Literary Rambles

This week's Agent Spotlight features Kelly Sonnack of the Andrea Brown Literary Agency, Inc. 

About: Kelly Sonnack was born in Brazil and raised in Singapore, giving her a youth of varied culture.  She came to the U.S. to attend the University of Colorado, Boulder, where she received her degree in English Literature.  Prior to joining Andrea Brown this year, she agented both children's and adult work at Sandra Dijkstra, and was an Acquisitions Editor under the Academic Press Imprint at Elsevier, where her career in publishing began.

Status: Open to submissions and actively building her client list.

What She's Looking For:

"Kelly specializes in all types of children's literature (picture books, middle grade, young adult, and graphic novels). In picture books and middle grade fiction, Kelly looks for a good sense of humor, stories that stretch a young reader's imagination, and an authentic voice. In young adult, she appreciates literary voices and character-driven stories with heart. In non-fiction for children, she enjoys projects that inspire and stimulate the minds of our younger generations." (Link)

"I really don’t confine myself to one area; I enjoy having a variety. I will admit a particular soft spot for picture books but there’s only so many of those I can take on at a time. I really love literary, coming-of-age YA, as well as quirky and smart MG. I’m also particularly loving graphic novels for kids these days. We’re living in a time that is ripe for them, and it’s exciting to help shape that." (Link)

"I’d love to see more well-written and clever middle grade fiction. There’s a need for it right now and I see a lot of potential in this market.  I’d also love to see more memoir for kids – especially cultural memoir about growing up in different countries, identity, and living across cultures. We are a colorful world, and I’m not sure that’s reflected adequately in children’s lit quite yet." (Link)

"In all realms of children’s literature (including YA), I’m looking for a narrative voice that authentically captures the feelings of the age group for whom it’s targeted. That is what made me fall in love with SAND MOUNTAIN. The author has an uncanny ability to get inside the mind of a pre-adolescent, capturing all the awkwardness, loneliness, and fears of a 7th grader. Beyond voice, I’m always looking for good stories, told in fresh and interesting new ways." (Link)

"In picture books and middle grade fiction, Kelly looks for a good sense of humor, stories that stretch a young reader’s imagination, and speak to them in an authentic voice. In young adult, she appreciates character-driven stories and literary voices. In non-fiction for children, she looks for projects that inspire and stimulate our younger generations."  (Link)

"I love manuscripts that have a clever, or witty sense of humor. With picture books, I tend to go for the silly and zany. With middle grade and YA, it’s important to be subtle and not force humor on the reader. I rarely am attracted to overly dramatic. I had a high school teacher who taught me that one tear was enough to convey sadness, happiness, or despair. Your character does not need to be slamming doors, screaming, or sobbing hysterically for the reader to be affected. If you have developed a character that the reader sympathizes with and cares about, little gestures will translate in a big way." (Link)

What She Isn't Looking For:

"At this time, Kelly is not accepting unsolicited submissions in adult fiction or adult non-fiction." (Link)

Quotables:

The Agency:

"We invest a great deal of care in each project and each client. We devise a strategy at every stage of the writing process, from conception, to editorial, to publication, that is tailored to the client and will enable us to find the best publisher for his or her books. We are seeking long-term relationships with writers and illustrators whose careers we can develop and whose talent we can foster." (Link)

Editorial Agent?

No concrete information available.  It's likely that she does request revisions as needed (as many agents do) since she was previously an editor and has a trained eye for it.

Pet-Peeves:

Forced pace-building, too many tears or exclamation points, and too much face blushing or draining white.  (Link)

"I hate to see a whiny character who’s in the middle of a fight with one of their parents, slamming doors, rolling eyes, and displaying all sorts of other stereotypical behavior. I hate seeing character “stats” (“Hi, I’m Brian, I’m 10 years and 35 days old with brown hair and green eyes”).  I also tend to have a hard time bonding with characters who talk to the reader (“Let me tell you about the summer when I...”)." (Link)

Her Advice to Writers:

"Know who your competition is and read and study the books your intended readers will also be reading. During difficult economic times, support your fellow writers and buy books!"  (Link)

"Write something that I simply can’t ignore. Come up with an original idea that you know could work in the market. Understand what is working today, and read the books that you’ll be competing with. What about YOUR book is going to make a potential book buyer take it to the checkout counter? That is what we’re going to be asking ourselves when we evaluate your book." (Link)

The agents at Andrea Brown have a page on the web site devoted to advice here as well.

Clients: James Burks, Carole Gerber, Heather Mary Knopf, Merrily Kutner, B.B. Lanka, Jin Pyn Lee, Carolyn Marsden, Annika Nelson, Candace Ryan, Steve Watkins.

Sales:  As of this posting, Ms. Sonnack is listed on Publisher's Marketplace as having made five deals in the last six moths, one six-figure+ deal, and eleven overall deals since joining PM.  The most recent five deals include three picture books, one middle grade, and one juvenile graphic novel.

Query Methods:

E-mail: Yes (only).

Snail-Mail: No.

Online-Form: No.

Submission Guidelines (always verify):

Brief query in the body of the e-mail.  Put QUERY and the TITLE of your work in the subject line.  Include publisher submission history and previous publishing credits (if applicable).  Include phone number and e-mail address.  Only query one agent at the agency.  Note if it is multiple submission.  PB: Include full text.  Fiction:  Include first ten pages.  NF: Proposal and sample chapter.  Illustrators:  Two to three jpegs of children and animals.  No attachments.

See complete submission details and advice here, as well as the agency's General Advice and Do's and Don'ts.

Tip: "Professionalism is key in query letters. Remember that this is a business relationship and everything you do should tell us that you’d be a professional, courteous person to work with. We take on clients with the expectation that we will be with them throughout their careers, so we want to know we can work with you." (Link) 

Check out this link as well.

Response Times:

"Due to the large volume of submissions we receive, we are sometimes not able to respond to every query personally. Therefore, if you have not heard from me within 4 weeks, please assume that I am not interested in your work."  (Link)

Web Presence:

Andrea Brown Agency web site.

Publisher's Marketplace page.

Facebook.

Twitter.

LinkedIn.

JacketFlap (you can view books she has read and commented on).

Not a member of AAR.

What's the Buzz?

There's the usual disappointment that the agency as a whole has a no-response policy, but the buzz is otherwise very good on Ms. Sonnack.  It would seem, too, that she does actually respond to a good number of queries, often with a helpful rejection if she has requested work.  There are plenty of writers who claim they would love to have her as an agent, and others who really enjoyed meeting her at one conference or another. 

Worth Your Time:

"Agent Advice" interview with Ms. Sonnack at the Guide to Literary Agents blog.

Some recent tips HERE on what Ms. Sonnack is looking for in a query via the Literally Human blog.

"SHALLA Chats with Kelly Sonnack" interview.  Note: She was still with the Dijkstra Agency, so disregard submission information.

She is listed on AgentQuery, QueryTracker, and LitMatch as well.

Contact:

Please see the Andrea Brown Literary Agency web site or Ms. Sonnack's Publisher's Marketplace page for contact and query information.

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Have any experience with this agent? See something that needs updating? Please leave a comment or e-mail me at agentspotlight(at)gmail.com

Note: These agent profiles presently focus on agents who accept children's fiction. They are not interviews.  Please take the time to verify anything you might use here before querying an agent. The information found herein is subject to change.