Our 2026 children’s judge is Chloe Seager, Director of Madeleine Milburn Literary Agency. Chloe’s track record of securing publishing deals and auctions in the children’s and YA markets speaks for itself, with two thirds of her contracts in 2025 running into six figures. She is a fierce advocate for diversity in publishing, with a high proportion of authors from underrepresented groups and was shortlisted for Agent of the Year at the British Book Awards in 2024 and 2026. Her list includes No.1 Sunday Times bestselling Katie Kirby (the Lottie Brooks series) and Heba Al-Wasity (Weavingshaw), No.1 New York Times bestselling Laura Steven (Our Infinite Fates), Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé (Ace of Spades) and Jordan Lees (The Whisperwicks).

What’s one thing that might surprise people about your role as a literary agent?

Probably that reading submissions is a relatively small part of the job, that we have to make time for outside of our working hours. Most people think what I do all day is sit reading submissions but alas!

Can you describe the kind of author-agent relationship you like to build, especially with debut writers?

I often seem to unintentionally end up signing people I’d also be mates with – maybe that’s because if you vibe with someone’s writing you often vibe with them as a person. So, I like to get on well with my authors! It makes my job more fun and rewarding, as with any partnership. But first and foremost, you need to have a shared creative vision for the book.

What are you most excited to discover in this year’s entries?

I’ve always loved books for ‘reluctant readers,’ so whilst I’m concerned about the current literacy crisis I’m also thrilled by the renewed industry vigour for publishing child-centric books. These books tend to be funny, accessible and pacy which naturally aligns with my taste in middle-grade and I’d love to find more in this space. However, I also enjoy big worldbuilding done well so I’d be keen to find the next Impossible Creatures, too! I’d love to find more core YA projects of any kind and more romance-forward new adult projects. I’m a sucker for a good horror and am yet to find my perfect horromance. The fantasy/romantasy market is feeling a little samey to me at the moment so I’d be eager to find anything surprising and different in this space. This applies across the board; I’m always excited about any fresh concept that makes me sit up and pay attention, across any genre or age range.

What qualities do you look for in the opening pages of a submission?

That intangible feeling of magic, awe and wonder, that’s so hard to pin down! And immediacy – with any book you want to immediately be in the character’s head, but with children’s books quickly building that connection between the reader and the MC is even more important.

Can you share a moment when you knew you absolutely had to represent a writer, and what made their work unmissable?

I had a moment with all of my writers, but one of the fastest from my recent memory was Emily Cooper – the prologue of Season of Fear had me by the throat and I was unable to concentrate on my other work until I knew more.

How do you feel about Junior Judges choosing the shortlist?

I love this! I often reflect that it’s strange how in children’s publishing we have relatively little input from children before we put a book out into the world so I’ll be intrigued to see if my opinion matches theirs!

How do you feel about judging blind?

What I’ve learnt from reading submissions is that it’s an instinct to want to build a picture of someone from their writing and nine times out of ten you’re correct, but every so often it’s a surprise. I’ll have even less information about the writers going into judging than I do with the subs inbox, so I wonder if my mental image will join up to reality.

How important is voice in children’s fiction, and how can a writer make theirs sing from page one?

Voice is the most important thing to me! I’ll forgive basically any other flaws with a manuscript if I like the voice. Unfortunately I don’t think there’s any secret formula to this; it’s quite a natural thing. My advice would be to let your personality shine, not overthink it and be vulnerable in the writing process; self-consciousness is probably the ultimate voice-killer.

Are there any particular themes or genres within children’s fiction that feel especially timely or in demand right now?

I would say no to going too hard on certain themes right now. Anything timely like AI or climate change feels a bit depressing for children (for me!) and I’m more into escapism at the moment. It’s a personal preference but I also think this echoes a wider industry feeling.

Lastly, any other advice for entrants?

Write what you want to write… but also with an eye on being marketable. It’s an elusive line but the really successful books manage to do both!