Kayla Lightner is a literary agent at Ayesha Pande Literary who seeks adult fiction and nonfiction with singular, culturally resonant voices—especially speculative fiction tackling real-world issues, narrative histories that resurrect overlooked figures, and deeply reported nonfiction that makes serious subjects irresistibly readable.
In brief
Kayla Lightner's stated interests and personal reading tastes consistently skew toward works by and about marginalized communities—Chain-Gang All Stars, There There, The Secret Life of Church Ladies, White Teeth, The Sellout, Paradise, and 100 Years of Solitude all appear on their personal favorites list, signaling a deep affinity for literary fiction that interrogates power, identity, and history.
The breadth of Lightner's wishlist—speculative fiction, Southern Gothic, mythological retellings, narrative history, reported nonfiction, memoir, practical nonfiction, and graphic novels—is anchored by a single through-line: books that simultaneously tell a great story and teach readers something new about the world. If your work doesn't do both, it's probably not the right fit.
Lightner's current agency page updates the book-club fiction comp from The Maid (Nita Prose) to Olga Dies Dreaming (Xochitl Gonzalez)—a meaningful signal toward Puerto Rican-diaspora literary fiction and away from more broadly commercial cozy-adjacent reads.
They explicitly welcome journalists with a personal connection to their beat for narrative nonfiction—a specific and actionable gate that separates this from a general nonfiction call.
Submissions are CLOSED as of January 26, 2026—verify the live query form before submitting; do not rely on any cached 'open' status.
Lately
Lightner's current agency page updated the book-club fiction comparables, swapping out a cozy-leaning comp for Olga Dies Dreaming by Xochitl Gonzalez—a shift that points toward diaspora-centered, politically aware upmarket fiction as the clearer target in that category.
What Kayla is looking for
Lightner wants speculative work—science fiction, fantasy, or magical realism—that is boldly imaginative but never loses sight of the real-world stakes underneath. The spec elements should serve social, political, or cultural critique, not simply world-build for its own sake. Separately, they are drawn to contemporary Southern Gothic fiction that refreshes the tradition rather than reproducing it. One firm restriction: no slave narratives.
Retellings must earn their source material: Lightner is looking for rigorous research, an original interpretive angle, and prose with real electric charge. Smart and grounded are the operative words—flash without substance won't land.
Commercially appealing premises with genuinely flawed, rootable characters—but Lightner holds the line-level prose to a literary standard. This is upmarket, not purely commercial fiction. The comp shift on the current agency page (away from The Maid and toward Olga Dies Dreaming) suggests a preference for culturally specific, diaspora-inflected literary-commercial hybrids over more broadly accessible cozy or procedural premises.
Lightner gravitates toward narrative histories that rescue forgotten or deliberately sidelined figures and moments—and then connect those histories to how we live now. The writing must be propulsive and story-driven, not academic. Strong emphasis on ripple effects and contemporary relevance.
Lightner is specifically interested in journalists who have a personal connection to their beat—not detached observers but people embedded in the story they're telling. Target subjects: technology, finance, health, and culture. The tone should be accessible, even funny, while the reporting goes deep. A particular affection for the high-brow/low-brow inversion: taking a topic usually dismissed as trivial and giving it serious, revelatory treatment (or vice versa). Prose that reads like a novel is a stated priority.
Memoirs need two things to get Lightner's attention: a distinctive platform or community access that opens a door most readers have never walked through, and prose that is genuinely beautiful at the sentence level. Pure platform without the writing quality, or beautiful writing without the insider access, is unlikely to work.
Lightner wants expert-driven but playful nonfiction aimed at Gen-Z's evolving relationship with work, money, and mental health. The tone must be genuinely engaging—not prescriptive or self-help-dry. Think informed and fun, not clinical.
Lightner considers graphic novels case-by-case and requires the artwork itself to be the first thing that wins them over—story alone won't do it. Thematically, the strongest pitches will mirror the fiction and nonfiction tastes listed above. No specific subgenre is ruled in or out, and Lightner acknowledges being open to surprises.
Not the right fit
On Kayla's list
Taste fingerprint
How to query Kayla
Submissions are confirmed closed as of January 26, 2026—check the live query form at Ayesha Pande Literary before doing anything else. Do not send a query until you confirm it has reopened.
Use only the agency's official query form. Lightner's own page states that anything sent through the contact page is deleted without review.
Do not query multiple Ayesha Pande Literary agents simultaneously. The agency's policy requires waiting eight weeks after a no-response before withdrawing and resubmitting to a different agent at the firm.
Lead with what your book teaches readers—not just what it's about. Lightner's stated ideal is work that straddles storytelling and revelation. Make the 'what readers will learn or discover' explicit in your query letter.
For speculative fiction, make the real-world stakes immediately clear. Lightner is not drawn to spec elements that exist purely for world-building—show in the pitch that the fantastical elements are doing social or political work.
For narrative nonfiction, if you are a journalist, foreground your personal connection to the subject. Lightner specifically called this out as a meaningful differentiator.
If you are pitching historical fiction or a retelling, signal your research credentials early. 'Grounded in thorough research' is a repeated phrase—earn that credibility in the query.
Avoid pitching slave narratives even within otherwise welcome categories like speculative fiction or Southern Gothic. This is an explicit and consistent exclusion across all versions of the wishlist.
Graphic novel submissions should include or reference the artwork prominently. Lightner has said they must fall in love with the art first—a query that doesn't address or show the visual work is missing the primary evaluation criterion.
Comp smartly: Lightner's taste skews toward award-recognized, culturally specific literary fiction. Comping to purely commercial or genre-category bestsellers without a literary dimension may undersell your manuscript to this reader.