Harry Illingworth is a Director and Literary Agent at DHH Literary Agency whose list skews heavily commercial genre fiction — crime, thriller, SF, fantasy, and horror — with a demonstrated ability to break debut authors into mainstream bestseller territory.
In brief
Harry's sales record confirms a genuine strength in crime/thriller and secondary-world fantasy, with Sunday Times bestselling and prize-winning clients across both — signalling real publisher relationships in those spaces.
The client roster is unusually diverse in subgenre, running from cozy/locked-room mystery (Stuart Turton) to grimdark epic fantasy (Richard Swan, Anna Stephens) to science fiction (Micaiah Johnson, Ada Palmer) — meaning Harry can pitch a wide tonal range within genre.
Harry has broken multiple debut novelists into commercial success, suggesting an appetite for taking risks on first-timers who have strong hooks, not just established track records.
Harry went on paternity leave in early 2025 and the submission form remained closed through at least March 2026 — this is a longer closure than a standard reading backlog; verify the live form before querying.
The agency page explicitly states YA is only considered where there is a clear adult crossover appeal — this is a gate, not a blanket exclusion, and upmarket or dark YA-adjacent work pitched as adult may still fit.
Lately
Harry announced a temporary closure to submissions, noting paternity leave was imminent and an already substantial reading pile — the closure was flagged with roughly 24 hours' notice and asked writers to submit before the window shut.
What Harry is looking for
Harry is particularly drawn to novels with strong, distinctive hooks in the crime and thriller space. This isn't a catch-all — the emphasis is on standout premises and mould-breaking mysteries rather than conventional procedurals. Spy fiction also sits here. Sales confirm this is Harry's most commercially active lane, and publisher relationships in this area appear well-established.
Harry explicitly wants SF of all kinds — no subgenre is off the table. The client list bears this out, spanning literary SF, space opera, and speculative near-future work. High concept ideas are a recurring theme across all Harry's wish categories, and SF is no exception.
All varieties of fantasy are welcomed, including dystopian and post-apocalyptic fiction. The sales record shows a particular strength in epic and grimdark fantasy, but the stated preference doesn't narrow to any one flavour. Speculative and supernatural fiction overlaps here.
Horror is explicitly listed as a sought category. Harry hasn't foregrounded it as a top priority in public notes, but its presence on the agency page is unambiguous. Speculative and supernatural fiction — which may shade into horror — is also listed.
Harry is open to literary or upmarket novels that carry genuine commercial appeal and a genre-inflected undercurrent — think character-driven fiction with thriller tension or speculative elements, not pure literary quiet fiction. The key qualifier is 'genre edge': the work needs a hook beyond voice alone.
Harry actively wants novels that resist easy categorisation but retain clear commercial appeal. Unique, distinctive voices are called out separately from concept, suggesting Harry responds both to premise-first pitches and to voice-led work — as long as one of those two elements is exceptionally strong.
Not the right fit
On Harry's list
Taste fingerprint
How to query Harry
Harry is CLOSED as of March 2026 — check the live submission form before preparing materials; no reopening date has been stated publicly.
When open, Harry requires a cover letter, the first three chapters, and a one-page synopsis — all submitted by email, with chapters and synopsis saved as Word documents and sent as attachments, not pasted into the body.
The submission email is specific to Harry (not the general agency address); use the address listed on Harry's own page, not the agency's general enquiries line.
Lead your cover letter with the hook: Harry's own wishlist foregrounds 'strong hooks' and 'high concept ideas' — a one-line premise that immediately signals why this story is different will land better than an extended backstory about the manuscript's origins.
If your novel crosses genres, name the genres explicitly and explain the commercial logic of the blend — Harry actively seeks work that 'crosses and defies genres with a clear commercial appeal,' so frame the hybridity as a selling point, not an apology.
Avoid querying with short story collections, novellas, screenplays, or straight non-fiction — none appear on the sought list and the client roster is exclusively fiction.
If your work is YA-adjacent, frame it clearly as adult fiction with crossover appeal, not as YA — the page flags YA as unwanted unless it has clear adult appeal, and how you position the work matters.