If you are writing a book or have completed one, you will need an agent. Where? How? Who? Learn how to avoid the painful, expensive process of sending out manuscripts yourself blindly and waiting for rejection letters by attending a panel discussion featuring four top literary agents sharing expertise on how to land a book contract. The discussion will be followed by audience Q&A. Tickets are $7 in advance, $10 at the door.
For advance tickets, please call 212.494.0061 with credit card information.

Sloan Harris, International Creative Management
Dorian Karchmar, William Morris Agency
Ayesha Pande, Lyons & Pande International
Ira Silverberg, Donadio & Olson

Sloan Harris has worked in ICM’s book department for 16 years, specializing in narrative nonfiction and literary fiction. Clients include Jeffrey Goldberg, Hampton Sides, Doug Stanton, Susan Casey, George Pelecanos, James McManus, Anthony Lane, and Anthony Swofford, among others.

Dorian Karchmar is a literary agent at the William Morris Agency in New York where she specializes in literary fiction and creative nonfiction. She is a graduate of the University of Iowa’s MFA program in Nonfiction Writing and represents a diverse group of critically-acclaimed and prize winning authors, including Jennifer Haigh, winner of the 2006 L.L. Winship/PEN Award for the New York Times bestseller, Baker Towers, and the 2004 PEN/Hemingway award for her debut novel, Mrs. Kimble; Eric Puchner, former Stegner Fellow and Pushcart Prize winner whose debut Music Through the Floor was one of the breakout collections of 2005; Dr. Sharon Moalem, evolutionary biologist and author of the forthcoming Survival of the Sickest, a radical study of the evolutionary histories of common inheritable diseases and conditions; and Scott Heim, author of Mysterious Skin, adapted by director Gregg Araki into one of the most successful independent films of last year.

Ayesha Pande launched Lyons & Pande International last fall with her partner Jennifer Lyons. She was previously and editor for 15 years, including stints at Crown Publishers and at HarperResource. In 2001 she moved to Farrar, Straus & Giroux as a senior editor, where she acquired and edited a range of literary fiction and nonfiction, including the PEN Hemingway-winning GraceLand by Chris Abani. She represents clients who write literary fiction, narrative nonfiction and young adult fiction, as well as historians and journalists. Clients include Malaysian writer Preeta Samarasan as well Pakistani American writer Sheba Karim.

Ira Silverberg is a literary agent at Donadio & Olson. Prior to that, he worked in publishing in various capacities including Director of Publicity at Grove Weidenfeld, Publisher and Editorial Director of High Risk Books/Serpent’s Tail, and Editor in Chief of Grove Press. Some of his clients include National Book Award nominees Christopher Sorrentino, Rene Steinke and Adam Haslett; pop culture critics Neil Strauss, Jon Savage and Simon Reynolds; style gurus Kate Spade, Katie Brown, and Amanda Brooks; as well as Andrei Codrescu, Dennis Cooper, Lawrence Chua, David Bezmozgis, Shelley Jackson, R. Zamora Linmark, Sam Lipsyte and Heather McGowan among others.