Hannah Schofield
I joined LBA in 2018 and represent a broad list of commercial and reading-group fiction, and select non-fiction. I previously worked for a literary scout and in translation rights, and I grew up in Luxembourg, so I have a strong working knowledge of the global publishing market and always bring an international eye to my reading.
I am on the Bridge Committee for early-career agents at the Association of Authors' Agents as a Careers and Development officer. Two years running, in 2022 and 2023, I was thrilled to win the Romantic Novelists Association Agent of the Year Award. I was also a winner of the Trailblazer Award 2023, which celebrates publishing professionals under 30 who are 'taking the industry by storm'.
What I’m looking for:
Across all the below genres, I particularly welcome submissions from writers from communities that have been underrepresented in mainstream publishing, including LGBTQ+ authors, disabled and neurodivergent authors, and authors of colour.
Please note that I’m not the right agent for children’s books, sci-fi or grisly horror, or a book without speechmarks.
I’m eager to work with authors who, like me, are writing craft nerds – who create wonderfully compelling stories, but are also intrigued by the how behind that strange alchemy of words on a page. I’d also love to hear from fast, slick writers who are excited about commercial fiction opportunities in the digital space.
Fiction:
In fiction, my taste runs more commercial than literary, though some of my favourite novels sit in the sweet spot between the two, like Kiley Reid’s Such A Fun Age, Yaa Gyasi’s Transcendent Kingdom, or anything by Curtis Sittenfeld. While I do like sinking my teeth into deeper themes, I’m eagerly looking for juicy page-turners and highbrow beach reads, where low-stakes interpersonal drama – perhaps in a family, friendship group, or local community – feels incredibly high-stakes: Bad Summer People is a great example. I’m always up for posh people behaving badly!
I love love, and never get tired of finding a new couple to root for, whether that’s in a steamy romcom (with emphasis on ‘com’!) or a more sweeping, epic love story. I am so lucky to have a brilliant roster of clients writing romcoms so am particularly selective in this area; I’d would want to find something that’s putting a new spin on the genre. In romance, I can’t get enough of Tia Williams and Carley Fortune – the yearning! If you have something that could be a comp to either author, please consider sending it my way. And in romantasy I’m after high concept, high stakes and high swoon!
I’m keen to find some genuinely different-feeling historical fiction or historical fantasy, especially if the setting is neither Britain nor America. I’ve recently loved The Familiar and The Warm Hands of Ghosts for their incredibly immersive settings and rich evocation of the past.
In the darker side of fiction (thriller, mystery, suspense) my taste runs the gamut, but a clear and hooky premise will always stand out, and I tend to want my reads female-led. I’d love to see some sharp, relentlessly entertaining thrillers or mysteries – perhaps with a horror-lite twist – that have complex characters at their hearts, and a deep sense of place: Rachel Hawkins, Kara Thomas and Megan Miranda are all favourites in this area.
I’m also open to books which straddle suspense and book club, with strong women leads, that interrogate the world around us and what it means to be a woman in it (though I am not interested in excessive, on-page violence against women); Bright Young Women by Jessica Knoll has stuck with me for months. I’m also drawn to antiheroines (with a righteous cause?!) like in Blood Sugar or The Lies I Tell.
YA was my first love in publishing, and forms a small and passionate part of my list. I’m excited to add more talent in that area, especially from the UK and Ireland. Top of my wishlist at the moment is a first love story, or anything which has the leap-off-the-page voice of Nina Kenwood’s It Sounded Better In My Head. Vibe is key for YA – I’d be thrilled to find something that feels like a Taylor Swift song!
Non-fiction:
Please think of me for popular history, particularly areas that have been under-taught in western education or women’s/domestic/family/social history – I would always be delighted to hear from experts in those fields.
I also love deep dive explorations of niche areas of culture or history, in the vein of Alice Robb’s personal and sociological examination of ballet in Don’t Think, Dear. Got this for gymnastics, musical theatre, or choral music? Please send my way!
In narrative non-fiction, I wanted to be hooked by a story so outlandish it could be fiction, and am a big fan of non-murder-y true crime, especially with a strong character or cast to anchor the plot, like in the shows Dopesick and The Dropout.
If you think we could be a good match, please submit to me via the button below. Thank you to all authors who choose to do so – I’m looking forward to hearing from you!
Authors represented by Hannah Schofield
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Amanda Brooke
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Amy Lavelle
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Anam Iqbal
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Ande Pliego
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Bea Fitzgerald
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Catherine Chang
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Catherine Walsh
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Celia Silvani
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Charlotte Butterfield
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Chris Bridges
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Crystal Sung
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Darby Bozeman
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Dr Chloe Duckworth
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Eleanor Pilcher
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Elizabeth Drummond
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Emad Ahmed
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Erin Connor
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Grace Noakes
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Heather Mottershead
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Heidi Shertok
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Isabella Harcourt
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Jenni Keer
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Kim Donovan
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Lucy Goacher
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Marina McCarron
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Moyette Gibbons
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Nicole Louie
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Professor David Turner
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Sam Caporn
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Tania Tay