Literary Agent Interview: Erica Bauman and Query Critique Giveaway

Today I’m thrilled to have agent Erica Bauman here. She’s an agent at Aevitas Creative Management. 

Status: Erica is currently closed to submissions but plans to reopen to queries the first week of June.

Hi­ Erica! Thanks so much for joining us. 

About Erica: 

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

I’ve been working in the publishing industry since 2012, and what drew me to agenting was the long-term professional relationship between agents and their authors. I love the idea of not just finding incredible books but talented authors, and helping them grow in their careers and find readers. 

I started building my own client list in 2016, first in the MG and YA space, and then more recently branching out into adult fiction. 

About the Agency: 

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

When I joined what is now Aevitas, we were still two smaller agencies that hadn’t yet merged. In the last ten years we’ve really grown in size, and offer our clients benefits like a dedicated foreign rights team and film team, but still approach our work as a very hands-on boutique agency. All of my colleagues work editorially with our authors to make sure that the version of the book we send out to publishers is the strongest we can make it, and reflects well on our authors as professionals. 

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 projects from ages MG and up. In the MG and YA space I’m open to all genres, as well as graphic novels and some select nonfiction. I have a soft spot for speculative fiction, but also love horror, mystery, and fun contemporary and romcoms. And across the board I’m looking to work with BIPOC, LGBTQ+, disabled and neurodivergent authors and stories. 

My list can be described as projects with a strong commercial hook, depth and emotional resonance, and enthralling writing.   

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

I love when an author brings an element of the unexpected to their project, like an out-there genre mashup or world building element, or a new perspective on a familiar trope or retelling. Something fun and surprising, but also integral to the story you’re telling. 

What She Isn’t Looking For:

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

While I do have some picture books on my list, it’s not an area that I’m actively looking for. Anything younger than middle grade—so picture books, chapter books, and early reader—are not really in my wheelhouse. And, while I do represent graphic novel memoir, I’m not a great fit for prose memoir. I also don’t represent story collections or poetry collections. 

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? 

This may be a bit of a cliché answer, but I want to work with authors who are willing to roll up their sleeves and work. The publishing industry is tough—there are a lot of writers and only so many books acquired per year, and more often than not you and your book only get one chance to make a good impression. So when it comes to queries, I’m not only looking for manuscripts that are fun and engaging, but show a level of craft and polish that are evidence of that author’s hard work. 

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? 

Yes—I majored in creative writing, so I love rolling up my sleeves and digging into a manuscript. The submission process in anxiety inducing, and there are so many factors outside of an author’s control, but what we can control is the manuscript and writing itself. So I work closely with my authors and we usually do a couple rounds of revision to make sure that the version of the manuscript we send out is the strongest and most polished example of that author’s writing. 

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? 

I only accept queries through Query Tracker—any unexpected email queries are swept up by my spam filter. As for the query letter itself, I know that one of the biggest challenges is finding the right balance between conveying enough of the specific details of your story so that your concept/plot feels distinct, but not too much in that limited space that it becomes overly complicated and convoluted. It’s tough to thread that needle, and usually takes a couple drafts to get right, but it is so important—I’m looking for a clear sense of what the book is not just to determine whether it’s a fit for my list and something I can sell, but to also get a sense of whether the author knows how to talk about their book. It’s not a skill that comes naturally to most people, so getting outside reads and feedback on your query letter, or studying the jacket copy of the books you already own, or even practicing talking about your book like it was just something you picked up and want to recommend to a friend can all help you distill your pitch. 

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

Query letters are an opportunity for you to argue your case for why someone should read your book, so don’t waste it. A too short query letter is a wasted opportunity—you have the full page, take advantage of it. It’s also a professional introduction to agents of what you will be like as a business partner, so writing from the POV of your characters doesn’t give us a clear picture of how who you are as a colleague and collaborator. And any query letters that disparage other authors or other published books communicates to me someone who needs to tear others down to make themselves feel valued, and that’s not a personality I’m interested in working with. 

As for first pages, I see a lot of openings where the character wakes up suddenly from a dream. And—this may just be a me thing—but opening pages that start with an intriguing line or moment, and then immediately flash back to either earlier in the day or to an extended memory to show how they got there. Start the story where it starts. 

Response Time: 

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

Right now my response time for queries is hovering at around 3 months. I tend to put queries I’m intrigued by in my maybe pile for a second look, before requesting more pages, so those take a bit longer. I also read queries by genre, rather than chronologically, so responses can go out of order. 

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 representing previously published or self-published authors, however when it comes to queries I’m looking for books that have not been previously published. So, if an established author has a brand new project they’re querying, that’s great, but signing an author for a book that has already been released is a little outside of my wheelhouse. 

Clients: 

12. Who are some of the authors you represent? 

I’m lucky that I get to work with New York Times bestselling author Kayla Cottingham, Eisner and Harvey Award nominated author Tony Weaver Jr., acclaimed YA author Maria Ingrande Mora, and Lambda Literary Fellow Naseem Jamnia, to name a few. 

Interviews and Guest Posts: 

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

“Genres, Tropes, Trends, and Finding Your Agent Fit with Agent Erica Bauman”—The Manuscript Academy Podcast, https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/genres-tropes-trends-and-finding-your-agent-fit-with/id1171799743?i=1000663492092 

My MSWL: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4TTAlk2Accs and https://manuscriptwishlist.com/mswl-post/erica-bauman/ 

Links and Contact Info: 

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

I can be queried at https://QueryTracker.net/query/EricaBauman, and any updates on my query inbox and MSWL can usually be found on my Instagram: @EricaBaumanBooks 

Additional Advice 

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

It’s good to have goals as an author, but be flexible in how you get there. There’s no set path in publishing, so many factors that affect every step on the path, and every author’s journey is different. So set goals you want to aim for (and communicate those with your agent), but be flexible in that the journey is not always a straight line. 

Same goes with your writing—know the non-negotiables for your manuscript, those elements that if changed or removed would fundamentally affect your relationship with the project, and be open and receptive to feedback everywhere else. You want to find someone whose vision aligns with yours, who values the same things about the manuscript, but can provide editorial insight that you might have overlooked to help you better execute your authorial vision. 

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Erica!

 Giveaway Details

­Erica is generously offering a query critique to one lucky winner. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (via the follower gadget, email, or bloglovin’ on the right sidebar) and leave a comment through May 9th. If you do not want to enter the contest, that’s okay. Just let me know in the comments. If I do not have your email (I can no longer get it from your Google Profile), you must leave it in the comments to enter the contest. Please be sure I have your email address.

If you follow me on Twitter or Bluesky or 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 email 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.

 Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops 

Friday, May 1st, I’m participating in the Come What May Giveaway Hop 

Wednesday, May 6th, I have an interview with Dana Mele and a giveaway of her YA The Beast You Let In and my IWSG post 

Monday, May 11th, I have an interview with Sarah Marie Jette and a giveaway of her MG One Fair Share 

Wednesday, May 13th, I have an agent spotlight interview with Andrea Colvin and a query critique giveaway 

Saturday, May 16th, I’m participating in the Moms Rock Giveaway Hop 

Monday, May 25th, I’m off for Memorial Day 

I hope to see you on Friday, May 1st!

 

 

Literary Agent Interview: Amy Thrall Flynn Interview and Query Critique Giveaway

Today I’m thrilled to have agent Amy Thrall Flynn here. She’s a senior agent at Aevitas Creative Management.

Hi Amy! Thanks so much for joining us.

About Amy:

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

Hi!  I am happy to be here!  I’ve been an agent for six years, and this is a short history of my path to agenting.  

After graduating from college (major in American Literature, minor in Spanish), I spent a year as a sixth grade English teacher.  Then I moved to Boston to follow my passionate interest in helping to create children’s books.  The books that I loved as a young reader had a profound impact on me, as did my experience sharing literature with students.

I joined the editorial team at Houghton Mifflin Books for Children in 1991—a dream job—at first assisting the department head and then as an acquiring editor.  Houghton Mifflin was the esteemed publisher of classics including the Curious George books by Margret and H.A. Rey, Virginia Lee Burton’s The Little House and Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel, the astonishing nonfiction work of David Macaulay, Lois Lowry’s award-winning novels, Chris Van Allsburg’s The Polar Express, and many more . . .

During my 12 years with Houghton, I had the opportunity to train under incredible mentors and to guide dozens of new books to publication (board books and picture books, nonfiction for all ages, novels for MG and YA readers), working directly with writers and the in-house publishing team.  I also continued to study and earned an MA in English.  

Later, when our two children were young, I did freelance editorial work and taught reading in a first-grade classroom.  I also completed an MA in Children’s Literature from Simmons College: a phenomenal program that includes classes held at the Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art in Amherst, MA.  

In 2019 I joined Rubin Pfeffer at his Boston-based literary agency, representing writers and illustrators of children’s books.  In 2024 Rubin Pfeffer Content aligned with Aevitas Creative Management where I’m happily continuing my work with wonderful creators.

About the Agency:

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

Aevitas Creative Management is a full-service literary agency, home to forty+ agents in New York, Boston, Washington DC, Los Angeles, Detroit, Nashville, London, and Barcelona, representing scores of award-winning authors, performers, thinkers, artists, and public figures.  Aevitas has dedicated departments for foreign and media rights as well as deep expertise in negotiations and contracts.  

The ACM Kids and Illustration cohort includes more than a dozen seasoned agents working exclusively in the children’s book space.  Our collaborative team is supported by a robust social media and website presence that increases visibility for the artists and writers we represent.

As an agent I offer editorial, strategic, and business support to clients, guiding their creative work, preparing submissions, and representing their bests interests with publishing houses.

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 work for children in all categories and ages: from board books through YA.  In fiction, I look for authentic characters, characters who struggle and grow.  I have a particular interest in young picture books that speak directly to the lives of children, nonfiction concepts that potentially overlap with school subject areas including STEAM studies, and compelling, beautifully written fiction for young readers up to age 16.  

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

Innovative structure, approach, and/or voice in all areas.  Propulsive storytelling with clear stakes.  Diverse experiences and viewpoints.  Authentic and vulnerable characters who make mistakes and grow.  Exploration of emotions of all sorts including humor, triumph, and joy as well as challenge, conflict, and grief.  Strong visual potential.  Surprise, insight, and connection.  

Above all, I am passionate about books that support young people in learning about themselves and making sense of the world.  

What She Isn’t Looking For:

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

At this time I am not interested in YA science fiction or fantasy.

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?

I am eager to fall in love with new projects.  My first review of a new submission is a blind read, to see if I feel a strong pull to the writing/subject.  This is very subjective.  Does the manuscript feel fresh and surprising? Do I want to read it again?  

If yes, I go on to evaluate the submission more critically.  Have similar stories been told before (what are the comps)?  Does this piece do something different and special (what would make a reader choose this book over others on the shelves)?  Does the creator have a strong purpose and point of view?  Does the material speak to an audience of children?

Sometimes I’ll ask a colleague for a second read.  And typically there’s a process of further discovery with the creator (emails and video or phone calls).  What are their long- and short-term goals and expectations?  Are they professional and diligent in their working style, with an openness to feedback and other potential projects in development?  Am I the right partner to help their vision come to life?

Truthfully, agents see many manuscripts that are well written and appealing.  But each agent can only serve a finite number of clients.  Ideally both agent and client feel that next level of personal excitement and commitment to working together.  

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?

Yes, I love to collaborate on manuscript revisions while still leaving room for an editor to enter the project.  This can mean a couple of back-and forth rounds before submission: exploring both big-picture questions and line-level adjustments.  I also enjoy crafting cover letters and fine-tuning these with clients.

An agent is a partner on the road to publication, a bridge or link between writers/illustrators and publishers.  Agents support the creative aspirations of clients, act as a sounding board for questions of all kinds, help to shape submissions and pitches, and work to find the right publishers based on their knowledge of the market.  It’s a collaborative relationship that requires perseverance, flexible thinking, and trust.  

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?

Please submit via Query Tracker: https://QueryTracker.net/query/3360

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

I don’t have any specific dislikes.  I tend to skim cover letters and go right to the sample pages or manuscript.

Response Time:

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

I try to respond within 6-8 weeks.

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?

Yes, with the same rigorous process of review.

Clients:

12. Who are some of the authors you represent?

Please see the ACM Kids and Illustration website 😊

Interviews and Guest Posts:

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

N/a

Links and Contact Info:

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

Query Tracker works well—thank you.

Additional Advice:

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

Read lots of books in the area that you are writing in.  Read books out loud and to children.  Study what you think works or doesn’t work and why . . .  Which books do you love?  Join a critique group to build a supportive community and to learn more about both the writing craft and the industry.  Think about how to give and receive constructive criticism and to foster an open and curious mindset.

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Amy.   

 

Giveaway Details

Amy is generously offering a query critique to one lucky winner. To enter, all you need to do is be a follower (via the follower gadget, email, or bloglovin’ on the right sidebar) and leave a comment through April  5th. If your email is not on your Google Profile, you must leave it in the comments to enter the contest. If you do not want to enter the contest, that’s okay. Just let me know in the comments.

If you follow me on Twitter or 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 email 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.

Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops

Wednesday, March 28th I have an agent spotlight interview with Sally Kim and a query critique giveaway

Tuesday, April 1st I’m participating in the Honey Bunny Giveaway Hop

Wednesday, April 2nd I have an interview with debut author Lucia Damisa and a giveaway of her YA A Desert of Bleeding Sand and my IWSG post

Monday, April 7th I have an agent spotlight interview with Etsy Loveing-Downes and a query critique giveaway

Monday, April 14th I have an interview with author Mia Araujo and a giveaway of her MG Afia In the Land of Wonders

Wednesday, April 16th I’m participating in the Raindrop in Roses Giveaway Hop

Monday, April 21st I have an agent spotlight interview with Carey Blankenship-Kramer and a query critique giveaway

Wednesday, April 23rd I have an agent spotlight interview with Rebecca Eskildsen  and a query critique giveaway

Monday, April 28th I have an interview with debut author Alby Williams and a giveaway of their MG Where There Be Monsters

I hope to see you on Wednesday!

Agent Spotlight: Lauren MacLeod

This week's Agent Spotlight features Lauren MacLeod of Aevitas Creative Management.
Status update on 12/30/2025: Lauren is open to submissions.

About: “Lauren E. MacLeod has represented Jodi Meadows, the co-author of the New York Times bestselling My Lady Jane series, actress and activist Nicole Maines, Chefs Kenny Gilbert, Nelson German, and Rogelio Garcia, Middle East Book Award-winner Aminah Mae Safi, and former Youth Poet Laureate of the Southern United States, Alora Young.

MacLeod is a former co-vice president of the Association of American Literary Agents, sitting on the board from 2020-2024. She currently serves on the copyright and contracts committees and co-chairs the communications committee. She is also a member of Les Dames d'Escoffier Nashville. Before joining ACM, she was named Vice President of The Strothman Agency. She graduated cum laude from Emerson College, receiving a BFA in Writing, Literature, and Publishing.

Based in Nashville, TN, she concentrates on cookbooks, food writing and history, young-adult and middle-grade fiction, memoir, pop culture, true crime, and narrative nonfiction."(From the agency website)

About the Agency:
“Aevitas Creative is a full-service literary agency, home to more than forty agents in New York, Boston, Washington DC, Los Angeles, Detroit, Nashville, London, and Barcelona, representing scores of award-winning authors, performers, thinkers, artists, and public figures.

Aevitas also provides high-level strategic communications consulting and original content development services to internationally renowned business, political, and cultural leaders, institutions, brands, and estates. (From the agency website)

Web Presence:
Aevitis Creative Management
Publisher’s Marketplace page.
JacketFlap.

Threads.   
AgentQuery, QueryTracker.
What She's Looking For:
Genres/Specialties:
Middle grade and young adult fiction and nonfiction (currently via referral only), literary fiction, and narrative nonfiction.
See Ms. MacLeod's Manuscript Wish List for detailed information on what she is looking for.
What She Isn't Looking For:
Picture books, chapter books, early readers,  or adult fiction, romance, science fiction, mysteries, and thrillers
Editorial Agent?
Yes.
Clients:
You can find a list of clients on the agency website. Ms. MacLeod’s clients include: Hélène Boudreau, The Barbara Cooney Estate, Aminah Mae Safi, Sashi Kaufman, Robert Lettrick, Jodi Meadows, Dr. Rachel Hez, Steven Hale, Helene Dunbar, American Girls podcast hosts Allison Horrocks and Mary Mahoney, Alan and Claire Linic, among others.
Query Methods:
E-mail: No
Snail-Mail: No.
Online-Form: Yes https://querytracker.net/query/Lmacleod/.
Submission Guidelines (always verify):
Send a query letter outlining your qualifications and experience, a synopsis, the genre and word count of your manuscript, and the first ten pages in the body of the online form. 
Please see the Aevitis Creative Management website for complete, up-to-date submission guidelines.
Response Times:
Lauren will only respond if she's interested.
Worth Your Time:
Interviews and Guest Posts:
Lauren MacLeod and Holly Bodger Guest Post at Literary Rambles (05/2015).
Query.Sign.Submit with Lauren MacLeod at I Write for Apples (06/2014).
Contact:
Please see The Strothman Agency website for contact and query information.
Profile Details:
Last updated: 12/24/2024.
Agent Contacted For Review? Yes.
Last Reviewed By Agent? 5/19/2020.

***
Have any experience with this agent? See something that needs updating? Please leave a comment or e-mail me at natalieiaguirre7(at)gmail(dot)com

Note: These agent profiles presently focus on agents who accept children's and/or teen 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.