Jon Curzon - Editor
Jon Curzon is a literary agent at Artellus Ltd., where he represents writers across fiction and non-fiction; from debut literary fiction (Kyra Wilder’s Little Bandaged Days and Ashleigh Bell Pedersen’s The Crocodile Bride) to titles in history and science (Christopher Othen’s The King of Nazi Paris and Lukasz Bednarski’s Lithium), and memoir (Emily Wells’s A Matter of Appearance).
Books Jon has represented have been published in the UK, US, Germany, France, India, the Netherlands, South Korea, Greece – and have been reviewed and featured in the Guardian, The New York Times, The Telegraph, The Times, The TLS, and on Channel 4 News.
Artellus Ltd. was established in 1986, and is best known for its work with Anthony Burgess. Recent highlights include the Booker-shortlisted Fiona Mozley (Elmet and Hot Stew) and Sunday Times-bestseller Rebecca Wilson (What Mummy Makes).
In addition to his agenting work, Jon has also worked as a freelance editor for literary consultancies and creative writing courses since 2015.
WHY WE LOVE JON
Jon’s reports are incredibly encouraging and also chock-full of market advice. His perspective as an agent allows him to precisely identify what’s working in your manuscript and what needs tweaking in order to take your work to the next level.
WHAT JON SAYS ABOUT EDITING
I love working with aspiring writers to help shape their manuscripts; in both my agenting and editorial work I look to really dig in with writers in a collaborative way. It’s the most rewarding function of an agent (and editor), to work together with a writer to realise the potential of their work.
When working with a writer, I aim to look at the big picture of their novel or non-fiction project, and to not lose the essence and voice of that writer – rather, to elevate it. I think my focus on this is a special quality (although it’s a quality any good agent/editor has!), and the ability to work this in at both a big picture and at a line level is key.
In fiction, I tend towards literary fiction that engages with themes of family and belonging. In non-fiction, I really enjoy a variety of writing, from history through science to memoir and biography.
