Ed Wilson is an agent and director of Johnson & Alcock, representing a vibrant list of fiction and non-fiction, from new voices to established, bestselling and award-winning authors.

In fiction, he looks for anything with originality and style, and his list covers the full gamut from literary to commercial writing. He likes books with an imaginative setting, strong narrative voice, and compelling premise. He has an active SFF list, representing multiple award-winning authors, and is always on the lookout for new writers. Think of him for high concept writing, intelligent crime and thrillers, and books that transcend genre. Ed is not currently taking on any new YA or children's authors, and does not represent plays or film scripts. 

His non-fiction tastes cover a wide range: from serious politics and sweeping narrative history, to sport, natural history, quirky memoir and popular culture. He loves writers that find a new and inventive way into a well-known subject, and works editorially with all his authors to make their books the best they can be.

Ed also looks after the majority of the agency’s Estates, in conjunction with Andrew Hewson: these include Beryl Bainbridge, Dick Francis, William Trevor and Elizabeth Taylor. Any enquiries about these authors should be sent to him.

Ed believes passionately in demystifying publishing, and can be found giving talks to writers’ groups, university courses, up and down the country (and online) about all aspects of the writing/publishing process. He acts as a mentor and is a podcast regular, and ran a regular Guardian Masterclass entitled ‘How to Get Published’ for a decade.

If you’re wondering whether you’re ready to submit your novel to him, please find a handy (if not entirely serious) flowchart reproduced alongside. This was first published in the Writers’ and Artists’ Yearbook, which is an excellent resource for all information about UK publishing.

You can also follow his ramblings (mainly about cats, gin and cricket) on Twitter at @literarywhore.