We are speaking today with Agent Nathan Bransford from Curtis Brown
Literary.

Nathan, could you tell us a bit about yourself and what types of
genres you are acquiring for your list?

I grew up the son of rice farmers in Colusa, California, where I
strenuously avoided all forms of manual farm labor (somewhat
unsuccessfully) and instead read as many books as possible. I
graduated from Stanford University and headed straight to Curtis
Brown Ltd., where I am now an agent handling adult and children's
books. I enjoy reading, playing the piano, and watching reality
television shows of questionable quality. I acquire a little bit of
everything and am open to considering just about any genre. When in
doubt go ahead and query me, I try to respond to all queries within
24 hours.


What have you seen too much of lately?



I have been getting quite a lot of high fantasy and urban fantasy
queries lately, which is fine, but unfortunately too many of these
books are imitating the authors already out there rather than
charting fresh new territory.



What are you not seeing enough of?

I always am looking for more quality nonfiction, and within genre
novels I'd like to see more originality and fresh voices. It's not
enough to be a talented writer, an original idea is essential.



A writer asked if it any consequence if a writer was based in the Uk
or Austrailia as opposed to the USA. Do you have any international
authors you represent at this time?

I do represent international authors, including an author from India
living in Thailand, so being overseas isn't an obstacle if we're a
good match.



What is the most common mistake you see in queries?

Lack of personalization. Personalizing a query will increase your
chances for a partial request by approximately 7,000%, and yet very
few people take the time to research the agents they are querying and
write the letter accordingly. All it takes is Googling my name to
find my blog and my submission tips, and yet less than 1/4th of the
queries I receive are personalized. It's kind of mystifying,
honestly.


Can you try to define the elusive 'it' factor which makes you decide
to take on a new client?

I wish I could – I wrote a blog post today about it in fact. When I
see the right project I just know. I can't fully explain what it is
about a manuscript that works for me, I just know it when I see it.




Thanks so much for taking the time to speak to Editors, Agents and
blogs, oh my!

Brynn Chapman-moderator