Agents & Publishers
A working desk for literary agents and publishing houses
Submit a catalogue, discuss territory rights, or open a co-publication conversation with people who read the deal memo before the pitch.
Introduction
Built around how rights business is actually done
Rights conversations fail for boring reasons: the catalogue arrived as twelve attachments, the territory was already sold, nobody could confirm who controlled audio. This desk exists to remove those failures early.
Send us a rights list and we will read it against the markets we are actively buying and selling in, then reply with the titles we want to discuss and the reason. Where we pass, we say why, in a sentence you can act on.
We work in both directions: acquiring translation and territory rights for our own list, and representing partner titles into markets where we hold editor relationships.
Useful to include
- Rights list with territories and languages already sold
- Which rights you control: print, digital, audio, dramatic
- Sales history or comparable titles where available
- Sample material or a reading copy
- Deadlines, option periods or auction dates
What we do
What this desk handles
01
Catalogue review
A read of your rights list against our current acquisition interests, with a written response per shortlisted title.
02
Translation rights
Buying and selling translation rights, with sample translation and translator approval built into the terms.
03
Territory licensing
Territory-by-territory licensing with defined terms, durations, reversion triggers and reporting.
04
Audio rights
Separate audio licensing, including narrator approval and territory-limited audio deals.
05
Co-publication
Shared-investment publication where each house takes its own market and the costs are split at agreed ratios.
06
Sub-agency introductions
Where a market needs a local sub-agent rather than us, we say so and make the introduction.
How it works
How a submission moves
Week one
Receipt and triage
We acknowledge every catalogue and route it to the editor covering that language or genre.
Weeks one to three
Reading and shortlist
Shortlisted titles are read properly. You receive a per-title response rather than a blanket reply.
Weeks three to six
Terms discussion
Advance, royalty, territory, term, delivery and reporting are agreed in writing before anything is announced.
After signature
Publication planning
Schedules, translator or narrator approval, cover approach and metadata are confirmed with your team.
In practice
What agents and publishers get from us
A per-title answer
Not a form rejection. Where we pass, the reason is specific enough to be useful for the next house you approach.
Rights hygiene
Chain of title, prior territory sales and control of subsidiary rights checked before terms are drafted.
Reporting you can reconcile
Statements on an agreed schedule, itemised by territory, format and channel.
Reversion honoured
Where a title underperforms against agreed thresholds, rights revert on the terms written into the contract.
What you can rely on
How we treat your list
Material stays confidential
Unpublished manuscripts and rights lists are shared only with the editors assessing them.
No speculative announcements
Nothing is announced, listed or marketed before a signed agreement exists.
No unpaid sample work
Where we ask for sample translation, the translator is paid for it.
We state our limits
If a market is outside our reach we tell you rather than holding an option we cannot use.
Questions
Questions we are asked
Do you accept unagented submissions here?
This desk is for agents and publishing houses. Authors submitting directly should use the manuscript consultation and publishing application routes.
How quickly do you respond?
Acknowledgement within five working days, substantive response on shortlisted titles within three weeks.
Do you take on backlist?
Yes. Backlist with a clear rights position and prior sales history is often easier to place than a debut.
Can you handle an auction deadline?
Tell us the date in the first message. If we cannot read and respond in time we will say so immediately.
Get in touch
Contact the rights desk
Introduce your agency or house and the titles you would like us to consider. Attach or link a rights list where possible.
Prefer email? Write to the main desk or read the trust and transparency centre first.