Literary Agent Interview: Alex Brown Interview and Query Critique Giveaway

Today I’m thrilled to have agent Alex Brown here. She’s an associate agent at Mad Woman Literary Agency. 

Hi­ Alex! Thanks so much for joining us. 

Thank you so much for having me! Literary Rambles was such a huge resource for me when I first started querying—it’s an honor to be here! 

About Alex: 

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

I started my publishing journey as a writer! I sent my first query in 2012 and didn’t sign with an agent until 2019, so I understand how harrowing the query trenches can be. Once I was agented, I was able to serve as a mentor in Author Mentor Match and Pitch Wars, which is where I sharpened my editorial skills and developed a passion for revision! After a few years of mentoring were under my belt I knew I wanted to become an agent. It took me a few more years to become an associate agent, but I’m so happy and grateful to be at Mad Woman Literary! 

Since I became an agent, I’ve been signing my fabulous clients, meeting with editors, and getting manuscripts ready for submission! 

About the Agency: 

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

Mad Woman Literary Agency is a queer-woman-owned, full-service literary agency founded in 2021. The agency has a particular focus on DEAI and prides itself on its highly curated list of talented authors. 

MWLA values transparency, a spirit of partnership, and author empowerment. We work to foster a sense of community among our clients through annual retreats and virtual educational presentations. 

We are by each client's side throughout the publishing process from the development of ideas all the way through publication and beyond to support sustainable, long-term writing careers. 

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 MG, YA, and Adult across all genres! 

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

I LOVE horror! Please send me all the horror in all the age categories! I’m especially keen to find horror written by and for marginalized populations! 

I would also love more rom coms and sci-fi/fantasy with a killer contemporary voice! 

What She Isn’t Looking For: 

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

I’m not currently representing non-fiction. Contemporary is usually a little hard for me to get into but if it’s got a great hook (like my client, AS Crowder, who I signed for their AMAZING Phantom of the Opera retelling set in the world of professional wrestling), I’m in! 

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’d love to represent fresh voices and perspectives in all genres. As a queer biracial (Filipino/white) agent and writer, I’d love to bring more diverse stories into the world and work with cool people who have tales to tell that are thrilling, terrifying, romantic, and everything in-between! 

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 am indeed editorial! When I was mentoring, I worked with authors who did ground-up rewrites/revisions and authors who needed less extensive revisions. I always want to work with authors to find the best possible version of their book and am very collaborative when it comes to revision. 

Before I send anything to editors, I’ll usually send an edit letter to my client. Then we’ll jump on a call and chat about it, and once my client feels good about the revision, I’ll let them do their thing. I’m always available to read over pages or brainstorm with my clients if they need it! 

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? 

Authors should use my Query Manager link: https://QueryManager.com/AlexBrown 

I ask for the first ten pages and a query. Synopses are optional! 

Any queries sent to my email will be deleted unread. This is to keep things fair and make sure my inbox stays manageable! 

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

Query letters are most helpful when they tell us about the book. It’s hard to know if I’d like something if the letter talks more about how someone got the idea for the book, or if they spend more time talking about their experiences than the book itself. 

Response Time: 

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

For queries, I try my best to reply within two months. I’m a little behind at the moment, though, so it’s looking more like 3 months. 

If I’m intrigued by the query and pages, I’ll request the full! That can take even longer, depending on what my clients need. At this point, I’d say it might take around 6 months or so to hear back on a full. I’m hoping to get a bit quicker in the future! 

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 am! I think it’s always great to query something totally new when you’re reaching out to agents. As for an author’s previously published work, we’d approach what we’d do with each book on a case-by-case basis. 

Clients: 

12. Who are some of the authors you represent? 

I have 7 clients currently: 

Val Robles

AS Crowder

Kennedy Cole

Stephanie Binx

G.T. Korbin

SW Holden

Carly Vick 

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. 

Query Manager: https://QueryManager.com/AlexBrown 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/gravity_fail09 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/madethisforlu 

Links and Contact Info: 

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

See Answer #13 on how to query Alex. 

Additional Advice: 

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

Everyone’s path is different! It took me 7 years to find an agent, but some of my writer friends had an offer after a few days of querying! It’s totally okay to take a break and step away when you need it. Make friends in the writing community and lean on them in the hard times. 

It’s important to keep writing the stories that only you can write. Your passion will shine through and, sometimes, it’s one of the few things that can get you through the rough periods. 

Thanks for sharing all your advice, Alex. 

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. 

Giveaway Details 

­Alex 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 September 21st. 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. 

Upcoming Interviews, Guest Posts, and Blog Hops 

Monday, September 16th I have an interview with debut author Callie Miller and a giveaway of her MG The Search for the Shadowsoul 

Monday, September 16th I’m also participating in the Falling Into Leaves Giveaway Hop 

Wednesday, September 18th I have a guest post by Carol Lynch Williams from Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers 

Monday, September 23rd I have an interview with debut author Dionna Mann and a giveaway of her MG Mama's Chicken and Dumplings  

I hope to see you on Monday!