What do you think will be trends in publishing in the coming year?

Trends are incredibly hard to predict, but I think we’re going to be seeing a lot more speculative fiction, books that walk the line between commercial and literary, as well as more smart horror that reflects some of our current political and social anxieties. Within the YA space, I think we’ll see a continued push toward contemporary, with high demand for humorous romantic storylines in the vein of Jenny Han. And I think that we’ll continue to see a demand for diverse voices across all genres, whether adult, YA, or middle-grade.

What book/genre/topic would you like to see cross your transom?

My list is quite varied, and I’m always looking for a wide range of fiction and nonfiction. That being said, within the past year I’ve been particularly interested in books that explore the complexity of family, particularly sibling relationships. My client J.L. Esplin’s middle-grade book, 96 Miles, which will come out this February, is a survival story about four kids who must walk across the desert when a blackout hits Nevada, but, even more than that, it’s a story about being a brother. A very different book, but one that also explores what it means to be a sibling, is my client Ruth Emmie Lang’s forthcoming magical realism novel, The Wilderwomen, about two adult sisters—one who can see into the future, and the other who can see into the past—who embark on a journey to find their mother. I would love to find more books in this vein as well as books that have a speculative or magical realism element, whether for the adult, YA, or middle-grade market.

In nonfiction, I would love to see more popular-science projects that are founded on original research or narrative nonfiction that explores a topic that I’m not already familiar with. 

What topic do you never want to see again?

I’m open to almost any topic, but I do have to say that I’ve been finding memoirs more challenging to place these days. There really needs to be a unique angle or marketing hook, something that can be used to draw readers’ attention and stand out from the crowd. That, or there needs to be a distinctive narrative voice, such as in Cat Marnell’s How To Murder Your Life. These days, though, even that isn’t necessarily enough. A common response I’ve been getting is that an editor really enjoyed a particular manuscript but that they would need the author to have more of a promotional platform in order to take it on. This is something that has always been important for other types of nonfiction, but it is the first time I’ve seen it play such a prominent role for memoir.

What would you like to change about the publishing industry?

How difficult it can be to enter it. When I started almost 20 years ago, it was hard but not impossible. Since then, it has gotten exceedingly more difficult. I have interns who are great candidates who can’t seem to get a job—not through any fault of their own but because there are so few opportunities available. I spoke to one editor recently who applied to over 500 positions before he landed a full-time job. Of course, a large part of this is just the way the publishing industry is set up—there are only so many larger publishers, places that have the resources to hire a greater number of staff. And, as houses merge, that number is getting increasingly smaller. There are agencies, of course, but more and more of them are moving to a commission-only structure, which bars a lot of people from being able to take a position.

Andrea Somberg, a literary agent for almost 20 years, represents a wide range of fiction and nonfiction, including projects for adult, YA, and middle-grade audiences. Previously an agent at the Donald Maass Agency and Vigliano Associates, she joined Harvey Klinger, Inc., in the spring of 2005. Her clients’ books have been New York Times and USA Today bestsellers; winners of American Library Association’s Alex Award; nominated for the Edgar Award, the Governor General’s Award, the Lambda Literary Award, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award, the Ohioana Book Award, and the VCU Cabell First Novelist Award; and named best books of the year by New York Public Library and the Book of the Month Club. She also teaches courses for MediaBistro and Writer’s Digest.