History

The agency started life as Bolt and Watson Ltd when, in 1971, David Bolt and Sheila Watson - both senior directors at David Higham Associates at the time - left to start their own company.

Among the clients they brought with them were Chinua Achebe, Dennis Enright and Colin Wilson.

Mandy Little joined Bolt & Watson in 1981 as a literary agent, becoming a director two years later when the company divided into David Bolt Associates and Watson, Little Ltd. Sheila and Mandy built the company to include a wide range of fiction and non-fiction for both adults and children, employing younger colleagues over the years, a number of whom have gone on to have successful careers in other companies in the publishing world.

Their adult fiction list broadened to include more commercial authors such as Christopher Fowler, while the agency also developed a considerable reputation for serious non-fiction, particularly in the areas of psychology, archaeology and health. The list also incorporated commercial non-fiction (including television presenters such as Adam Hart-Davis) as well as major children`s authors such as Lynne Reid Banks, Jean Adamson of TOPSY AND TIM fame and Hans Christian Andersen and Carnegie prize winner Margaret Mahy.

Today the agency’s client list maintains that breadth, including the likes of James Wong, Alex Marwood, and Greg Jenner.

The range and skill base of the agency continues to evolve with the changing face of publishing. Watson, Little currently comprises four experienced and energetic younger agents, while Mandy Little remains chairman of a company which prides itself on the thorough training of its staff and values brought forward from its decades of trading. Watson, Little (now reincorporated with David Bolt Associates) works closely with specialist colleagues where appropriate and is the principal book agency at the heart of a group of companies handling rights in all media, including television, film and stage.