joined Dystel, Goderich & Bourret in 2013 after working in editorial at small presses and as a B&N bookseller, was named senior agent in 2021, and named vice president in 2024. Sharon’s list includes upmarket fiction of all sorts, from smart, complex women’s fiction; to unexpected suspense fiction and romance; to hearty, unforgettable book club fiction. She also occasionally takes on compelling, fierce narrative nonfiction by journalists, experts, or emerging voices with a promising platform.
Fun facts about me
Likes: white wine, concert t-shirts, nieces and nephews, resilient houseplants, the One Direction extended universe, potato-based foods, bar league darts Dislikes: dogs, Ticketmaster fees, the patriarchy, sweet drinks Submission Guidelines Submissions should be emailed to
Please only query me by
Please allow 8 weeks before following up on queries, and two months before following up on requested manuscripts (unless of course you’ve received an offer of representation on a MS I’ve requested – in that case, congrats and please do let me know asap!). See the DG&B website for answers to many submission FAQs. Guidelines & Details Vital Info @sharongracepjs Website Agent
Fiction
BIPOC Literature, Caribbean Literature, Commercial, Crime, Domestic Thriller, East Asian Literature, Family Saga, General, Horror, LGBTQ, Literary, Mystery, Psychological Thriller, Romance, South Asian Literature, South East Asian Literature, Thriller, West African Literature, Women’s Fiction
Non-Fiction
Biography, History, Journalism, LGBTQ, Pop Culture, Psychology, Sports, True Crime I’d like the next…
Currently hungry for
Hearty book club fiction bringing an uplifting reading experience while still engaging substantive issues of contemporary life with honesty and nuance. Also eager for propulsive, nuanced contemporary novels that are hilarious without being snarky and insightful without being quiet — think LUSTER’s whip-sharp darkly funny honesty, think QUEENIE, think Dolly Alderton. Unexpected, elevated love stories with real stakes. Smart, propulsive workplace novels. Think The Good Wife / The Good Fight, TOMORROW AND TOMORROW AND TOMORROW.
FICTION
The key to fiction, for me, is VOICE and STAKES! While I prioritize craft and am quite editorial, I value propulsive storytelling over artful reflection. I’m looking for that can’t put it down effect when I read your sample pages. My taste is the nebulous upmarket: not super literary, not super commercial, just right. Craft meets plot and makes a perfect porridge. Things I am eager for include: Juicy, hearty, smart-but-not-precious women’s fiction telling a story **outside** suburban white ladies or malaise-bound 20 somethings in NY and LA. Love to see career be truly meaningful in the character’s journey. Would love to see new relationships explored other than spouses, mothers, childhood besties. Rich, thoughtful book club fiction like ASK AGAIN YES by Mary Beth Keane, TRANSCENDENT KINGDOM by Yaa Gyasi, Leesa Cross-Smith, Kamila Shamsie Smart vacation fiction that explores career, friendships, not just love and romance. I also love a sense of humor with poignancy, like Katherine Center’s delightful books, or the sensationally fun QUEENIE. Suspense fiction with a fresh angle on the tropes we love. Especially excited to find underrepresented protagonists and settings we aren’t used to – no more bitter hard-drinking ex-cops who can’t trust anyone, please, or angry upper class wives poking into suspicious husbands and vice versa. Love suspense where setting is a vivid character as in Jane Harper and Attica Locke’s novels. And where character invests, absorbs the reader alongside the plot, like Ann Cleeves and Tana French. Despite the aforementioned authors I’m rarely into PIs or LEOs these days I’d rather see a character get pulled into an investigation because of the vantage point their profession offers