The authors on Helsinki Literary Agency’s list are a beautiful bunch.
There are those who write breathtaking literary fiction and those who know how to spin a crime novel. Some can take the reader centuries back in time – or to a whole new world. Some of them write to children in a such a thrilling way that it gives even the adult reader goose bumps. There are writers of the most intriguing narrative nonfiction and of fascinating guides and funny pass-time books too.
The power of literature lies in variety: there is a book to read for everyone. Hence the goal of Helsinki Literary Agency is to offer the readers in other countries a good, representative section of Finnish literature.
The incredibly popular historical romance trilogy, Cotton Mill, written by Ann-Christin Antell, has already sold over 100,000 copies in Finland altogether! The third part of the trilogy, Rival to the Cotton Mill, was published at the end of February and immediately rose to the top of bestselling Finnish fiction. Antell’s publisher in Finland is Gummerus. …
Always lovely to begin a week with some wonderful book news: Juhani Karila’s phenomenal debut novel, Fishing for the Little Pike, has already sold over 30,000 copies in Finland (in all formats) since its publication in 2019. Karila’s publisher in Finland is Siltala. The book has been incredibly successful both in Finland and abroad, with …
Fantastic post-Bologna news: an offer from the English World for our Finlandia Junior winner A Giraffe’s Heart Is Unbelievably Large, by Sofia & Amanda Chanfreaus, is now on the table. We are also excited to share that an auction is now ongoing in the French world. Since the beginning of the year, foreign rights to this title have …
Helsinki Literary Agency is a modern literary agency based in the capital of Finland. It offers publishers the best selection of Finnish fiction and nonfiction authors – a beautiful variety of genres and styles. Founded in the beginning of 2017, the agency is a joint venture of four Finnish publishing houses: Gummerus, Schildts & Söderströms, Siltala and Teos. The agency represents a wide range of prominent, award winning authors writing both in Finnish and Swedish.
Gummerus Gummerus, founded in 1872, is Finland’s third largest publisher with a list of 200 titles each year. It is now owned by Swedish Storytel.
Schildts & Söderströms Schildts & Söderströms is Finland’s largest Swedish language publisher with a history dating back 1891. Its imprint S&S publishes books in Finnish.
Siltala Publishing Siltala, founded in 2008, publishes about 40 titles a year. Its list includes both literary fiction and nonfiction.
Teos Publishers Teos, founded in 2003, publishes about 45 new titles annually. The focus is on literary fiction, but the list includes also nonfiction and children’s titles.
Here is a link to media stories about the Helsinki Literary Agency, updated whenever there is news.
Agents:
Photo: Ida Stenros
Urpu Strellman Literary Agent, CEO M +358 40 737 5535 urpu@helsinkiagency.fi
Helsinki Literary Agency is headed by Urpu Strellman (b. 1979). She has worked in publishing for over 15 years, longest as an editor and a publishing manager. In the beginning of 2017 she started to work at the then brand new Helsinki Literary Agency. For years she has also been teaching editing, writing and how to popularize science. She has co-authored “The Nonfiction Writer’s Book” and another nonfiction book about writing with influence. Most recently she has published a guide about selling nonfiction rights abroad (so watch out, world – Finnish nonfiction is soon coming to you!).
With a colourful past from bartending on the top of the Canadian Rockies to working for the EU Commission, Urtė (b. 1991) eventually joined the agency in the beginning of 2019, and in addition to selling rights is also in charge of newsletters, social media and communications. She has a Master’s Degree from the University of Helsinki, majoring in Finnish language and culture. On the side, she is a literary translator, whose work has been awarded and enlisted amongst the best translations of the year a few years in a row.
Photo: Ida Stenros
Kai Aareleid Literary Agent kai@helsinkiagency.fi
Kai Aareleid (b. 1972) has a background in the book world since early 2000s. A prolific literary translator from Spanish and Finnish, she has worked as a publisher and copy editor in Loomingu Raamatukogu Publishers, Estonia and has mentored emerging translators as well as taught translation courses. Wearing her writer’s hat, she is author of 1 book of drama, 2 books of poetry and 3 books of prose. Her works have won literary prizes, have been shortlisted for a number of awards and translated into several languages. As a true cosmopolite, she lived in Tartu, Tallinn, Helsinki, Mexico City, Riga and St Petersburg. She is currently sharing her life between Tallinn, Helsinki and a North-Estonian fishing village.
Viivi Arela (b. 1983) joined the agency in July 2020. A brand strategist with years of experience in marketing and sales, her focus is on strengthening the visibility and reach of the agency’s authors and titles in international markets. Viivi is a passionate advocate of reading and determined to bring Finnish literature to even larger audiences abroad.
Exclusive co-agents:
Arabic Literary Sapiens | Ali Arabzadeh a.arabzadeh67@gmail.com
China Grayhawk Agency | Clare Chi clare@grayhawk-agency.blogspot.com
Eastern and Central Europe Albania, Armenia, Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Georgia, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Ukraine Agentia Literara Livia Stoia | Oana Vasile oana.vasile@liviastoiaagency.ro
You can read about translation and production grants here.
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