I joined Transatlantic Agency in 2023 after four years at Janklow & Nesbit Associates and am currently building my list. I’m particularly interested in stories that center marginalized communities and prose that is cinematic and atmospheric with good rhythm. In both fiction and nonfiction, I’m drawn towards compelling, fresh voices that make me feel as though the writer is in the room with me, telling me their story with intimacy as if we were already acquainted. Regardless of how plot-driven a story is, characters with rich inner worlds and emotional depth are a must for me. I’m interested in literary, upmarket, and commercial fiction across adult, MG, and YA and select nonfiction. I am also looking for graphic novels/nonfiction. I’m not the right person for prescriptive nonfiction, self-help, business/leadership, religion/spirituality nonfiction, romance (see the “what I’m NOT seeking” section on my website for exceptions), law enforcement/military/intelligence mysteries or thrillers, hard sci-fi, novels in verse, novellas, poetry, essay collections, short story collections, picture books, board books, chapter books, or screenplays. In addition to my below, you can see a more detailed rundown of my interests on my personal website, where I have a “cravings” page for extremely specific things I’m currently hungry for and a “likes” page for books, TV shows, and movies that give a sense of what I’m looking for in queries.
What I’m seeking
The search for, dismantling, and/or rebuilding of identity. For example, a story about a character who is first/1.5/second gen and in between cultures, is queer and discovering they’re queer, has lost who they used to be due to disillusionment or conflict and is figuring out who they are now, is juggling different personas/masks, is changing because of shifts in their social or physical environment, etc. Diaspora and displacement—in particular, stories beyond the usual narratives we tend to see for immigrants and children of immigrants. Those are important, but I would love for the range of stories we have to broaden in narrative, thematic, historical, and geographical scope Coming-of-age stories Family and community including found family/community Friendships that are tested and long-broken friendships that are mended Examinations of power in relationships Stories that deal with challenging topics but avoid being didactic or exploitative Emotional heaviness balanced with some measure of levity is a plus though not a requirement. Dark stories that have bits of silliness or absurdity like Parasite delight me Headstrong women! I don’t care how that willfulness manifests (though I’m uninterested in girlbosses unless you have a searing, critical look at the damage they cause or they’re cringe flops like Shiv Roy). They can be anything: competent, conniving, immature, quietly fierce, loud and brash, etc. Prissy, pampered girls who need to loosen up, brawlers with a temper, goofy women, and more. They don’t necessarily have to be outspoken or assured, but they know what they want and are firm about it Characters who don’t fit gender or heterosexual norms and either grapple with or defy societal expectations of gender/sexuality Decisions by past generations affecting present and future ones and parallels between generations Buried secrets coming to light Repression, imposed by oneself or externally inflicted Stories that play with memory, both individual and collective “Your [insert person/group here] were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, they didn’t stop to think if they should” In YA and adult, characters, relationships, and situations that make me go “I want to study them under a microscope” or be the sickos “Yes… ha ha ha… YES!” meme Rotten institutions at the height of their power or in their twilight years Things are not what they seem and the discovery—or discoveries—reconfigures past moments in the book Little-known rituals or traditions specific to a certain location o