Rebecca Ritchie

On the fiction side, my list spans the commercial spectrum: from contemporary fiction – be that funny, romantic, moving or high concept – to reading group, historical fiction and saga, through to police procedural, crime, thriller and psychological suspense. My authors have been shortlisted for (and won) Romantic Novelists Association Awards, the Comedy Women in Print Book Prize, and several have been Richard and Judy Book Club picks.

In addition to accomplished, confident storytelling, I’m looking for compelling characters I can invest in: protagonists I can root for, fall in love with, or cheer on from the sidelines. Or give me an unreliable narrator who can lead me on an unexpected journey: one who can pull the wool over my eyes or the rug out from under me. Throw an ordinary character into an extraordinary situation, or an extraordinary character into an ordinary one, or give me a love story that will stay with me forever. I would love to find a book club novel with a strong concept, a unique character, a clever use of time, or a knotty moral dilemma at its core, one which you can’t help but pass on and discuss with your friends. Above all, I am looking for fiction that can make me feel something: if you can make me laugh like Sarra Manning, conjure a setting like Amanda Geard, keep me on the edge of my seat like Alex Lake or Kate Riordan, or make me cry like Jenny Ashcroft or Holly Miller, then I just might be the agent for you.

I love working with authors throughout the writing process, right from when the story is just the kernel of an idea, to delving into the full manuscript and drawing out what will make the reader tick. I took on many of the authors on my list when they were debuts (and some even before that, when they were journalists looking to make the leap into novel-writing), and as an agent you can’t beat the buzz of finding the perfect home for a book you’re excited about and getting to tell the author the good news. It has been such a privilege to watch these authors hone their craft with each book and build their readership accordingly. I love working with debut writers so if you think I might be the agent for you, please do send your novel to me.

In non-fiction, I am particularly interested in cookery, health and wellbeing, parenting, nature, travel, and anything with a female focus. I love writers who tell their stories with humour as well as poignance, like Rosie Green, or sweep you away with their beautiful writing, like Kathy Slack.