Caitlin White is an Emerald City Literary Agency agent and former YA media editor building a list centered on voice-driven YA and MG fiction — especially mysteries, thrillers, horror, and character-led contemporary stories featuring BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ protagonists.
In brief
Her wishlist is sharply contemporary-skewing: she gravitates toward single-night story structures, survival scenarios, unlikely-alliance plots, and genre mashups that blend mystery or thriller with other categories — the common thread is high-concept premises grounded in specific, real-feeling teen experience.
She is an explicit champion for BIPOC and trans writers querying through traditional publishing routes, and has stated she will actively prioritize those queries — a meaningful differentiator from many agents who only mention diversity in passing.
Her anti-wishlist is unusually detailed and candid: heavy high fantasy (fae, chosen ones, magical royalty, portal worlds), historical fiction used mainly to sidestep technology, stories centered on pregnancy or Christian morality, and manuscripts over 100,000 words are all firm passes — take these seriously.
She came to agenting through YA editorial media (Books Editor at Bustle, bylines at Elle and Glamour), which means she has a strong editorial eye for voice and marketability — query letters that are vague or over-broad are a known turn-off; hyper-specific, distinctive premises are what land.
Query status was observed open in late June 2025 (described as a summer window) but the live submission form was confirmed closed as of March 2026 — always verify the current form state before submitting.
Lately
After a period of being closed, she announced she was reopening for a limited summer window, inviting YA and MG writers to submit through her online form. The tone was enthusiastic but time-bounded — she framed it as a seasonal reopening, not a permanent open door.
What Caitlin is looking for
This is her clearest sweet spot. She wants realistic whodunnits, slasher-inflected horror, and page-turning thrillers — the grittier and more grounded, the better. Supernatural elements are welcome only when they're more atmospheric than fantastical. Genre mashups that layer mystery or thriller logic onto another category (including fantasy or romance) are particularly compelling to her.
She has a strong appetite for contemporary YA that feels specific to a time, place, and social world. Single-night or single-event structures are a recurring obsession — stories that unfold over one party, one shift, one night. She's drawn to teens in working, real-world settings (a restaurant, a surf shop, a water park) and to unlikely-alliance dynamics between girls. Survival stories with a contemporary or grounded twist also rank high.
Romance works best for her when it's woven into another genre rather than standing alone. An end-of-the-world love story, a romance that grows out of a thriller or survival plot — that's the sweet spot. She referenced the emotional register of a specific Last of Us storyline as exactly the feeling she's chasing: desperate, high-stakes, deeply specific emotional connection.
She is open to MG but describes herself as highly selective about voice — a weak or generic narrative voice is likely to be an instant pass. She's drawn to MG with big, complicated family dynamics played as dramedy, and is not seeking high-concept fantasy in this category any more than in YA. Single-POV or very limited-POV structures are strongly preferred.
She has moved away from a hard no on fantasy, but her interest is narrow and conditional. She wants fantasy that exists in service of another genre — a fantasy-mystery, a fantasy-thriller, a fantasy-horror — not fantasy as the primary mode. High fantasy markers (constructed realms, portals, fae, chosen-one arcs, magical royalty, fantastical races) are still a firm pass. The closer the fantasy elements are to the real world, the better her fit.
Not the right fit
On Caitlin's list
Taste fingerprint
How to query Caitlin
Hyper-specificity in the query letter is the single most important factor she mentions — generic, broad pitches are a documented turn-off. Lead with the detail that could only belong to your book.
If you identify as a BIPOC or trans writer and choose to share that in your letter, she has publicly committed to prioritizing those queries — you do not have to disclose, but she has made clear it matters to her.
Lean into your story's structure if it's a single-night or single-event setup — name it explicitly. This is a recurring obsession in her wishlist and signals strong fit immediately.
For genre mashups, be clear about which genre is primary and which is the flavoring. She wants to know you're writing a thriller-with-fantasy-elements, not a fantasy-with-a-bit-of-mystery.
Word count is a real filter: keep manuscripts under 100,000 words. She has said exceeding that raises doubts about your editorial instincts.
Check the live submission form immediately before querying — she has described opening on a seasonal or limited basis, and the form was confirmed closed as of early 2026.
If your manuscript touches on pregnancy in any form, include a content warning in your letter even if it's a minor subplot — she has explicitly requested this.