AGENT SPOTLIGHT INTERVIEW WITH KRISTY HUNTER AND QUERY CRITIQUE GIVEAWAY

Today I’m thrilled to have agent Kristy Hunter here. She is an associate literary agent at The Knight Agency.

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 commenter will win a query critique from the agent being interviewed.

Status: Open to submissions.

Hi­ Kristy! Thanks so much for joining us.

About Kristy:

1. Tell us how you became an agent, how long you’ve been one, and what you’ve been doing as an agent.

I graduated from college and knew I wanted to get involved in the publishing industry—I just wasn’t sure how. I attended the Columbia Publishing Course and fell in love with the industry and New York. Upon completing the course, I interned in Bloomsbury Children’s Books’ editorial department before working in publicity at Grove/Atlantic and Random House Children’s Books. There’s something so rewarding about acting as a book’s publicist and being an author’s cheerleader. Still, I was eager to get back to the creative process I experienced on the editorial side of things. I’ve now been with The Knight Agency for three years and feel so lucky that I get to help my clients shape their fantastic projects and also be their cheerleader throughout the process. For me, it’s the best of both worlds.

About the Agency:

2. Share a bit about your agency and what it offers to its authors.

Since 1996 The Knight Agency (TKA) has focused on comprehensive client services and hands-on management to guide countless writers from query letter to published book, in the process developing a powerhouse roster of bestselling authors.

Our team has placed well over 2,000 titles across the entire spectrum of New York publishers, as well as at independent houses throughout the country. Though we have represented clients in virtually all genres, our areas of fiction expertise include women’s, romance, young adult, middle grade, literary, mystery, fantasy, and science fiction, as well as multicultural and inspirational/religious fiction.

The agency focuses on a broad range of client services, addressing all aspects of our clients’ careers. TKA agents bring their extensive experience and knowledge of subsidiary rights management in the areas of foreign, motion picture and television, audio, merchandising, and electronic rights. Additionally, our marketing and publicity department offers wide-ranging support in the areas of book promotion and branding.

In the continually evolving world of publishing, TKA remains committed to providing cutting-edge services and scouting for fresh, unique voices to bring to the forefront. Yet what truly sets us apart are the lasting relationships between our authors and our team; ultimately, for us, it’s all about people. 

What She’s Looking For:

3. 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 represent romance, women’s fiction, literary/commercial fiction, historical fiction, young adult, and middle grade (no picture books). I’d love to find projects that feature sibling relationships and/or a strong sense of place. My favorite projects are those that leave me looking at the world through a different lens and feature authentic characters with strong voices.

4.  Is there anything you would be especially excited to seeing in the genres you are interested in?

Right now, I’m really looking for heartfelt middle grade projects. Something that is accessible and doesn’t pull you down, but still has this fabulous undercurrent of wisdom. I’m always drawn to stories that show how hard middle school can be—especially when it comes to outgrowing/losing friends. I love YA with a great romantic thread and tend to gravitate towards contemporary projects that are more upbeat. I’m also a sucker for anything with a boarding school setting. When it comes to YA fantasy, I’m happy to go darker and enjoy being transported by strong worldbuilding and a great sense of intrigue. Magical realism is something I don’t see in my inbox very often but I’m a huge fan. For that, I would hope to see something that skewed a little more literary and would be open to either YA or MG. Also, I’d love to see more #ownvoices projects as well as stories that don’t shy away from hard-hitting or potentially controversial issues.

That said, it’s sometimes the project that I least expect that captures my attention! I’m really just looking for strong writing and original concepts.

What She Isn’t Looking For:

5. What types of submissions are you not interested in?

This is always a difficult question because with the right voice, anything has the potential to hook me. That said, rarely do I connect to sci-fi projects and I typically don’t enjoy anything that is set in space or features aliens.

Agent Philosophy:

6. 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?

Like many agents and editors, I see books as such an important part of everyday life. Whether they provide entertainment, shape someone’s outlook, or transport readers to worlds beyond their imagination, books really are invaluable to society. I hope to continue to represent books that do all this and more. I’m looking for authors who recognize that, in some ways, they’ve been given a great responsibility, but who also greet the task with as much enthusiasm as I do. I feel very lucky to be working in such an incredible industry and I like partnering with authors who feel the same way.

Editorial Agent:

7. Are you an editorial agent? If so, what is your process like when you’re working with your authors before submitting to editors?

When it comes to editing, I’m hands-on. But the process varies greatly from project to project. I’ve had instances where several rounds of edits were needed before going out on submission (largely this happens with projects that involve worldbuilding). On the other hand, I’ve had projects that only needed some light line edits and they were ready to go. I never feel the need to edit a project just for the sake of editing—or so that I can have my ‘stamp’ on it. When I offer on a project, I’m always very upfront about any edits that may be needed. I see the author/agent relationship as a collaborative one and, because of that, I want to be sure I’m the right person to help the author fully realize their vision and put their strongest project out on submission.

Query Methods and Submission Guidelines: (Always verify before submitting)

8. How should authors query you and what do you want to see with the query letter?

Our guidelines can be found on our website here: http://knightagency.net/submission-guidelines/.

9.  Do you have any specific dislikes in query letters or the first pages submitted to you?

My number one pet peeve in not following the submission guidelines. They exist for a reason and it’s an automatic red flag when writers ignore them. Also, query letters should be compelling, short and sweet—no need to have every single character and plot point explained. Our website has some great tips for writing strong query letters (http://knightagency.net/query-letter-tips/ ).

Response Time:

10. What’s your response time to queries and requests for more pages of a manuscript?

For queries, I respond in 2-3 business days. For partials, I respond in about 4 weeks. Full manuscripts can take a little longer, but I aim to respond within 6-8 weeks. If authors don’t hear from me within those time frames, I encourage them to follow up. Sometimes conferences and client work put me behind schedule and I’m always happy to confirm with writers that their projects are still in my queue to be reviewed.

Self-Published and Small Press Authors:

11. 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?

I’m open to authors being self-published or published by a smaller press. Sometimes I see queries for the second (or third) book in a self-published series. This is a hard sell for agents because publishers are typically looking to represent the full series. I’d encourage writers to think about how they’d like to see the series published as a whole before making any decisions with the first title.

12. With all the changes in publishing—self-publishing, hybrid authors, more small publishers—do you see the role of agents changing at all? Why?

Agents act as partners to their clients. They offer support and provide critical insight to help their authors navigate the tricky waters of creating a successful writing career. As the publishing landscape changes, what ‘navigating a successful career’ looks like may change (and has changed), but at its core, the agent’s role has by and large remained the same. Hybrid author or not, your agent is there to help guide you and your career as you strive to reach your goals.

Clients:

13. Who are some of the authors you represent?

I’m in the process of building my list and looking for really strong writers in the genres I represent.  I’ve just recently placed works by Sharon Wray, JC Welker, and Gary Blackwood.

Interviews and Guest Posts:

14. Please share the links to any interviews and guest posts you think would be helpful to writers interested in querying you.

http://knightagency.net/about-us/

http://www.michelle4laughs.com/2016/09/query-questions-with-kristy-hunter.html

Links and Contact Info:

15. Please share how writers should contact you to submit a query and your links on the Web.

To submit a query to me, please follow our submission guidelines found our website here: http://knightagency.net/submission-guidelines/

Additional Advice:

16. Is there any other advice you’d like to share with aspiring authors that we haven’t covered?

In the words of Stephen King, “If you don’t have the time to read, you don’t have the time (or tools) to write. Simple as that.” There’s no better way to put it. When I’m pitched at a conference or receive a query, I know immediately who’s familiar with the genre they’re working in—and it’s always an avid reader. I can’t stress how important it is to read in order to succeed at writing.

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Kristy.

­Kristy is generously offering a query critique to one lucky winner. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (just click the follower button if you're not a follower) and leave a comment through April 8th. If your e-mail is not on your Google Profile, you must leave it in the comments to enter either contest. If you do not want to enter the contest, that's okay. Just let me know in the comments.

If you mention this contest on Twitter, Facebook, or your blog, mention this in the comments and I'll give you an extra entry. This is an international giveaway.

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.