Today I’m thrilled to have agent Catherine Cho here. She is a literary
agent at Curtis Brown Group in
London and is looking for authors from the US and UK.
FYI,
I’m taking over the agent spotlights from Casey. I will be providing all the
same information we’ve shared in the past in an interview format. In addition,
one lucky person will win a query critique from the agent being interviewed.
Status: Updated 5/11/2020 Ms. Cho moved to Madeleine Milburn Literary, TV & Film Agency in 2019 and is primarily seeking adult fiction and nonfiction.
Hi Catherine! Thanks so much for joining us.
About Catherine:
1. Tell us how you became an agent, how long you’ve been
one, and what you’ve been doing as an agent.
I came to agenting in a roundabout way. I’d gone to law
school and worked in corporate law before realizing it wasn’t right for me. I’d
lived in Hong Kong for several years and then decided to come back to the U.S.
and worked for a lobbying firm in Washington D.C. I loved the process of
lobbying for clients, but I felt disillusioned about the work, and I realized
that I wanted to lobby for something that I believed in, and something that
actually improve the world.
I met with a bunch of editors in New York, and someone
suggested that I try to get into agenting. I worked for Folio Literary
Management in New York and had some great mentors there. I was building my own
list, and I’d just sold a project before I met my husband, who was based in the
UK. I was lucky enough to land at Curtis Brown, and I’ve been here for over a
year now. I’m building a list in literary and commercial fiction and
non-fiction titles.
About the Agency:
2. Share a bit about your agency and what it offers to its
authors.
Curtis Brown is the largest agency in Europe, and it’s been
a leading literary agency for over 100 years. We represent authors including
John le Carré, Margaret Atwood, David Mitchell, David Nicholls and Jojo Moyes.
We also have a leading book to film department, TV and film department, and
translation rights department.
What She’s Looking
For:
2. What age groups do you represent—picture books, MG,
and/or YA? What genres do you represent and what are you looking for in
submissions for these genres?
I’m looking primarily for adult fiction and non-fiction. I’m
looking for literary fiction and reading group fiction – I also enjoy science
fiction and stories with speculative elements. I’m also interested in lifestyle
non-fiction, in New York, I worked a lot with social media figures and lifestyle
bloggers. I am interested in YA, but mostly cross-over YA titles.
I really look for compelling stories. Of course, the quality
of the writing is the most important thing, but I’m looking for stories that
make an impact. I love stories that are haunting and emotional. Also, because I
grew up in Kentucky, I find that I’m really drawn to the Southern style of
writers – atmospheric, vivid writing.
Writers that I really admire include Kazuo Ishiguro,
Margaret Atwood, Karen Russell, David Mitchell, Elizabeth Strout, David
Nicholls, Ann Patchett and Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie.
3. Is there anything
you would be especially excited to seeing in the genres you are interested in?
I would love to see a story with magical realism or a
speculative edge (like Margaret Atwood or Isabel Allende). I’m also really
drawn to ghost stories or time travel – I really just want to be transported.
In terms of science fiction and fantasy, which I do enjoy, I would love to find
someone like Robin Hobb or Stephen King.
What She Isn’t
Looking For:
4. What types of submissions are you not interested in?
I’m not the right agent for middle grade or children’s
fiction. I’m also not the right agent for dark comedies.
Agent Philosophy:
5. What is your philosophy as an agent both in terms of the
authors you want to work with and the books you want to represent?
My philosophy is that I want to work with authors and books
that I believe in – books that I’d read myself. I think stories are powerful
things, and so I want to work with writers who are passionate about what they
write. Writers who write without cynicism, and who write because they have to
write.
Editorial Agent:
6. Are you an editorial agent? If so, what is your process
like when you’re working with your authors before submitting to editors?
Yes, I’d consider myself an editorial agent. Publishers are
increasingly expecting work to be polished and complete. I give my feedback and
read through several drafts from writers.
Query Methods and
Submission Guidelines: (Always verify before submitting)
7. How should authors query you and what do you want to see
with the query letter?
Authors should email their queries to me at catherine.cho@curtisbrown.co.uk
with a cover letter and synopsis with the first 10,000 words of their work. A
query letter should be concise and carefully written – I should be able to
understand immediately what the book is about.
8. Do you have any
specific dislikes in query letters or the first pages submitted to you?
Typos and misspellings are a bad sign in a query letter or
first pages. I am also wary of query letters that go in depth about a writer’s
personal life (unless it’s very relevant to the book).
Response Time:
9. What’s your response time to queries and requests for
more pages of a manuscript?
I try my best to respond within a month (this is the same
for manuscript requests, I will usually read and respond within a month.)
Self-Published and
Small Press Authors:
10. Are you open to
representing authors who have self-published or been published by smaller
presses? What advice do you have for them if they want to try to find an agent
to represent them?
Yes, definitely – I think agents are increasingly realizing
that there are so many platforms for writers, and so if a writer wants to make
the jump to finding an agent, I think success with self-publishing works in
their favour. (If a book hasn’t done particularly well in self-publishing, it
may be something to leave off the query letter and bring up in conversation.)
11. With all the changes in publishing—self-publishing,
hybrid authors, more small publishers—do you see the role of agents changing at
all? Why?
The role of agents is definitely changing – writers are able
to reach their audiences directly, and agents are very much aware of this.
Agents are developing into talent managers – it’s not just about selling books
to publishers, but it’s about finding opportunities for writers to exploit
their rights.
Clients:
12. Who are some of the authors you represent?
I represent Patrick Edwards, a very talented literary
science-fiction writer. I also represent Julia May in the UK, a historical
fiction writer from Australia. In non-fiction, I’m working on several
non-fiction projects including an academic who studies hair, a nature writer
and several lifestyle bloggers.
Interviews and Guest
Posts:
13. Please share the links to any interviews and guest posts
you think would be helpful to writers interested in querying you.
Links and Contact
Info:
14. Please share how writers should contact you to submit a
query and your links on the Web.
A link to my website: www.litseeker.com
My profile page: www.curtisbrown.co.uk/agent/catherine-cho
Additional Advice:
15. Is there any other advice you’d like to share with
aspiring authors that we haven’t covered?
My main advice would be to remember that the most important
thing to keep writing. Write every day and read as much as you can. Writing is
the most important thing.
Thanks for sharing all your advice, Catherine!
If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. You must be 13 years old or older. This is an international giveaway.
Profile Details:
Last Updated: 5/11/20.
Agent Contacted for Review? No.
Last Reviewed By Agent?N/A.
Have any experience with this agent? See something that needs updating? Please leave a comment or e-mail me at natalieiaguirre7@gmail.com
Note: These agent profiles and interviews presently focus on agents who accept children's fiction. Please take the time to verify anything you might use here before querying an agent. The information found here is subject to change.
Great agent interview! Thanks!
ReplyDeleteIt was great to meet Catherine, and I'd be very grateful for a query critique from her. My email is profrbailey@aol.com, and yes, I did mention this on Twitter. Thanks for writing the blog!
ReplyDeleteLovely to meet Catherine, and great advice. Writing even a little every day helps a lot.
ReplyDeleteGreat to learn about Catherine! And I mentioned this contest on twitter.
ReplyDeleteShe likes science fiction - good to know!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this interview.
ReplyDeleteHave I mentioned how much I love your agents spotlights? So very helpful.
ReplyDeleteNice to get to know you, Catherine Cho!
I also love the agent spotlights! Thanks :)
ReplyDeleteThank you for the interview and for always hosting such lovely agent spotlights!
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing this interview! :)
ReplyDeleteYou always have such good interviews. Thanks for this one.
ReplyDeleteI love these agent spotlight interviews. Hi, Catherine!
ReplyDeleteAnd I posted the interview on twitter.
ReplyDeleteGreat to read about Catherine. I, too, was a lawyer (securities) before understanding that the lawyerly life was not for me! Great minds think alike.
ReplyDeleteLovely interview, thanks!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the interview and offering a query critique!
ReplyDeleteNice to meet Catherine. Wish she repped MG books!
ReplyDeleteNice to meet Catherine Cho. I'm a big fan of magical realism too. I write MG and YA, so, sadly, I'm not a good fit for her.
ReplyDeleteA query critique would be helpful, as I'm finishing up a book that I'd like to send out for querying.
ReplyDeleteAdding her to my list- I have a YA Crossover Sci-fi in need. :D
ReplyDeleteI'd love a query critique--thanks for offering!
ReplyDeleteI've finished a book and would love to win a critique! Thank you for the generous offer.
ReplyDeleteHi Catherine,
ReplyDeleteFirst time author here, I'd love to win a query critique from you. Thank you for the tips!
What an interesting interview! I love Margaret Atwood, so I can see why Catherine is looking for books in her style. :)
ReplyDelete~Jess
Hi Catherine,
ReplyDeleteNew Yorkers also love Southern Gothic!
iffatislam3c@yahoo.com
Cheers,
Iffat
Nice to meet you, Catherine, and thanks for the givaway! Tweeted about it here: https://twitter.com/RaynaReveur/status/781323763224805377
ReplyDeleteEmail: raynareveur (at) gmail (dot) com
Catherine Cho is now with Madeline Milburn Agency
ReplyDelete