In our biggest piece of news yet, we can at last reveal Rochelle Fernandez is joining Alex Adsett Literary as a new Australian literary agent. Rochelle is a former publisher at HarperCollins and has almost twenty years experience in Australian publishing.
As an editor, she worked on and project managed manuscripts of fiction, biography, memoir, cookery, current affairs as well as editing copy and messaging for the corporate sector.
In her role as publisher for Voyager, HarperCollins’ speculative fiction imprint from 2013-17, Rochelle is proud to have worked with authors such as Kylie Chan, Traci Harding, Alan Baxter and Mitchell Hogan. She also commissioned authors for Impulse, an ebook only imprint, fostering a community of emerging authors and supporting them from contract to market.
As one of the first digital editors for an Australian publishing house, she has spent her career so far adapting to and maximising opportunities arising from changes to the traditional business models.
Alex says, “I am so excited Rochelle is joining me as an agent. I’ve enjoyed working with Rochelle as a publisher for years, and have enormous respect for how she approaches books, publishing and authors. I love that I’m gaining another colleague to bounce ideas off, and share the miseries and joys of agenting life with. Having Rochelle based in Sydney, while I’m in SE Qld, is going to be another great expansion of what Alex Adsett Literary can do.”
Rochelle says, “I love the Australian publishing industry and the people in it. For a long time there’s been particular stories I wanted to see shared with Australian readers and the way I can make sure that happens is to get involved. I’ve been a fan of Alex and her work for many years and am so excited to come on board as an agent and learn the ropes from her and bring some fresh voices to Alex Adsett Literary.”
As a literary agent, Rochelle will be seeking well written manuscripts of any genre with a compelling premise and three dimensional, interesting characters. Based in Sydney, she is passionate about hearing and seeing diverse stories that represent the wonderful multicultural multifaceted society that comprises Australia.
Separate to the Agency, Rochelle will also be running an editorial and consultancy business, as Alex continues to also run her contracts consultancy services.