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My Job in 5: Chloe Morgan

Chloe Morgan takes the helm of My Job in 5 this week to share with us what it's like to be an Illustration Agent at Plum Pudding Illustration Agency.
Written on 11/08/2018 - 13:38

1. Describe your role.

 

My role as an illustration agent involves working closely with the illustrators to develop their folios, liaising with clients and illustrators on projects and helping to fine tune details such as contracts schedules and fees. We also have to keep on the ball with upcoming trends as well as seek out fresh new talent! Alongside being an agent at Plum Illustration, I also head up Plum Licensing which is all things greetings cards and surface pattern! 

 

2.What do you like best about your role?

 

I love the wide variety of different projects I get to work on, right the way from baby board books to picture books to greetings cards. We represent so many talented illustrators that I find I am constantly excited and inspired on a daily basis and it’s great to see the projects evolve from start to finish! It’s so rewarding when an illustrator has worked hard on a sample and then they get the project - especially if it’s one if of their first projects or one of their own author/illustrator ideas! I also like the fact that we work with illustrators and clients from across the world meaning that we can connect with lots of different people at the same time but on different time zones!

 

3. Which new projects or titles are you working on at the moment?

 

There are lots of exciting things in the pipeline for Bologna 2019 so we’re currently working on the author/ illustrator concepts for that… and on the licensing side of things we’re already thinking about Christmas 2019 and gearing up for Blue Print in NY! Sloths and llamas seem to be all the rage at the moment so look out for some super sweet sloths popping up on your bookshelves soon…!

 

4. What skills do you need for your role?

 

Apart from having a passion for championing fantastic illustrators, communication is a key part of my role. As an agent you are the initial link between the publisher and the illustrator so it’s important to be organised and on the ball with things so that any questions can be answered quickly and the projects can run smoothly. As well as being organised, it’s also really important to be personable so that the illustrators feel they can ask advice on their development work without any qualms.

 

5. What advice would you give to those looking to work in the industry?

 

Keep up to date with the markets - explore bookshops, follow publishers/people in the industry who inspire you on social media and if you have the opportunity to go to book fairs, especially Bologna, then it’s a must! It’s a busy but creatively buzzing industry so gaining as much experience as possible either via internships or going to talks can be a really good way to get a good insight into the industry so that you can decide which sort of career path you want to take.