Karen Solem represents a broad range of commercial fiction, and though a number of her clients have become New York Times bestsellers she still takes a lot of pleasure in discovering and working with new talent. Karen brings an editorial background as well as a business background to assist her clients. Prior to becoming an agent Karen had 25 years of corporate publishing experience as an editor, editor-in-chief and publisher.
She counts herself among the lucky people who knew early on what they wanted to do. She always wanted to own a bookstore, and loved reading, discovering new writers, and being transported by what she read; the natural choice was publishing. In 1980 she joined Simon & Schuster as editor-in-chief of Silhouette books. She developed Silhouette from four books a month to a division that released more than 24 titles a month, and those writers went on to huge successes; authors such as Nora Roberts, Sandra Brown, Barbara Delinsky and Debbie Macomber are just a few of many who got their start at Silhouette.
In 1990, to broaden her publishing background she moved to Harper Paperbacks, then an imprint of Harper Collins, as Editorial Director and Associate Publisher.  After five years, Karen left corporate publishing to be a literary agent, where she enjoys not having to walk that line between publisher/employer and author. Being the author’s advocate exclusively is rewarding and a pleasure. She was previously associated with Writers House where she worked for nearly six years.
Karen is specifically looking for literary and commercial fiction, primarily for the adult market.  She would love to see a richly detailed historical novel, a multicultural novel, or a big sprawling family saga.