Ellen Moore is a junior agent (Literary Apprentice) at Corvisiero Literary Agency, building her list under the mentorship of Marisa Corvisiero, with a sharp focus on women-led, BIPOC, and LGBTQIA+ voices across YA and adult horror, historical fiction, romance, and fantasy/magical realism.
In brief
Ellen is a Literary Apprentice at Corvisiero, working directly alongside Marisa Corvisiero — meaning her deals build a shared list; querying writers should be aware they may work with both.
Her wishlist is unusually specific and internally consistent: virtually every category she names is filtered through the same lens of marginalized voices, genre subversion, and historical grounding — pitch accordingly or don't pitch.
She has no confirmed sales record of her own yet, which is expected at her career stage; her taste signals come entirely from her curated comps list, which skews toward literary horror (Stephen Graham Jones, P. Djèli Clark), revisionist westerns, and cozy-to-dark fantasy — a coherent and distinctive palette.
She explicitly rules out romantasy despite wanting fantasy-with-romance and Gothic romance — a meaningful distinction writers frequently miss; the difference appears to be literary and character-driven execution versus genre-blend formula.
Her personal background (Texas upbringing, D&D player, musical theater, University of Dundee MLitt) maps visibly onto her wishlist: she is drawn to folklore, Gothic atmosphere, and ensemble storytelling with emotional stakes.
Lately
Ellen was promoted from Literary Intern to Literary Apprentice in January 2026 and is now actively building her list in tandem with Marisa Corvisiero. Her agency page confirms she is currently open to queries and directing all submissions through the online form exclusively.
What Ellen is looking for
This is clearly a top priority for Ellen. She wants horror that reaches across subgenres — Gothic, folk, paranormal, and horror set in historical periods — with a strong bias toward BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ perspectives. Horror romance is explicitly welcome. Her comps skew toward literary, culturally rooted horror (think Indigenous horror, Afro-diasporic horror, folkloric dread) rather than slasher-for-its-own-sake, though she does cite slasher work. The emotional and cultural specificity of the story matters as much as the scares.
Ellen wants historical fiction that challenges inherited narratives — especially revisionist westerns centering women, LGBTQIA+ characters, and BIPOC figures who push back against conventional ideas of frontier mythology. Beyond westerns, she also seeks Gothic historical fiction and medieval settings. A key stated qualifier: the historical period must be consequential to the story, not merely decorative. Note that WWI and WWII are explicitly excluded from her historical interests.
Ellen is enthusiastic about historical romance across a wide range of periods — Regency, Victorian, Edwardian, the 1920s, and even the late 20th century (1970s–2000s). She is especially drawn to stories that complicate class dynamics, feature bluestocking or unconventional female leads, and center BIPOC or LGBTQIA+ romantic protagonists. Gothic romance and paranormal romance are both explicitly on her radar. Within YA, she wants coming-of-age romances set in historical contexts. Note: contemporary romance subgenres (workplace, billionaire), dark romance, and erotica are all explicitly excluded.
Ellen gravitates toward fantasy that balances humor and genuine emotional depth — the sensibility she references is tabletop RPG storytelling at its best: ensemble, high-stakes, and warmly human. She welcomes fantasy with a strong romantic thread and dark academia fantasy. Magical realism, cozy fantasy, and folklore-rooted fantasy all fit her taste. Crucially, she has ruled out romantasy as a genre label, so framing matters: lead with the fantasy, not the romance formula. Stories drawing on non-Western mythologies (African, Latinx, AAPI traditions) align especially well with her stated interests.
Not the right fit
Taste fingerprint
How to query Ellen
Do not email your query — her agency page is explicit that email submissions will not be accepted. Use the online submission form linked from Corvisiero's query guidelines page.
Ellen is a Literary Apprentice working under Marisa Corvisiero; your submission enters a shared apprenticeship list. Acknowledge this context gracefully and pitch to Ellen's specific taste, not the agency at large.
Her wishlist is thematically tight. Before querying, verify that your manuscript hits at least one of her core lenses — women-led, BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, or genre-subversive — and that the historical period, if applicable, is integral to the story rather than cosmetic.
Her comp titles are unusually deliberate and culturally specific. Select your own comps carefully to signal literary sensibility: books by Stephen Graham Jones, P. Djèli Clark, Beverly Jenkins, or V.E. Schwab all suggest the register she reads in.
The romantasy exclusion is a real line. If your book is fantasy with romance, frame it as 'fantasy with a strong romantic thread' and let the fantastical stakes lead. Do not use the word romantasy in your query.
She has flagged WWI and WWII settings as out of scope even though she otherwise loves historical fiction — do not assume all historical periods are welcome.
Given her D&D background and the Critical Role reference in her wishlist, ensemble casts, found-family dynamics, and game-inflected narrative structures (moral choices, lore-rich worldbuilding) are likely to resonate in your pitch language.
She is early in her career with no public sales record yet. If you are querying an apprentice agent for the first time, research Corvisiero Literary Agency's overall track record so you can assess the infrastructure behind your potential deal.