an editorial assistant. She represents mainly authors of children’s literature, though her authors are multi-talented and interdisciplinary storytellers. As an editorial agent, Jes works with her clients to develop their manuscripts into the best version they can be.

At the moment, I’m accepting only children’s literature, including:
– Board books (BB)
– Picture books (PB)
– Chapter books (CB)
– Middle grade (MG)
– Young adult (YA)

In addition to traditional styles of storytelling, I also love graphic novels and novels in verse. I’m also open to short story and poetry collections for kids. I accept both illustrated and text-only manuscripts. If you are an illustrator only, I’m sorry, but I can’t represent you at this time (unless you create full-length wordless picture books).

My favourite BB/PB/CB categories are:
– Concept books with a strong hook
– Expository nonfiction
– High-concept fiction
– Low-concept or “quiet” fiction
– Nonfiction related to mental health, DEI, social justice, community building, and/or entrepreneurship
– I prefer lyrical over rhyming texts, but if you do have a rhyming story, please make sure the meter is perfect and the rhymes are not cliche/forced

My favourite MG/YA genres are:
– action/adventure
– contemporary
– mystery
– romance
– speculative
– suspense/thriller
– Nonfiction related to mental health, DEI, social justice, community building, and/or entrepreneurship

Thematically speaking, I especially like:
– complex adult/child relationships
– complex friendships
– non-traditional and found families
– anti-heroes
– unreliable narrators
– love triangles (romantic or platonic)
– slow burns and friends or enemies to lovers
– forced proximity (romantic or platonic)
– stories that verge on “too dark” for kidlit, but not in a graphic/gory way

I’m not a good fit for:
– horror
– paranormal
– historical fiction
– hard scifi
– epic fantasy
– books for the Christian market
– nonfiction related to food and beverages, politics, pop culture, religion, spirituality, sports, or finance

I’m looking to represent authors across their careers, through multiple age categories and genres. So if you’re interested in writing books for adults and are thinking representation by me might limit your options, I absolutely plan to represent adults books in the future, especially those of my existing clients.

Bridgette Kam is a literary agent with Westwood Creative Artists.

She’s looking for book club novels that are propulsive and well-paced like Celeste Ng’s body of work; feature unforgettable, irresistibly lovable characters like those in Bonnie Garmus’ Lessons in Chemistry; vividly and powerfully bring history to life like Maggie O’Farrell’s The Marriage Portrait; and are provokingly and brilliantly multi-layered like R.F. Kuang’s Yellowface.

She considers literary fiction submissions selectively and would love to see stories that feel so atmospheric and wisely observed that they almost blur fiction and reality like Deepa Anappara’s Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line, and razor-sharp and evocative prose like Souvankham Thammavongsa’s How to Pronounce Knife.

As she represents select non-fiction projects, she’d love to see narrative non-fiction submissions from field experts, emerging writers, and deep thinkers alike in the areas of pop culture, psychology, social science, and history. Some recent favourite reads are Katherine May’s Wintering, Andy Crouch’s The Life We’re Looking For: Reclaiming Relationship in a Technological World, Rosemary Sullivan’s The Betrayal of Anne Frank, John Green’s The Anthropocene Reviewed, and Makoto Fujimura’s work.

She also welcomes submissions for kids-centric, age-appropriate children’s books that have a clear story, guaranteed reread quality, and an inviting and engaging approach rather than a didactic one.

Tayler Hill is an intern and literary scout at The Purcell Agency. At the 2024 Toronto event, she is taking pitches on behalf of her entire agency.

She is open to taking pitches on behalf of The Purcell Agency for the following genres:

• middle grade
• young adult
• new adult
• women’s fiction
• book club fiction
• speculative fiction (fantasy & sci-fi)
• romantasy
• children’s picture books
• memoir
• mystery
• crime
• thriller
• contemporary/realistic fiction
• dystopian
• suspense
• horror
• romance
• #ownvoices and LGBTQIA+

Tayler is a Canadian student and author based out of Toronto, Ontario. She holds a double degree in publishing and creative writing and has utilized her knowledge to make her dream of entering the publishing industry come true.

“I have been drawn to books for as long as I can remember. The closest thing to magic is words. If you think about it, only twenty-six letters rearranged in multiple ways can open endless doors to lands of love, fantasy, history, other galaxies, dimensions and more. There is so much rearranging these letters can do. Words can make our wounds feel seen; words can let us time travel; words can let us live thousands of different lives within one lifetime. As publishers, we have the power to open these doors for people with the books we put into the world, and what an influential gift that is.”

Molly Ketcheson [SOLD OUT OF PITCH APPOINTMENTS] is a literary agent with Wolfson Literary.

Molly holds an undergraduate degree from the University of St Andrews and an MA in Creative Writing and Publishing from City, University of London. Prior to joining WLA in 2024, Molly held prestigious internships at multiple publishing companies, where she gained a keen understanding of the international publishing landscape and a love for joyful and impactful fiction.

She is actively building her list in commercial and upmarket fiction, as well as select literary fiction, fantasy, and YA titles.

She is particularly drawn to books with a unique premise, lyrical prose, complex women, and stories that are, ultimately, hopeful. Molly is passionate about the power of fiction, and is excited to work with her clients to bring books that matter into the world.

Tamanna Bhasin is a literary agent with The Rights Factory.

She is seeking: adult fantasy, historical fiction, and romance. And also young adult & middle grade fantasy and historical fiction.

Having realized her passion for literature far outweighed her childhood dream of fashion design, Tamanna earned her BA in English Literature and History from the University of Toronto. After honing her skills by working with various literary journals and editorial internships, Tamanna joined The Rights Factory as an Associate Editor in 2020.

With a keen eye for detail cultivated through her prior editorial work, Tamanna seamlessly transitioned into publishing. Her dedication to diverse narratives shines through as a literary agent—where she now combines her love for reading with her expertise in spotting compelling manuscripts across genres.

Tamanna remains on the lookout for stories that resonate long after the final page has been turned.