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Don’t miss out! Pitch to top literary agent JL Stermer

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Literary agent JL Stermer wants to hear your pitches!

JL is adding to her nonfiction list in both YA and adult categories with smart pop-culture, health & wellness, self-help, comedy/satire, fashion, memoir and more. She’s also growing her fiction list (a bit more selectively) and is looking for adult and YA: coming-of-age, humor, dark and edgy stories, and across the board she is excited about new and original POVs from underrepresented voices in both commercial and upmarket projects.

Some of her clients include: How To Be Alone: If You Want To, And Even if You Don’t by Lane Moore (Simon & Schuster, 2018), Are U OK?: A Guide to Caring for Your Mental Health by Kati Morton (Hachette, 2018), Where Am I Giving?: A Global Adventure Exploring How to Use Your Gifts and Talents to Make a Difference by Kelsey Timmerman (Wiley 2018), Again, But Better by Christine Riccio (Macmillan, 2019), Dear Haiti, Love Alaine (HarperCollins 2019).

JL is looking for voices that reflect the world as it changes, stories that share the human experience of life, love, growth, and achievement. And they don’t have to all be serious-having fun is important! Some of her favorite reads include: The Basketball Diaries by Jim Carroll, Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood by Janet Mock, Bad Feminist by Roxane Gay, The Rap Yearbook by Shea Serrano, Less Than Zero by Brett Easton Ellis, and A Fighting Chance by Elizabeth Warren.

A born and bred New Yorker, JL has lived in Manhattan her entire life and is a lover of all things arts & culture, people watching, and doughnuts.

JL’s Wish List:

Currently adding to her nonfiction list in both YA and adult categories, JL is looking for: smart general pop-culture, social justice, current events, comedy/satire, fashion, health & wellness, self-help, memoir, essays, pop business, tech, and science. For fiction: commercial adult and YA: coming-of-age, humor, dark and edgy stories, and new, original, under-represented voices. She also loves graphic novels.

MWW board member Lylanne Musselman interviewed JL about her life as an agent and about coming to MWW Agent Fest. 

MWW: Let’s jump right into what writers are eager to know: What questions should a writer coming to the MWW Agent Fest ask an agent who is offering representation? Is there anything that writers should always ask, but may not know to because they’re new to being represented?

JLS: If we were to work together, what would be the next steps for us?

Would I be able to review your agency agreement?

What is your preferred method of communication? (email, phone, email to set a call…)

What kind of timeline do you envision to getting my work out on submission?

When would I be able to announce on social media?

MWW: What kind of fiction and nonfiction projects are you taking queries for? Are you looking for more in one genre than the other?

JLS: My list is currently 80/20 non-fiction/fiction, and I am looking for both adult and YA in both categories.

I’m looking for contemporary projects that can be easily linked to what’s happening in the world today: pop-culture, social justice, underrepresented voices (including POC and LGBTQ) family stories, fish-out-of-water stories, coming-of-age stories and anything that make me feel a real feeling. (Very subjective, I know.) Not looking for sci-fi or fantasy.

MWW: What makes a query stand out to you? Have you ever had a query grab you, but the manuscript didn’t live up to expectations? What does make a manuscript grab you?

JLS: It feels so obvious, but it’s the truth: VOICE. Voice is the equivalent of personality–it’s how you figure out if you like someone, if you want to hang out with them and hear what they have to say. Voice determines if you care about a character and if you can relate to them. Voice is a character’s style and representation. This holds true for both queries as well as for full manuscripts.

I haven’t had a query knock my socks off and then the manuscript was mediocre, but I know that can happen!

MWW: Finally, what are you tired of seeing?

JLS: I’m tired of seeing people who hold themselves back. If you want to write something that is new and out of the box–give it a shot! Be smart about how you’ll fit into a commercial landscape, but shake it up and tell the stories that matter most to you. (I know you’re probably looking for tired tropes and concepts, but I really don’t pay those any mind. If I’m not feeling it, I just move on to see what’s next!)

MWW: Oh, and just for fun…I see you love doughnuts, what’s your favorite kind?

JLS: Anything from The Donut Pub on 14th Street & 7th Avenue in New York City. This is an old school spot that blows any new fancy shops away!

 

Come to the Agent Fest and pitch to JL!

Read more about the MWW Agent Fest: May 10-11, 2019. (Including hotel options)

Register Today! Do this thing.

Click here to register.

Friday 1:00 pm through Saturday 5:00 pm. {$289}

Prepare. Pitch. Publish. #preppitchpub

You want agents. We’ve got agents.

Interview with agent JL Stermer

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Meet JL Stermer!

Introducing another New York agent you can pitch to if you register for Part II of Midwest Writers Workshop:

StermerJL Stermeris an agent in the literary division of talent agency N.S. Bienstock. She is currently seeking both fiction and nonfiction. On the fiction side, she’d love to see both commercial and literary fiction as well as graphic novels. On the nonfiction side, she is looking for cookbooks and food-related narratives, prescriptive health, diet, and fitness, how-to, reference, narrative nonfiction, current events-related projects and all things pop-culture (science, business, technology, art, music, humor, crafts, DIY.)

Always looking for fresh and exciting projects, JL brings her enthusiasm to clients while helping them navigate the world of book publishing. From spotting trends, to finding the right editorial match for a project, she takes pride in being involved with her clients every step of the way. JL also teaches a class at the Gotham Writers Workshop: How to Get Published. Prior to joining N.S. Bienstock, she was an agent at the Donald Maass Literary Agency. Born and raised in New York City, and a graduate of Columbia University, she currently resides in Manhattan solidifying that she is forever a city girl through and through.

Q: What are you looking for right now and not getting?

I’d love to see some fiction that reflects some of today’s more interesting “reality” projects … a protagonist who is:

….a judge (or contestant or a behind-the-scenes staff member) on a talent/food/addiction/fashion/weight-loss show

….on the front lines of current political revolutions/weather disasters/culture wars

….a social media developer/maven

…basically I am looking for any characters we might see in our daily lives (in all forms of media) and think: “I wonder what their days are like?”

In nonfiction, I am always looking for people with fresh twists on ideas that have been strong sellers in pop science, food, technology, health, diet, exercise. Nonfiction’s greatest hits!

Q: What’s your best piece(s) of advice?

One of the things I stress in the classes I teach at Gotham Writers Workshop is persistence. When submitting query letters persistence is key, but authors must be smart about their approach as well.  Make sure you have a well-curated list of agents you are going to query. Make sure they are truly a good fit for you. Keep meticulous notes during the process. And if you get any constructive criticism–do not be defensive and shrug it off–see if you can use it to make your pitch better. So many people give up after a few rejections. Keep the process moving by honing your letter as well as your manuscript/book proposal. And stay positive!! This is a hard one, I know, but bitter and frustrated authors send out that vibe and I can always sense it–in person and even in query letters…you are selling your project, sell it with a smile on your face.

Q:  How do you think attending a writing conference and speaking with you personally helps an author seeking representation and have you found some of your clients at writing conferences?

Attending a conference helps make it “real” for so many people. For the many writers who are cocooned in their own worlds, oftentimes this is the first chance they get to really identify as an author–to meet an agent, give their pitch and take that step into the business side of writing. I like to think I give authors confidence and inspiration (even if I am offering a critique). I try to take the scary element out of the equation by answering questions and being an attentive listener. As to clients, I do have a handful who I have met at writer’s conferences, but most of them are still works-in-progress. I have faith in them!

Q. In addition to the above, please be specific about the fiction you are seeking, to include whether you represent category romance, thrillers, and women’s fiction?

I am not looking for category romance. My colleague Paul Fedorko is always looking for a great thriller (WWII stories are his go-to favorite) so I am always happy to pass something great to him. And as for women’s fiction, yes please. Commercial and up market are welcome and I am very open regarding topic. As long as I am connecting with a distinctive voice and feel invested in a complex protagonist, I will follow her anywhere.

Q. What are some insider tips for making a successful pitch to you and how should someone who did not get an official pitch session approach you (if you are okay with that)?

One of the most important things is to take a deep breath and smile. Try to shake those nerves when you sit down for a one-on-one. Having your pitch be concise is important–you don’t have a lot of time to get it all in. I’d like to meet the protagonist right away as well as a few secondary characters, but not too many. If you try to cover everyone, you run the risk of losing me as I try to keep up with you…

As far as approaching me outside of an official pitch session, I’m okay with this but I’d rather not be pitched in the bathroom (!) or while I am chatting with another person. Other than that–that’s why I am here, to meet everyone and see if I can find a good match!