Mary C. Moore and I discuss her career from zookeeper to literary agent with Kimberly Cameron and Associates, as well as the types of projects and clients she’s looking to represent. We talk about the difference between a large agency and a smaller one, the ways in which she evaluates manuscripts and authors, the support she provides writers both during submission to editors and after, the pandemic’s impact on publishing, a message from a cockatoo, a unicorn sighting, being a green witch, and so much more. This episode is jam-packed with publishing insight you don’t want to miss.

Always a passionate reader, Mary C. Moore made the career change to publishing in her early thirties. She graduated from Mills College, Oakland with a MFA in Creative Writing and English, dabbled in freelance editing and copy-writing, before starting an internship at Kimberley Cameron and Associates. She quickly fell in love with agenting, and dedicated two years as Kimberley’s assistant, before beginning her own client list. Her daughter was born shortly after causing a small hiatus, but she continued part time, making deals with Harper Collins, Penguin Random House, Macmillan and more.

In 2019 she officially began agenting full time, becoming an associate member of the AAR. She is eager to further build her client list in fiction, both children and adult. She reads widely and enjoys all fiction genres, but is especially seeking bookclub fiction with light speculative elements, female detective stories, whimsical middle-grade, and young adult that explores identity and culture.

She does not represent non-fiction (including memoir), picture books, or self-published novels (although she will consider your next project).