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Chelene Knight

The last time the agent had an active listing on Duotrope, the agent was affiliated with Transatlantic Agency (see other agents at this agency).

Do not submit here! Permanently Closed: This agent is no longer accepting queries (August 2023). We provide the following information as an archive.

About

Chelene Knight came into agenting after years of working on the editorial side of publishing and in the magazine industry. She is the author of the poetry collection Braided Skin and the memoir Dear Current Occupant, winner of the 2018 Vancouver Book Award, and long-listed for the George Ryga Award for Social Awareness in Literature. Her essays have appeared in multiple Canadian and American literary journals, plus the Globe and Mail, the Walrus, and the Toronto Star. Her work is anthologized in Making Room, Love Me True, Sustenance, The Summer Book, and Black Writers Matter, winner of the 2020 Saskatchewan Book award. Chelene Knight has a strong editorial background and has worked as a substantive editor for manuscripts in literary fiction, historical fiction, hybrid and traditional memoir, and most recently, children’s books. Chelene has juried for many literary prizes, including the Amazon First Novel Award. She’s also been on many arts boards’ granting juries, including the Canada Council for the Arts, and participated in numerous literary festivals across Canada. Knight was the previous managing editor at Room magazine and festival director for the Growing Room Literary Festival in Vancouver. She is now founder and CEO of Breathing Space Creative Literary Management. She often gives talks about home, belonging and belief, inclusivity, and community building through authentic storytelling. Chelene teaches poetry at the University of Toronto online.

Country

United States

Fiction Closed

Submissions I am primarily interested in literary fiction and memoir. For fiction, I am incredibly drawn to character-driven narratives with rich language that push boundaries (think Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye). I also look for books that encourage the setting to be a living character (think Amber Dawn’s Sub Rosa).

Audience:
Open to a broad Audience, including: Adults.
Genres:
General General
Styles:
Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary.
Topics:
Open to all/most Topics.
Types/Lengths:
Novel Novel
Submissions:
ElectronicPostalSimultaneous
OK No OK
Always check guidelines for details and restrictions. If you aren't familiar with these terms, see our glossary.

Nonfiction Closed

For memoir, I need not only a compelling story, but an unconventional structure that amplifies the narrator’s experiences and contributes to the reflective voice in a unique way (think Lidia Yuknavitch’s Chronology of Water). I have a soft spot for gritty stories where human nature, resilience, and experience take centre stage. The “grit” lends its qualities to books where the story and its characters have some of the roughness, imperfection and complexity of the real world.

Audience:
Open to a broad Audience, including: Adults.
Styles:
Open to all/most Styles, including: Literary, Personal.
Topics:
Open to all/most Topics, including: Memoir.
Types/Lengths:
Book Book
Submissions:
ElectronicPostalSimultaneous
OK No OK
Always check guidelines for details and restrictions. If you aren't familiar with these terms, see our glossary.

Chelene Knight Submission Statistics

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Dates

Last Updated: 21 Aug 2023
Date Added: 30 Jun 2020

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