Linda Chester, Founder of Linda Chester Literary Agency, Dies at 76

Linda Chester, founder of the Linda Chester Literary Agency, died at her home in La Jolla, Calif., on December 9. She was 76.

Chester began her career in publishing at Doubleday. After earning a master's degree in Communications, on the advice of Nelson Doubleday and with the encouragement of literary agent Julian Bach, she established the Linda Chester Literary Agency in La Jolla in 1989. In 1992 Chester opened a new headquarters in New York City , eventually moving the company back to California in 2020. Chester's clients included Elizabeth Brundage, Rosemary Clooney, Winston Churchill, Thich Nhat Hanh, Amy Poeppel, and Jennifer Weiner. Her philosophy in running her agency, Chester embraced Ralph Waldo Emerson's quote, "some books will set you free."

Moving forward, the Linda Chester Literary Agency will be helmed by longtime partner Laurie Fox, along with agent Darlene Chan and executive manager Michelle Conway.