“Boom, boom, the steam pile-driver thumps in front of Aschinger’s on the Alex. It’s one story high, and knocks the rails into the ground as if they were nothing at all.”

(Alfred Döblin, Berlin Alexanderplatz)

Schoneburg. Literary Agency is a young literary agency with a passion for books, ideas, language and literature. We are located in Berlin-Prenzlauer Berg. Our surroundings, which are characterised by an urban and liberal atmosphere, regional embedding as well as cosmopolitanism, serve to enrich and inspire our work.

Our Services

The main focus and competence of the Schoneburg. Literary Agency lies in representing fiction and non-fiction authors. We see ourselves as a “full-service agency”. Our goal is to find the right publisher for the right book. We offer services in creative writing, copy-editing and proof-reading as well as in media communication and event management. Our partners are serious and recognised publishers. We want to help exciting and talented new voices transform experiences and ideas into texts. In addition, we work together with many recognised writers and journalists. Schoneburg. Literary Agency offers consulting and support for developing manuscripts, placing books on the market, in creative writing and copy-editing. Our experience and knowledge of the literary industry enable us to assess manuscripts and classify them. We understand the underlying idea behind them as well as to improve them. We offer services as a sub-agency as well as rights management in German-speaking countries.

What kinds of texts?

We are enthusiastic about contemporary literature in German language that knows how to deal with  language, offers a new and unexpected perspective on the world, while keeping the reader entertained. Our focus lies on fiction and crime novels as well as non-fiction literature. We do not represent fantasy, children’s or youth literature. In our selection process we follow strict literary criteria. All manuscripts we represent meet our high standards. We believe that the publishers, with whom we are in contact, are aware of this. They use to recognise our commitment to quality literature.

History

The Schoneburg. Literary Agency is a young and growing project, which was founded by Dr. Patrick Baumgärtel in the summer of 2009. After completing his studies in German literature and writing his dissertation on the work of W.G. Sebald as well as gaining work experience at the Munich publishing house C.H. Beck and the American literary Agency S.J. Greenburger (New York), he decided to face the challenge of founding a literary agency during a period of rapid social, technological and media change. Schoneburg. Literary Agency is an agency committed to literature that meets the zeitgeist.