Holly McGhee is an active literary agent at Pippin Properties, Inc., She is open to submissions, but with specific guidelines for exclusive queries.
About Holly McGhee
Holly McGhee is the founder and Creative Director of Pippin Properties, a New York literary agency specializing primarily in books for children and young adults. She represents authors and illustrators across picture books, middle grade, young adult, graphic novels, and other illustrated and children’s formats, while occasionally handling adult projects for established clients.
Before founding Pippin Properties in 1998, McGhee spent six years as an executive editor at HarperCollins and previously worked in several publishing roles, including advertising and sales. Her approach is strongly editorial and career-focused, with an emphasis on developing work that can endure over time rather than simply placing individual projects. Her client list has included numerous award-winning and bestselling authors and illustrators, and she remains active in both book publishing and subsidiary-rights opportunities.
Holly McGhee — Literary Agent
Submitting Your Work to Holly McGhee
Before querying Holly McGhee
The Market List recommends you verify this agent is still active and open to submissions before sending a query. Check the agency website, recent deal announcements, and any posted guidelines.
To be sure your project is a fit, we recommend you familiarize yourself with Holly McGhee's list by reviewing recently represented titles and the agency's current submission guidelines before querying.
If you have recently queried Holly McGhee or have experience with this agent, please submit a comment below. Recent response times are always welcome and helpful to other writers.
Submission Details for Holly McGhee and Pippin Properties
Pippin Properties primarily represents picture books, middle grade, graphic novels, and young adult novels, with occasional adult projects. The agency is open to writers, illustrators, and author-illustrators.
Writers should query by email and include the first chapter of a novel plus a short synopsis, or the complete manuscript for a picture book, in the body of the email. Illustrators should send a query letter describing their background and include links to an online portfolio or dummy; attachments are not accepted.
Query only one Pippin agent at a time. If no response is received within six weeks, the submission should be considered declined. If additional material is requested, the agency may ask for an exclusive one-month review; requested manuscripts should use 12-point type, be double-spaced, and have numbered pages.
Hints
Exclusive queries only; no attachments in submissions