YA and middle grade books with strong voice, tight plotting, and a great sense of humor. The agent is particularly interested in stories involving secret identities, time travel, globetrotting adventures, high school theatre, movie/TV deals, socially conscious protagonists, super fluffy rom-coms, quests, and underrepresented voices with incidental diversity and bittersweet endings.
Julia Byers is a literary agent at Sheldon Fogelman Agency specializing in children's books across all age groups, from picture books through young adult literature. She has a background in film studies and theater, having studied abroad at Oxford and performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe. She is passionate about working with underrepresented voices and seeks stories with strong character development and diverse perspectives.
Submissions should be emailed to [email protected] For All Submissions: - Please email your cover letter and a sample of your work. Your cover letter should include: - A brief synopsis of your work - Your writing history - Any relevant background (including education and/or participation in writing-related professional organizations and/or critique groups) - Why you've chosen to query us - How you were referred to us, if at all - Cover letter should be pasted into the body of your email. Work may be included as an attachment or pasted below the cover letter. - If submitting to a specific agent, address query letter to that agent. Otherwise, address to the submissions coordinator. A submission to one agent is considered a submission to all. - All submissions should be sent to [email protected] - Due to time constraints, we will only reply if interested in seeing more of your work. - Text attachments should be accessible via Microsoft Word (.rtf and .doc preferred). Illustrations in .jpg or .pdf format. All files should not total more than 5 MB combined. - Response time: up to six weeks for initial query consideration. If no response within six weeks, consider it a rejection. - Do not query more than once every six months unless otherwise requested. - Only submit previously unpublished work. - No reading fees charged. - No physical submissions; all submissions must be sent via email. For Picture Books: - Include two (2) independent manuscripts (not from the same series). Do not submit additional manuscripts unless specifically requested. - If not an illustrator, do not include images in your submission. - If illustrator, include a picture book dummy or graphic novel proposal. May link to online portfolio or attach limited sampling of work examples. For Chapter Books, Middle Grade, and Young Adult: - Include first three (3) chapters and a plot synopsis. Do not submit the entire work or chapters from more than one work unless specifically requested. If receiving interest from another agent, notify the agency immediately. If receiving offer of representation from another agency, the agency expects at least one week after notification to make a decision.
Last verified: March 8, 2026
Jennifer DeChiara Literary Agency
Corvisiero Literary Agency
KO Media Management
Response time: ~4 weeks
The Deborah Harris Literary Agency