Kerry D'Agostino is a literary agent at Curtis Brown whose deal record and client roster signal a strong commercial and upmarket fiction sensibility alongside a genuine appetite for narrative nonfiction with broad cultural reach.
In brief
Kerry D'Agostino is based at the well-established Curtis Brown agency, giving clients access to deep publisher relationships across major New York houses.
The input record is sparse on confirmed individual deals, so writers should treat this profile as a starting framework and verify current interests directly before querying.
Query status was observed as open in April 2026 — check the live submission form to confirm before sending.
Curtis Brown as an agency spans both commercial and literary ends of the market, and D'Agostino's position there suggests comfort placing books with both large imprints and selective literary publishers.
Because hard sales data is limited in the available record, writers should prioritize the query tips below and tailor pitches to the broad taste signals rather than assuming any single category is a guaranteed fit.
Lately
Query status confirmed open, indicating D'Agostino is actively building their list and reviewing new submissions.
What Kerry is looking for
D'Agostino gravitates toward fiction that bridges the commercial and the literary — stories with genuine emotional weight, distinctive narrative voices, and the kind of thematic resonance that generates word-of-mouth. Think book-club-friendly premises executed with real craft.
Accessible, propulsive stories across a range of genres — including women's fiction and plot-driven narratives — that hold up both as entertainment and as character studies. Strong concept and a compelling hook matter here.
D'Agostino is drawn to nonfiction that moves with the momentum of a story — reported books, cultural history, memoir — where the writing itself is a pleasure and the subject has genuine broader resonance beyond a narrow specialist audience.
Not the right fit
Taste fingerprint
How to query Kerry
Address D'Agostino directly and by name — they are at Curtis Brown, so confirm you are submitting through the correct agent-specific channel and not a generic agency inbox.
Lead your query with a crisp, one-paragraph pitch that establishes the emotional core of the book, not just the plot mechanics — D'Agostino's taste profile suggests voice and feeling matter as much as concept.
For fiction, situate your work between two touchstones: one that signals the commercial appeal (why readers will pick it up) and one that signals the literary quality (why they will remember it). That upmarket middle ground is the sweet spot.
For nonfiction, make the narrative momentum clear from the first sentence — describe the story arc, not just the subject. If the book has a cinematic or reported-journalism quality, say so explicitly.
Keep the query to one page. Curtis Brown agents are high-volume and precise; a concise, well-structured letter signals professionalism.
Include comparable titles published within the last three to five years to help D'Agostino place your work in the current market — avoid titles that are too famous (Harry Potter, Gone Girl) as benchmarks.
Double-check the agency's current submission guidelines before sending, as required materials (synopsis length, sample pages) can change.