Uwe Stender is the founder and president of Triada US Literary Agency—an academically trained agent with 21+ years of experience who hunts for commercial fiction with strong hooks across adult thriller/suspense, YA, and middle grade, and who actively champions underrepresented voices.
In brief
Stender personally closes deals most consistently in YA contemporary romance and thrillers, adult suspense/psychological thriller, and adult narrative nonfiction—the deal record confirms these as their actual bread-and-butter categories even when the stated wishlist sprawls wider.
Film and dramatic rights are handled personally by Stender, not delegated—this is unusual for an agency president and signals that Stender actively cultivates screen deals; confirmed examples include television rights to The Atlas Six and film rights to multiple titles.
The agency's roster includes multiple NYT bestsellers (Olivie Blake, Chloe Gong, Hannah Nicole Maehrer, K. M. Moronova), giving Stender credibility with major imprints at Tor, McElderry, Kensington, and Scholastic—a meaningful signal for commercial-leaning writers.
Stender personally sold into a notably wide range of adult categories: narrative nonfiction (history, pop culture, gardening, nature), adult romance, adult suspense, YA, and picture books—arguably the broadest personal list at the agency, consistent with the 'eclectic' self-description.
Unsolicited email queries are explicitly deleted unread—the online form is the only viable submission path, and there are no exceptions stated.
Lately
The agency's current submission page describes Stender's priorities as mysteries and thrillers, psychological suspense, YA, MG, and picture books in fiction—alongside all nonfiction—reinforcing that the focus has tightened around these commercially proven categories rather than the full breadth of the sub-genre tag list.
What Uwe is looking for
Stender's single most active personal category. Psychological suspense, domestic thriller, literary noir, locked-room mysteries, and geopolitical/tech thrillers are all welcome. The touchstone reads skew toward propulsive, plot-driven work with strong character hooks—think procedural series, cat-and-mouse suspense, and whodunits. Stender has explicitly said they'd love a thriller that also carries a genuine romantic thread.
Stender actively wants more adult romance—contemporary, steamy romcoms, romantic suspense, and romantasy all qualify. The stated 'guilty pleasure' is Ivy Smoak's work (known for emotionally intense, often campus-set romance), which signals openness to commercial and new adult-adjacent material. A thriller with strong romantic heat is an explicit want.
YA is one of Stender's highest-volume personal categories by deal count. Contemporary YA with romance, romcoms, boarding school settings, and thrillers with a horror undercurrent are all sought. For YA fantasy, Stender gravitates toward lush, high-concept worlds and romantasy. Diverse and own-voices YA—especially AAPI, Latinx, and BIPOC stories—recurs throughout the deal record. YA graphic novels are explicitly welcomed.
While middle grade deals at Triada US are primarily closed by other agents on the team, Stender has personally negotiated MG deals—horror, contemporary, and graphic novel formats. Middle grade horror and diverse contemporary MG align with the broader agency focus. MG graphic novels are explicitly listed as a sub-genre of interest.
Stender is one of the more active nonfiction agents at the agency, personally closing deals in history, narrative nonfiction, pop culture, true crime, and nature/science. The personal reading list skews literary and research-driven rather than prescriptive self-help. Social/cultural analysis with fresh angles (e.g., reality TV sociology, anniversary history, avian natural history) has all sold under Stender's own name.
Picture books surface throughout Stender's personal deal record, almost exclusively with a diversity, own-voices, or underrepresented-community angle. The agency note specifies that current fiction focus is MG, YA, and PB—confirming picture books remain active. Stender represents authors (not typically the illustrator unless noted). Cultural celebration, social-emotional, and bilingual-family stories recur in closed deals.
Literary horror, psychological horror, gothic, and Asian/AAPI horror are all listed as active sub-genres. The deal record shows Stender and the broader agency closing horror deals across age categories. Adult literary horror with strong character work is the sweet spot Stender seems to favor personally.
Not the right fit
On Uwe's list
Taste fingerprint
How to query Uwe
Use the online submission form exclusively—email queries are explicitly discarded unread, no exceptions.
Lead with a strong, specific hook. Stender's stated taste across thrillers, romance, and YA consistently favors 'compelling plot hooks' and 'exceptional writing'—the pitch must deliver both up front.
If your work features underrepresented voices (AAPI, Latinx, BIPOC, immigrant, own-voices), say so plainly and early; this is a documented priority, not a marketing afterthought.
For adult fiction, the clearest lane is psychological suspense, domestic thriller, or a thriller-romance hybrid. If your book sits at that intersection, call it out explicitly.
For YA, lead with the romantic or thriller angle and name the tone—boarding school settings, enemies-to-lovers, romcoms, and horror-adjacent thrillers are all on record as specific wants.
Comp titles strategically: Stender named specific series (Reacher, Bosch, Maxton Hall) and single titles (The Guest List, Ace of Spades, Scythe). Matching your comp tier to their stated references signals you've done the research.
For nonfiction, frame the cultural hook first—Stender's nonfiction sales cluster around social/historical resonance and popular science; avoid purely prescriptive or memoir-without-platform pitches.
Do not query graphic novels to Stender directly unless you are an author-illustrator or your pitch is a YA/MG graphic novel with a clear creative collaborator already named; several deals were for author-only with illustrator represented separately.
Confirm the form is still live immediately before submitting—query status can change, and the form is the sole accepted channel.