Tamara joined DeFiore and Company in 2022. She started her career with internships at Macmillan and Writers House, then worked at ICM for five years. Tamara represents writer and illustrator clients in both the children’s and adult markets, with a particular focus on talented LGBTQ+ and BIPOC storytellers.

​She holds a B.A. in Comparative Literature from Princeton University and an M.A. in Middle Eastern Studies from Columbia University. She is a member of the Association of American Literary Agents, and serves on the board of the nonprofit organization Literary Agents of Change, where she co-directs a mentorship program for early career agents from underrepresented backgrounds.

TAMARA IS SEEKING:

ABOUT THE AGENT:
Aiden Siobhan (they/them) graduated from UNC School of the Arts in 2023 with a Filmmaking BFA specializing in Screenwriting and Animation. Before becoming an agent, they interned at LDLA and were an Author Mentor Match mentee in 2022. When they’re not binge reading an LGBTQ+ YA novel, they work as the Art Director for two alternative newspapers, attend film festivals for their documentary projects, and go on road trips with their fiancé and dog.

AIDEN IS SEEKING:

ABOUT THE AGENT:

Shelly Romero began her publishing career in 2017 at Scholastic where she rose up the ranks from editorial assistant to associate editor, where she acquired her own titles and assisted on series publishing for The Bad Guys and Goosebumps. She later joined Cake Creative as Lead Editor and she was most recently a freelance editor. She graduated from Stephens College with a bachelor’s degree in English and attended the 2017 NYU Summer Publishing Institute. Shelly was selected as a 2020 Publishers Weekly Star Watch Honoree and is a member of Latinx in Publishing & People of Color in Publishing. Born and raised in Miami by Honduran parents, she now resides in New York City where she might be found at a movie theatre viewing the latest release from her Letterboxd watchlist.

SHELLY IS SEEKING:

ABOUT THE AGENT:

Born and raised in Mexico, Daniela Landero (Dany, for short) moved to the United States with her parents and dog at fourteen years old. She found a home in books at an early age, which pushed her to pursue a degree in English Language and Literature from Georgetown University, as well as a Minor in Film and Media Studies. Her passion for stories translates across mediums, and she started her career writing screenplay coverage professionally (some of the movies she covered were actually made!), and assisting production companies with pre-production duties. Inevitably, her love for books called her to the world of publishing, and she joined Ladderbird with the aim of helping talented writers from marginalized communities develop flouris​hing careers. 

DANIELA IS SEEKING:​

​ABOUT THE AGENT:

Kristen Bertoloni at Trident Media Group is open to submissions and eager to find projects she’s passionate about. Kristen is looking for commercial fiction, specifically horror, thriller/suspense, and romance.
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She loves captivatingly creepy stories like THE YELLOW WALLPAPER by Charlotte Perkins Gilman as well as the gothic elements of MEXICAN GOTHIC by Silvia Moreno-Garcia. Kristen is looking for horror novels with dark twists, ghosts, and romance.

MORE ABOUT WHAT KRISTEN IS SEEKING:

ABOUT THE AGENT:

Thais Afonso (she/her) is an Associate Agent with Azantian Literary Agency. Thais has eight years of experience in publishing between Brazil, China, and the United States. More recently, she interned at Writers House, where she honed her skills while supporting the desks of Amy Berkower and Johanna Castillo, and she was mentored by Jennifer Azantian before stepping up to the Associate Agent role at ALA. She intends to represent marginalized authors, and she’s especially seeking to uplift BIPOC born and raised in the Global South.
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An Afro-Brazlian lesbian, Thais currently lives and works out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She helps care for her grandmother when she’s not editing books and she’s one of those terrible people who calls the gym her hobby (even though she currently doesn’t go).

THAIS IS SEEKING:

ABOUT THE AGENT:

Valentina Sainato (she/they) is an associate agent at JABberwocky assisting Eddie Schneider. She also handles all merchandise and third-party licensing proposals.

They graduated from Cal Poly SLO with a B.A. in English and have lived in New York City ever since. Outside of her literary interests, Valentina is a dancer of many different styles, a video game lover, and a ~very~ amateur digital artist.

Before joining JABberwocky, Valentina worked as an Events Manager with Barnes & Noble on the Upper West Side, where they hosted a huge variety of author events, book clubs, children’s activities, and more. She has also interned at Foundry Literary + Media, Folio Literary Management, and the Feminist Press at CUNY.

VALENTINA IS SEEKING:

“Horror: Horror is my favorite genre to read, and I’m looking for lots of different flavors here. If it’s spooky, eerie, disorienting, thrilling, existential, or horror-lite, I want to read it. Blends with sci-fi/fantasy are also welcome, but it should still feel at home on the horror shelf!

ABOUT THE AGENT:

Sobi-Dee Burbano is an Assistant Literary Agent at The LCS Literary Agency. She earned her Associate’s Degree in Arts, but her true passion has always been reading. She discovered a love for books as a child and that has carried on through adulthood. When she is not caring for her young children, as a mother of two, her Kindle is her best friend.

She loves reading romance of all genres including fantasy and paranormal. Sobi is excited to work with aspiring authors and is now actively building her list. She is looking for unputdownable stories with bold, courageous characters who take you down an emotional journey of perseverance. She enjoys getting lost in a great drama-filled fantasy and also hopes to escape into a romance that makes her fall in love with love again.

SOBI-DEE IS SEEKING...