Literary Agent Undercover
Established in 2011, Literary Agent Undercover is the leading company offering 1-on-1 author coaching and consulting to help writers get literary agents. Literary Agent Undercover is a division of The Bestselling Author, founded by Mark Malatesta. The former literary agent has helped 400+ authors of all book genres get offers from literary agents and/or traditional book publishers.
In addition to having a been a literary agent, Mark is a writer himself, and he’s served as the Marketing & Licensing Manager of the well-known gift and book publisher, Blue Mountain Arts. He’s been involved with every aspect of the publishing process. And he finds great joy supporting writers through the process of turning their publishing dreams into reality.
Click here to see Mark Malatesta Reviews.
Reviews of Literary Agent Undercover
Literary Agent Undercover has helped authors get book deals with publishers such as Adams Media, Andrews-McMeel, Amacom, Barron’s, Ballantine, Chronicle Books, Berkley Books, Entrepreneur, Diversion Books, Gallery Books, Familius, Harper Collins, Harcourt, Hyperion, Hachette, Llewellyn, Kane Miller, Penguin, McGraw-Hill, Prentice-Hall, Philomel, Random House, Prometheus Books, Regnery Publishing, Red Wheel/Weiser, Rowman & Littlefield, Routledge, Simon & Schuster, Scholastic, Square One Publishers, Skyhorse, St. Martin’s, St. Martin’s Press, Workman, Thomas Nelson, and Zondervan. Listed below are reviews by authors who’ve worked with Literary Agent Undercover.
Children’s Book Authors – Reviews
Children’s book authors who’ve provided reviews of Literary Agent Undercover after getting literary agents and/or traditional publishers include Kenneth Bogh Anderson, an award-winning YA/MG author with approximately 500,000 copies sold, including The Devil’s Apprentice; Jeri-Anne Agee, author of the chapter book series The Life and Times of Birdie Mae Hayes published by Skyhorse, named the fastest-growing small publisher in America by Publishers Weekly with 52 New York Times bestsellers; and Libby Kiszner, author of Dear Libby: An Advice Columnist Answers the Top Questions About Friendship, published by Familius, a traditional publisher with many bestselling authors.
Other children’s book authors who’ve provided Literary Agent Undercover reviews include Damone Bester, author of the YA novel Mendel, published by The Story Plant, a traditional publisher dedicated to quality fiction, founded by long-term industry professionals Lou Aronica and Peter Miller; Laura Moe, author of the YA novel Breakfast with Neruda (Adams Media/F+W/Merit Press); Catherine Matthias, author of The Word Gobblers (Square One), and seven other children’s books produced by Scholastic/Children’s Press; Derick Wilder, picture book author of Author of The Longest Letsgoboy, Does a Bulldozer Have a Butt?, and I Made Those Ants Some Underpants (Chronicle Books); and Miri Leshem-Pelly, author/illustrator of the picture books Penny and the Plain Piece of Paper (Penguin Books/Philomel) and Scribble & Author (Kane Miller).
“AHHH! OMG, it happened! You helped me get three offers for representation from top literary agents! A short time later I signed a publishing contract with Kane Miller (a division of EDC publishing). After that, my agent sold my next book to Philomel, a division of Penguin Books. In short: I’m in heaven!”
Miri Leshem-Pelly
Author/Illustrator of the picture book Penny and the Plain Piece of Paper (Penguin Books/Philomel), Scribble & Author (Kane Miller), and many other children’s picture books
Click here to see more Children’s Book Author Reviews.
Fiction Book Authors – Reviews
Fiction authors who’ve provided reviews of Literary Agent Undercover after getting literary agents and/or traditional publishers include Brad Harper, A Knife in the Fog and Queen’s Gambit (Prometheus Books/Seventh Street Books); Ron Cutler, author of ten novels (some using a pseudonym) with Doubleday, Dell, Berkley, Dial, Avon, Fawcett, Jove, Pinnacle/Kensington, and Signet/NAL; Sandy Gingras, Paradise Girls (St. Martin’s Press); Dayna Dunbar, The Wings That Fly Us Home and The Saints and Sinners of Okay County (Ballantine); Jane Jago, The Wrong Hand (Penguin/Michael Joseph); and Dylan Jones, #1 Amazon bestselling author of multiple books with 75K copies each sold of his first two books.
Other novelists who’ve provided Literary Agent Undercover reviews include Alex Lasker, Tears of the Sun starring Bruce Willis (Columbia Pictures), Beyond Rangoon starring Patricia Arquette (Castle Rock Entertainment), and Firefox starring Clint Eastwood (Warner Brothers), and the novel The Memory of an Elephant; Nathaniel Lande, author of a dozen fiction and nonfiction books including Cricket (New American Library), The Life and Times of Homer Sincere (Peter Mayer/Overlook Press), and While the Music Played (Blackstone Publishing); and Karen Sargent, author of the Christian novel Waiting for Butterflies (Amphorae/Walrus Publishing), IAN Outstanding Christian Fiction and Book of the Year winner.
“Ballantine Books published my first two novels in hardcover and paperback after you helped create an auction and bidding war for my books, resulting in a six-figure offer. You’re one of the rare and genuine good guys, but you also have incredible information (even your ideas have ideas).”
Jim Brown
Author of the mystery/suspense/thrillers 24/7 and Black Valley (Random House/Ballantine)
Click here to see more Fiction Author Reviews of Mark Malatesta.
Nonfiction Book Authors – Reviews
Nonfiction authors who’ve provided reviews of Literary Agent Undercover after getting literary agents and/or traditional publishers include Martin Cohen, author of Philosophy for Dummies, The Doomsday Machine, I Think Therefore I Eat, 101 Philosophy Problems, and 101 Ethical Dilemmas, which has sold 250,000+ copies; Amy Jo Goddard, author of the self-help book Woman on Fire (Penguin Books); and Silvia Foti, author of the memoir The Nazi’s Granddaughter, published by Regnery Publishing, with more than 50 books on the New York Times bestseller list, including numerous books at #1.
Other nonfiction authors who’ve provided Literary Agent Undercover reviews include David Hamme, author of the business book Customer Focused Process Innovation (McGraw Hill); Soo Peer, author of The Essential Diversity Mindset (Red Wheel/Weiser); Lakshmi Subramani, author of the memoir Lights Out (Random House); Nhi Aronheim, author of the memoir Soles of a Survivor, published by Skyhorse Publishing, distributed by Simon & Schuster and the publisher of 52 New York Times bestsellers, named by Publishers Weekly as the fastest-growing small publisher in America; and Melissa Bond, author of the memoir Blood Orange Night (Simon & Schuster/Gallery Books); Daniel Cohen, author of the narrative nonfiction book Single Handed (Penguin Random House/Berkley Books).
“You’re a thoughtful gentleman and a constructive critic. When I looked online for a coach, your name rose to the top. After we spoke, I knew we’d work well together. I could tell by the questions you asked and your ability to listen. You understood where I was coming from, and you were extremely helpful. I value our friendship.”
Nelson Johnson
Author of the NY Times bestselling book Boardwalk Empire, which led to the critically acclaimed HBO series (produced by Martin Scorsese), and Darrow’s Nightmare: The Forgotten Story of America’s Most Famous Trial Lawyer
Click here to see more Memoir/Narrative NF Author Reviews.
Click here to see all Nonfiction Author Reviews.
Christian Book Authors – Reviews
Christian book authors who’ve provided reviews of Literary Agent Undercover after getting literary agents and/or traditional publishers include Dr. Bill Creasy, author of Reading the Bible: A Literary Guide to Scripture (Zondervan/Harper Collins), and creator/host of the Scripture Uncovered podcast, which has had 1.3 million “listens”; Karen Sargent, author of the Christian novel Waiting for Butterflies (Amphorae/Walrus Publishing), winner of the IAN book awards for both Outstanding Christian Fiction and Book of the Year; Scott LeRette, author of th memoir The Unbreakable Boy (Thomas Nelson/Harper Collins), adapted to feature film with Lionsgate starring Zachary Levi, Amy Acker, and Patricia Heaton.
Other Christian writers who’ve provided Literary Agent Undercover reviews include Annie Farris, author of the memoir That One Person: The True Story of a God Appointed Stranger Who Saved the Life of a Little Girl with Her Love, published by Crosslink Publishing, a traditional publisher and subsidiary of the CrossLink family of ministries; and Nancy Williams, author of Murder Walks on Peachtree Street, published by Elk Lake Publishing, a traditional Christian publisher and member of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA), the Christian Indie Publishers Association (CIPA), and associate member of the Christian Retailers Association, with more than 175 books in print.
“Before I decided to work with you, I submitted my book to literary agents but didn’t get any interest. Now I’m with Fine Print Lit, a top literary agency in New York. They got publishers bidding against each other and I ended up signing a contract with Thomas Nelson (an imprint of Harper Collins) for what I’ve been told by several people is a very large advance. What cloud is higher than 9?”
Scott LeRette
Author of the memoir The Unbreakable Boy (Thomas Nelson/Harper Collins), adapted to feature film with Lionsgate starring Zachary Levi, Amy Acker, and Patricia Heaton
Click here to see more Christian Book Author Reviews.
Our Approach
Literary Agent Undercover takes a comprehensive approach to getting a literary agent. When you register for a Literary Agent Advice coaching/consulting session, you’ll get a detailed author questionnaire. Knowing a lot about you and your work prior to your 1-on-1 session will allow us to do the best job possible serving you. Your author questionnaire will include placeholders for you to provide any/all of the following that you have available: query letter, book synopsis, book proposal, and sample manuscript pages or chapters. We’ll review your material before your session, and you’ll have the opportunity to ask questions during your session
Click here to see Mark Malatesta Reviews.
