A Masters of Craft Talk with Literary Agents of Color

ABOUT THE CRAFT TALK

How do I navigate the literary arts industry as a Storyteller of Color? What do I need to know consider when seeking out a publisher? Who in the industry is supporting the work of BIPOC Storytellers?

If you've found yourself asking these same questions, you will not want to miss this opportunity to connect with some of the best and brightest literary agents supporting the work of BIPOC Storytellers. This panel features a broad representation of agents who have experience representing storytellers across the genres of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, speculative fiction, and beyond.

ABOUT THE MASTER LITERARY AGENTS OF COLOR:

Serene Hakim (she/her) is an agent at Ayesha Pande Literary. Born to Lebanese immigrants in the Midwest, she grew up straddling cultures and languages and still feels like a third culture kid. Serene loves to read a variety of genres but is particularly drawn to fiction with strong female voices, both YA/MG and adult fiction and non-fiction with international themes, and LGBTQ and feminist issues. 

Mariah Stovall (she/her) is an agent at Trellis Literary Management, where she works on adult literary and upmarket fiction, narrative nonfiction, essay collections and memoir. She’s seeking writers with original, innovative voices and intersectional perspectives. She gravitates toward outsider characters, subcultures and niches, and weird, dark, challenging stories that are obsessive in content and craft. 

After dropping out of University of Albany in 2015, Kiki Nguyen (she/her) had her first publishing internship with Wunderkind PR. There, she discovered a practical industry for her codependent love of fiction. In 2016, Kiki went on to intern with Donald Maass Literary Agencywhere she soon joined the team full-time as an assistant literary agent. Kiki is now building her client list within young adult and adult fiction with a focus on queer and BIPOC authors. When not working, she is playing Among Us or shouting about film/tv on Twitter.

Known as the first literary agent to represent marginalized creators in the digital publishing space, Saritza Hernández (she/her/ella) of Andrea Brown Literary Agency is a self-proclaimed geek who loves escaping into worlds and stories from all walks of life. Her love of great storytelling is what has driven her work in the publishing industry for the past 18 years and her passion for amplifying queer and BIPOC voices is what continues to drive her today. An avid romance and science-fiction reader, and strong advocate of the LGBTQ+ community, she enjoys fresh voices in YA and adult genre fiction. She specializes in romance and young adult fiction by and for diverse audiences.

Ms. Regina Brooks (she/her) is the founder and president of Serendipity Literary Agency LLC in New York, New York. Her agency is the largest African American owned agency in the country and has represented and established a diverse base of award-winning clients in adult and young adult fiction, nonfiction, and children’s literature. Publishers Weekly nominated Regina Brooks as a PW Star Watch finalist, and Writer's Digest magazine named Serendipity Literary Agency as one of the top 25 literary agencies.Partial and full scholarships available. To inquire, email Info@RootsWoundsWords.org. Explicitly state which scholarship (partial or full) you’re interested in.

Closed captioning is provided. Like all RWW offerings, this space is for Black, Indigenous, Latinx/e, Asian, and other Storytellers of Color only. BIPOC Storytellers are centered here, exclusively.

This program was funded in part by Humanities New York with support from the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions or recommendations expressed in this program do not necessarily represent those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

This Masters of Craft Talk is held in partnership with the Asian American Writers' Workshop (AAWW). AAWW is devoted to creating, publishing, developing, and disseminating creative writing by Asian Americans, and to providing an alternative literary arts space at the intersection of migration, race, and social justice.