Little GOLDen Book members of 12 x 12 will be able to choose one of two agents to submit their manuscript to each month.

Sean McCarthy of Sean McCarthy Literary Agency will be accepting picture book submissions from 12 x 12 GOLD members March 1-15. Ginger Harris-Dontzin of Liza Royce Agency will be accepting picture book submissions from 12 x 12 GOLD members March 16-31. Sean’s profile appears first, followed by Ginger’s. Please read BOTH and then decide who would be the best fit for your work.

GOLD members: Be sure to check the Submission Station section of the forum for additional instructions from each agent. 

Sean McCarthy

Here is a little about Sean from the Sean McCarthy Literary Agency website: 

“Sean McCarthy began his publishing career as an editorial intern at Overlook Press and then moved over to the Sheldon Fogelman Agency.  He worked as the submissions coordinator and permissions manager before becoming a full-time literary agent.  Sean graduated from Macalester College with a degree in English-Creative Writing, and is grateful that he no longer has to spend his winters in Minnesota.

He is drawn to flawed, multifaceted characters with devastatingly concise writing in YA, and character-driven work or smartly paced mysteries/adventures in MG. In picture books, he looks more for unforgettable characters, off-beat humor, and especially clever endings. He is not currently interested in issue-driven stories or query letters that pose too many questions.”

When asked what he’s looking for in picture books, here’s what Sean had to say:

“For fiction picture book  manuscripts, strong humor, off-beat characters and an unforgettable voice is a plus. I’m usually not the best match for slice-of-life stories, and I’m extremely selective when it comes to rhyming manuscripts. In non-fiction, I’m drawn to biographies of lesser-known historical figures who had a big impact on our contemporary life today.”

Sean has been a 12 x 12 Featured Agent in previous years. Please see our prior profiles HERE, HERE, and HERE.

Here are a few updated resources for Sean McCarthy:

• Sean will be attending the SCBWI Golden Gate Conference on March 9th. (Our February webinar speaker Vanessa Brantley-Newton will there too!)
• He will also be attending the SCBWI North/Central California Spring Spirit.
• Sean is a regular contributor on the Sub It Club blog. Be sure to read his post on Queries That Make You Go Hmmm…
• See Sean’s tips for perfecting your pitch on the SCBWI Eastern Pennsylvania blog HERE.

Ginger Harris- Dontzin

A little bit about Liza Royce Agency:

“Liza Fleissig, with her partner Ginger Harris-Dontzin, opened the Liza Royce Agency (LRA) in early 2011. A cross-platform company providing development, representation, and strategic career management for clients in all media, their goal is to represent clients in all stages of their careers, from the most established to those developing their craft, as well as debuts. Both former partners in NYC based litigation law firms, Liza and Ginger bring a combined 40 years of negotiating experience to the field. This background, along with connections rooted in publishing, movies and television, allowed them to focus and build on a referral based clientele.

From picture books through adult projects, fiction and non-fiction, screenplays to stage works, LRA welcomes strong voices and plot driven works. Their inaugural books became available in stores January 2013.  Their first was an Edgar nominee, another was an Indie Next Pick, and two others were optioned for film. LRA’s success began right out of the gate.”

When asked what she’s looking for in picture books, here’s what Ginger had to say:

“Can’t really advise on what I’m looking/not looking for — if a manuscript is clever and something/a story not really done before, that generally sparks my interest.” Ginger is not interested in “sci-fi” or “troll” books.

Ginger was a 12 x 12 Featured Agent the last four years. You can see our previous profiles HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE.

Ginger also represents 12 x 12 member Amy Moore. You can read her How I Got My Agent story HERE.

• Be sure to check out the latest news from the Liza Royce Agency HERE.

Please note Little GOLDen Book Members may only submit to ONE of these agents. Please choose the agent/agency who is the best fit for you and your manuscript.