Sean McCarthy came out and shared his expertise with a small group of New Jersey SCBWI members at our Mentoring Workshop last Sunday. We first met Sean in January and immediately knew we had to have him back. As a writer, you want to find an agent who not only loves your writing and can steer you in the right direction, but you want to find an agent who is personable, nice and one that you can click with. Well, Sean clicked with everyone. I thought you would be interested in hearing a little background on Sean.
Sean works on children’s books for all ages at the Sheldon Fogelman Agency in NYC. www.sheldonfogelmanagency.com He especially likes edgy narratives with flawed, multi-faceted characters. His clients include Hyewon Yum, Mark Fearing, and Hillary Homzie, and he has worked with a variety of authors and illustrators, such as Richard Peck, Mo Willems, and Jerry Pinkney.
In picture books, he looks more for dynamic characters, off-beat humor and especially clever endings (think Mo Willems or George McClements).
In fiction, Sean is drawn to realistic dialogue and understated, concise writing. He would love to find a graphic novel that doesn’t delve too deeply into the “Superhero” side, or an adventurous, high-concept middle grade. He is not currently interested in high fantasy or query letters that pose too many questions.
Outside of juvenile literature, Sean reviews adult fiction titles for a prominent trade magazine.
Submission Information: Sean prefers submissions by mail. For full submission guidelines, please visit: www.sheldonfogelmanagency.com/submissions.htm . Submissions can be sent to Sheldon Fogelman Agency, Inc., 10 East 40th Street, Suite 3205, New York, NY 10016.
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