David Black Agency

What David Black Agency does

David Black Agency is a privately held literary agency founded in 1989 by David Black and headquartered at 335 Adams Street in Brooklyn, New York. The firm operates as a sole proprietorship with nine agents supported by an Operations & Payments Manager and a Literary Associate, representing authors across narrative non-fiction (sports, business, history, politics, fitness, memoir), literary and commercial fiction, cookbooks, health and wellness, and genre categories such as thrillers, mysteries, and speculative fiction. Its roster includes multiple New York Times bestselling and award-winning authors such as Mitch Albom, Erik Larson, Julia Cameron, Lindy West, Will Guidara, Claire Saffitz, Deborah Lipstadt, Dorie Greenspan, Jackson Galaxy, and Maggie Smith.

The agency delivers its services through a sales-led, agent-centric model. Authors submit queries directly to specific agents via email, QueryTracker, or Manuscript Wishlist; phone, mail, and fax are not accepted. Revenue is generated entirely through commissions on book deals negotiated for authors, covering domestic rights (~15% commission), foreign rights (~20%), and film/TV adaptations through major studios including Netflix, HBO, and Universal. The firm operates a global distribution network via 16 co-agent partnerships spanning 20+ countries and languages, and processes permissions, audio rights, and speaking engagement requests as auxiliary revenue lines.

There is no proprietary technology platform underpinning the business. Operations are conducted through standard publishing-industry workflows supported by a Wix-hosted website, an Instagram presence (@davidblackagency), and submission integrations with QueryTracker and Manuscript Wishlist. The agency does not disclose pricing or financial information publicly, and recent strategic activity has centered on senior hires (Timothy Wojcik from Levine Greenberg Rostan in early 2026; Abby Walters from Creative Artists Agency in 2026) and the operational promotion of Anna Zinchuk, alongside active management of represented authors' interests in the Bartz v. Anthropic copyright class action settlement.

Name

David Black Agency

Legal name

David Black Agency

Website

https://davidblackagency.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1989

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

David Black Agency is a privately held, Brooklyn-based literary agency founded in 1989, with nine agents representing bestselling and award-winning authors in book deals, foreign rights, and film/TV adaptations across global markets.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Literary Agency Services

NAICS

Agents and Managers for Artists, Athletes, Entertainers, and Other Public Figures (711410)

SIC

Books: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2731)

akta.pro primary industry

Business Management & Accounting (Artists) (MPAIAGAD)

Keywords

• Literary representation
• Book publishing
• Foreign rights
• Author representation
• Subsidiary rights

Headquarters

HQ city

Brooklyn

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Literary Agent Commission: The agency earns commissions on book deals negotiated on behalf of authors. This includes domestic and foreign rights sales, film/TV adaptations, and other subsidiary rights.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

David Black Agency is a literary agency that represents authors across fiction, nonfiction, memoir, cookbooks, and various other genres, guiding manuscripts from conception through publication. The firm earns commissions on book deals negotiated for clients, including domestic and foreign rights, film/TV adaptations, audio rights, and other subsidiary rights. It operates as a nine-agent collaborative practice headquartered in Brooklyn, NY.

Product overview

David Black Agency is a literary agency founded in 1989 that operates as a unified service offering with nine agents. The core product is literary representation services, which encompasses manuscript representation across multiple genres. This core service is supported by specialized sub-products including Film & TV Rights (adaptation partnerships with studios and streaming platforms), Foreign Rights (international co-agent network spanning 20+ countries), and Permissions (managing quotes, audio rights, and speaking engagements). The agency does not offer a technology platform; all products are professional service offerings centered on author representation and career development.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Literary Representation Services Full-service literary representation for authors across fiction, nonfiction, memoir, cookbooks, and various genres, managing the lifecycle of books from conception through publication, rights sales, and ongoing career development.
• Film & TV Rights Representation Partnership with media co-agents to bring authors' stories to screen, optioning and developing books with major film studios, television networks, and streaming platforms including Netflix, HBO, and Universal Pictures.
• Foreign Rights Representation International rights representation through formal co-agent partnerships and direct publisher relationships, covering translation and audiobook rights across 20+ countries including UK, Australia, Brazil, China, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Korea, Spain, and others.
• Permissions and Ancillary Rights Management Handles permissions inquiries for use of quotes from represented titles and manages audio rights and speaking engagement bookings for clients.

Quantifiable outcome

• Books optioned and developed by major film studios, television networks, and streaming platforms

Named customers12 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Abner Stein (UK & Australia)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorUK and Australia co-agent representing the agency's authors' rights in these territories. Contact: Caspian Dennis at [email protected]
• Bears Factor Literary Agency (Arabic)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorArabic language rights representation. Contact: Bassem El Kheshen at [email protected]
• Riff Agency (Brazil/Portugal)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorBrazil and Portugal co-agent for Portuguese language rights. Contact: Laura Riff at [email protected]
• Bardon Chinese Media Agency (China)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorChina co-agent for Chinese language rights. Contact: Mingming Lui at [email protected]
• Prava I Prevodi Literary Agency (Eastern Europe)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorEastern Europe co-agent covering Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia, Serbia, Slovenia. Contact: Nada Popovic
• Elaine Benisti Agent Litteraire (France)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorFrance co-agent for French language rights. Contact: Noemie Rollet at [email protected]
• Mohrbooks AG Literary Agency (Germany)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGermany co-agent for German language rights. Contact: Marie Arendt at [email protected]
• Katai & Bolza Literary Agents (Hungary)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHungary co-agent for Hungarian language rights. Contact: Esther Szasz at [email protected]
• The Deborah Harris Agency (Israel)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorIsrael co-agent for Hebrew language rights. Contact: Geula Geurts at [email protected]
• The Italian Literary Agency (Italy)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorItaly co-agent for Italian language rights. Contact: Beatrice Beraldo at [email protected]
• Tuttle-Mori Agency Inc. (Japan)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorJapan co-agent for Japanese language rights. Contact: Misa Morikawa at [email protected]
• Eric Yang Agency (Korea)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorKorea co-agent for Korean language rights. Contact: Yujung Kim at [email protected]
• SBK Literary Agency (Netherlands & Scandinavia)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorNetherlands and Scandinavia co-agent. Contact: Willem Bisseling at [email protected]
• International Editors' Co (Spain)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSpain co-agent for Spanish language rights. Contact: Carina Brandt at [email protected]
• Maxima Creative Agency (Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSoutheast Asia co-agent covering Thailand, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Contact: Santo Manurung at [email protected]
• Akcali Agency (Turkey)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorTurkey co-agent for Turkish language rights. Contact: Atilla Izgi Turgut at [email protected]

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• InkWell Management: Boutique literary agency representing literary fiction and nonfiction authors. Comparable to David Black Agency in team size and editorial approach, with similar focus on narrative nonfiction and award-eligible fiction across comparable publisher relationships.
• Folio Literary Management: Mid-sized literary agency representing authors across multiple genres with foreign rights and subsidiary rights capabilities. Comparable in agent team size and broad genre coverage to David Black Agency.
• The Gernert Company: Independent literary agency representing commercial and literary fiction and nonfiction authors. Directly comparable as a boutique competitor pursuing similar high-quality authors with overlapping publisher and film-studio relationships.
• Trident Media Group: Mid-sized literary agency with representation across multiple genres including fiction, nonfiction, and category titles. Comparable in agent count and genre breadth to David Black Agency, with similar co-agent international partnerships for foreign rights.
• The Wylie Agency: Established boutique literary agency founded by Andrew Wylie, representing major literary and nonfiction authors. Directly comparable to David Black Agency in boutique scale, founder-led operating model, and emphasis on select representation of high-profile authors with substantial bestseller track record.
• Sterling Lord Literistic: Longstanding independent literary agency founded by Sterling Lord, representing authors of notable commercial and literary fiction and nonfiction titles. Directly comparable to David Black Agency in boutique scale, founder-led model, and emphasis on bestselling nonfiction.
• Foundry Literary + Media: Boutique literary agency representing authors across fiction and nonfiction. Comparable in scale and approach to David Black Agency with similar sales channels to major trade publishers and active foreign rights representation.

Broad incumbents

• Creative Artists Agency (CAA): Premier talent agency with a literary division that recently lost Abby Walters to David Black Agency. CAA's integrated book-to-screen representation and larger advance capacities make it a primary competitor for the same top-tier nonfiction and literary fiction authors.
• United Talent Agency (UTA): Major full-service talent agency with an established book publishing/literary division. Competes for bestselling authors seeking integrated book-to-film deal-making capabilities that mirror David Black Agency's film/TV rights pipeline.
• WME (William Morris Endeavor): One of the largest global talent agencies with a dedicated book publishing division. While operating broadly across entertainment, its literary division competes directly for high-profile authors seeking integrated book-to-screen representation similar to what David Black Agency offers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/dblackagency
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/david-black-literary-agency
• Instagraminstagram.com/davidblackagency/?hl=en

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 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 David Black Agency