“Scouts are the newsroom of the publishing industry”

The rights trade has been thriving: Last year, the book fair’s Literary Agents and Scouts Centre and its Publishers Rights Centre were fully booked with 591 tables and around 45,000 entries of trade professionals to the centres. 

Which trends are currently dominating the rights business? How is AI affecting it? And which role do personal encounters play in a digital world? Ahead of her appearance at The Hof we talked with rights scout Agnes Ahlander Turner, President of Maria B. Campbell Associates – a literary scouting company based in New York City and London.

Agnes, can you tell us a bit about yourself and the work you do?

Originally from Stockholm, Sweden, I joined the company in 2007 and found the perfect convergence of what I love – matchmaking books and people, across international markets and across different formats. Scouts are the newsroom of the publishing industry, and we select the most important and relevant information our clients need to make decisions, whether that is to acquire a book for translation or to option book for TV. It’s about speed but also about curation. 

“It’s about speed but also about curation”

There is nothing more satisfying than when a client falls in love with a book and goes for it! Founded nearly 40 years ago by Maria B. Campbell, who now serves as our Executive Chairman, we are today 22 colleagues across our New York and London offices, scouting for publishers in 19 countries along with a select group of studios and production companies.

In your view, what are the most significant trends that are currently shaping the global rights and licensing market in international publishing?

Publishers continue to double down on their investment in self-published authors, particularly in the romantasy and dark romance genres. Some of the biggest and buzziest preempts and auctions of the last couple of months have involved bestselling independent authors. Publishers are hoping to recreate the success of titles like QUICKSILVER by Callie Hart, ALCHEMISED by SenLinYu and LIGHTS OUT by Navessa Allen.

“the streamers have created an American consumer base that's more informed of and interested in stories from other parts of the world” 

Furthermore, the streamers have created an American consumer base that's more informed of and interested in stories from other parts of the world, where even ten years ago it was still very American-centric. Now we're seeing K-dramas and feature films like Parasite break records and win academy awards, German shows like Maxton Hall taking over social media, and Spanish shows like Elite being No. 1 on Netflix. We work with film and tv clients who are actively looking for stories that can resonate internationally, and that means opportunities for agents and publishers from all over. 

You’ve been a regular at Frankfurter Buchmesse. What role do international book fairs play in an increasingly digital world? And why does face-to-face rights trading still matter?

Relationships in publishing have always been essential. The more digital our world becomes, the more important real, in-person meetings are, and book fairs have a role to play here. In fact, we are seeing publishers and agents choosing to attend local fairs throughout the year, in addition to Frankfurt or London. 

“The more digital our world becomes, the more important real, in-person meetings are”

Our scouts regularly attend Torino, Gothenburg, Guadalajara, and Paris Book Market, to name a few. As we all face more and more information (dare I say, noise), the opinions of trusted contacts become increasingly vital. Hence, the value of scouts in a publisher or agent’s network.

Do you have a special recommendation for Frankfurter Buchmesse first-time participants?

Don’t overschedule yourself! The most fortuitous meetings are often the spontaneous ones, whether that be meeting someone in the café line at the Agents Center or being introduced to someone late night at the Hof.

Last but not least, looking ahead, how do you see the future of the global rights trade evolving? What opportunities should publishers and agents be preparing for?

I’m afraid I must mention AI here, though as an optimist, and realist, I am choosing to focus on some encouraging early signs: with full AI translations of manuscripts from non-English language writers, editors are more willing to take chances on books in languages they do not themselves read. 

“I like to think that AI is breaking down the language barriers”

This is particularly true of the American editors, and we have seen an uptick of acquisitions in the last year or so. I like to think that AI is breaking down the language barriers, allowing for a greater range of voices to be published.

Thank you very much, Agnes!

Learn more about trends in rights and licensing and Agnes Ahlander Turner at our free online session “The Hof” on 26 February 2026.

Interview by Ines Bachor, PR Manager at Frankfurter Buchmesse