Frankfurt rights-centre admissions
Admissions to LitAg and the Publishers Rights Centre in 2025.
Territorial representation · agency partnerships
Foreign Rights Co-Agent Partnerships
Connecting STA’s U.S.-represented books with experienced publishing partners in international markets.
Storyteller Talent Agency welcomes thoughtful introductions from foreign co-agents who understand their local publishing landscape, maintain active acquiring-editor relationships, and can help build durable translation-rights opportunities.
Market context
Why international rights relationships matter
Countries represented
Territories represented by rights organizations in Frankfurt’s 2025 work centres.
Cross-market publishing revenue
Combined 2022 revenue reported to WIPO by 23 publishing markets; coverage is not a full global total.
Figures describe the cited markets and reporting periods; they are industry context, not a forecast of results for any particular STA title.
Role clarity
What a foreign co-agent relationship means
STA remains the primary literary agency for its represented client. A foreign co-agent may be engaged to represent defined rights in an agreed language or territory, using local market knowledge and publisher access to help identify, pitch, negotiate, and administer appropriate licensing opportunities.
The exact scope, exclusivity, commission, expenses, reporting, payment flow, approval process, duration, and termination terms belong in a written co-agency agreement. No public page creates an appointment or grants authority.
STA contributes
- Primary author and project relationship
- English-language material and title positioning
- Rights-control and availability confirmation
- Author approvals and U.S.-side strategy
- Offer, contract, payment, and rights-status coordination
A co-agent contributes
- Territory, language, and category expertise
- Current relationships with suitable acquiring editors
- Local positioning and submission strategy
- Publisher follow-up, feedback, and offer context
- Local-market contract and payment support as agreed
Working together
How STA evaluates a co-agent introduction
The best introductions are concrete. They show where the co-agent works, what the team sells, which editors they know, and how they communicate throughout a rights campaign.
- 01
Introduce the agency
Provide legal business name, website, office location, team contacts, languages, territories, and years operating in rights or publishing.
- 02
Show market fit
Explain active genres, age categories, publisher and imprint relationships, recent comparable sales, and any territory-specific constraints.
- 03
Align the working model
Discuss title selection, exclusivity, commission, expenses, submission reporting, offer approval, contracts, payments, tax documents, and conflicts.
- 04
Start with the right books
Review the catalog, identify specific titles and editors, confirm availability, and agree on a focused submission plan rather than sending indiscriminately.
Before contacting STA
Prepare a useful introduction
Include enough information for a real conflict and fit review. A website alone is rarely enough to understand territorial coverage, list strengths, or working practices.
Agency and team credentials
Territories and languages covered
Genres and age categories
Current publisher relationships
Recent relevant licensing deals
Conflicts or overlapping representation
Commission and expense expectations
Reporting and payment workflow
Why the network matters
Frankfurter Buchmesse describes itself as the world’s most important trading centre for rights and licensing and calls LitAg the world’s largest rights centre for literary agents and scouts. Its 2025 LitAg and Publishers Rights Centre drew 357 agencies and publishers from 33 countries. Frankfurt Rights & Licensing ↗
Professional and title-specific
STA is interested in durable professional relationships, but every market and title still requires a deliberate decision. Appointment depends on rights availability, existing representation, conflicts, list fit, publisher access, communication quality, and mutually acceptable written terms.
Direct answers
Frequently asked questions
What is a foreign rights co-agent?
A foreign rights co-agent is a territory specialist who helps a primary literary agency identify appropriate publishers, position titles for the local market, manage submissions, communicate feedback and offers, and support licensing and contract administration.
Is a foreign co-agent the author’s primary U.S. literary agent?
Usually not. STA remains the primary agency relationship for its represented client, while a foreign co-agent may represent defined translation or publishing rights in an agreed market or language.
What should a co-agent include in an introduction?
Share your agency, territory and language coverage, current publisher relationships, genres and age categories, recent relevant rights sales, team contacts, preferred working model, and any conflicts involving STA titles or authors.
Does an introduction guarantee appointment as a co-agent?
No. STA reviews co-agent relationships individually and may consider existing representation, conflicts, list fit, market reach, communication standards, contractual terms, and title-specific strategy.
Can a co-agent request the complete catalog and reading material?
Yes. Established co-agents may review the public catalog and request appropriate English-language materials and territory availability for titles that fit their publisher network.
International publishing
Represent foreign rights in your market.
Introduce your agency, territory, languages, publisher network, genre strengths, recent relevant deals, and the STA titles that fit your market. Kayla will review potential partnerships directly.