The agents of Windham, Maine–based children’s book agency Erin Murphy Literary Agency—including founder Erin Murphy and agents Tricia Lawrence, Kevin Lewis, Ammi-Joan Paquette, and Miranda Paul—have joined Aevitas Creative Management. The EMLA backlist will remain under the EMLA umbrella and Murphy's supervision, with business affairs personnel Susan Murrell and Dennis Stephens continuing to process payments and statements on titles sold before January 31, 2025. Murphy joins Aevitas as a partner, Lawrence and Paquette as senior agents, and Lewis and Paul as agents.
“When I began working on a succession plan last year, I spoke with many wonderful agencies whose people were generous with their time and information. I feel so fortunate to have found Aevitas, which ticks all the boxes for me,” said Murphy in a statement. “In addition to being able to immediately provide more support for five agents and more robust systems than we had at EMLA, ACM is full of warm people with esteemed lists, and adding EMLA’s authors and illustrators will increase the presence of ACM Kids & Illustration to the benefit of all. Joining ACM has been a joy, and I’m glad to be shifting roles to focus squarely on representing my clients again, while phasing out my role as agency head.”
Murphy founded EMLA in 1999 after a seven-year stint as an editor at a regional publishing house. She relocated the agency from Flagstaff, Ariz., to southern Maine in 2016. Among the authors and illustrators represented by EMLA are Safia Elhillo, Maria Gianferrari, Brian Lies, Dawn Quigley, Jean Reidy, Kim Rogers, Dashka Slater, Karla Arenas Valenti, Andrea Wang, Kao Kalia Yang, and Paula Yoo.
“We’re excited and honored that the EMLA agents, along with their brilliant authors and illustrators, have decided to become part of Aevitas. It’s a privilege to add their children’s book clients to our roster,” said Aevitas co-CEO David Kuhn, with fellow co-CEO Todd Shuster adding: “EMLA’s award-winning authors and illustrators will be wonderful additions to the ACM Kids & Illustration division.”
