Bethany Weaver is the founder of Weaver Literary Agency and a champion of diverse, voice-driven speculative fiction across adult, YA, and selective middle-grade — with a particular hunger for horror, gothic atmosphere, romantic fantasy, and dark thrillers that carry genuine commercial edge.
In brief
Bethany founded Weaver Literary in 2021 after stints in foreign rights at Storm Literary Agency and journalism at USA Today — a background that suggests strong subsidiary-rights instincts and an appreciation for clean, readable prose.
Her wishlist is unusually specific and tonally coherent: nearly every category she names involves some combination of atmosphere, romance, and high-concept plot — a writer who can deliver all three in one book is squarely in her wheelhouse.
Horror and gothic fiction are where she has articulated the most detailed and enthusiastic taste signals; writers in those areas should treat her as a high-priority query.
The agency has an in-house subsidiary rights infrastructure — a foreign-rights network spanning Eastern Europe, Greece, and Poland — which is uncommon for a boutique founded this recently and signals real ambition for her clients' international reach.
Her middle-grade interest is explicitly selective (she calls it 'select'), and her stated criteria are narrow: spooky, atmospheric, adventure-driven — do not query her with contemporary or issue-driven MG.
Lately
Bethany's wishlist emphasizes that she is actively seeking commercial literary horror — fiction where lush, controlled prose meets a high-concept, gripping plot — citing work like House of Monstrous Women as a tonal north star.
What Bethany is looking for
Bethany wants fantasy that earns its romance — sweeping high fantasy, heartwarming cozy fantasy, and romantic fantasy are all in play, but the love story must feel essential rather than ornamental. She gravitates toward immersive worldbuilding, wit, charm, and high-concept premises with adventure at their core. Quest narratives, fairy-tale retellings, and stories set in kingdoms on the edge of upheaval all resonate with her. Characters should be unforgettable and the romance should feel genuinely epic in scale.
Two distinct horror modes energize her here. First: fast-paced, stylish, pop-culture-inflected horror with a campy but genuinely chilling sensibility — neon-lit danger, sleepover scares, urban legends made flesh, slasher villains with personality, and quippy dialogue. She specifically welcomes sapphic leads and 'final girl' narratives. Second: commercial literary horror — work that pairs evocative, controlled prose with a gripping, high-stakes plot. Both modes should feel cinematic and addictive. A thread of swoony romance is welcome in either.
Atmosphere is non-negotiable here — she wants settings (crumbling estates, fog-shrouded graveyards, shadowed corridors) that function as characters in their own right. Gothic horror, gothic fantasy, and gothic historical fiction all qualify. She's drawn to unreliable narrators, doomed romance, eerie family secrets, and heroines who are drawn toward danger despite knowing better. The tone should be haunting and immersive from the first page.
She wants thrillers with genuine social commentary baked into the tension — not just a fast plot, but a sharp perspective on the world. Secrets, fractured friend groups, unreliable narrators, and institutional settings (boarding schools, locked rooms) are recurring draws. Mind-bending structure and edge are expected.
She's after love stories with big personality and an offbeat premise — sharp banter, fresh dynamics, and characters with real texture. Academic rivalries, cynical protagonists reluctantly falling into a rom-com scenario, and romance erupting in the middle of chaos all appeal. The tone can skew dark and funny simultaneously; she does not want safe or predictable.
She wants sci-fi that prioritizes character and momentum over hard-SF world-mechanics — easy to enter, propulsive, and emotionally driven. The implication is that dense technical exposition or slow-burn world-building would not suit her taste here.
Her middle-grade interest is explicitly narrow. She wants atmospheric, adventure-forward stories — eerie small towns, haunted houses, cursed forests, cryptid encounters, ghost stories, and secret supernatural societies. Gothic whimsy and campfire-tale energy are the target feeling. Heart and humor are required alongside the scares. This is not a home for contemporary, realistic, or issue-driven middle grade.
Not the right fit
Taste fingerprint
How to query Bethany
Check her wishlist page before submitting — her agency explicitly asks writers to review it first, and her preferences are detailed enough that a mismatch will be obvious to her.
Her categories carry strong tonal fingerprints: if your horror novel can be described in terms of atmosphere, pop-culture energy, or literary prose quality, say so explicitly in your query letter.
Romance is a recurring thread across nearly every category she represents — even in horror and thriller — so if your book has a significant romantic subplot, foreground it rather than burying it.
She responds to high-concept premises: lead with the hook, not the backstory. Her wish list repeatedly uses the phrase 'high concept' — she wants to know the premise in one sharp sentence.
If your protagonist is a sapphic or LGBTQ+ character, mention it; she has explicitly signaled enthusiasm for these voices, particularly in horror.
Avoid describing your book as 'character-driven literary fiction' without a genre frame — her taste is consistently commercial-facing even when she wants lush prose.
Do not query her with middle grade unless the book is firmly in the spooky/atmospheric/supernatural camp — she has been unusually specific about what she does not want in that category.
Confirm the form is still open before submitting, as status can change without public announcement.