AGENT SPOTLIGHT INTERVIEW WITH NATASCHA MORRIS AND QUERY CRITIQUE GIVEAWAY

Today I’m thrilled to have agent Natascha Morris here. She is a literary agent at BookEnds Literary Agency.

Status 9/4/2020: Natascha is now at The Tobias Agency. She still represents PB through YA. You can read more about what she is looking for on her profile page.

Status: Open to submissions.

Hi­ Natascha! Thanks so much for joining us.

About Natascha:

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

SO, I’ve been an agent for a little over a year now. After working at Simon & Schuster, I started to feel creatively stifled by the need to “buy on brand”. As an agent, I could just follow my passion and represent a range of books and creatives.

As to what I have been doing? What haven’t I been doing. As an agent, I have to wear many hats and keep a lot of plates spinning. From getting manuscripts out the door to editors, to helping my clients plan for the next book, to find the next client; there are just a lot of hats to be worn.

About the Agency:

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

Since opening its doors in 1999, BookEnds Literary Agency has never strayed from the original goal: Achieving dreams and doing what we love. Representing fiction and nonfiction for adults and children alike, BookEnds agents continue to live their dreams while helping authors achieve theirs.

As for working with me specifically, authors can expect to enter a community. I set the bar high, but I am very much in the trenches, working along side my authors so that we all can achieve success.

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 all areas of kid lit. The only area I am no longer looking for is sci-fi in MG and YA.

Right now, I am looking for contemporary romances, graphic novels, and middle grade. I am looking for diverse characters living their lives, and authors I can champion.

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

MERMAIDS!!! I am dying for a contemporary about professional mermaids or a creepy mermaid book that feels like Neil Gaiman.

Check out my #MSWL to see what I am currently hoping to find on Twitter or Pinterest since I am constantly updating it.

What She Isn’t Looking For:

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

Sci-fi is really not my thing. I am also very picky when it comes to novels in verse. And dark, graphic abuse books are never going to be right for me. 

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?

My philosophy is that literary should not be boring. To that end, a lot of my authors have “upmarket commercial” books, a literary style writing with a commercial hook.

When it comes to my authors, I want people who understand this is a business. They write with an awareness of the market, and when times are hard, don’t give up. After 6 months on sub and 40 rejections, that is when you need grit to keep going.

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?

I would say I am an editorial agent. Probably more editorial than I should be. 😊 When a manuscript first comes in, I start editing. Authors usually get a marked-up manuscript and an edit letter for their first round, and then I spot check. That is why it is so important authors have CPs. I’m the final gatekeeper before the editors see something, but at the end of the day, my job is not to do intensive editing. I only polish.

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?

BookEnds uses Query Manager and authors can query me at http://QueryMe.Online/natatscha. The form has all my requirements, but I will say this: don’t just phone in the letter. That is your sales pitch.

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

I really hate the phrase “standalone with series potential”. Also if you are comping to Harry Potter, Twilight, or The Hunger Games, I can tell you are not current on your YA reading.

Response Time:

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

Ideally, I am for 4-6 on a query and 10-12 on a full manuscript. Sadly, I don’t always make that. But BookEnds policy is that you will always get a response so don’t assume no answer means no.

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 fine with that. I will say I am not going to be looking at book 2 for the self pub series or the book that is published. It needs to be a brand-new thing. Self-publishing doesn’t change how I evaluate.

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?

I don’t see the role changing that much. Publishers uses agents because we are the first line of gatekeepers. I can say from experience that I was unprepared for the wave of manuscripts. With all that editors do, they need me. 😊 As for smaller presses and self-publishing, that is really a conversation that I have with my clients. Agents are author advocates, first and foremost. Just because an author wants to go to a small press, doesn’t mean they don’t need an insider who can fight for them.

Clients:

13. Who are some of the authors you represent?

Some of my amazing authors are ALA award winner Teresa Robeson, Laura Taylor Namey, Alexandra Overy, Joana Pastro, Viviane Elbee, and honestly way to many other amazing people to name because we would be here all day. But you can check out the books I represent on my pinterest to get updates as the books come out.

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.

https://johnelldewitt.com/2017/03/15/interview-with-agent-natascha-morris/

https://johnelldewitt.com/2018/04/17/interview-with-agent-natascha-morris-part-2/

My Pinterest, for a better look at the time of books I am looking for:  https://www.pinterest.com/nataschamorris/

Links and Contact Info:

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

Query Manager: http://QueryMe.Online/1067

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SoCalledYALife

Additional Advice:

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

Keep learning and working on your craft. As the Gatorade commercial said: “If you want a revolution, the only solution: gotta evolve.”

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Natascha.

­Natascha 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 June 2nd.  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.

Profile Details:
Last Updated: 9/4/2020
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@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.