What We Believe
It used to be that writers had editors to watch their backs, but over the past century the literary agent has risen to stand by the writer, to help them birth their literary works, to polish them until they are ready for submission, and to help authors find the best publishing homes – eventually leading their works to widespread markets and audiences.
This is what we do at TRF. Whether you are a debut author just finishing your first novel, an expert, teacher or journalist working on a narrative non-fiction or prescriptive work, someone with a memoir or great life story to tell, or a graphic novelist, we’re interested in hearing from you – if you haven’t heard from us first.
Every agent at TRF is looking for work they can get excited about, in every genre and category. If you’re in the market, we encourage you to look at the agents here and see if one of them seems like the perfect business partner for you.
Film & TV
A strong story in book form is the perfect – and most common – raw material for film and TV adaptation. Selling great stories into other media is something we explore actively, with close ties to film and TV agents across the entertainment landscape, locally and internationally.
Origins
The Rights Factory was founded in 2004 with a handful of clients and a massive search for new talent in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. We now have nine different agents and represent hundreds of clients from around the world.
Editorial Feedback
We are an editorial agency and we will be tough on your work, because we are committed to developing your project until it is absolutely ready to take to market. Along the way, we will champion you across the industry and media and make sure what you wrote is seen by the best editors, and we will provide you with professional insight to help your project become the best book it can be, for the audience that will love it.
About Us
Staff
Sam Hiyate
President
Since 1990 Sam has worked at literary magazines, small presses and with New York Times bestselling authors, editing and representing everything from debut fiction, memoir and narrative non-fiction to graphic novels. He has taught writing and publishing privately since 2000 and also at various universities. His most recent project is an online magazine, Don’t Talk to Me About Love, exploring love in literary and artistic works.
Anne Sampson
Brand Manager
Anne was previously a Digital Marketing Content Creator at Schmooz Media, a Publicist at PRH Canada, and a former assistant at The Rights Factory.
Shannon Duncan
Editorial Assistant
Shannon earned an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of British Columbia and also holds a Bachelor of Education and a BFA in Theatre and Women’s Studies. For over a decade she has worked as an editor, teacher, and copywriter while leading a double life as an organic farmer in various back-to-the-land and artists’ communities in the US and Canada. She is passionate about collaborating with writers and amplifying diverse voices. She cares for a large garden and her two young children in Strange, Ontario.
Jennifer Chevais
Editorial Assistant
Born and raised in Calgary, Alberta, Jennifer's first memory of obsessively reading dates back to when she was 9-years-old; she devoured every Nancy Drew book she could get her hands on before moving on to reading her mom's fantasy books on the sly (her mom knew). Jennifer moved to France after art school where she worked as a freelance Acquisitions Reader for Black Moon, an imprint of Hachette Jeunesse, as well as a freelance translator for Hachette Jeunesse's foreign rights department. Now that she's back in Canada, she's thrilled to be diving deeper into the editorial nuts and bolts of publishing with The Rights Factory and their authors; the world needs more books!
Monique Thompson
Editorial Assistant
Monique Thompson is a Toronto-based freelance writer, editor, and (sometimes) reviewer. She is in her last semester of the publishing program at Centennial College and has published stories and videos for the publication during her time at Toronto Observer in the Journalism program.
Her passion lies with writing and editing articles and occasionally some videography work.
She has interviewed well-known individuals in the journalism world such as Ivy Knight, food writer and critic; writer and current editor of Harrowsmith Magazine, Signe Langford; Sub-Lt. Rodney Carew from the Royal Navy as a part of Remembrance Day; Piya Chattopadhyay, host of CBC's Out in the Open; and award winner and filmmaker of Black Bodies, Kelly-Fyffe Marshall.
She is currently in her last year of the Publishing Program at Centennial College.
Victoria Nicolauo
Editorial Assistant
Victoria is graduating this spring from Centennial College’s publishing graduate program. She holds a B.A. in Art History and Political Science from the University of Toronto and works as a freelance sports reporter. Her obsession with books began before she learned to read. She still has every copy of The Babysitters Club book series (including super specials and super mysteries). She is passionate about storytelling and amplifying underrepresented voices.
Veronica Spada
Research and Editorial Assistant
Veronica Spada is currently pursuing an English Specialist and Philosophy Minor at the University of Toronto, where she also edits for the IDIOM English Undergraduate Academic Journal and The Varsity. A writer as well as an avid reader, her short fiction has previously appeared in Acta Victoriana, RIC Journal, Goose, and the Hart House Review as the first-place winner of their annual prose contest. She is thrilled to work with and learn from the team at The Rights Factory.
Celina Fazio
Editorial Assistant
Celina is a writer and editor living in Toronto. After completing an undergraduate degree in English Literature and a certificate in Publishing, she confirmed her own suspicions that her heart belongs to books and storytelling.
She joins The Rights Factory as an assistant, her love of books in one hand and her love of film in the other. With a specific interest in genre-bending narratives, dark humour, and horror, Celina finds inspiration in all things strange.
Natasha Mihell
Editorial Assistant
Natasha is at home in the literary world. She writes regularly, has sold books and championed HarperCollins Canada at Indigo, and dipped her toes into book scouting and freelance editing. As an editorial assistant at The Rights Factory, Natasha works with TRF agents and editors to support each author’s journey. When she reads, she looks for compelling characters and stories that move, provoke, and empower.
Natasha is based in British Columbia and happy to represent TRF on the West Coast. She holds a BA (Hons.) in Political Science from UBC and is currently pursuing her MPA at UVic. Follow her on Instagram @natashamihell.
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