Meet the Agent
Ladderbird has had the extreme good fortune to add several new agents to our team and we are really excited about having everyone get to know them.
 
Let’s meet Kirsten Aguilar:
 
What made you decide to join the Ladderbird team?
After interning at Folio Literary Management, I knew that agenting was what I wanted to do. I love being able to work with authors on a diversity of projects instead of being limited to one genre or editorial vision. I like thinking about agenting as a puzzle, a matchmaking of sorts, finding a home for the book where it fits and where it will thrive, under the guiding hand of an editor who will champion it and advocate for it. I was drawn to Ladderbird because of its mission. I believe the publishing industry needs to make a conscious, concerted effort to increase accessibility and to elevate voices from marginalized communities. So I was thrilled when I found Ladderbird, and I came away hopeful and inspired by the conversations I had with Beth and with Leah. I am passionate about Ladderbird’s values and by the company’s commitment to being kind and respectful to each person we interact with. Ladderbird is an incredibly bright spot in the landscape that is publishing and I feel incredibly lucky to be a part of it.
 
Tell us a little about your background.
I was born and raised in Sonoma, California, a small town in the middle of wine country. I get asked often if I lived on a vineyard growing up and the answer, unfortunately, is no. I also get asked if I know a lot about wine, and that answer too, is no (unfortunately!). My dad is a musician, and my mom is an artist, so I couldn’t escape childhood without being bitten by a creative bug. I have loved to write and read ever since I can remember. After graduating from college in Vermont, I somehow found myself moving to the Midwest, to Chicago, where I’ve been ever since, except for a brief stint in South Bend, Indiana where I got my MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Notre Dame. I’ve fallen in love with Lake Michigan (it’s not an ocean?!) but I can’t go as far as saying that the winters have grown on me. Before becoming an agent, I’ve been everything from a waitress to a teaching assistant to a legal assistant to a university instructor of record to a freelance editor.
 
What makes you excited about taking on a new author? What kind of stories and writers really capture your attention?
I am excited about finding stories that feel like I’ve been waiting to read them, that feel like they’re doing something new with old tools, that takes pleasure in the writing, and that feel like they’re raising questions I’ve been struggling to answer or didn’t know needed to be asked. I love working with writers who are looking for a collaborative approach to editing and revising, and who have an idea about what trajectory they want their career to take. I’m also excited by stories that fully immerse me in a place, a world, or a character’s mind and I love narrators who feel like I’ve known them a long time, even after only a few pages. Finally, as a writer and reader of Mexican and Swedish descent, I am especially captivated by stories that explore, sit with, nod to, or inhabit the identity questions/crises that can come from being 2nd, 3rd, 4th generation, that can come from not being able to speak the same language as your relatives, that can come from feeling like you’re not “[insert identity here] enough”. These are the stories that make me feel seen and less alone, and I know they have the capacity to help others feel seen and less alone too.
 
Talk about your editorial process.
I believe my job as an editor is to help the writer reach their vision for their book. I see myself as being the mirror that helps the writer see what needs to be done to arrive at that vision. I first look at the work as a whole to figure out where there might be gaps and what might need rebalancing. And then at the line level, I look at how stylistic choices might be able to emphasize themes or strengthen narrative voice. I love thinking about editing as sculpting, carving, rearranging. Always, I believe in conversations, in having the space to talk through edits and ideas together. I am always going to tell you why I think an edit should be made so that my reasoning and logic are out in the open. I want to help the writer see their own work more clearly and I want to honor what they see.
 
What’s are your top three all time favorite books? Or what are three books that have moved you?
I’ll go with three books that have moved me, since trying to choose favorites feels impossible!
The Days of Abandonment by Elena Ferrante. There’s so much movement, power, anger, ugliness, metaphor. It feels like Ferrante held nothing back.
The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri. I cried for days! I love Lahiri’s sentences, the language she uses. Her descriptions are so precise and detailed.
Sabrina & Corina by Kali Fajardo-Anstine. The sense of place in this short story collection is so vivid. I love how the stories work as a collection, how they illuminate each other and build into something that feels like a beautiful kaleidoscope.
 
What do you like to do when you’re not agenting, reading and editing?
Although sometimes it feels like there’s hardly enough hours in the day to do anything other than agenting, reading and editing (which I am okay with!), I am obsessed with plants so I try to reserve a little bit of time every day to tend to the ones I have. I’ve been spending the last few months trying to coax some veggies out of containers and so far, I’ve harvested two zucchinis and some parsley. I also love to hike and to spend time with friends over long dinners and sing really loudly when I’m cooking.
 
Is there anything else writers should know before they query you?
I am looking for a collaborative relationship with my clients and am ready to advocate for you and cheer you on throughout your career. Let’s talk about writing, about books, and about what your vision for your writing is!
Thanks so much for letting us get to know you! Writers, remember, Kirsten accepts queries through Query Manager at queryme.online/KirstenAguilar. 

Meet the Agent
Ladderbird has had the extreme good fortune to add several new agents to our team and we are really excited about having everyone get to know them. Every three-four days, we’ll be putting up a new blog post so that we can introduce each on them!
 
Let’s jump right in and meet Annalise Errico:
 
What made you decide to join the Ladderbird team?
In 2019 I was lucky enough to be brought onto the Ladderbird team as an editorial intern for Beth, where I stayed attached to the company as a freelance editor, before interning again as an agent apprentice in 2020. Having spent so much time with Beth and the Ladderbird team, I knew it to be a bright, welcoming, persistent, and passionate place. After earning my B.A., this was natural step forward, as well as a cementation of my commitment to the ideologies of uplifting marginalized voices that Ladderbird upholds so consistently and ardently.
 
Tell us a little about your background.
I am Massachusetts born and raised, having grown up on the North Shore surrounded by ocean and sand in the summer and thick tides of snow in the winter. Growing up in a large Italian/Irish family who vacationed together every summer, I am no stranger to Sunday suppers, chaotic family photos, and covertly competitive games of cribbage.

I earned my B.A. from Lesley University in Cambridge, MA where I studied Creative Writing, Literature, and Women’s, Gender, & Sexuality Studies. Taking every feminist theory class that I could, my love for women-centric literature ballooned, leading me to my love of queer theory and queer-centric stories.

As a bisexual woman, I am particularly passionate about combatting bi-erasure, as well as any sort of anti-LGBTQIA+ nonsense that appears in even the most deceptively accepting corners of literature and life. The presence of nuanced intersectional identities is not only undeniably necessary for the progress of literature and the publishing industry, but for the progress of society and the sociopolitical sphere we find ourselves in currently. My hope is to find an abundance of queer romance novels to put on shelves. Romance is delightful in that it’s required to have a happy ending, and having those happy endings for queer readers (and characters!) is a necessary feat for all of literature.
 
What makes you excited about taking on a new author? What kind of stories and writers really capture your attention?
I am a romance reader through-and-through. Stigmas that surround romance are sexist and misogynistic, since romance is a genre written by women, for women; this often deters readers, given the incorrect nomenclature that it’s not “real” literature. The more comfortable readers are expressing their desire for and enjoyment of romance in novels, the sooner these stigmas will dissolve.

Therefore, I want romance in the books I read; romance as the central plot is not required, but I love reading the emotional, mental, and physical connections and delineations that romance requires to be successful and moving.

But don’t be scared away if you don’t write pure romance! Most importantly, I’m looking for passion in writing. It is exceedingly clear when an author isn’t passionate about their own work, and as a voracious reader devoted to fictional characters, I want to talk to authors about their characters as if they’re real people, because to me, they absolutely are.
 
Talk about your editorial process.
I like to think of my editorial process as a form of translation. The original draft is a completed form of art; every edited draft is one, too. Honoring all of those pieces in order to produce a finished project that is as magical as it is authentic is my editorial hope.
           
I’m a big believer in communication as a pillar of the editorial process, too. I’m a fresh pair of eyes, not the end-all-be-all. I want to make sure that my authors are just as passionate about the edits I suggest as I am about their writing.
 
What’s are your top three all time favorite books? Or what are three books that have moved you?
One of the books that I hold most dear to my heart is Anne of Green Gables. There is something especially lovely about reading books that can capture the ineffability of imagination, and few do it better than Montgomery’s classic. The dedication that pervades every page is precisely the kind of literary magic I hope to encounter as an agent at Ladderbird.

​A recent favorite that simply took my breath away was The Office of Historical Corrections by Danielle Evans. Short stories have never left a lasting impression on me, they are always too short, but Evan’s sophomore collection is an acute, intoxicating, perceptive rollercoaster ride that I’ve thought of every day since reading it.

Finally, is Claire Christian’s It’s Been A Pleasure, Noni Blake. This was one of those books that I read at the exact right time, and it was a pure delight. Not only did it feature a bisexual woman, it featured a bisexual woman who was unabashedly open and honest with both herself and others about sex, love, life, and change. I read it my last week of college and haven’t been able to stop thinking about it since.

And I’m going to cheat a little because of the fabulous trilogy that is The Brown Sisters by Talia Hibbert; they’re just too wonderful for me not to mention! Hibbert is an absolute favorite because she is delightfully audacious in everything she does. She doesn’t shy away from her characters or her concepts and it shows. Her stories are all forever rereads for me.
 
What do you like to do when you’re not agenting, reading and editing?
You can find me snuggling with my cat, Mittens, and watching reruns of The West Wing. I’m never too far from a cup of coffee or English Breakfast tea, and am constantly reminding myself to water my three plants Ned, Clancy, and Alfred Hitchcact (shockingly, they are all currently thriving). I play guitar and piano with semi-accuracy and have an excessive collection of fancy notebooks that I’m too afraid to use, and therefore just stare at longingly. 

Is there anything else writers should know before they query you?
I’m interested in making career-long commitments to my authors based on collaboration and communication. When I find my people, I tend to stick to them and I think that loyalty and passion are some of my best qualities. I’m looking for people who feel the same about both relationships and literature, and who enjoy some good banter alongside business talk.
 
 
Thanks so much for letting us get to know you! Writers, remember, Annalise accepts queries through Query Manager at queryme.online/annaliseerrico

​Let's get to know Stefanie Molina!

What made you decide to join the Ladderbird team?

I was looking for an agency that unabashedly invests in diversity and inclusion, on the writer’s side and on the publishing professionals’ side. I was hoping for a place where diverse voices were not only heard, but valued. Finally, I hoped to join an agency that facilitated connection and collaboration, while also being remote. It was a tall order, but I feel like I found all of that and more in Ladderbird and I’m incredibly excited to get to know the team even more!

Tell us a little about your background.

I was born in Indiana but have spent all but three years of my life in the San Francisco Bay Area. As an Asian Latina growing up in a mostly white community, I learned what it was like to move across identities and experienced the varying discrimination, privileges, and connections that came with that movement from a very early age. When I attended the University of California at Davis I was thrown into a vibrant and diverse community for the first time. I joined a nonprofit that boldly prioritized people of color. I wrote for a local newsletter on the state of children’s education. I met people with all sorts of backgrounds and life experiences. Academic education was the least of what I gained during college: it was the first time I connected with people who looked like me. It was also the first time I could put a name to what I had faced growing up.
That was when the flame to unconditionally support communities of color was lit within me. Since then, I’ve been a senior editor for a magazine prioritizing underrepresented voices, a technical editor at a national laboratory, and a writing coach to women of color. Each position has only validated my need to uplift our voices and share them with the world. As an agent I know I will continue that work.

What makes you excited about taking on a new author? What kind of stories and writers really capture your attention?

When I take on a new author I’m most excited about becoming a team. I think that the right agent and author pairs complement each other’s skills so well, and I want to be a part of that! I’m always eager to get to know someone’s writing habits, talents, and struggles. It’s a really important relationship to me.
The stories and writers that capture my attention are those that don’t shy away from being themselves. We talk about who writing is “for” sometimes: I’m most captivated by stories that are written “for” POC and other marginalized communities—which in part means they don’t make any attempt to explain or justify themselves to non-POC folks. And of course, I’m a sucker for a sizzling romance, regardless of genre!

Talk about your editorial process.

I think one of my biggest priorities is to ensure that my authors feel like their identities and expressions are safe and respected in their writing. As a woman of color I know how it feels to be uncomfortable sharing my thoughts and experiences honestly, and I also know that others may feel uncomfortable sharing honestly with me. I want to do everything in my power to be a comfortable and safe person for my writers because I believe the best writing happens in that kind of space. So I suppose the biggest part of my “process” isn’t necessarily editorial at all: it has to do with setting the stage for each author that will enable them to do their best work.
Beyond that, I try to embody what I think are the usual hallmarks of a good editor: prioritizing the author’s voice and intentions, establishing a team dynamic, and kindness! I’ll often have a long conversation or conversations with an author before doing anything at all with their work, because I want to know what’s behind it. I invite a lot of collaboration, and sometimes I invite an author to brainstorm an edit with me. My edits have been described as having a great balance between technicality and creativity, but they’re also very casual and friendly!
 
What are your top three all time favorite books? Or what are three books that have moved you?

It’s hard to pick three favorites, so I’ll go with books that were the most formative for me!
The one that always comes to mind is Flame in the Mist, and I actually think this one is a true favorite as well as a formative one. It was the first Asian-inspired fantasy I ever read, the first with a Japanese protagonist, and the first with an Asian male love interest, too. That all meant so much to me, and still does.
The second would have to be the Song of the Lioness series by Tamora Pierce. It has its flaws, but it was one of the first fantasy novels I ever read and it taught preteen me a lot about being a girl and what that meant for me internally and out in the world.
The third I think is the Throne of Glass series. This series taught me not to be ashamed to be as feminine as I want to be, and it taught me that it’s okay to love yourself loudly—both of which are things I think people are shamed for. I certainly was. I always find it telling when people say they don’t like Celaena. Of course that can be justified, but sometimes I’m suspicious it’s because she just loves herself a little too much and a little too loudly to be likeable to some.

What do you like to do when you’re not agenting, reading and editing?

So many things! I love baking; I’ve been baking for as long as I can remember. I love hiking (Yosemite is my favorite place!). I love swimming and playing volleyball. I’m a musician, and I play alto sax, tenor sax, and piano. I’ve also recently taken up running!

Is there anything else writers should know before they query you?

I’m a person who wants to connect. I laugh a lot and I love being friendly! If you let me, I will send smiley faces and LOLs in my emails. Like I said, I’m interested in making the agent/author relationship a really comfortable one, and that’s reflected in all of my work.

Thanks so much for letting us get to know you!

Our friends at O'Donnell Literary shared this Book Launch Questionnaire and we thought it would help all authors who have a pub day on the horizon. With publishers taking on less and less responsibility for book launches, it's important for authors to think about about what they are willing to do to help get their book out there. 

1. What are you goals? - Is a certain number of sales, is a particular award, a review from a certain magazine? 
2. How much money do you plan to commit to your book launch?- There is no right answer here, but you need to consider that book tours are generally no longer funded by the publisher. You may consider hiring a publicity professional, but you will want to be very clear about what you want them to do and for how long. Rates vary greatly depending on their expertise. You might consider using paid marketing such as "boosting" a post on social media, or running an ad on Goodreads. 
3. How much time are you willing to dedicate to promoting your book?- Be realistic about how much time you have in your day and how much you can realistic commit to promoting your book. In person events can be exhilarating but also grueling. 
4. Will you be hiring someone to create and update your website to promote your book and your author brand? Or are you going to do this yourself?
5. Are you willing to blog to promote your book and your author brand? Through your site? Guest blogging? Or writing Articles? 
6. What Social Media platforms will you use to engage with potential readers?
7. Do you have a list of people who you can reach out to who will help promote your book? 
8. Do you have an email list of 1,000 or more subscribers that you are willing to reach out to to promote your book? If not, how do you think you can create/grow that list. 

Catherine Adel West, SAVING RUBY KING
Okay, fine, she's own author! But, believe me this book will knock your socks off. 
An exciting new voice in fiction, Catherine Adel West explores the history and hidden secrets of two families and a young woman’s journey to protect her best friend. Set in the South Side of Chicago after a young girl’s mother is found murdered, this story is an epic and emotional tale of race, family secrets, faith, and redemption.

Ryan Douglass, JAKE IN THE BOX
Ryan Douglass’ psychological suspense filled debut combines elements of horror with an exploration of identity to tell the story of Jake, one of the only black kids in his prep school, who’s haunted by the vengeful spirit that carried out a school shooting a year prior.

Lauren Ho, LAST TANG STANDING
Crazy Rich Asians meets Bridget Jones's Diary in Lauren Ho’s funny and heartfelt debut about a dutiful Chinese-Malaysian daughter searching for love and happiness in her thirties. 

Tobly McSmith, STAY GOLD
This coming-of-age love story follows Pony, a transgender boy going stealth at his Texas high school as he’s drawn to cisgender cheerleader, Georgia. A proud transgender author, Tobly McSmith’s funny and poingnant debut inspired The Stay Gold Fund – a organization that helps provide financial support to transgender people for gender affirming surgeries.

Brandon Taylor, REAL LIFE
Brandon Taylor’s debut novel is the gripping and profound story of one pivotal weekend in the life of an introverted, black, and gay, biochemistry student. Taylor references elements of his own life as he examines the atmosphere of a Midwestern university teeming with racism and homophobia.

Erica Waters, GHOST WOOD SONG
Featuring a lush setting, eerie atmosphere, and a rich LGBTQ love story, this YA debut is a haunting, dark southern gothic story about a girl who inherits her father’s fiddle, and it’s ability to call ghosts from the grave.

Raven Leilani, LUSTER
Funny, passionate, and sharp, Leilani’s debut novel features a young black artist who becomes entangled in another couples open marriage as she tries to make sense of her own tumultuous life. 

C Pam Zhang, HOW MUCH OF THESE HILLS IS GOLD
Set in the American gold rush, Zhang’s exhilarating debut revolves around the newly orphaned children of Chinese immigrants. After fleeing the threat of the western mining town that shunned their existence, these two siblings set out to find their identity and a new home.

Dennis E. Staples, THIS TOWN SLEEPS
Staples’ debut novel of community, spirituality, and identity, tells the story of an openly gay Ojibwe man who begins a secret, sexual relationship with a closeted white man. When he unknowingly wakes a revenant dog he sets off to investigate the death of the local Ojibwe basketball hero, uncovering the secrets of the town and his family along the way.

Lucas Rocha, WHERE WE GO FROM HERE
Set in Rio de Janeiro, this enthralling debut by Brazilian author Lucas Rocha is a portrait of friendship, love, and self-acceptance, as it weaves throughout the lives of three different boys and their experiences with HIV.

Aiden Thomas, CEMETERY BOYS
Aiden Thomas’ debut is a compelling queer, trans, latinx #ownvoices story about a teen boy who in an attempt to prove himself as a brujo to his family, accidentally summons the wrong ghost – only to end up falling in love with him.

Adiba Jaigirdar, THE HENNA WARS
Adiba Jaigirdar is a Bangladeshi/Irish writer and teacher whose debut centers around two teen girls with rival henna businesses: Nishat who doesn’t want to hide her identity from her unaccepting Muslim parents, and her charismatic, childhood friend, Flávia. As the competition intensifies, so does their relationship.

Raquel Vasquez Gilliland, SIA MARTINEZ & THE MOONLIT BEGINNING OF EVERYTHING 
Blending elements of immigration, folklore, and science fiction, this genre-bending debut features a Mexican American teen girl who must rescue her mother who’s not been deported as previously thought, but abducted by aliens.

Celia Laskey, UNDER THE RAINBOW
In Celia Laskey’s wry and heartfelt debut, a group of queer social activists upend the lives of the small town voted “the most homophobic in the US” in an attempt to change the minds and hearts of its residents.

Paul Mendez, RAINBOW MILK
This stunning coming-of-age story revolves around the life of a young black man, who flees his upbringing as a Jehovah’s Witness, moves to London, and turns to sex work in order to find his identity and a place among his family’s legacy. 

Nita Tyndall, WHO I WAS WITH HER
Nita Tyndall paints a portrait of grief in this vivid and heartbreaking debut about a closeted teen girl who loses her secret girlfriend in a car accident and must mourn the loss of a relationship that no one even knew existed.

Frances Cha, IF I HAD YOUR FACE
This captivating debut explores the lives of four young woman – an artist, a newlywed, a K-pop fan, and a server at secret salons for wealthy men – as they struggle to be defined by the impossible beauty standards of contemporary Seoul, Korea.

Zaina Arafat, YOU EXIST TOO MUCH
Crossing between the U.S. and the Middle East, this story traces the life of a girl from her adolescence to her first serious girlfriend. An exploration of cultural, religious, and sexual identities, this debut is a riveting story of obsession and addiction to love.

Deepa Anappara, DJINN PATROL ON THE PURPLE LINE
Drawing on her career as a journalist and on a real string of disappearances, Deepa Anappara’s compelling debut tells the story of three children and their search for their missing classmate throughout their sprawling Indian city.

June Hur, THE SILENCE OF BONES
This haunting and bloody mystery centers around 16 year old Seol as she helps investigate the murder of a noblewoman in 1800s Korea. Inspired by her obsession with the Joseon Dynasty Era of Korea this historical murder mystery is June Hur’s debut novel.

Written by Sebastian A. Melmoth

November has come and gone, and if you participated in National Novel Writing Month, you’ve got a fresh fifty-thousand words to play around with. This new project might still be shiny and new, or maybe it’s lost that luster, but regardless, you’ve written something – whether it’s 5k or 50k – and that’s something to laude! But how do you keep that steam from NaNoWriMo from dying out, especially as holiday season is upon us? Here is a list of some ways to keep that creative flame burning to get you through the next couple of months.
 
Reread what you’ve got:
​Fifty thousand words is a lot, and to write it in thirty days means that you’ve been writing at a pace of approximately 1,700 words a day. That takes a lot out of you. Give yourself a day or two to simply relax, think over what you’ve got, and then read your manuscript like it’s a book off of your shelf. This isn’t a revision so much as a way to get back into what made you fall in love with your story in the first place and encourage you to keep on working even though the majority of it is finished. Burning out at this point is so easy, you’ve done so much, but it still feels like so little. Reading though will inspire that creative genius to keep working.
 
Make a plan:
Did you not reach that 50k word mark? Or maybe 50k is only the hallway point of your story? (Check out some word count guidelines.) If so, rework that outline. If you’re a planner, restarting that original outline will let you rework some of those first ideas and plan out something that is much more accurate to the draft that you’re writing now. Maybe reread your manuscript and really see how it split from the outline, then start an entirely new document to plan all over again. This way the story feels organic in its direction, and not like you’re forcing yourself to adhere your primary outline.

A plan can also refer to a physical plan that you make to keep yourself on track. This would function similarly to NaNoWriMo’s time constraint. If deadlines work for you, then plan out December like you planned out November. Give yourself a daily word goal, and really try and stick to it. Sometimes pretending that November is really two months long will help with keeping up your motivation. And, maybe you’ll get another 50k out of you.
 
Start to revise:
Whether you’re finished or not, sometimes it's beneficial to go back to the beginning and really tease out your first draft. If you’ve finished this first draft, then revising will get you to a more cohesive and better created second draft, and it’s the natural next step in the process. If you aren’t quite finished, but don’t know where to go, revising will help you get a better estimation of where you’re at and provide you directions with where to go. This is will also give you the opportunity to expand some of the plot and development that you have at the beginning of your novel to give you more room to work with toward the end. Stories have a way of getting away from us, and you could be fifty thousand words in and completely unable to recognize your project – and that’s okay. Revision will not only help you get to that original vision, but it will help your project grow and settle into a better version of itself.
 
Try your hand at a new project:
Sometimes the best thing you can do is let your manuscript sit, though I would only recommend this if you’ve completed a first draft. If you haven’t, I’d push yourself to keep going. Even though holiday season is upon us, finding time to finish off that last set of words while your head is still so embedded in the story will do you the greatest good. If you have finished a first draft, though, take a step away. Right now, your emotional connection to the story is too raw and to go into really harsh revisions, so they won’t get where you need to be. Above, I recommend revising, but only if your adding and further developing what you’ve got, not putting your project under the editing scalpel. Give yourself a week or more, Stephen King recommends six months, and focus on your next project. It’s always good to have a second project while you send another one out for submission anyway, so working simultaneous projects, if you can, can be beneficial from a marketing point of view.
 
Just take a break from writing:
Sometimes letting a manuscript sit, and letting your mind wander to a different place is the best thing for you. Read for fun. Journal but in a genre very different from the project you’re working on. Be creative, but with reckless abandon. Do other hobbies that don’t fall in the literary world at all. Remember that creativity is a never ending process, and that writing a book is equal parts exhausting and enthralling. As literary agents, we want to see that enthrallment, though. If taking a break is what you need to complete a project after a month of continuous work, then do that! Your project will still be waiting for you in a month, or a year. And letting yourself breathe will let the story breathe too. Sometimes it needs a break right alongside you.
 
NaNoWriMo is something to be proud of, but also something to look at with a level of objectivity. No one can write a perfect draft of a best-seller in a month – at least not anyone I know, so be gentle with yourself. What you have is a great start, and 2020 will bring twelve new months to let you work on making your project into the best story that it can be. And maybe one day, we’ll get to see it. Good luck!

Written by Ginger McKnight, Esq.

 
When it comes to their creations, writers often resemble candidates for Hoarders, holding onto manuscripts, notes, and random scrap paper scribbles for dear life, unable to let go. 
 
Writers fear what others might steal if they reveal even a tiny portion of what they have labored over and poured their hearts and souls into producing.  Writers become CIA-secretive about their work, avoiding writers’ groups, editors, beta readers and others that could help them improve their works and enhance their ability to become published.  They send sealed drafts to themselves via snail mail.  They assume that everyone is out to get … their ideas.
 
As an author myself, I understand and often resemble this impulse.  As an attorney, however, I have made it my mission to hold my fellow author’s hands and reassure them that all is well.  You have more control, and rights, as authors than you may realize.
 
Your legal “ownership” rights to your work are triggered you when take the ideas from your head and transfer these original works of authorship onto paper (or, more likely, computer file).  This is the essence of “copyright.”  A term authors hear all the time, and value, but often don’t fully understand.
 
What is copyright? 
 
Copyright is a property right.  You own it, like you own the watch on your wrist or the laptop on which you create your masterpieces.  You can use it yourself, sell it, allow someone to borrow it, or pass it down to your heirs.  But unlike physical property, copyright is not a possession you can hold in your hand.  It’s not the physical book your publisher releases to the world after you sign your blockbuster book deal.  It’s not the physical book that readers will purchase in the store, share with their best friends, and leave on their shelves along with the other contents of the homes they pass down to their children.  Copyright is  “intellectual property,” rather than a piece of physical property.
 
Copyright is a bundle of rights.  Copyright gives authors and other artists/creators the sole and exclusive right to do the following things (or give others permission to do the following things) with the works they create:

• Reproduce them
  • eg, print and publish multiple copies of your original manuscript.
• Distribute them
  • eg, sell them yourself or allow a third party, such as your local bookstore or Barnes & Noble, to sell them on your behalf.
• Publicly perform them
• Display the work publicly
• Perform publicly by digital transmission (if a sound recording)
• Create derivative works based on the original work
  • A “derivative work” is a new original work based on the first original work.  For example, each sequel to the original Harry Potter book by J.K. Rowling is a derivative work.  The screenplays and films based on these literary works are also derivative works.  JK Rowling owns the right to create those sequels, screenplays and films by virtue of having written the original.

 
Copyright gives authors control over decisions regarding their work and how it is used, sold, and presented.  Like other items of personal property, you can transfer ownership of your copyright to someone else (must be done in writing), or you can “license” or give others permission to use all or a portion of your copyright rights for a particular period of time, in a particular territory, or for a particular purpose, as you desire.  All exclusive licenses, and any nonexclusive licenses that last for more than a year, are also required to be in writing.
 
How do I get this copyright?
 
As an author, it’s an easy two-step process.  First, you create an “original work of authorship.”  Second, you “fix” that work “into a tangible medium.”  In plain English, this means you take an original expression or creative idea and capture it in some sort of tangible medium:  you write it down on paper, you put paint brush to canvas, you record or write down the song in your head, you click the shutter on a camera and fix the image onto film or digital file, etc. 
 
And that’s it.  You write your novel rather than just thinking about it.  And by virtue of creating it, you, like JK Rowling, gain that magical and potentially lucrative bundle of rights in your work described earlier.
 
At one time, authors and other artists had to engage in more steps to ensure their copyright rights.  Some of the things that authors continue to do, such as mail a sealed copy of their manuscript to themselves, place a © symbol on every page of their work, etc., are not required or necessary for works created on or after March 1, 1989[1].  Though anything an author does, within reason, to demonstrate notice or keep a record of authorship and relevant dates doesn’t hurt.  In fact, placing a © followed by your date of publication or creation and name on your manuscript helps to provide notice to all who dare touch or read it that it belongs to you.
 
Sharing your work and receiving/incorporating feedback from instructors, writing group members, beta readers and editors does not give them ownership rights in your work.  They only obtain rights in your work if you agree to give them rights in writing. 
 
Joint copyrights with a co-author are possible, if multiple authors intend to create a work together.  To avoid complications later, it is best to agree to the terms of your joint ownership in writing, and to register a joint copyright with the U.S. Copyright Office per the process described below. 
 
Don’t I have to file something to get a copyright?
 
You own the copyright in your work whether you file anything with the U.S. Copyright Office or not.  However, if you want to use the courts to enforce your rights in the event anyone tries to steal or infringe upon your rights, you must first “register” your work with the U.S. Copyright Office.  It is a simple, inexpensive process (online registration available), that involves filling out a brief form and paying a nominal fee.  As of this writing, the fee is typically $35 for online filings, though there is a range for different types of works. 
 
Do I have to file something in other countries to protect my work?
 
For the time being, no.  The United States is still party to international treaties that require other countries to respect and uphold the copyright rights you have been granted under U.S. law.
 
It should be noted that U.S. filings and treaties do not 100% guarantee that you will never become a victim of theft or plagiarism.  However, they provide you with rights that you can enforce in courts of law domestically and abroad.
 
If someone hires me to write something, do I own the copyright?
 
It depends.
 
Authors usually own the copyright in whatever they create, just by virtue of creating it.  However, if that work is a “work-made-for-hire,” then a third party owns the work.  A “work-made-for-hire” is (1) a work created for your employer as a part of your regular duties in the course of your employment; or (2) a work that a third party commissions you to write for them as an independent contractor, which arrangement must be agreed in writing, with an express statement that you are creating the work as a “work-made-for-hire” which will be owned by the third party instead of you.  Typical freelance writing work is owned by the author unless the author expressly agrees to a work-for-hire or copyright transfer in writing.
 
Does my copyright last forever?
 
No.  But it lasts long enough to enable you and your heirs to greatly benefit from the fruits of your labors.  Copyright in a work created on or after January 1, 1978 lasts for the author’s lifetime + 70 years.  Works created by corporations, works made for hire, and works created anonymously or under a pseudonym last 95 years from publication or 120 years from creation, whichever is shorter.
 
When your copyright expires, your work, like Shakespeare’s before you, goes into the public domain.
 
Can I copyright my title too?
 
No.  Copyright does not protect names, titles, slogans or short phrases.  It also doesn’t protect ideas, lists of ingredients or contents, or other things that are not full expressions or fixed in tangible media.[2]
 
If you develop a brand name or logo that you use in commerce, this can be protected by trademark.  If you develop a scientific invention or process, this can be protected by patent.  These are very different types of intellectual property than copyright, with different application processes and terms of existence.[3]
 
Anything else?
 
There are instances where others can use works that are protected by copyright without permission, either by contract under the doctrine of “fair use.”  Fair use is an expansive topic, but essentially allows use of limited excerpts from copyright-protected works for purposes of criticism, commentary, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, research and parody.[4]
 
These are the basics to get you started.  For more information, the U.S. Copyright Office provides a wealth of plain-English information on all things copyright on their website at www.copyright.gov. 
 
In the meantime, get to work on your masterpieces.  And don’t fear sharing your work with the rest of us.


[1] For more information regarding older works, and other information regarding copyright, see the U.S. Copyright Office’s Circular on Copyright Basics, https://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ01.pdf.

[2] For more info, see the U.S. Copyright’s Circular on Works Not Protected by Copyright, https://www.copyright.gov/circs/circ33.pdf.

[3] For more info, see the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office, https://www.uspto.gov.

[4] For more information, see https://www.copyright.gov/fair-use/more-info.html

This season has been one of epic growth for Ladderbird, as we continue to drive our message through all part of the business. By staying true to our vision and focused our goal of changing the world one story at a time, we have attracted some incredible people as both clients and team members. Our new Foreign Rights Agent has worked at both Trident Media and Simon & Schuster. 

Please welcome, Katelin Spector. 


What made you decide to join the Ladderbird team?

It's my professional mission to help get an author's voice heard around the world. It's my personal mission to use literature with Jewish themes to facilitate conversation on current issues between Jews and those who align themselves with Jews in order to create a more inclusive community. In Ladderbird, I saw an opportunity to combine my professional and personal interests while working with a wonderful group of like minded individuals who are equally interested in diversity of all kinds.

Tell us a little about  your background?

I was born in Louisiana and remained there through law school. I have a BA in English and a J.D./D.C.L. from Louisiana State University. By my final year, I knew law wasn't the right fit and looked for something else to pursue. I didn't need to look far. The paperback novels (bodice ripper romances, if you must know) stashed in my bookbag were the answer. I moved to New York the day I graduated and completed a certificate course in publishing at NYU. Since then, I've had a wonderful and fulfilling six-year career in foreign rights working at a literary agency, Big 5 publishing house, and publishing startup. 

What kinds of stories and writers really capture your attention?

I'm still a devoted reader of all things romance. I most enjoy a story that gives the reader time to learn about each character individually before knitting them together as a couple. Characters don't have to be perfect, but each does have to be a complete person--faults and all. Having complementary strengths and weaknesses can be a great foundation for the characters' relationship. 

I can always tell when a writer puts a little grain of themselves or someone close to them in a story. It shows in the attention to detail and wholeness of the characters which is necessary to truly transport the reader to the world the writer has created.


What types of stories do you think do well on the foreign market? 

Stories of love, loss, coming of age, and family are universal. The particulars of each of our stories may be unique to us, but this core group of four life experiences is something that pervades across time, distance, language, and culture. Everyone can relate to these themes.

What do you like to do when your not agenting, reading or doing all things bookish?

I'm an avid hiker. I was lucky enough to find a partner who loves it too, and we travel as often as possible to find the most beautiful vistas. If travel isn't an option, you can find me hiking around Central Park. 

Is there anything else clients and fans of Ladderbird should know about you?
​
I'm a tireless advocate for your book. Foreign rights is a long game and takes a lot of persistence (even more than getting the initial deal for English rights, if you can believe it). However, nothing makes me happier than finding that perfect publishing house for your book whether it be in Romania, Mongolia, or other equally awesome countries.

Compassion, drive and a fierce intelligence were just some of the factors that attracted the team at Ladderbird to new agent Elle McKenzie. Elle's background on the editorial side as well as her experience with book-to-film made her an essential addition to our growing team. We are over the moon to have her on board. 

Let's get to know Elle McKenzie!

What made you decide to join the Ladderbird team?

While deeply submerged in this explosive movement of expressionism with my fellow POCs simply advocating for a voice, I knew I wanted to join an allied agency equally vying for change and visibility for all marginalized groups. Like all great manifestations, Ladderbird entered my life at exactly the right time. Upon discovering that our passions aligned to form a dedicated team of agents shining a light on underrepresented voices, naturally, it didn’t take much more convincing for me to solidify our alliance. And the rest — one might say — is history.

Tell us a little about your background.

I was born in Louisville, Kentucky where I lived for the first eight years of my life before moving to Upper Marlboro, Maryland in the year 2000. It was around this time when I discovered my passion for storytelling while submerged in fictional literary worlds. My father, an immigrant from Jamaica, instilled very early on in his first-generation American children the importance of hardwork and determination. My mother, an award-winning journalist, spoonfed us the immense value and power words can have on humanity. Following high school, I attended Drexel University where I obtained my B.A in Screenwriting & Playwriting. True to my millennial “slash” generation, I have professional experience in various industries that include film, digital media, and publishing.

What makes you excited about taking on a new author? What kind of stories and writers really capture your attention?

Besides the thrill that overcomes my senses when diving headfirst into a new literary world, I’m most excited to expand my community of like-minded individuals who share a passion for storytelling. The goal of every creative (I believe) is to uplift and extend their passion as a willful, lending hand. As a proud member of the QTPOC community, I’m easily enamored by writers unapologetic to live out their truth. And truth, as we all know, can be conveyed in many ways. No matter how a writer identifies, if their story is able to tap into my emotions and make me feel, then I want to do everything in my power to bring their vision to full fruition.

Talk about your editorial process.

Always, at the root of my desire is to honor the values of the writer. I believe in creating a positive and constructive creative experience that allows the sharing of ideas and suggestions. As an editor, I will work diligently to enhance the manuscript and supply aiding resources that align with the writer’s overall vision. All in all, we are a team both striving to share the story with the world.
 
What’s are your top three all time favorite books? Or what are three books that have moved you?

Oh, man… it’s difficult for me to settle on my all time favorite books. But, the two most recent books that have moved me are Pleasure Activism: The Politics of Feeling Good by adrienne marie brown and Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi. And the book I will always accredit to moving me in my late teen years is The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chobosky.

What do you like to do when you’re not agenting, reading and editing?

Find me in my words. When I’m not agenting/reading/editing, I’m writing. Screenwriting, prose writing or journaling, I’m somewhere filling blank pages with the intent to tell a story. I also love going on various adventures with my friends or simply browsing new true crime docs to binge. 

Is there anything else writers should know before they query you?

I’m a compassionate person and consider myself someone very easy to talk to. Please feel free to communicate with me any questions and/or concerns you have with your manuscript before submitting.
Happy writing <3


Thanks so much for letting us get to know you!

Writers, remember, Elle accepts queries through Query Manager at QueryMe.Online/ElleMcKenzie