A literary agency for historians
The History Agency is a brand new literary agency specialising in serious historical writing aimed at a general audience.
Our authors will most often be practising historians who have persuasive true stories to tell about the area in which they specialise. It may be a short, timely reappraisal of a key moment or historical narrative; it may be a grand opus aiming to reset a whole field of enquiry.
We can help shape your ideas into a commercially compelling and professional proposal to present to book publishers. That could be from the very first spark of inspiration, or be about recalibrating the tone and structure of academic work to suit a general readership.
We’ll present your proposal to trusted and skilled editors with the aim of securing publishing contracts for your work.
And we’ll be with you all the way, to publication and beyond. We'll help you understand contracts and publishing jargon, provide commercial and editorial guidance as the book progresses, and assist publisher relations. We can help with suggestions for your publisher's promotional plans, and guide your writing career towards the next book - and beyond.
Submissions, and enquiries, are very welcome -
Who we are
The History Agency is led by Andrew Furlow.
I'm an experienced publisher who has worked in nonfiction books for more than twenty years.
I've long been obsessed by history writing - from reading Joachim Fest’s
The Face of the Third Reich
as a teenager to completing, in 2018, a History Masters degree at Kings College London.
My skills range across book publishing, from the negotiation and the minutiae of author contracts to book cover design and sales, marketing, PR and rights. But it’s working closely with authors to shape ideas - and then pitching those ideas to the world - that I most enjoy.
Submissions
Please send us your book proposal - or make an enquiry - by email here.
We're looking for history proposals which tell NEW stories - that of periods or locations or people underrepresented in historical writing, or of well-documented events in need of new interpretation.
If we choose to represent you, we'll work together to make the proposal as strong as it can be to present to publishers.
Overall, the proposal should answer three questions:
- Why this book?
- Why this author?
- Why now?
So, when you're preparing your proposal please try to explain - what makes this book so enticing (not just why the subject itself is enticing)? Why are you the best person to be telling this story? And why should readers - and therefore publishers - care about this book and this author now, or to be more precise, when the book is likely to be published?
The proposal should also be clear about:
- the estimated total word length
- when the manuscript is likely to be completed
- who you are - the connections you bring, which may include on social media, with the press, and other networks, such as amongst your peers in academia or elsewhere.
- any other notable details, such as time and expense needed to travel for research, or anniversaries around which publication would be ideal
It should likely include:
- at least one completed chapter
- a detailed breakdown of the remaining chapters
- notes on likely permissions needed for quotes and / or images
- a short survey of comparable and competing titles
But please don't:
- send the whole book, even if it is complete
Get in touch
DON'T worry if you need help with the proposal - that's exactly what we will help with. But DO get in touch if you have a great idea for a history book and the expertise to tell that story.
