Editor / Agent Spotlight

Editor Spotlight: Chris Krones

Today, I’m delighted to introduce Clarion editor, Chris Krones, to Mixed-Up Files readers. Chris is a writer who has been a children’s book editor for more than a decade. They hold an MFA in Writing for Children from Simmons University. Chris has edited a wide variety of books–from board books and picture books to middle-grade novels and graphic novels. They are the author of Chill, Chomp, Chill and the upcoming picture book, The Pronoun Book. Chris lives in Boston, Massachusetts. Learn more on Twitter and Instagram.

Dorian: Welcome, Chris! Can you tell us a little bit about your path to becoming a children’s book writer and editor?

Chris: I’ve always had a passion for writing and language. When I started at Simmons University as an English and French major, French translation and poetry were my passions. When I landed in one of Cathryn Mercier’s classes, I found a different path to writing: writing for children. In this core course, we looked at children’s literature through philosophical lenses and thought critically about books for younger readers—something I’d never done before. Anytime we’d discussed books critically prior to this, they’d be considered a canonical work written for adults, like Beowulf. I thought this was novel and so subversive—and I wanted more.

When I heard that there was an M.F.A. in writing for children, I had a gut feeling; I knew I needed to apply. In this program, we visited the Houghton Library at Harvard University in Susan Bloom’s picture book class, where we got to see original prints of Randolph Caldecott’s Hey Diddle Diddle and Baby Bunting. I had opinions about the artwork and how it was reproduced and decisions that had gone into the publishing of the work. Susan recognized this and said, “You’ve got opinions! You should work in publishing.” I took this to heart—I’d never thought of working on books other than writing them.

At one of the Simmons Summer Institutes, I was about to read a picture book manuscript I’d written aloud. I was asking Cathie Mercier a question right when she was standing next to an alumna who was the Marketing Manager at Houghton Mifflin. Cathie asked her: “Why don’t you ask Chris about the marketing and publicity internship?” After that, I went in for an interview and interned with the Marketing and Publicity department at Houghton while I had a writing mentorship with an editor there. When an Editorial Assistant position opened up, I was encouraged to apply. I loved the people I worked with across departments and felt like I’d found a home at Houghton.

 

Dorian: What books inspired you as a child?

Chris: When I was very little, I remember having a collection of Beatrix Potter books, sliding them out of a slipcase, and holding them in my hands. I loved the tactility of them and how small they were, though I always worried about Peter Rabbit’s safety! In elementary school, I remember my librarian reading The True Story of the Three Little Pigs, told by A. Wolf by Jon Scieska and Lane Smith. I will never forget the pig butt surrounded by rubble alongside the text “Dead as a doornail.” Though a touch dark, I loved this humor so much and laid the foundation for my taste in picture books. I also loved Charlotte’s Web but was first introduced to the tale via the feature-length animated movie. My grandparents bought me the book and I absolutely adored it. I also loved From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, of course!

 

Dorian: Can you tell us about some books you’ve worked on, either as a writer or editor, that have come out recently or are due to come out?

Chris: The Pronoun Book is a cased board book I wrote that is publishing in early April. It’s a celebratory and vibrant introduction to people and their pronouns. Mel Tirado made magic with the illustrations! In terms of books I’ve edited, I am so thrilled for the first book in The Sparkle Dragons series to come out in mid-May. It’s a fun and young graphic novel featuring a core crew of spunky, sparkle-breathing dragons who fight for good in their queendom.

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dorian: Congratulations all around! Are there certain themes or subjects that resonate with you more than others?

Chris: Stories that feature strong protagonists who show up and persevere against all odds. Underdog stories. Hilarious stories. Joyful, character-driven stories told by underrepresented voices for underrepresented audiences.

 

Dorian: What advice do you have for writers who want to publish traditionally?

Chris: First, find your people! It’s important to have a writing group to keep yourself consistent, accountable, and have a safe space to bounce around ideas. Familiarize yourself with the books in stores, find the ones you love, and see who publishes them. Get to know publishers’ catalogs. Look to Publishers Weekly deal announcements or Publishers Marketplace to read the recent deals that have been made. Research the agents that represented those deals that feel closest to your work. Check out agency websites and follow their instructions on how to submit or query them. A lot of publishers do not accept unsolicited manuscripts these days, so finding an agent connected to the publishing industry might be a helpful path to traditional publishing.

Thank you so much for such great advice and for joining us here at THE MIXED-UP FILES!

AGENT SPOTLIGHT: Sarah N. Fisk of the Tobias Literary Agency

Today I’m delighted to introduce Sarah N. Fisk of the Tobias Literary Agency to our Mixed-Up Files readers. Sarah is a former mechanical engineer who made the switch to publishing in 2011. They have worked in the publishing industry as an editorial assistant, author’s assistant, publicist, and art director.

Sarah, who is also an author, is a former Pitch Wars mentor, board member, and Agent Liaison. They host the podcast Queries, Qualms, & Quirks and have a passion for spreadsheets. Sarah is one of the founding members of Disability in Publishing. They were a Pitch Wars mentor since 2012 and an intern at Fuse Literary before joining the Tobias Literary Agency in 2021.

 

Dorian: Welcome, Sarah, and thanks for being with us.

Sarah: Hi! Thank you so much for having me.

 

Dorian: Can you tell us a little bit about the Tobias Literary Agency and your current role there?

Sarah: The Tobias Literary Agency is a full-service literary agency headquartered in New York City with satellite offices in Boston, Nashville, and Fort Worth. We represent established and debut authors. Our client roster includes Pulitzer Prize winners, New York Times and USA Today bestsellers, renowned scientists, historians, Emmy-nominated journalists, celebrities, and Pushcart nominees. We take pride in supporting our clients’ long-lasting careers.

I am an assistant literary agent at Tobias, which basically means that I’m brand new! I started in October and opened to my own queries in January. I’m currently being closely mentored by multiple agents in the agency, as my wishlist spans both the Childrens and the Adult department. So even though I’m now signing my own clients, I have experienced agents checking everything I do and making sure I’m doing things correctly and responsibly.

 

Dorian: Sounds great. In addition to being an agent, you’re also an author. Can you tell us a bit about your work?

Sarah: Sure! Keeping Her Secret is a YA romance where two girls who shared their first kiss together meet up a couple years later at summer camp and, rather than facing their feelings for each other, they start a prank war. I also write adult romance under the name Aria Kane if you like things a little more spicy!

 

Dorian: What was your path like to becoming a writer and then an agent?

Sarah: Ha! It’s been a long road. I started taking writing seriously in 2008. I do this with everything, but I took a lot of time to deliberately learn as much about both writing and publishing as I could. I wrote a book that never saw the light of day, another book I queried that didn’t go anywhere, then started querying my debut novel in 2013. In 2014 I signed with my agent and got my first publishing contract and the book came out in 2015. 

Kind of on a parallel path, I became an editorial intern for a small press in 2011 or 2012 and was invited to be a Pitch Wars mentor in the first year. I worked in various publishing roles over the years and stayed with Pitch Wars until last year. In 2019, I started thinking about making the switch into agenting and did my signature long period of research and determining it was the right move for me. Especially with agenting, once you start taking on clients, everything you do deeply affects the writers you work with and I take that very seriously. I started applying for roles that seemed to be a good fit for me and got my first agent role (internship) in 2021.

 

Dorian: What books inspired you as a child?

Sarah: My parents weren’t readers, so we didn’t have books around the house, so all my books were supplied by school and public libraries. My grandmother taught me to read at a very early age and I was reading at a 5th grade level by Kindergarten. When I was at her house, she would drive me into the city (it felt like HOURS but now I know it was about a 40 minute drive) each week to check out the max number of books the library would allow. She also had many of the Hardy Boys books at home so I read through all of those in one summer. 

I was definitely one of those kids who sat in the back of the class and read, but most teachers didn’t mind because my grades were stellar.

Ta-Nehisi Coates wrote something that resonates so much with me:

“I was made for the library, not the classroom. The classroom was a jail of other people’s interests. The library is open, unending, free.”

I remember when I was in college, I kept thinking about this book I had read as a child, but I couldn’t remember much about it. I knew that the main character flew through space on a butterfly made of light. I told my friend, who was an avid reader, but he didn’t know what it was. That Christmas, he gave me a used copy of Heartlight by T.A. Barron! He had done research to figure out what the book was. That was so special to me.

 

The thing that really clenched it for me was when we read The Giver in 5th grade. It was truly an epiphany for me that books could be about a world so different from our own, but say so much about ours – and that a person not that all different from me could write that!

 

 

 

Dorian: I love that Ta-Nehisi Coates quote. What are some of your favorite more recent middle-grade books?

Sarah: Some of the ones I’ve read recently and really enjoyed are Amari and the Night Brothers by B.B. Alston, Sugar and Spite by Gail D. Villanueva, Starfish by Lisa Fipps, and The Remarkable Journey of Coyote Sunrise by Dan Gemeinhart.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dorian: Are there certain themes or subjects that resonate with you more than others?

Sarah: Yeah! I just put out a #mswl tweet about wanting to see more stories about older sisters who have too much responsibility placed on their shoulders at too young an age. Overall, I’m really drawn to complicated family relationships, especially sibling relationships. I love books that challenge societal norms and books that feature disabled or neurodiverse characters. As someone who grew up in the midwest and small towns in the south, I’d love to see more books set there as well.

 

Dorian: Besides your job, what is something that kept you busy or entertained during the pandemic?

Sarah: I started doing uv resin, usually jewelry or keychains. It’s fun and I decided early on I wanted it to be a hobby I don’t monetize because I have enough of those! I post pieces I make on Instagram if anyone’s interested.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dorian: What tips do you have for querying writers?

Sarah: The main thing is read other successful query letters and even back cover copy to find out how others have enticed readers with their story. So many query letters don’t actually tell me what the book is about, or they kind of do but there seems to be no conflict or stakes. Those two elements are very important in a query letter, and they need to be specific. “The world will never be the same again” is not specific enough to make a reader care.

 

Dorian: Can you provide our readers with links to your social media and podcasts?

Sarah: Yes! You can find out more about me as an agent at www.sarahnfisk.com, but you can go to www.sarahnicolas.com for all my other stuff as well. I’m on twitter @sarah_nicolas and on instagram as @presidentsarah. I also have a lot of stuff on my YouTube at http://www.youtube.com/sarahnicolasya.

 

Dorian: Thank you so much for joining us here at THE MIXED-UP FILES.

Sarah: Thank you for having me!

 

Agent Spotlight: Lynnette Novak

Today, I’m thrilled to welcome agent Lynnette Novak from The Seymour Agency to The Mixed-Up Files. We had a great talk about publishing and middle grade books. You can learn more about Lynnette and what types of manuscripts she’s looking for here. In the meantime, take a look at the interview to get to know her even better.

 

Dorian: Welcome to The Mixed-Up Files! Can you tell us a little bit about your path to becoming a literary agent and about The Seymour Agency?

Lynnette: In Canada, I was a teacher and a writer, then I added freelance editor to my titles. When I moved to the U.S. to be with my husband, I continued writing romantic suspense manuscripts and started to final and WIN contests, including becoming a Golden Heart Finalist (RWA) and having two manuscripts final in the Daphne (as well as other contests). I grew my editorial business online and was a mentor in Pitch Wars for two years. That’s what put the “agenting bug” into my system. I loved going through my slush pile, choosing which project to work on, and seeing it go somewhere. Both of my mentees acquired agents and one is now published! My writing career was starting to take off, but I was really drawn to agenting, so that’s the path I decided to follow. I’m so happy I did. I LOVE THIS JOB!!!

 

Dorian: How wonderful to be involved in so many facets of the book industry. What middle-grade books inspired you as you were growing up?

Lynnette: I loved Judy Blume, as well as many other authors, but she was my go-to.

 

Dorian: What are some of your favorite recent middle-grade books?

Lynnette: Too many to list! LOL It also depends on my mood. Sometimes, I want to read MG horror. Other times, I’m more in the mood for something contemporary, especially from a diverse author who can offer an authentic voice. I also like cute and funny as well as cool worlds in fantasy and sci-fi. Plus, I’ve recently fallen in love with novels-in-verse and graphic novels.

 

Dorian: What genres, subjects, or themes would you be thrilled to receive when you open your in-box?

Lynnette: See previous answer. LOL I’m really drawn to an author’s voice above all. Hook me with that, add a unique premise (or a twist to something that’s been done), and I’ll be thrilled!

 

Dorian: What do you wish writers who query you knew about the publishing industry?

Lynnette: I wish more authors would do their homework before querying. I receive too many queries with word counts that are way under or over the industry standard, which is usually an instant rejection.

 

Dorian: Good advice! What are some of your hobbies or special interests that aren’t necessarily obvious through your agent profile?

Lynnette: I’m a crafter. I do all kinds of crafts like: cross-stitching, building miniature houses, painting sculptures, diamond painting, scrapbooking, Rainbow Looming, needle felting, crocheting, and more!!! I’m also obsessed with animals and nature!

 

Dorian: Do you see any changes coming up for middle-grade books in 2022?

Lynnette: Oh, if only I had a crystal ball! LOL

 

Dorian: I guess that’s what we all want LOL. You mention that before you were an agent, you were an editor. What craft tips do you have for our readers who are also writers?

Lynnette: Learn about GMCs (goals, motivations, conflicts – both internal AND external—and what’s at stake), show/don’t tell, POV slips, talking heads, backstory dumps, pacing, and authentic dialogue.

 

Dorian: Great tips! Would you like to tell us about any middle-grade books coming out this year from The Seymour Agency?

Lynnette: Marzieh Abbas has a six-book early chapter book series, starring Muslim-American sibling Nadia and Nadir, coming out in the fall of 2022.

Jonathan Rosen and Henry Herz’s COMING OF AGE: 13 B’NAI MITZVAH STORIES, a middle-grade anthology including 13 stories about the Jewish rite of passage by: NYT bestselling author Barbara Bottner, NYT bestselling author Nancy Krulik, NYT bestselling author Stacia Deutsch, award-winning author Alan Katz, award-winning author Laura Shovan, award-winning author Nora Raleigh Baskin, Sarah Aronson, Debbie Reed Fischer, Debra Green, Henry Herz, Jonathan Rosen, Melissa Roske, and Stacie Ramey is coming out in March 2022.

I can’t talk about the other MG deals yet because they haven’t been announced, but for the most part, those will come out in 2023.

 

Dorian: How can readers and writers follow you on social media?

Lynnette: @Lynnette_Novak on Twitter

 

Dorian: Thanks so much, Lynnette, for taking the time to talk to us!

Lynnette: Thanks so much for having me! I had a blast!!!