Cathryn Summerhayes is a literary agent with Curtis Brown. She previously worked at WME, where she established an eclectic list of high-profile clients including multi-million copy crime thriller writers Chris Whitaker and Lucy Foley, record-breaking Dr Adam Kay (of This is Going to Hurt (Picador, 2018) fame), Anita Rani, Lisa Howells, Nicci Cloke, Shappi Khorsandi, (Deliciously) Ella Mills, Mark Watson, Naomi Wood, Lucy Rose, Kirsty Logan, Susan Fletcher, Viv Groskop, Tiffany Murray, the world’s bestselling colouring in artist, Johanna Basford, Grace Dent, Sir Ranulph Fiennes, and many more. Cathryn also works with major US authors, such as Lisa Taddeo, Jennifer Coolidge and Ashley Flowers through partner agencies UTA and CAA. Cathryn was named The British Book Awards’ Literary Agent of the Year in 2019. She is on the Committee of The Book Society, works with Literature Wales and The Hay Festival and in her previous life in events and PR, worked on high profile awards such as The Booker Prize.
Meet the Agent (Retreat)
This week-long retreat is carefully designed for writers who are looking for a boost of creative inspiration and professional motivation. Whether you might be seeking representation for the first time, on a tight deadline, or in need of editorial support, this retreat will help you get to where you need to be.
Joined by experienced and acclaimed literary agent, Cathryn Summerhayes (Curtis Brown), you’ll have the opportunity to attend lively and instructive group workshops, one-to-one tutorials, and build your community of writer friends. Sessions will focus on self-editing your work, professional development, tips on hooking an agent, demystifying the publishing process and more. Your resident agent, experienced in supporting writers across a variety of genres, will also invite you to send in your submission package in advance and will offer tailored feedback on your work.
Our fully catered retreats also provide you with the time and space to write, read and relax. Set in a peaceful location in the stunning surroundings of northwest Wales, you can take inspiration from the spectacular sea views over Cardigan Bay, share ideas over dinner or simply sit back and relax in Tŷ Newydd’s cosy library.
- Learn from acclaimed and award-winning literary agent, Cathryn Summerhayes.
- Gain need-to-know tips; from how to hook an agent to self-editing.
- Receive tailored feedback from an experienced professional.
Tutor
Cathryn Summerhayes
Guest Reader
Deborah Kay Davies
Deborah Kay Davies is a Cardiff University graduate who has also taught Creative Writing at Cardiff University, the University of Glamorgan, and Cardiff Metropolitan University. Her first book, Things I Think You Don’t Know (Parthian, 2006), is a collection of poems. This was followed by her debut short story collection, Grace, Tamar and Laszlo the Beautiful (Parthian, 2008), which won the Wales Book of the Year award in 2009. The collection was translated into Spanish in 2011, and several of the stories have been featured on BBC Radio 4. Her first novel, True Things About Me (Canongate Books, 2010), earned her recognition as one of the best new British novelists on BBC TV’s The Culture Show. When Faber and Faber published the novel in the United States in 2011, author Lionel Shriver named it her personal Book of the Year. The novel has since been translated into five languages and adapted into a BBC feature film titled True Things, starring Ruth Wilson and Tom Burke, released in 2022. Deborah’s second novel, Reasons She Goes to the Woods (Oneworld, 2014), was shortlisted for the Encore Award and longlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction.