Um-Kamal: Mother of Kamal

Having worked with David for close to ten years, I can say with great confidence that he is one of the sharpest editors I know, and has an exceptional eye for spotting new talent.

He has a rare insider's knowledge of how an agency works, and if he ever tells me that he has found something special, then I know that's exactly what it will be. Any writer who is looking for a long term career would be incredibly fortunate to work with David on their book.

Getting a first novel published is tough, and it takes tenacity, patience, self-belief and a refusal to be deterred by inevitable setbacks. An author also needs a champion, someone who has all the above qualities and more; someone who believes in your work as much as you would like to believe in it yourself. There aren’t many such people around, but one of them is David Llewelyn.

When we first talked, I had collected eighty rejection slips from agents. David was a Reader for Conville and Walsh, with the unenviable task of trawling through the infamous slush pile for neglected diamonds. He was extraordinarily good at it. He picked up my novel, The Breaking Of Eggs but failed, at that point, to get any agents interested. He then did what I believe no other reader in the country would have been prepared to do. He continued to battle on my behalf, without reward, for a full year, until he found a taker. Without his bloody-mindedness, The Breaking of Eggs would probably not have been published.

Getting a second novel published is often no easier. I did struggle with my second novel, initially in terms of content, later with characterisation. David was an endless source of encouragement and ideas throughout this period. David suggested detailed and practical ways of improving it. My second novel, Trading Futures was then published in the spring of 2016 by Picador. Again, without David’s involvement, that may not have happened.

David Llewelyn will not take on authors unless he has belief in the quality of their writing. Unlike other consultants he will not pocket your money and give little in return. It may still not work, of course, but you will never get less than 100 per cent commitment from him.

David has the most brilliant eye, picking out exceptional authors from the so-called “slushpile” time and again.  But there's so much more to him than that. He is able to see what's working and what isn't, what needs to be done to bring writing to the place where an agent can look at it with real interest. If Dave recommends something to me, it goes straight to the top of my reading pile.

David is one of the most kind hearted and skilled talent spotters in the publishing industry. Whenever he tells me that he is excited about a new writer, I immediately stop what I am doing and start reading.

I owe everything to David. He was my first champion, and it was his support and advice that kickstarted my transformation from aspiring writer to successful author. His judgement is impeccable, his enthusiasm tireless, and his wisdom and knowledge second to none. He remains the first person I seek to impress with my writing and I treasure his friendship above all.

Image By Vjmpatil - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=41511756

David has the wonderful talent of unerringly recognizing a great story in the raw.  He instinctively knows what readers are going to love, whatever the genre. When he comes upon a manuscript that he knows has potential, he is the proverbial British bulldog, and won't stop worrying at it until he and the author have it in the shape he knows will sell. Well.

I was rejected by multiple agents until David read my manuscript, and after working on it with me for two years, he bypassed the “gatekeepers”, who didn't want it, and took it straight to a major publisher, who loved it. "If David reads your manuscript and likes it, you are charmed".

David saw promise in this novel years before it grew into itself. He encouraged me to persevere and I owe him my thanks.

Without David Llewelyn I would have been dead in the water. Finished. There comes a moment, for even the most determined author, when there has been one too many rejections and disappointments. David breathed life back into me and my writing. At my previous literary agency, the fabulous Tibor Jones, he is known as "The Book Whisperer". It is a title well-earned. Get this incredible man of words on your side, and you stand a chance. He makes dreams come true.

Between the writing of a first book and the finding of its publisher, there will be someone you've never met who becomes special because he is the first person to respond positively. For me that person was the professional reader, David Llewelyn, a man with the kind of enthusiasm that brooks no self doubts.

Somewhere along the way a writer needs the help of a guide and editor. For me, David is one such person. He is an astute talent spotter and editor. He is committed to good writing and has a tireless capacity to work with writers. In my own case I had virtually given up on a book, which had done the rounds without finding a publisher. David helped me understand why, and worked closely with me over months to get it ready to send out again, this time successfully.

You gave me a hell of a lot to think about, as well as work to do on my novel. It was a great master class.

It was you who spotted me at the very beginning of this journey, and helped to give me the confidence to write the whole story, and believed in it when others said it had no place in the market. I hope you realise that you are a breath of fresh air to us writers.

Thanks to your reader's report, you gave me the courage to keep going, and here, at last, is my book.

You championed my script when I sent you fifty pages last year, and I am grateful to you for that.

You were ever so kind in sending me a small sum to offset the costs. Out of 500 copies printed, I have now sold 400 in 12 months.