The Knight Agency - Exceptional Literary Representation

About Us - The Knight Agency .

Established in 1996, The Knight Agency has gained worldwide recognition for the success of our authors in the fiercely competitive publishing marketplace. Our philosophy is simple: what you give is what you get. As a company, we are dedicated to cultivating prosperous, long-term writing careers by giving clients unparalleled service. Thus, the agency designed a multifaceted approach to success, which includes maintaining high visibility in the marketplace, fostering the all-important author-agent relationship and operating full-service subsidiary rights and marketing and publicity departments. This conscientious approach anticipates the needs of clients at all stages of the publishing process. The stellar success enjoyed by our clients illustrates the merits of our methodology.

Our talented agents include Deidre Knight, president, Pamela Harty, Lucienne Diver, Nephele Tempest, Elaine Spencer and Melissa Jeglinski, who have placed more than 2000 titles with major publishers such as HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Random House, Penguin Putnam, St. Martin’s, Hachette Books (Formerly Time Warner), Tor Books, Kensington Publishing Group, Chronicle Books, Adams Media, Tyndale, Thomas Nelson, Bethany House, Baker Books, Zondervan, Dorchester and Harlequin, among others.

Each of these publishing companies encompass numerous imprints, and TKA agents have sold to a large spectrum of these venerable names, which include: Bantam Dell, Berkley, NAL, Puffin, Pocket, MTV Books, Ace, ROC, Touchstone/Fireside, DaFina, HQN, to name a few. TKA has earned a reputation for discovering vivid, original works, and our authors have produced bestsellers featured on the New York Times, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, Los Angeles Times, Barnes & Noble Bestseller and Amazon.com Hot 100 lists. Awards received by clients include the RITA, Gold Medallion, Walden Books Award for Best New Author and Romantic Times’ Reviewer Choice Awards.

Notably, in the winter of 2007, four TKA clients landed on the New York Times bestseller list simultaneously, marking an agency first.

TKA is a bi-coastal agency, maintaining offices in Los Angeles, Florida and metro Atlanta.

Meet Our Agents and Staff:

The Knight Agency staff boasts more than 75 years of applied experience in every facet of the publishing industry. Members of our professional team not only bring their expertise to the table, but an unmatched enthusiasm for each project. We are excited to utilize our business knowledge and unique literary sensibilities to create a strong support system that guides our clients on the path to success in today’s market.

Deidre Knight, Senior Agent and President

Deidre Knight established The Knight Agency in 1996 after working in the entertainment industry. In the years since that time, she has built a dynamic, bestselling client list, placing nearly eight hundred titles in a broad range of categories, including romance, women's fiction, personal finance, business, popular culture, African American history, self-help, religion, health, and parenting. Her recent sales include books placed with Penguin Putnam, Random House, St. Martin's, Warner, Simon & Schuster, HarperCollins, Harlequin/Silhouette, Doubleday, Tyndale, Zondervan, Bethany House, and WaterBrook. Deidre's clients have appeared on all the major bestseller lists, including the New York Times, USA Today, Publisher's Weekly, CBA, and LA Times Bestseller Lists, as well as Amazon.com's Hot 100 List. Her authors have won countless awards, including the coveted RITA, the Gold Medallion, the Walden Books Award for Best New Author, and many others. She belongs to The Association of Authors' Representatives and Romance Writers of America. A native Atlantan, Deidre is listed in Who's Who in the Southeast and in Who's Who in America.

Judson Knight, Vice President

Judson Knight joined Deidre and Pamela in 2003 as business manager and Vice President of The Knight Agency. A professional writer since 1990, he has published more than a dozen books on history, music, and science and contributed to hundreds of reference volumes. He has edited or co-written numerous other works and is currently writing a supernatural thriller. As Deidre's husband, Judson has been involved in The Knight Agency from its inception.

Pamela Harty, Vice President of Sales/Agent

Pamela Harty joined The Knight Agency in the summer of 2000, and has placed more than one hundred titles in a broad range of categories, including health, parenting, southern history, African American interest, business, romance, children's, and Christian living. Recent sales include books to Penguin Putnam, Warner, BET, Harlequin/Silhouette, Thomas Nelson, Zondervan, InterVarsity Press, McGraw Hill, Broadman & Holman, Chicago Review Press, Free Spirit Publishing, Fleming Revell/Baker, and Westminster John Knox. She brings to the agency a successful sales background combined with a genuine love of books. Says Pamela, "Agenting is my dream job. I get to read for a living while working with incredibly talented people in a competitive and challenging industry." Pamela serves as The Knight Agency's Vice President of Sales, and belongs to the Association of Authors' Representatives and Romance Writers of America.

Lucienne Diver, Agent

Lucienne Diver joined TKA in 2008, after spending fifteen years at New York City’s prestigious Spectrum Literary Agency. With her sharp eye and gift for spotting original new voices, Lucienne is one of the most well-respected agents in the industry. A lifelong book addict, she graduated summa cum laude from the State University of New York at Potsdam with dual majors in English/writing and anthropology. She thus came well-equipped for her work as an agent.

Over the course of her dynamic career she has sold over six hundred titles to every major publisher, and has built a client list of more than forty authors spanning the commercial fiction genres, primarily in the areas of fantasy, science fiction, romance, mystery, suspense and erotica. Her authors have been honored with the RITA, National Readers' Choice Award, the Golden Heart, and the Romantic Times Reader’s Choice, and have appeared on the New York Times and USA Today bestseller lists. A publishing veteran, Lucienne has superb industry knowledge, numerous editor relationships, and a keen understanding of the foreign rights market. She is a member of the Association of Authors Representatives, RWA, MWA and SFWA.

Elaine Spencer, Sub-Rights Manager/Agent

Elaine Spencer joined The Knight Agency in September, 2005, as Manuscript Coordinator, managing all incoming queries and acting as a liaison between clients, publishers, and agents. In the summer of 2006, she was promoted to Associate Agent, taking on her own list of talented writers and working with them to develop their careers. Elaine is also the agency Sub-Rights Manager, in charge of maintaining contact with foreign publishers and sub-rights agents, and coordinating foreign sales for all TKA clients. Her strong background in both literature and economics make her well qualified to juggle both the artistic and the contractual sides of the business.

Elaine belongs to the Association of Authors' Representatives (AAR) and Romance Writers of America (RWA). She is actively building her client list, and is currently accepting submissions of the following types of books: commercial literary fiction, women’s fiction, contemporary romance, historical romance, romantic suspense, high-concept paranormal fiction, young adult and middle grade fiction, and select pop-cultural nonfiction.

Nephele Tempest, Agent

Nephele Tempest joined The Knight Agency in January, 2005, opening the Los Angeles office. As an agent, she works with a number of talented writers, assisting them to hone their skills and build their careers. In addition, she spends time developing the agency's Hollywood film and multi-media contacts. Nephele comes from a diverse publishing and finance background, having worked in the editorial department at Simon and Schuster, as a financial advisor, in the marketing and communications departments of several major New York investment firms, and as a freelance writer. Her experiences in sales, marketing, and writing provide her with insights into multiple aspects of the publishing industry.

Nephele belongs to the Association of Authors' Representatives (AAR), Romance Writers of America (RWA), and the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI). She continues to actively build her client list, and is currently seeking works in the following genres: literary/commercial fiction, women's fiction, urban fantasy/paranormal, romantic suspense, contemporary romance, historical fiction, science fiction, and young adult fiction.

Melissa Jeglinski, Editorial Consultant/Associate Agent

Melissa Jeglinski joined The Knight Agency in September of 2008 as Associate Agent/Submissions Coordinator. A graduate of Clarion University of Pennsylvania, where she majored in English with a concentration in writing, Melissa began her career as an editorial assistant at Harlequin Enterprises.

During her 17-year tenure, she discovered more than a dozen authors who have become National bestsellers and ascended to senior editor of the Silhouette Desire line, one of the company’s most prestigious and successful series. An undeniable asset to the TKA team, she utilizes her extensive editorial experience, combined with distinctive tastes and a top-notch romantic pedigree, to foster TKA’s client roster to national prominence. Melissa is a member of RWA and AAR.

Jia Gayles, Public Relations Director

Jia Gayles joined The Knight Agency in June of 2008 as Promotions/Public Relations Director. She is responsible for handling marketing, newsletters and online promotions. Previously, Jia served as marketing coordinator for an architectural and interior design firm and worked as the associate editor of a real estate business magazine. She has also freelanced for magazine and online publications and reviews books for the Atlanta Writer’s Club, where she is a member.

A graduate of Agnes Scott College, she majored in English-Literature/Creative Writing and attended the prestigious Columbia Publishing Course. She brings a wealth of creativity to the table and, most importantly, is passionate about the written word.