An Interview with Marietta Zacker - A Guest Post by Moth Detlaf

Marietta Zacker of Gallt & Zacker Literary Agency

Can you tell me a little bit about your journey in the industry and the formation of Gallt & Zacker? 

 My love, admiration for, and respect of children’s literature came from my experiences as a native Spanish speaker who relied on stories to make sense of the world. My abuelo opened that world for me. After college, I taught children and young adults where I witnessed and came to understand how stories and books transformed their learning. I was then convinced that I had to be involved in the creation of children’s books. And because of my personal experiences and the experiences of my students, I desperately wanted to ensure that others who didn’t see their own lives reflected in the pages of books could start to do so. I worked one-on-one with authors and illustrators, connecting their work to schools and libraries, then worked on the editorial side of publishing. I found my way to Nancy in 2008 and haven’t left her side since. We cemented our partnership In 2016. 

 What makes for the best relationship between an agent and author/illustrator? 

 Without a doubt, honesty and communication. Every relationship is different, so there is not a script to follow. Instead, like any other collaboration, as long as there is heartfelt and open conversation, it can and often does work. 

 What would you advise authors/illustrators to look for when querying agents? 

 Look for people who you feel will ‘get you.’ Our job is to sell your work, but I firmly believe that we do our job best when we are fully invested in the idea that people NEED to read the stories and see the images you create. I would also suggest to authors and illustrators to hop on a phone or video chat and talk with an agent before signing on. There needs to be a comfort level and a basic understanding of how the partnership will work. It’s important to note that this doesn’t necessarily mean you need to develop a friendship, but at the very least, there should be a certain ease to the back and forth! 

 With all the changes to the landscape in publishing, do you see the role of the agent changing at all? 

 I don’t know that our role will change that much. After all, our most important role is to wholeheartedly believe that the world would be a better place because of those stories we are presenting — whether told in words or images — and that should never change, in my opinion! What I hope will change is the inclusion of many more voices in the publishing industry because that will lead to finding untold stories, which will then lead to all readers seeing themselves and their lives reflected in our books. Abuelo and I would be proud if we accomplished that!

Moth Detlaf (they/them) is a bookseller and the social media manager for Books of Wonder in NYC. They can often be found huddled in a corner somewhere surrounded by a palace of queer books for all ages--bonus points if there are dragons involved. Finding the books that make kids of all ages and demographics (including the grown up ones) feel the way they have always felt as a reader is one of their favorite things.