Kristin Nelson

My goal as an agent is simple: I want every client of mine to make a living solely from writing and 90% of my authors do without help from any other source of income. I established NLA in 2002 and over the last two decades of my career, I’ve represented over fifty-five New York Times bestselling titles and many USA Today bestsellers. Although I’m a very nice Midwesterner, I’ve heard through the grapevine that editors call me “a hard-working bulldog agent that will fight for you.” What a compliment!

When not busy selling books, I’m quite sporty. I enjoy tennis, pickle ball, and golf. I also love playing Bridge (where surprisingly I’m not the youngest person playing). My book club has been reading great non-NLA books together for 25+ years.

You can also read about my latest sales at Publishers Marketplace.

 

#MSWL

  • Literary/commercial novels that tackle timely issues and uncomfortable or complicated relationship dynamics and leave the reader grappling long after the last page is read (Little Fires Everywhere, Such a Fun Age)
  • High-concept, character-driven novels with one foot squarely in genre (Wool, Bird Box, Station 11)
  • Absolutely delightful and emotionally engaging novels that can be read over and over again because experiencing that world and those characters is a joy (Remarkably Bright CreaturesMajor Pettigrew’s Last Stand, Less, Lessons in Chemistry)
  • Character-driven novels in the thriller, speculative, or science fiction and fantasy realm that illuminate the world we live in through the lens of an imagined world (The Fifth Season, Ancillary Justice, Gone Girl)
  • Historical novels that feature a narrative voice and story that is under-represented in history or a story never before told (Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, The Downstairs Girl, The Ventriloquists)
  • Young-adult novels that pack a serious or a delightful emotional punch delivered in a contemporary setting, #ownvoices, or in a past, future, or imagined world
  • I am not currently looking at submissions for middle-grade novels.
  Query Kristin

Kristin’s Recent News

Oneworld’s Rock the Boat has pre-empted UK and Commonwealth rights to The Dragonship series, a middle-grade sci-fi/fantasy mashup by Scott Reintgen about dragons in space starting with The Last Dragon on Mars.

Sally Field in talks to star in the Netflix adaptation of Remarkably Bright Creatures by Sheby Van Pelt. Olivia Newman (Where the Crawdads Sing) is set to direct and co-write the script with John Whittington.

Augusta Harris at Disney Hyperion has acquired world rights to Maya in Multicolor by Swati Teerdhala.

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt made #93 on the Reader Top 100 Best Books of the 21st Century, a list compiled July 2024 by the New York Times.

In a two-book, six-figure deal, Sarah Barley (Simon & Schuster) has acquired historical gothic mystery The Heiress of Nowhere by Stacey Lee for publication in 2026.

An amazing feat for a sequel, Richard Chizmar‘s Becoming the Boogeyman is an instant NYT bestseller.

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt hits the million copies sold milestone in North America.

Ed Schlesinger at Gallery, in an exclusive submission, bought Widow’s Point: The Complete Haunting by Richard Chizmar and W.H. Chizmar for publication in 2025.

Stephanie Pitts at Putnam bought North American rights for Kill Her Twice by Stacey Lee, NYT-bestselling author of The Downstairs Girl.

Kate Prosswimmer at Margaret K. McElderry Books bought book two, A Whisper in the Walls, and book three in NYT-bestselling author Scott Reintgen‘s Waxways Trilogy.

Kristin’s Film/TV Options

Optioned to:
Netflix

Currently under option

Currently under option

Optioned to:
Bound Entertainment

Optioned to:
Frederator Animation

Optioned to:
Boat Rocker & Untitled Entertainment

Optioned to:
Bound Entertainment

Currently under option

Optioned to:
Made Up Stories

Optioned to:
Quon Productions

Currently under option

Currently under option

Currently under option

Optioned to:
Tango Entertainment

Optioned to:
Picture Start

Optioned to:
Warner Bros.

Currently under option

Currently under option

Currently under option

Currently under option