If you’ve written a memoir that provides an account of memories from your life, either personal or professional and want to send your manuscript directly to a book publishing house, here are 19 publishers looking for memoirs.
Alternatively, one of the following 19 top literary agents for memoirs who are experts in finding authors large book publishers might be able to help.
1. Gordon Warnock
Both a literary agent and a founding partner of Fuse Literary, Gordon has many years of experience as an agent, marketing director and editor. His specialties lie in the nonfiction realm of publication, and he has a specific interest in captivating memoirs in the adult, young adult, new adult, and graphic memoir categories. Other genres he is interested in are humor, self-help, and pop-science, to name a few. He is currently accepting new submissions, and the best way to get in contact with him is by sending a query via email. Due to the volume of submissions that he receives, it may take a while to hear back. More information on how to send a submission can be found here.
2. Jennifer De Chiara
Jennifer De Chiara is not only a literary agent, but also a fellow writer. As president and senior agent of The Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency, she is passionate about what she does and is eager to represent up and coming writers with unique voices. When it comes to nonfiction, she is particularly interested in the subjects of Hollywood and memoirs about people who have overcome incredible situations. If you are interested in submitting your manuscript for representation, you should send a query letter via email. Be sure to include a proposal, a sample chapter, a short author bio and a synopsis of your book in the body of the email.
3. Roz Foster
After gaining more than 6 years of experience as a literary agent at the Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency, Roz Foster decided to join the Frances Goldin Literary Agency team in 2019. . She specializes in serious nonfiction, including memoirs, politics, science, and more. However, she is also interested in adult literary and contemporary fiction. Among her clients we can name Susan Eva O’Donovan, author of “Becoming Citizens: The Political Lives of Slaves,” and Arthur Eckstein, author of “Bad Moon Rising: How the Weather Underground Beat the FBI and Lost the Revolution.”
More information on how to submit your manuscript can be found here. It’s highly recommended that you send a query letter first directly to Roz’s email. On average, the response time of Roz and her colleagues varies between 4 and 6 weeks.
4. Chris Park
When it comes to memoirs, Chris Park is a specialist. As a literary agent with Foundry Literary & Media, Chris has worked with authors like Brett Favre, author of the NFL quarterback memoir “Favre.” With a degree in English from Harvard University, Chris is a hardworking agent who also takes interest in narrative nonfiction, Christian nonfiction, and in a few more genres. She only accepts submissions via email, and your submission should conform to the Foundry submission guidelines, found here. For memoir submissions, be sure to include a query letter, sample chapters, a table of contents, and a short author bio.
5. Miriam Goderich
A partner of Jane Dystel since 1995, Miriam Goderich’s attributions at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret LLC exceed those of a literary agent – for instance, she is also a meticulous editor who has worked on several first novels. This shouldn’t come as a surprise though, as she has BA in Comparative Literature and an MA in English, both from Columbia University. In terms of interests, Miriam is keen on developing nonfiction projects and on getting them ready for publication. Some of the genres she has experience with are biography/memoir, psychology, history, science, and art. If you want to learn more about how to submit a proposal, the company’s guidelines are available here.
6. Anjali Singh
Anjali Singh has been a part of the publishing industry since 1996 when she began her career as a literary scout. Now a literary agent with Ayesha Pande Literary, she not only seeks submissions for memoirs, but also for literary thrillers, young adult literature, and for graphic novels, to name a few. She has worked with renowned novelists such as Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Samantha Hunt.
If you’re interested in sending Anjali a query about your submission, you can actually do so on the Ayesha Pande Literary website. You will have to select Anjali’s name and to provide a few details about yourself and your project. .
7. Amy Tannenbaum
After more than 15 years of experience in the book industry, Amy Tannenbaum is currently a literary agent at Jane Rotrosen Agency. She also has extensive editing knowledge, as she previously worked on numerous fiction and nonfiction projects at both Harlequin and Simon & Schuster. Her range of interests includes memoir, narrative and prescriptive nonfiction, contemporary romance, and thriller, to name a few genres. Amy is accustomed to working with both established and emerging authors, so don’t be afraid to send her your work if you’re just starting out.
8. Sam Hiyate
Sam Hiyate is both a literary agent and the president of The Rights Factory. He has represented a long list of authors, from Alexandra Grigorescu (“Cauchemar”) to Yvette d’Entremon (“SciBabe’s Ten Rules to BS Detection”). Having worked with publishing companies like Gutter Press and the Lavin Agency, Sam has many years of experience under his belt. He is currently seeking memoir submissions and books about business and commercial upmarket, to name a few genres. In order to get in contact with Sam, you have to send him an email containing your query, author bio, as well as the first three chapters of your manuscript.
9. Erin Niumata
With over twenty-four years of experience, Erin Niumata is a literary agent with Folio Literary Management. She specifically represents clients who write commercial nonfiction, including memoirs, as well as fiction, including mysteries, psychological thrillers, and more. She’s worked with authors like James Guiliani and actress Angela Featherstone, and on multiple New York Times bestsellers. The best way to get in contact with Erin is to submit a query via email. Be sure to include the first ten pages of your manuscript or proposal and your query in the body of the email.
10. Emily Forland
Emily Forland is a literary agent with Brandt & Hochman Literary Agents, Inc. She represents clients who write both fiction and nonfiction and has worked with several bestsellers and prize winners. She is currently seeking new submissions and accepts memoir projects, along with works about history, cultural criticism, and graphic novels, to name a few. She accepts queries by email only. Mailed submissions will not be accepted.
11. Alexis Hurley
Alexis Hurley is a literary agent with InkWell Management, and has been with the company since its creation in 2004. She graduated from Dickinson College with a BA in English and Art History. She primarily focuses on works of commercial fiction, on memoirs, and on narrative nonfiction, among others. If you’re interested in being represented by Alexis, you will have to send an email that includes her full name, a query letter, and a short writing sample. The average response time is two months, but keep in mind that, due to the volume of submissions, Alexis will most likely provide you with a reply only if she is interested in your project.
12. Emma Patterson
Another literary agent from Brand & Hochman Literary Agents, Inc., Emma Patterson is a literary agent with a lot of expertise when it comes to memoirs. While she also represents writers of investigative journalism and popular history, among other genres, Emma is a capable agent with years of experience in the industry. She does not accept queries via mail, but will be more than happy to take a look at your submission if you send it to her in the form of an email.
13. Meg Thompson
The founder of Thompson Literary Agency, Meg has a degree in British and American Literature from New York University and has previously worked as a fact checker on President Bill Clinton’s memoirs, among others. Her list of clients also includes Tom Hart, Tim Kreider, and Chris Dixon. Meg is currently interested in projects which fit the standards of memoir, biography, popular science, politics, and of spirituality, just to name a few genres. Given her experience, she is certainly qualified to help you with your work. To submit a manuscript, you will have to follow the company’s guidelines.
14. Lauren Galit
Lauren Galit is passionate about what she does. She founded the LKG Agency in 2005 and has represented clients like Clinton Kelly, author of “Freakin’ Fabulous,” and Nick Arrojo, author of “Great Hair.” With over ten years of experience, Lauren strives to represent authors with works of nonfiction, including original memoirs and how-to books. If you want to send her your work, make sure to do so after reading the submission guidelines – nonfiction queries have to be accompanied by a table of contents and two sample chapters. Keep in mind that the table of contents should be detailed.
15. Sarah Passick
A literary agent of Park & Fine Literary and Media, Sarah Passick earned a Publishing certificate from New York University and has also gathered experience in the field by previously working at Sterling Lord Literistic. As she represents commercial nonfiction authors with revolutionary views of the world, Sarah is interested in memoir, business, cooking, narrative nonfiction, and in personal development, to name a few genres. Among her clients, we can name Laila Ali and JoJo Siwa. At the moment, the Park & Fine Literary and Media team only accepts queries sent by email, so make sure to mention the complete name of your agent of choice, as well as the category and genre of your project.
16. Brian DeFiore
Starting his career in 1981 as an editor with St. Martin’s Press, Brian is now the founder of DeFiore & Company, which he established in 1999. He has worked with authors like Brandon Stanton, author and creator of the social media sensation “Humans of New York: Stories,” and Brandy Dunn-Engler, author of “The Men on My Couch.” In terms of nonfiction, Brian prefers memoirs, works of popular culture, pop science, sports, self-help and inspiration books, and cookbooks among others.
You can send a query to Brian via querybrian@defliterary.com. Your query should clearly state what kind of book you’re writing or have written, a brief description of what your book is about, and a short author bio.
17. Peter H. McGuigan
Peter McGuigan is another literary agent and founding partner of Foundry Literary & Media. He has worked with international bestselling authors like Dan Brown and Nicholas Sparks. With a degree in English and with completed studies in the areas of journalism, creative writing, and literature, Peter aims to represent “controversial, out of the ordinary or provocative subjects and authors.” He only accepts submissions via email, but if you have any questions about how to submit your manuscript to Peter or to any of the author fantastic agents at Foundry Literary & Media, they have an entire list of criteria on their submissions page.
18. John Maas
With a BA in Creative Writing from Stanford University, John Maas is currently a literary agent at Park & Fine Literary and Media. Similarly to Sarah Passick, he also worked at Sterling Lord Literistic before getting here. When it comes to genres of choice, John Maas is working with clients in the memoir, food, business, biography, and self-help categories, among others. Many of them are renowned researchers, successful leaders, journalists, and entrepreneurs, and just as many have managed to publish bestselling books. As he probably is one of the best, you might want to check out the company’s submission guidelines and try sending John your work.
19. Noah Ballard
Noah Ballard is a literary agent with Curtis Brown, Ltd. Based out of New York, he has a specific interest in narrative nonfiction works, including memoirs, journalism and pop culture, but also in literary fiction and in short story collections. He currently accepts submissions electronically. On average, it takes him about four weeks to respond. However, keep in mind that you will only hear from him if he’s interested in your project. When submitting, make sure to include a query letter and the first ten pages of your work. If you’re thinking about working with another one of their literary agents, you can find the complete list here.
Are you aware of any other literary agents for memoirs? Please tell us more in the comments box below!
K. Z. Kwan is a freelance writer based out of Halifax, Canada.