Hannah Schofield

I am a British-Luxembourgish literary agent currently based in London at LBA agency. I represent a wide range of adult fiction, with select non-fiction and YA. I am a voracious and eclectic reader, and my client list reflects that – I can get excited about a swoony commercial romance one day, and a deeply-researched popular history project the next. While I do have areas in which I won’t usually venture (if you want to win the Booker Prize, I’m not the agent for you!), I’m always open to being surprised, so if you think we might be a good match, please do consider sending your query my way!

Fiction:

In fiction I’m particularly looking for those brilliant book club novels that live in your brain long after the final page. I’m a very character-driven reader – but I don’t have to like them, just be compelled! In general, my taste runs more commercial than literary, though some of my favourite novels in this space 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. I’d love to see book club novels that speak to a younger audience/Gen Z and millennial concerns, like Louise O’Neill’s Idol or Celia Laskey’s So Happy For You. Thematically, I’m always interested in projects that tackle immigration, identity, or diaspora; and I also love evocative historical novels, especially if they’re set somewhere other than Britain or America.

I love love, so I always keep an eye out for my next OTP – though I currently have a brilliant roster of clients writing romcoms so would want to find something that’s putting a new spin on the genre, like Love In The Time Of Serial Killers did with its true crime nods. Recently, I’ve adored Honey & Spice by Bolu Babalola – if you’ve got a love interest that charming and banter that strong please come my way! I also like a healthy dose of ‘com’: Last Tang Standing and Yinka, Where is Your Huzband? do this brilliantly and I’m keen to find something similar.

In the thriller/suspense genre I generally want my reads to be female-led, and I’m often drawn to settings-as-character in this genre e.g. the insular communities in Jane Harper’s and Megan Miranda’s novels. I’m also drawn to antiheroines (with a righteous cause?!) like in Blood Sugar or The Lies I Tell – and I adored My Sister, The Serial Killer, but that’s probably my limit on something that’s on the zany side. I also can’t get enough of novels set on campus, and/or with the backdrop of a performing art (I am a chorister myself) – If We Were Villains is my gold standard here.

I’m also looking for meaty YA or crossover projects like The Miseducation of Cameron Post, The Black Kids, or Sadie – especially something that plays with formats like Sadie does. Vibe is key for YA – I’d love to find something with the same powerful yearning feeling as a Taylor Swift song!

Non-fiction:

I love 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.

In narrative non-fiction or memoir, I’m interested in projects that speak to our current moment and often have a thread of humour, like Are You There God? It’s Me, Ellen. I’d be especially keen to see proposals in this area from British and Irish authors in underrepresented communities.

Non-murdery true crime is another great love of mine, whether it’s serious, like Empire of Pain, or ridiculous (My Friend Anna). I want to be hooked by a story so outlandish it could be fiction!

Missed connections:

Here are a few projects that I would have loved to bring to my list – if you have something similar please think of me!

• A nod to the Anna Delvey scandal in a fun romp around upper-class Singapore.
• A lush, feminist fantasy reimagining a British historical moment in an alternate universe – and with magic.
• An achingly beautiful coming-of-age story about a biracial British woman processing her trauma to live – and love – on her own terms.
• A dark academia in a not-overdone city and university with brilliantly twisted relationships.

I’m not the right fit for:

Children’s books, sci-fi, very grizzly horror, all-vibes-no-plot, or a book without speechmarks.

Submission Guidelines

Please submit to me via my submissions email, which can be found (along with FAQs about querying) on the LBA website.

Guidelines & Details