Meet Agent Mary C. Moore
Always a passionate reader, Mary C. Moore graduated with an MFA in Creative Writing and English in 2011 from Mills College, Oakland. She started an internship with with Kimberley Cameron & Associates in 2012, became Kimberley's assistant in 2013 and was officially promoted to a full literary agent in 2015.
She is seeking adult, young adult, and middle grade fiction. She is especially hungry for upmarket genre fiction a la Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia, The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones or Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke. She does not represent non-fiction (including memoir), picture books, or self-published projects.
Find out more by visiting her website or following her on Twitter, Facebook, and/or Instagram.
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How long have you been an agent, and what did your career path look like?
My path to becoming an agent was very roundabout. I was always an avid reader—as a kid I was reading novels in kindergarten. But I grew up in a rural, poor area near the west coast, so the publishing industry wasn't even a blip on anyone's radar. I ended up becoming a field biologist, which sounds exciting, but in reality is a lot of down time; e.g. waiting for the right butterfly to show up can take hours. So during the down time I started making up stories and writing them down, which led to writing full-length novels. It wasn't until I tried to get one of those novels published that I realized publishing was an entire industry. I went for my MFA in creative writing and English but still felt that I hadn't learned enough about the industry. So six years ago, I took an internship at a literary agency and fell in love with agenting.
What's your favorite part of your job?
I love developing a story with a client, helping them reach their potential.
What do you look for in an author to potentially represent?
My client list is small and select because I work closely with all of my clients. So I'm looking for long-term writers. Authors who want to write fiction as a career, understand it may be years before they are established, and are willing to put in the time to get there.
What do you look for in a project to potentially represent?
I'm looking for a solid plot, great tension, unique world-building, contemporary sensibilities, and social sensitivity.
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