Adria Goetz is a senior agent and illustration coordinator at KT Literary whose sweet spot is magic-tinged, heart-forward picture books, middle grade, and graphic novels — with a growing adult fiction list anchored in cozy magical realism.
In brief
Her deal record tells a clearer story than her bio: Christy Mandin (picture books), Tina Cho (picture books and MG graphic novels), Emily Kilgore (picture books), and Stacy Sivinski (adult magical realism) are all repeat clients, signaling she builds long-term author partnerships rather than one-off deals.
Her commercial muscle in picture books is real — she has placed NYT and Indie Bestsellers with Scholastic, FSG Children's, Kokila, and HarperCollins, and her clients have racked up SCBWI Golden Kite wins and multiple starred reviews.
Despite listing broad adult fiction on some directories, her actual adult deals cluster tightly in cozy magical realism and witchy fiction (Sivinski at Atria, twice). Writers in other adult genres should temper expectations.
She is currently CLOSED to new queries as of June 2026. Crucially, her submission window opens on the first day of the month — writers should watch her submission form and strike the moment it reopens.
She is the agency's illustration coordinator, meaning she thinks deeply about visual storytelling — author-illustrators and graphic novel creators have a meaningful edge with her.
Lately
Her most recent confirmed deals continue her pattern of repeat client investment: a second Stacy Sivinski adult magical realism title went to Atria, a third Tina Cho picture book went to FSG Children's, and a second Christy Mandin picture book went to McElderry — all signaling she deepens relationships rather than churning new clients.
The first paragraph is the most important thing to get right. It should include a bird's-eye view of the project with the basic stats — the title, age category, genre, word count, and a quick one-sentence log line pitching the plot. If your first paragraph includes all of these stats, it immediately grounds the agent in the project. It might also be the place where you mention why you're querying this specific agent — if you saw something on their wish list, a client referred you, you met them at a conference, things like that.
Not including the genre or word count is a big one. I also really don't like when writers spend valuable real estate talking about the themes of their project — saying something like 'my book is about love and fear and forgiveness and my character overcomes obstacles.' That language feels fluffy and I still have no idea what actually happens in the story. Just tell me what happens in the book.
When I don't feel grounded — when I'm introduced to too many characters at once, or I'm dropped into a scene and don't know what's going on by the end of the first page. It's fine to open in action, but you need to quickly orient the reader or it just feels frustrating and disorienting.
I want someone who is hard-working, savvy about the industry, and most importantly kind — that's the trifecta for me. I actually look at an author's social media, specifically their replies, to see how they treat other people online. If they're being unkind or trolling, that's an instant no for me. I want to work with warm, fuzzy people.
Picture books are at the top of my list right now, specifically ones that feature contemporary families and reflect how real families live — particularly families who haven't been represented as much in the picture book space. I'd love to see more books like Hair Love. I'm also actively looking for picture book author-illustrators with a very magical aesthetic.
For middle grade and YA I'm looking for books that are very atmospheric, where the setting feels central to the plot or almost like its own character. I love dual timelines, magical realism, historical fiction that feels fresh and explores a lesser-known story, and a rom-com with a very commercial hook. I also want all the mermaids — picture book, middle grade, or YA, I very much want to see mermaids in my inbox.
What Adria is looking for
She is actively hunting a broad-audience, blockbuster-feeling picture book with a strong commercial hook — the kind of title that lands on bestseller lists and has read-aloud, gift-giving legs. Think laugh-out-loud premises paired with clear, marketable concepts. She has placed multiple Indie Bestsellers and one NYT Bestseller in this space, so this is her most proven category.
Alongside commercial hits, she has a strong appetite for picture books that feel enchanted — quiet magic, lush atmosphere, and emotional warmth. She names illustrators like Juana Martinez-Neal, the Fan Brothers, David Litchfield, Carson Ellis, and Emily Winfield Martin as aesthetic touchstones, which signals she gravitates toward books with a very specific painterly, fairy-tale-adjacent visual identity. Author-illustrators are her primary focus here, though she will consider picture book authors (without illustration portfolios) as well.
She leans strongly toward grounded, real-world-adjacent fantasy over sprawling secondary-world epics, though she'll consider secondary-world stories if they carry a cozy or fairy-tale quality. Folklore-rooted narratives — especially traditions beyond the commonly adapted European canon — are particularly welcome. Magical boarding school settings are a stated favorite. She placed The Library of Curiosities (Holiday House, 2025) and cites Circus Mirandus and Tuck Everlasting as personal touchstones, suggesting she wants magic that is intimate and emotionally resonant rather than plot-machinery-heavy.
She specifically craves mysteries that can generate genuine suspense for young readers without losing a sense of fun. Her ideal is a cheeky, Agatha Christie-inflected whodunit for kids — clever plotting, atmospheric stakes, a touch of wit. Books that made her scared enough to put down as a child are her benchmark.
She has a self-described weakness for dual-timeline structures at the MG level, particularly when the two threads illuminate each other thematically. This is a structural preference she wants to see applied across genres.
One of her strongest proven categories: she sold The Other Side of Tomorrow (Tina Cho, HarperAlley, 2024), which earned five starred reviews and a SCBWI Golden Kite Award. She is open to a wide range of genres in MG graphic novels — contemporary realistic, magical realism, fantasy, mystery, historical fiction, and nonfiction all welcome. Boarding school and camp settings are favorites. She is also looking for a creator who works in hybrid or unconventional book formats in the vein of Brian Selznick.
She represents YA novels for existing clients only; new queriers may only submit YA graphic novels. She is drawn to work where setting functions as a near-character — atmosphere and sense of place matter greatly. Art style is open. She does not accept YA prose novels from new clients.
Her adult list is small but sharply focused: she has sold Stacy Sivinski twice to Atria, both times in witchy, atmospheric magical realism. Her ideal is adult fiction with a 'little bit of magic and a whole lot of heart' — lightly speculative premises, cozy fantasy, magic-infused romance, and stories that feel gently 'weird.' She describes herself as 'on her knees' wanting work in the Sarah Addison Allen vein. Writers of gritty, dark, or high-concept speculative fiction should look elsewhere.
Not the right fit
On Adria's list
Taste fingerprint
How to query Adria
Her window opens on the first day of the month — set a reminder and submit the moment the form goes live, as it has closed quickly in the past.
She is the agency's illustration coordinator, so author-illustrators should make their visual aesthetic clear immediately; referencing the illustrators she has publicly named as favorites (if genuinely relevant to your style) can help her picture the book quickly.
For picture books, lead with the commercial hook and the emotional core in equal measure — her bestselling titles succeed on both axes simultaneously.
For MG, specify upfront whether your fantasy is grounded/real-world or secondary-world, and flag any folklore traditions your story draws from — she has called out underrepresented folklore explicitly.
For adult magical realism, name-check the cozy, warm atmosphere directly; she has been explicit that she wants 'heart' alongside magic and that she is not the right agent for dark or gritty speculative work.
She does NOT accept YA prose queries from new clients — submitting a YA novel will be an immediate pass.
Foreign rights inquiries should go to Maria Napolitano at KT Literary.