Dystel, Goderich & Bourret

What Dystel, Goderich & Bourret does

Dystel, Goderich & Bourret LLC is a privately held, full-service literary agency founded in 1994 by Jane Dystel and headquartered at One Union Square West, Suite 904, New York. The firm represents authors across adult fiction, adult nonfiction, and children's/YA categories, with a roster of 17 named literary agents including Miriam Goderich, Michael Bourret, Stacey Glick, Jim McCarthy, Lauren E. Abramo, Jessica Papin, Sharon Pelletier, John Rudolph, Leslie Meredith, Ann Leslie Tuttle, Michaela Whatnall, Gracie Freeman Lifschutz, René Johannes Kooiker, Nataly Gruender, Masie Ibrahim, and Samantha Ouellette. Its client list includes high-profile commercial and literary authors such as Colleen Hoover, Barack Obama, Tayari Jones, and Jeffery Deaver.

The agency's core service is literary representation: agents evaluate manuscript queries, offer representation to selected projects, submit work to publishers, negotiate contracts, manage subsidiary rights, and provide ongoing career development. No proprietary technology platform underpins the service; intake occurs via email, a Query Manager system, and traditional mail, and the firm maintains discoverability profiles on QueryTracker, Publisher's Marketplace, and MSWL alongside an active social media presence (Threads, Facebook, Instagram) and a WordPress blog archive. Supporting products include Adult and Kids & YA newsletters (published tri-annually with archives back to 2018–2019), submission guidelines, nonfiction proposal guidance, and a multi-term internship program offering remote and in-person tracks.

The revenue model is commission-based under the AAR Canon of Ethics: the agency charges authors no fees and earns 15% on book sales, with subsidiary rights commissions varying. The firm is an LLC under New York jurisdiction with no disclosed parent company, no external funding, and no M&A history; ownership and operating control remain founder-led. Operating geography is concentrated in the U.S. Northeast, though author representation and publishing submissions are global in scope.

Name

Dystel, Goderich & Bourret

Legal name

Dystel, Goderich & Bourret LLC

Website

https://dystel.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Dystel, Goderich & Bourret is a New York-based literary agency founded in 1994 that represents fiction, nonfiction, and children's/YA authors on a 15% commission model, with a roster of 17 agents serving best-selling and emerging authors globally.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Author Representation and Book Sales: Literary agency that earns commissions only when authors receive payment for their work. The agency takes 15% commission on book sales, with subsidiary rights commission percentages varying. Agents work to build author careers through book deals with publishers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Dystel, Goderich & Bourret is a full-service literary agency that represents fiction, nonfiction, and children's/YA authors. The agency's core offering is literary representation — evaluating manuscripts and proposals, submitting them to publishers, negotiating contracts, managing subsidiary rights, and supporting long-term author career development. The agency earns a 15% commission on book sales and charges no upfront or reading fees to authors.

Product overview

Dystel, Goderich & Bourret LLC is a full-service literary agency founded in 1994, offering literary representation services for authors across fiction, nonfiction, and children's/YA categories. The agency's core service is literary representation—evaluating manuscripts, submitting to publishers, negotiating contracts, and building author careers. Supporting products include Adult Newsletters and Kids & YA Newsletters that feature their represented books, along with submission guidelines and nonfiction proposal guidelines to help authors prepare queries. The agency also offers an unpaid internship program for individuals seeking to enter the publishing industry.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Literary Representation Services Full-service literary representation for fiction, nonfiction, and children's/YA authors, including manuscript evaluation, submission to publishers, contract negotiation, subsidiary rights management, and royalty statement assistance. Services are provided on a commission basis with no fees charged to authors.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• InkWell Management: New York literary agency representing literary and commercial fiction, nonfiction, and select children's authors. Closely comparable in commission-only model, agent-led structure, and positioning as a full-service shop competing for the same pool of high-prestige author clients.
• Foundry Literary + Media: New York literary agency with a roster across adult fiction, nonfiction, and children's/YA. Closely comparable agent-led, commission-based business model and similar multi-vertical coverage that puts it in direct competition for the same author pool.
• Writers House: Large, well-established New York literary agency representing a broad spectrum of authors across children's, YA, and adult categories. Comparable scale, commission-only model, and multi-genre agent bench make it a direct competitor for both clients and editors' attention.
• Folio Literary Management: New York literary agency representing both debut and established authors across adult and children's categories. Directly comparable commission-based, full-service agency operating out of the same NYC trade-publishing ecosystem.
• Trident Media Group: Mid-to-large New York literary agency offering representation across fiction, nonfiction, and subsidiary rights. Comparable full-service model with a comparable mix of agents and genre coverage.
• Sterling Lord Literistic: Long-established, full-service literary agency founded in 1952, representing literary and commercial fiction, nonfiction, and select children's authors. Directly comparable to DG&B in commission structure, longevity, and full-service adult-trade focus.
• Aevitas Creative Management: Literary agency with deep nonfiction and narrative-nonfiction strength, plus fiction representation. Comparable in commission-only model and full-service positioning, with a roster that overlaps DG&B's nonfiction and literary-fiction segments.
• The Wylie Agency: Elite New York-based literary agency representing bestselling and award-winning authors across fiction and nonfiction. Direct peer to DG&B in business model (15% commission, no fees), client caliber, and category mix — both are full-service agencies with strong nonfiction and literary-fiction benches.

Broad incumbents

• United Talent Agency (UTA): Major Hollywood talent agency with a sizable publishing/books division that represents authors alongside film, TV, and music talent. Represents the converged, larger-scale model against which DG&B competes for high-prestige authors seeking cross-media rights exploitation.
• William Morris Endeavor (WME): Global talent and literary agency whose books division represents top-tier authors across fiction and nonfiction. Represents the largest end of the spectrum — competing with DG&B for prestige authors while also offering cross-platform rights services the boutique cannot match.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/DGandBTweets
• Facebookfacebook.com/DGandB
• Instagraminstagram.com/dgandbgrams
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/jane-d.-dystel-inc.

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Dystel, Goderich & Bourret