#203: Clare Alexander, literary agent, Aitken Alexander Associates

Jan 7, 2025

Clare Alexander, a distinguished literary agent at Aitken Alexander Associates, shares her remarkable journey from editor-in-chief at top publishing houses to advocating for iconic authors like Haruki Murakami and Pat Barker. She discusses the evolution of the publishing industry since the 1970s, highlighting challenges faced by women and the cultural shifts between American and British publishing. Clare also reflects on the importance of mentorship and the joy of unexpected successes in her client relationships, bringing humor and wisdom to her experiences.

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Intro

00:00 • 2min

From Editor to Literary Agent: A Career Journey

01:35 • 5min

Reflections on Publishing Evolution

06:32 • 20min

Cultural Shifts in Publishing: From Professionals to Agents

26:44 • 3min

Navigating Gender Dynamics in Publishing

29:45 • 3min

Celebrating Literary Wisdom and Partnership

32:57 • 2min

Navigating the Literary Landscape

34:58 • 27min

Rachel and Simon speak with the literary agent Clare Alexander. For the first portion of her career she worked in publishing, starting out in 1973 in the rights department at Penguin; after stints at Hamish Hamilton and Viking she became editor-in-chief of Macmillan and Picador. Clare published first novels by Helen Dunmore, Alex Garland, Amitav Ghosh, Haruki Murakami and Donna Tartt. In 1995, while at Viking, she was the editor of the winners of the Booker Prize, the Orange Prize (now the Women's Prize) and the Whitbread Award (the erstwhile Costa Book Awards) - the first editor ever to achieve this hat-trick. In 1998 Clare became a literary agent. Her client list includes Diana Evans, Helen Fielding, Armando Iannucci, Nicholas Shakespeare, Rory Stewart and Colin Thubron. We spoke to Clare about her early career as an editor, becoming an agent in the late 1990s, and working with authors including Pat Barker, Mark Haddon and Sebastian Faulks.

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