Layla Fallah is a Kurdish author, artist, and advocate for diverse storytellers.

An active member of the Association of American Literary Agents (AALA), Layla is the literary assistant to agents Emily Forney and James McGowan at BookEnds Literary Agency, where they support 100+ clients, including award-winning, critically-acclaimed, and bestselling authors and illustrators.

In addition to their role at BookEnds, Layla co-directs the PB Rising Stars Mentorship, a program dedicated to mentoring emerging authors and illustrators from historically underrepresented communities.

In all things, Layla is wholeheartedly committed to breaking down barriers in publishing and creating space for diverse voices and visual storytellers. With each story they tell (or sell), Layla hopes to open a doorway for readers who have yet to see themselves reflected in books, and to shine a light on the quiet, everyday magic that surrounds us.

When her pen is at rest, Layla can be found painting Kurdistan, planting seeds, or collecting picture books from the public library.

Follow Layla on Instagram, or visit her website to learn more.

Layla is actively building a diverse list of illustrators across board books, picture books, and chapter books, cover artists, and graphic novelists in all age categories.

Author-illustrators are encouraged to include a complete dummy with their portfolio submission.

At this time, Layla is not seeking text-only creators.