Welcome to another LEGENDARY episode! Our Legendaries are special guests who are an expert within their area of storytelling. Today, we are joined by literary agent Suzie Townsend. Prior to joining New Leaf, Suzie graduated film school, earned her Masters of Education, taught high school English, and coached a swim team. In her spare time, she read everything she could, which prompted her move to publishing. She got her start as an intern at FinePrint Literary Management where she was hired as an assistant before making the move to literary agent. She’s been part of the team at New Leaf Literary & Media since its inception in 2012.

Suzie represents all brands of children’s and adult fiction. She loves women’s fiction, narrative non-fiction, memoir, and debut fiction. On the children’s side, she is interested in select YA and MG. Suzie loves strong characters and voice-driven stories that break out of the typical tropes of their genres, and she’s always looking for unique new voices in stories.

In this episode, you'll hear:

• about the books that led Suzie to fantasy, including Tolkien and Game of Thrones


• We learn about Suzie's love of animals and her pets


• Elements of story that are compelling to Suzie, including her favorite tropes


• The romantasy wave


• Sharon Shinn (WARNING: MAJOR FANGIRLING)


• The #1 thing on Suzie's agent list for anyone querying


• Compliments to all of Suzie's authors, including Zoraida Cordova and Rebecca Ross


• The STORYBEAST question for our listeners to think of for themselves (and Suzie's lovely answer to it)

You can find us on our website and Instagram at @storybeastpodcast. For more storytelling content to your inbox, subscribe here. Feel free to reach out if you want to talk story or snacks!
Special thanks to Deore for our musical number. You can find her on Instagram @deore.music, or more of her creative work on Spotify.
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Be brave, stay beastly.