Morgan Ryan is the author of stories born from a lifelong love of magic, a fixation on historical minutiae that borders on the obsessive, and a tendency to fall down rabbit-holes. She was raised in a family of writers in upstate New York, and received her degree in theatre performance from Northeastern University. She now lives in Chicago with her husband.

Here’s Morgan’s query to agent Jenny Bent:

Dear Ms. Bent,

I’m excited to share with you the first ten pages of Arcane Objects, a grounded, YA/adult crossover fantasy novel set during World War II, with a length of approximately 117,500 words. Arcane Objects follows Lydia Polk, apprentice to the Grand Mistress of the Royal Academy of Witches, who must venture into occupied France after the assassination of her mentor by a Nazi coven. I believe this book would best be described as The Once and Future Witches meets Indiana Jones.

Lydia Polk never expected to be chosen as apprentice to Isadora Goode, Grand Mistress of the Royal Academy of Witches. Stubborn, plain-spoken, and from an unimpressive family, Lydia was as surprised as anyone to have been selected. Now, three years into her apprenticeship, and with Hitler’s army rampaging across Europe, The Witches of Britain have joined the war effort—although not without some resistance from within. As Lydia’s power grows she too joins the cause, tracking magical relics in order to keep them out of Nazi hands. Lydia’s newest and most urgent target is the Grimorium Bellum, an ancient book with the power to wipe out entire civilizations.

When a Nazi witch infiltrates the Academy, Lydia must leave London, embarking on a desperate mission to find the Grimorium Bellum and avenge her murdered friend and mentor. Dropped into the heart of occupied France, Lydia finds allies in Rebecca Gagne, a French Resistance fighter with a secret, and Henry Boudreaux, a Haitian-American art historian with a little magic of his own. But soon Lydia discovers that finding the book is only half the battle, as the Grimorium Bellum seems to have its own dark agenda.

I am a Chicago-based writer who quit her day job as a corporate recruiter in the middle of a global pandemic to chase my dream. I appreciate you taking the time to read my work, and I would be very happy to send you the completed manuscript upon request. I look forward to hearing your reply. 

Sincerely,

Morgan Ryan
(She/Her)

Check out Morgan Ryan’s A Resistance of Witches here:

Bookshop | Amazon

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What editor Nidhi Pugalia thought of Morgan’s pitch:

I did receive a slightly different pitch letter, as Morgan and her agent Jenny Bent worked together on what would be the most impactful submission letter before sending it my way. This echoes every step of the publishing process: a melding of vision, with vision, with vision—tweaking the pitch, reimagining it, remaining responsive to the market—all the way down to the copy that a consumer sees. For example, the title of the book now—A RESISTANCE OF WITCHES—is different not only from the title I received in Jenny’s letter, but also from what Morgan queried with!

Still, what stood out for me in the pitch I received remains the same here: Historical fiction set in WWII is a crowded market, but bring in some fantasy—some witches—and the entire category was revitalized for me. I did some searching, and to my utter shock, it hadn’t been done before—and to have a feeling of a question being answered, of finding exactly what you were looking for, even when you didn’t know that you were asking the question or hadn’t named that search: That is a brilliant editorial connection. It also, like so much of WWII fiction, felt timeless, in that battle between the good of humanity and the bad is always relevant. I’m also a huge fan of a stubborn heroine going rogue, so Lydia embarking on her own with confidence but little knowledge was a character I knew I wanted to follow.

The comps here speak to me as well: I’m a huge fan of Alix E. Harrow, and I loved the Indiana Jones tie-in. That combined with the pitch gave me a sense of powerful stakes and propulsive adventure, while offering a new spin that made it stand-out in an otherwise well-explored space in fiction. I could immediately see the readership, and how we might speak to them—and that clarity of vision, especially from a query alone, is what makes me utterly confident about a book’s fit on my list. I already knew the pitch was there before I dived into the read—and then the writing was so assured and pacey and depthful, it cinched it: I was in love.

Morgan’s thoughts on the submission process:

A Resistance of Witches was originally queried under the title Arcane Objects. The title would eventually be changed before submission to editors, and then again for publication. At the time I was also pitching the book as a YA/Adult crossover—since the story deals with darker, more adult themes, but also features a 19-year-old protagonist, I wanted to stay open minded about how the book might eventually be shelved. In the end, my agent and I determined that this story made more sense as an adult fantasy, which feels like the correct placement for this particular book.

This version of my query letter was the result of many iterations over my 15 months of querying. While my request rate was fairly consistent throughout the process, I never wanted to get too comfortable, and so I experimented, shortening the letter itself, sometimes starting by jumping right into the summary, other times leading with the stats and comp titles. What’s been especially interesting about watching this book go from the querying stage all the way to publication is seeing how much of the original summary actually made it into the back cover copy. My advice to any querying author struggling to write a punchy summary—imagine how it would read on the back of a finished book…because it might just end up there!

*****

Nidhi Pugalia is an editor at Viking Penguin focused primarily on genre fiction, ranging from grounded SFF to horror, romance, thrillers, and everything in between. She has edited such books as the Book of the Month club pick A Thousand Times Before by Asha Thanki, New York Times Book Review Editor’s Choice The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years by Shubnum Khan, and the Sunday Times bestselling series Her Majesty’s Royal Coven by Juno Dawson. 

The post Successful Queries: “A Resistance of Witches,” by Morgan Ryan appeared first on Writer's Digest.

Born in the South with a healthy streak of wanderlust, Maggie Rapier is an incurable romantic who loves nothing more than wordplay and witchcraft—except, perhaps, her sourdough starter. When she’s not marketing French antiques or writing about moody girls and sexy pirates, you can find her wandering in the woods with a basket in hand.

Here’s Maggie’s query:

Dear Sheyla,

Saoirse yearns to be powerless. Cursed from childhood to sense others’ emotions, glimpse their futures, and occasionally summon death, she manages to imprison the magic within herself, living under constant terror that one day, it will break free. 

And it does. Stealing her brother’s life. 

Horrified at her loss of control, Saoirse’s parents offer her to the Stone King, who agrees to have her so long as she bears his child and asks for nothing more. But Saoirse wants more. Trapped in a cruel marriage or by her own, catastrophic magic, there is only one clear path forward: Saoirse must break the curse. 

On the eve of her betrothal to the Stone King, Saoirse seeks out Faolan—a feral, silver-tongued pirate—who swears he can rid her of the deadly magic if she’ll use it to locate a mythical isle first. Crafted by the gods, it is the only land that could absorb her power, and make Faolan a legend in the process. But to protect herself from the wrath of her scorned betrothed, Saoirse adds one more condition. 

Faolan must agree to marry her first.

Using her volatile magic, Saoirse navigates underwater graveyards and attacks on the high seas—all while sharing a too-small cabin with the handsome pirate who now calls her his own. But with the Stone King advancing and secrets piling up around them, Saoirse uncovers a truth so devastating it destroys what fragile hope for freedom she had left. 

Saoirse is not the only one hiding a curse. And this one will change the fate of their world forever. 

SOULGAZER is a Celtic-inspired, Adult Romantasy complete at 90,000 words, with the aesthetic of Pirates of the Carribean, and the tone and crossover appeal found in Shelby Mahurin’s Serpent & Dove.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Maggie Rapier

Check out Maggie Rapier’s Soulgazer here:

Bookshop | Amazon

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What Sheyla Knigge liked about the query:

I felt Maggie’s book before I read it. I had been following Maggie on social media after a dear friend of mine tagged her. She had no idea who I was, but still I followed; reading every poetically penned post until I saw one that snagged my heart—she was going to be querying soon.

I had been waiting patiently for an opportunity to read a book penned by someone who was obviously such a talented writer, but as a baby agent unopen to queries, I had to get her attention. Luckily for me the same friend who had tagged Maggie oh so many months ago sent along my information, and Maggie in turn, sent along her query and a playlist.

I was hooked from the offset of our main characters meeting. With music and words, Maggie swept me up into Saoirse’s story and I knew in those first two chapters that this was one I desperately needed in my life. From its Celtic inspiration to its silver-tongued pirate who had me swooning from the first time I saw his wolfish tail, I was completely swept away by the magical world Maggie crafted with her words.

Maggie’s thoughts on the query process:

My Adult Romantasy debut, Soulgazer, was once a YA Fantasy titled To the Waters and the Wild that was ultimately rejected over a hundred times. It was my second project I’d ever queried, and the loss was so raw I toyed with the idea of never trying to publish again. But given a few years and a half-dozen rewrites, I found the core of this story: Saoirse’s wild desperation to give up her power, and the roguish pirate who refuses to let it happen.

I’ve read so many Romantasies about tough girls leading rebellions, trained by broody heroes—and I love them. But this story is not that. Saoirse is a soft, sad girl and Faolan is ridiculous, quick-witted, and wild. So in writing this fresh version of my query, I knew I needed to lean in to that: to start with Saoirse’s deepest desire and most fervent fear, and hope the agent reading it understood exactly the tone I was striking before they ever touched the page.

Thankfully, Sheyla saw that! But our story isn’t quite traditional. I’d just sent out my first few queries of this adult version of the book, and posted a whole dedicated story, reel, and social media campaign to a final goodbye, and it just so happens Sheyla had already followed me through our mutual friend, and was promoted just before she saw.

I will forever be grateful for my friend’s DM, and the rapid-fire email-to-call exchange Sheyla and I went through. We had a blissful, 3-hour phone call with bathroom breaks and lots of squeals over the potential of what this story could become, and I knew even before we’d finished that she was the agent for me! My story with Sareer was much the same.

Fun fact to end on: The first line of this query is the first line of our jacket copy, which thrills me to no end!

*****

After several years spent sleuthing through the submissions in Victoria Marini’s query inbox, Sheyla Knigge (SHAY-luh KUH-nig-gee) is now actively using the skills she sharpened in that capacity to build her own dynamic bookshelf filled with the talented authors she currently represents. Sheyla is an expert at discovering fresh voices and relentlessly advocating for the successful publication of the stories she loves. Her unwavering enthusiasm for her authors is contagious, and she possesses an unrivaled ability to match authors with ideal homes for their books.

Sheyla is an active member of the AALA and a mentee for the Literary Agents of Change 2024-2025 Cohort. She can be found at various writers conferences across the country from the Writers’ League of Texas Conference in Austin to the Atlanta Writers Conference, fulfilling her love of getting to work with authors one-on-one. Sheyla is also known for spotting universal book concepts with robust foreign potential, with major titles earning out their advances from global sales even before their domestic debuts. 

When she’s not working, you can find Sheyla tucked away writing, getting more tattoos, or spending time with her family in the Appalachian Mountains.

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Amber Oliver is a writer and book editor. Born and raised in the Bronx, New York, she currently resides in Harlem. When the Music Hits is her first novel.

Here’s Amber’s query:

MAAME meets BLACK BUCK in this debut novel about a young, Black recent college graduate who, inspired by the music that saved her when money issues and her mother’s arguments with her boyfriend proved deafening, lands her dream job in the A&R department at a major music label – only to find the dream is far more complicated than she could have imagined.

Growing up, Billie Willis sought solace in music, finding herself in pulsing beats, striking lyrics, and mesmerizing voices. Billie decided she would work in the music industry and eventually become a music mogul who would find and build the careers of artists who could impact listeners around the world. 

When Billie lands a coveted A&R assistant role at Lit Music Productions, one of the largest music labels in the country, she is initially excited by all things music and A&R—the beautiful offices, access to exclusive industry parties, learning the particulars of closing deals—and she can’t wait until it’s her turn to start finding new talent and create space for meaningful diversity instead of the commodification of Black talent.

But, as she continues to work at Lit, she learns that the music industry of reality is far different than the one of her dreams. The hours are long, the workload is heavy and never-ending, the pay is abysmally low, and there aren’t many people of color around, except for Nina, who takes her under her wing and shows her the ropes but is also battling with her own issues in the department as the only Latinx A&R executive. Creative corporate is full of biases, microagressions, sexism, and flat-out racism – and Billie learns that the label that preys on and undervalues marginalized voices.  

Just as Billie learns what it takes to survive in the industry, while also trying to financially support her struggling mother and her own idealistic artist boyfriend, rumors of a merger with another music label are confirmed. Hype Records will merge with Lit in a matter of months. To secure her place at the changing company, Billie is determined to sign an artist they can’t say no to before Hype Records moves in.

As Billie trades her passion and energy for a shot at a career that doesn’t always love her back, she is forced to decide if the career of her dreams is really worth all of the trouble and heartbreak.

Weaving in timely themes like family, race, class, cultural appropriation, and art, WHEN THE MUSIC HITS is a satirical workplace coming-of-age novel that offers sharp, incisive commentary on contemporary issues in creative corporate America.

Amber Oliver is a writer and an editor of award-winning and bestselling books. She has held roles at HarperCollins and Penguin Random House, and currently works at Bloomsbury Publishing. She has been published in GUMBO magazine and studied under NAACP-nominated author, Morowa Yejide at the Hurston/Wright Weekend Writers Workshop in 2018. Born and raised in the Bronx, New York, she currently resides in Harlem.

Check out Amber Oliver’s When the Music Hits here:

Bookshop | Amazon

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What Angeline Rodriguez liked about the query:

I knew Amber from her stellar work as an editor, which for anyone else might be bona fides enough. But Amber is not one to rest on her laurels, and delivered a phenomenally dialed-in pitch that immediately set her query apart. 

Right off the bat she names two excellent novels I loved reading, which always helps grab attention but is additionally helpful here for their recency and direct relevance to the subject matter, demonstrating Amber’s keen knowledge of the marketplace and situating her work within a wider literary conversation. She then wastes no time establishing the concrete stakes of this story and how it’s relevant to both my list and the comp titles she’s cited.

As a woman of color in a creative industry, I’m naturally drawn to stories of people carving out a place for themselves where there wasn’t before. Amber writes the sort of künstlerroman we are not often afforded, and I was also impressed by her query noting the kind of true-to-life complications inherent to chasing a lifelong dream as someone not born to it—breaking into her dream job isn’t the end of Billie’s story, it’s just the beginning.

From there, she fleshes out the story in a number of ways that highlight both the specific and universal appeal of her novel; taking the time to introduce the character of Nina and referencing the Black talent Billie seeks to platform demonstrated this wouldn’t be a story of a single protagonist of color in a vacuum but that the novel was prepared to take on the nuances of multiple characters across the diaspora and how they interact.

The themes Amber outlines here—personal ambition vs. familial responsibility, the fraught intersection of art and commerce—underscore the authenticity and urgency of this novel, and promised a level of narrative depth that her pages then delivered on tenfold. That follow-through is key, but knowing what the unique strengths of your book are and emphasizing them accordingly is what will ultimately get readers—and agents—to take the plunge and discover their next favorite novel. It’s a gift to work with someone who knows stories inside and out the way Amber does, and I can’t wait for readers to fall in love with When The Music Hits the way I did!

*****

Angeline Rodriguez joined WME after an editorial career at Penguin Random House and Hachette Book Group, where she published multiple bestsellers and award-winners. She represents writers across genres, with an emphasis on high-concept stories that push the boundaries between categories, and is particularly passionate about highlighting underrepresented voices in new ways. A native of Houston, TX, she now lives in Brooklyn.

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Sarah Landenwich is a writer and writing educator. Also a classically trained pianist, her debut novel The Fire Concerto was inspired by her love of music of the Romantic period. She lives in Louisville, Kentucky, with her husband and daughter.

Here’s Sarah’s query:

Dear Mr. Dunow,

I am seeking representation for a plot-forward literary novel, THE FIRE CONCERTO (103,000 words). A story about a brilliant female musician lost to history and another woman’s quest to ensure she is not forgotten, THE FIRE CONCERTO is a past/present narrative in the vein of Geraldine Brooks’ Horse and A.S. Byatt’s Possession.

Clara Bishop hasn’t touched a piano since the night ten years ago when a theater fire nearly took her life, ending her career as a rising star in the world of classical music. Badly scarred and unable to play, she has turned away from everything and everyone associated with music, especially her ruthless mentor Madame, whom Clara blames for her injuries.

Her life is upended when Madame dies, leaving Clara an unexpected inheritance: an ornate 19^th-century metronome with a cryptic message hidden within its box. Convinced this is not a gift but a puzzle Madame wants her to solve, Clara comes to suspect that the unusual bequest is the long-lost metronome of the composer Aleksander Starza—a priceless object missing since 1885, when Starza was murdered by the brilliant female pianist Constantia Pleyel.

As Clara works to uncover the metronome’s haunted past and protect it—and herself—from those who wish to obtain it, she discovers that nothing about Starza and his murder are what they seem. History has remembered Constantia Pleyel as an unstable artist who killed Starza in a fit of jealous rage. The real truth, if Clara can unearth it, could rewrite the history of music—and give Clara the second chance she has been longing for.

I am a classically trained pianist who also holds an MA in English. This novel was inspired and informed by my years-long study of music of the Romantic period.

I have included the first ten pages below. I hope you’ll read them and consider reading more. 

Best,

Sarah Landenwich

Check out Sarah Landenwich’s The Fire Concerto here:

Bookshop | Amazon

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What Henry Dunow liked about the query:

I often tell writers that it’s as difficult (or more!) to craft an effective query letter as it is to write a complete book. The query letter is the first evidence of your writing that an agent or editor will see, so it’s crucial that it be as smart and concise and alluring as you can possibly make it. Sarah Landenwich’s query letter for The Fire Concerto is all those things, a finely-honed selling tool. It captures the essential plot and thematic elements of her novel, suggests effective comp titles, and provides some brief but pertinent biographical background. I remember thinking that this was one of the more satisfying query letters I’d seen in a long time.

In truth, Sarah had me at the first paragraph! For starters, the novel has a great, dramatic title—The Fire Concerto. She immediately describes it as a “plot-forward literary novel.” I had never encountered the phrase “plot-forward” but it worked for me, suggesting a novel that would be strongly plot-driven. I like that! I appreciated that she labeled it “literary,” as my list of authors does in fact skew literary. Then, an intriguing, razor-sharp tag line: “A story about a brilliant female musician lost to history and another woman’s quest to ensure she is not forgotten.” Who would not want to read that?!! Finally, two excellent comps—Geraldine Brooks’ Horse and A.S. Byatt’s Possession—both novels I admire, both suggesting a level of quality that The Fire Concerto aspires to.

In the next three brief paragraphs, Sarah introduces us to the novel’s protagonist and lays out the basic story. This is where so many query letters typically get into trouble by giving more detail than necessary, trying to exhaustively summarize rather than seduce. For me, the cardinal rule is “less is more.” Sarah describes the novel’s story skillfully and efficiently and with the promise of a dramatic payoff—it made me immediately want to begin reading.

Finally, Sarah’s description of herself as a classically trained pianist steeped in a years-long study of music of the Romantic period—no writing credits to speak of, but clearly someone with an authoritative command of her subject.

Sarah’s thoughts on the query/submission process:

The Fire Concerto is my debut, but it’s not my first novel. That first book, which I think of in many of the same ways as I think of my first love, taught me many lessons. Like many first loves, it also ended painfully. I queried 111 agents for that book over the course of 18 months. I received a lot of interest—more than 30 requests for the full manuscript—but no one offered me representation. Instead, they offered suggestions for revision. This led to more than a year of feverish rewriting, during which I tried to reimagine my novel according to the input of a dozen different agents, none of whose opinions overlapped. It didn’t work. I resubmitted, and still received no offers. Frustrated and disappointed, I decided it was time to let that book go and write a new one.

When I was ready to query The Fire Concerto, I sent out 15 initial queries and girded myself for the rejections to come. Within two weeks, I had six offers! In the movie version of my life, it was that triumphant moment when the underdog wins the championship. All of the offering agents were outstanding, with great successes behind them. This made the decision about which one to choose extremely difficult—even agonizing. I spoke with each agent multiple times, as well as an author each of them represented. I don’t think there was a wrong choice in the bunch, but Henry was definitely the best choice for me.  

I queried Henry initially for four reasons: His list of authors hits that sweet spot between literary and commercial, which is where I view my own work; he’s brought a lot of successful debuts into the world; I love Jean Thompson, whom he represents; and (I never told him this until we wrote this article!) I queried him for my first novel and he never responded, and I wanted to see if this time I could turn his head.

But how someone looks on an agent profile online is very different from who they really are, and the reasons I ultimately ended up signing with Henry were not because of his resume. What I found so appealing about him was his unique combination of directness and kindness. He has this magical way of being completely forthright and incredibly thoughtful at the same time. (I’ve suggested on more than one occasion that he should have been a diplomat.) He told me straightaway what he thought needed revision (he was right) and the hurdles we might face on submission (also right). He was also very transparent about which editors he would send the manuscript to and why. In other words, he laid all his cards on the table. In my experience, only people who are self-assured enough to know their true worth do that. In the end, it came down to a gut decision. Henry is honest, he’s kind, he’s well-liked throughout the industry, and he’s really good at what he does. A lot of successful people are good at what they do. Not all of them are those other things too.

I write literary fiction, so I don’t necessarily believe every ending is a happy one. But I think Henry and I were meant to be.

Click to continue.

Henry on conversations with Sarah:

After requesting the full manuscript, I read The Fire Concerto over a weekend—and absolutely loved it.  I wrote Sarah: “This is that rare thing—a really smart novel that is every bit as entertaining as it is erudite. To put it another way, a literary novel that beautifully straddles the line between literary and commercial: a twisty plot, some brilliantly drawn characters, a scholarly detective story and a propulsive narrative. And you write about music with such insight, passion and poetry that any reader—even ones not steeped in knowledge of classical music—will appreciate its power.” We set up a time to talk on the phone, and I soon learned that I was not alone in my enthusiasm for The Fire Concerto—in fact, I was one of six agents offering representation to Sarah! So, I knew I had my work cut out for me!

Sarah and I spoke twice—once on the phone, and once on Zoom. My approach to these “beauty contest” situations is always the same, to focus on the work itself—what I liked about it, what I thought might need further thought or revision, what specific moments in the manuscript gave me pause, what suggestions I might have, etc. I’ve always felt my greatest strength as an agent is in the editorial dialogue I provide, and my philosophy in that regard is not to dictate changes but to work collaboratively with an author so that they can find their own solutions. Sarah and I had a productive conversation about ways to make the novel even stronger, going over plot points and character development. Sarah asked smart questions about how the submission process might unfold, what sort of houses and editors I would submit to, how I might pitch the book, and how I thought a publisher might ultimately position it. She also wisely asked if she could speak to one of my current clients, preferably someone early in their career whose debut is either forthcoming or recently released. And, finally, she asked to see a copy of our agency agreement. I obliged on both counts.

After our second conversation, I wrote to Sarah and told her that The Fire Concerto was exactly the kind of novel I was known for representing, and while I was sure each of the other competing agents had a lot to offer, she couldn’t possibly be making a mistake were she to choose me, because I really love this book and would give it my all! Happily, that’s the choice she made. We worked together for some weeks on revisions to the manuscript, submitted The Fire Concerto widely, accepted a six-figure pre-empt from Union Square/Hachette, and are now enjoying an exciting run-up to publication this coming June.

*****

Henry Dunow is the founder of Dunow, Carlson & Lerner Literary Agency. He works primarily with quality fiction—literary, historical and upmarket commercial, novels and story collections—and voice-driven nonfiction across a range of areas, including narrative history, memoir, cultural trends and current affairs. Over the years he’s discovered and introduced a number of new, younger writers who’ve gone on to become established literary voices. Clients have included Richard Bausch, Aimee Bender, Jennifer DuBois, Alice Elliot Dark, Damien Echols, Mary Gaitskill, Kim Gordon, Heidi Julavits, Jill McCorkle, Elizabeth McCracken, Nic Pizzolatto, Julie Schumacher, Alice Sebold, Cynthia D’Aprix Sweeney, Jean Thompson, Marianne Wiggins. He is the author of The Way Home, a memoir about fatherhood. 

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Kristen L. Berry is a writer and communications executive. Born and raised in Metro Detroit, Kristen graduated from the University of Michigan with a bachelor’s degree in English language and literature. She has provided PR and communications expertise to leading consumer brands for nearly 20 years, all while writing in her spare time. When she isn’t reading or writing, Kristen can be found lifting heavy at the gym, hiking in Malibu, eating her way through Los Angeles with her partner, or shouting at the latest Formula 1 race. We Don’t Talk About Carol is her debut novel.

Here’s Kristen’s query:

Hi Sharon,

Amy Bishop-Wycisk “enthusiastically suggested” that I reach out to you. Given your interest in suspenseful, complex novels by writers of color, I hope you will consider my novel, WE DON’T TALK ABOUT CAROL, an upmarket family drama/mystery complete at 99,600 words. This novel will equally appeal to readers who enjoyed unraveling the decades-old family mystery in Charmaine Wilkerson’s BLACK CAKE, and those captivated by the combination of true crime and trauma theory in Paula McLain’s WHEN THE STARS GO DARK.

While clearing out the Raleigh home of her recently deceased grandmother, 38-year-old Sydney Singleton discovers she had an aunt, Carol, one of six local Black girls to go missing in the 1960s. Sydney, a former crime reporter, is uniquely positioned to investigate what happened to “The Raleigh Six.” Yet Sydney left journalism after an obsession with another missing girl triggered a psychotic break.

Sydney is already juggling a busy life in Los Angeles. She’s in the midst of another rigorous IVF cycle for the baby her husband, Malik, desperately desires, but Sydney isn’t sure she actually wants. She’s also head of PR for a popular wellness brand whose insurance is funding her expensive fertility treatments.

Despite all this, and the possibility of risking a relapse, Sydney embarks on a hunt for “The Creek Killer” with the help of her younger sister, Sasha. Along the way, the sisters confront the fact that Carol’s disappearance wasn’t the only thing their family refused to talk about. In exhuming her long-buried traumas, Sydney discovers why she is so invested in the stories of missing girls, and so apprehensive about having children of her own.

WE DON’T TALK ABOUT CAROL is a thrilling, poignant and ultimately hopeful reminder that in order to truly embrace our future, we must first reconcile with our past.

As a Black woman and an avid consumer of all things true crime, I find it sickening that Black children are disproportionately reported missing in the U.S., and that the cases of missing people of color in this country are less likely to be solved. I hope to bring awareness to this issue through a riveting work of fiction grounded in sobering reality.

Like you, I was born and raised in the suburbs of Detroit; I was raised by a mother who hails from Raleigh, and I currently live in Los Angeles. I graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in English Language & Literature, and co-founded a writing group with classmates from a UCLA Extension creative writing course that has gathered monthly since 2019. WE DON’T TALK ABOUT CAROL was selected as a top 10 finalist for the 2023 Reese’s Book Club LitUp Fellowship.

The first 25 pages of my novel can be found below; if you’re interested, I’d be happy to share my full manuscript.

Thank you for your time and consideration,

Kristen Berry
111.111.1111
email@email.com
@kristenlberry

Trigger warnings: fertility challenges, verbal abuse/threatening behavior, murder, kidnapping, sexual abuse, mental illness.

Check out Kristen L. Berry’s We Don’t Talk About Carol here:

Bookshop | Amazon

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What agent Sharon Pelletier liked about the query:

Kristen’s query came in with the extra pizazz: a recommendation from an industry colleague who knows my taste well at the start and a shared hometown in her bio. But even without those fortuitous personal touches, I expect her query would’ve caught my eye. Kristen comped to BLACK CAKE, a book I absolutely love that frequently shows up on my wishlist. And Kristen’s terrific story pitch promises two things that I’m always looking for in fiction. First, she clearly and compellingly shows an immediate hook to a riveting mystery (external stakes) woven with a personal challenge for our main character (internal stakes). Commercial novels may have primarily external stakes and literary novels may have primarily internal stakes; I love upmarket fiction like WE DON’T TALK ABOUT CAROL that offers both; whatever kind of stakes a story has, it’s so important that the query highlight them well.

The other thing that Kristen’s query promises is a thought-provoking connection to a topic of substance, which is also a key element of upmarket fiction in any genre. I love a good whodunnit, but when I’m deciding whether a book belongs on my list, I’m looking for stories that have something to say about the issues that really matter as well as their entertainment value. And WE DON’T TALK ABOUT CAROL has that on two levels with its thoughtful exploration of the main character’s uncertainty about motherhood while dealing with infertility, and her investigation into why the truth of what happened to six missing Black girls have been ignored for many decades. Both these things make for terrific storytelling that readers will be invested in as well as scope for book club discussion.  

Of course that sparkly Reese’s Book Club LitUp Fellowship mention sparks interest right away, too—any good query has its fair share of bragging rights! And Kristen’s sample pages delivered on the query’s promise right away. Her writing is strong and propulsive, full of voice and beauty. I was impatient waiting for her to send the full manuscript; I read it nearly in one sitting, and pretty much knew well before the end that this was a novel I wanted to sell and that Kristen L. Berry was a writer I was eager to work with. Now here we are a couple years later with WE DON’T TALK ABOUT CAROL about to hit shelves so that readers can have the same gripping, moving experience with a novel bringing plenty of twists and turns, and just as full of heart-lifting moments as heart-stopping ones!

Thoughts from Kristen on developing a premise:

In the novelist community, a frequent icebreaker question is whether an author considers themself to be a plotter or a “pantser,” as in someone who writes by the seat of their pants. Though I firmly identified as a “panster” while writing WE DON’T TALK ABOUT CAROL, I kept a running document where I jotted down ideas for story beats, questions I was interested in exploring in the book, and bits of research that might be relevant to the novel. 

About a month into my drafting process, I wrote a high-level, four-paragraph premise at the top of that document—similar to what I imagined its book jacket might say—to serve as my North Star as I wrote. I continued to tweak that language as the project went on, and the story further crystallized in my mind. When it came time to draft my query letter, that premise became the foundation for my plot summary. In fact, I was able to lift most of it word-for-word. 

It’s daunting to distill a ~100,000-word novel into a ~200-word plot summary, so I was grateful that I’d had the forethought to iterate on it over the course of multiple years. While the language has continued to evolve and deepen, it’s thrilling to see how closely the spirit of the final book jacket copy aligns with the initial summary I drafted five summers ago, long before it was confirmed that it would one day be published.

*****

Sharon Pelletier 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. Born and raised in the suburbs of Detroit, Michigan, Sharon has lived in New York since 2009, but often returns to visit the Midwest and dreams of living by the ocean one day. 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.

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K.A. Merson is a graduate of the selective-entry Curtis Brown Creative six-month novel-writing course. As a former engineer married to an artist, he has a particular love for the nexus of art and science, which is tightly woven into the fabric of his book. He lives in northern California, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains and the area’s rich history (gold mining, boomtowns and ghost towns) provides the spectacular backdrop to his novel.

Here’s the query from Oli Munson:

Dear Julian,

It’s been an absolute age so hope all is very well with you and yours. I’m hoping to get to New York early next year and it would be great to catch up in person.

Meanwhile, I’m very excited to be sending you THE LANGUAGE OF THE BIRDS by debut author K.A. Merson. This is a contemporary thriller featuring an ingenious, young female lead set against the beautifully realised, stunning backdrop of the American West. Think the brilliant but damaged protagonist of THE QUEEN’S GAMBIT, the puzzles/mystery of THE TWYFORD CODE, and the wilderness backdrop of MY ABSOLUTE DARLING.

Arizona is seventeen, gifted, and an outsider. Homeschooled, with social anxiety and trust issues made worse by bullying, she travels the American West with her parents and her dog Mojo in an Airstream trailer. But her small world crumbles when her father dies and then, just weeks later, her mother is kidnapped. When the ransom note demands classified information (that the kidnappers claim her father possessed) and is accompanied by a cryptic puzzle, Arizona doesn’t know who to trust. Fearing foster care for herself and the pound for Mojo, she flees with the trailer to pursue her mother’s safe return on her own terms.

While following a trail of cryptic clues across the remote West, Arizona meets Lily, a twenty-year-old spending a gap year in her van. Isolated, lonely, and intrigued by Lily’s extroversion, Arizona is torn between the pull of companionship and her fears of further rejection. Racing against time, over desolate terrain, Arizona must use her unique skills and confront her greatest fears, all the while staying one step ahead of those working against her.

I can’t remember the last time I received a manuscript that was so ingenious. If you are anything like me or other people here who have read the ms, you will find yourself going down a Google rabbit hole, asking yourself the question “is this fiction or is it fact”? It’s a very smart book.

K.A. Merson is a graduate of the selective-entry Curtis Brown Creative six-month novel-writing course. As a former engineer married to an artist, he has a particular love for the nexus of art and science, which is tightly woven into the fabric of his book. He lives in northern California, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada mountains and the area’s rich history (gold mining, boomtowns and ghost towns) provides the spectacular backdrop to his novel.

I’m offering US and Canadian rights and look forward to hearing what you think. And of course just get in touch if you have any questions.

Best, Oli

Check out K.A. Merson’s The Language of the Birds here:

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What Julian Pavia liked about the query:

Several things about this letter grabbed me, I think. To start with, seeing the agent Oli Munson’s name in my inbox probably perked up my ears. We’ve had one or two near misses on projects over the years, and he seems pretty selective in what he tries me out on. I probably hear from him a couple times a year, max.

But really, for me it’s that first paragraph of plot synopsis. It’s managing to introduce Arizona in a way that immediately makes her feel specific and intriguing, while hooking me with stakes (the kidnapped mother), and intrigue (the dead father’s secret). And then there’s the reference to the “cryptic puzzle,” which, in combination with the Twyford Code comp at top, tells me this is going to be about puzzles and codes and problem-solving. So it’s giving me a clear, compelling, fresh-feeling starting point for a mystery—plus promising interesting mechanics in the form of the puzzles. And a dog too!

The rest of the plot synopsis hits good notes, but Oli’s “fact or fiction” allusion at the end is probably the other bit that really got my attention. That’s something else that jumps out as unusual and specific, and I love novels with strong “nonfiction” elements. And it has me wondering how that’s all going to be interacting with the puzzle elements.

All that said—as well as this pitch pushed my buttons, I was definitely skeptical when I started reading. The elements that make it intriguing also make for something difficult to pull off on the page, and potentially tricky for a publisher to position. Needless to say, it won me over!

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Ariel Courage is a graduate of the Brooklyn College MFA program, where she was editor-in-chief of the Brooklyn Review. She’s currently an assistant fiction editor at Agni. Her short work has appeared in Guernica, New Limestone Review, and The End. She was also a 2019 Kimmel Harding Nelson resident.

Here’s Ariel’s query:

Dear Ms. Shea, 

I believe Josh Henkin reached out to you about me earlier. Beyond his connection, I also admire writers you work with, including Jenny Zhang and Willa C. Richards. My project also offers an unusual voice and an engaging plot that I think you might enjoy. 

HESTER is an approximately 99,800-word novel about a lonely attorney who decides amidst a cancer scare that life is short and she must kill her father to avenge her dead mother.

As Hester travels across the country to hunt her father down, she meets a variety of people, including figures from her past. She also picks up a drifter named John. More than just a hitchhiker, John’s also a nonviolent eco-activist. As the deeply moral John undermines her cynicism, Hester finds herself torn between her original plan and an alternative vision of the future John presents. Unable to escape her memories of the past, Hester ultimately seeks vengeance, but with unexpected consequences.

Written in the first person, HESTER is about the futility of violence, moral ambivalence, and the eternal possibility of redemption. It combines the tragic intensity of Lisa Taddeo’s Animal with the dark humor and bittersweetness of Patrick Cottrell’s Sorry to Disrupt the Peace. 

I’m a graduate of the Brooklyn College MFA program, where I was editor-in-chief of The Brooklyn Review. I’m currently an assistant fiction editor at AGNI Magazine. My short work has appeared in Guernica, The New Limestone Review, and Works Progress, and has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. I was also a 2019 Kimmel Harding Nelson resident. 

Please let me know if you’d like me to send an excerpt your way. I appreciate your time and consideration. 

Best,

Ariel Courage

Check out Ariel Courage’s Bad Nature here:

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What agent Samantha Shea liked about the query:

I first heard about Ariel from Josh Henkin at the Brooklyn College MFA program, who wrote to me about Ariel in October of 2022. Josh raved about Ariel’s talents, and I made sure to keep an eye out for her query. It arrived a day or two later, and I knew after reading only the first sentence that I wanted to read her book.

She wrote, “HESTER is an approximately 99,800-word novel about a lonely attorney who decides amidst a cancer scare that life is short and she must kill her father to avenge her dead mother.” What an elevator pitch, what a hook! I had to know more.

Ariel’s thoughts on the query process:

I don’t think there’s a single writer in the world who enjoys asking for help, but I’m so glad I did—Josh’s wisdom invaluable. Don’t be afraid to ask for feedback specific to your pitch before sending it out, particularly from someone who’s familiar with the industry. (And there are lots of ways to get to know people in the industry, even without getting an MFA.)

*****

After graduating from Colgate University, Samantha Shea joined Georges Borchardt, Inc. in 2010 and was made a Vice President in 2016. Her list includes upmarket and literary fiction, memoir, narrative nonfiction, journalism, cultural criticism, and history. Samantha’s authors are regularly named for numerous awards and honors, including the “5 Under 35” honor from the National Book Foundation, the “Best of Young American Novelists” honor from Granta Magazine, the Kirkus Prize, the Whiting Award, the National Book Critics Circle Awards, the PEN/ Robert W. Bingham Prize, and others.

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London Sperry is a New York based author of romantic comedies full of heart, humor, and hope. A lover of storytelling, she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Musical Theatre from The Pennsylvania State University before finding her true passion for writing. Passion Project is her first novel.

Here’s London’s query:

PASSION PROJECT is an adult rom-com complete at 79,000 words. It combines the nuanced portrayals of grief in FLOAT PLAN with the tight banter and big soulmate energy of PEOPLE WE MEET ON VACATION.

If your twenties are supposed to be the best years of your life, Bennet is failing miserably…with a big emphasis on the miserable. She’s a part time temp worker in NYC with no career goals and an addiction to binging Criminal Minds and eating potato chips in bed. Also, her ex-boyfriend is dead and it was all her fault. But when the human embodiment of “fuck it” shows up in the form of an annoyingly handsome stranger, Bennet is forced to do the last thing she’d ever imagine…to open up. 

Henry is a fish out of water NYC transplant, an incurable extrovert, and a fool drawn to Bennet’s odd sense of humor and hardened sadness. When their disaster date turns into an after-hours wine and pizza night, Bennet confesses that she never decided what she wanted to be when she grew up—and Henry immediately jumps at the opportunity for adventure: Bennet needs to find a passion for life again, and Henry needs a friend…especially the kind that tugs his heartstrings like her. Fueled by cheap wine and loneliness, the strangers concoct a plan to try a new job or hobby every Saturday until Bennet finds her passion—as friends, of course. As they tackle everything from carpentry to skydiving, Bennet realizes she hasn’t felt this alive since before Sam’s death. But when she starts to fall head over ass for Henry, her fear and anxiety grow. For Bennet, love and loss are synonymous. Letting someone new into her heart is the biggest risk she can take—and Henry won’t wait forever.

Check out London Sperry’s Passion Project here:

Bookshop | Amazon

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What agent Lily Dolin liked about the query:

It’s always a thrill when I receive a query so well-written that it makes me want to clap my hands and shout “no notes!” From the first few lines of London’s query, I knew exactly what the book was, who would read it, and what made it different from other novels in the genre. I was really impressed by London’s ability to not only convey the plot and hook of the novel in a tight and direct pitch, but to do so with voice and humor. I often approach query letters as if I were browsing the shelves at a bookstore—if this were the copy on the back flap of a book, would it make me want to read more? Would it make me want to buy the book? In London’s case, the answer was a resounding yes.

She starts off with great comp titles, which always help me to contextualize a submission. The first paragraphs of the query gave me a wonderful sense of both Bennet and Henry as characters —relatable and loveable in their own ways. And then London establishes the hook, the “passion project dates,” which I absolutely adored as an idea and framework for the novel. 

I am always looking for novels that not only tell a great story but ask readers to consider larger questions and uncomfortable topics. Yes, this is a rom-com about two people finding their passion, but it’s also a story about grief, loss, and learning to love oneself in the face of doubt and anxiety. That’s what really stood out to me about London’s query letter. She did a good job of establishing the fun and whimsy of the book, while also showing how PASSION PROJECT would explore deeper themes. For me, the best queries are the ones that not only explain the plot and stakes, but also the larger themes the author hopes to examine.

*****

Lily Dolin joined Sterling Lord Literistic, Inc. in 2025, after five years in the publishing department at United Talent Agency. She represents authors in both fiction and nonfiction, including YA, with books ranging from commercial to literary and everything in between. Her list includes New York Times bestsellers, Barnes & Noble book club picks, Book of the Month picks, and Indie Next picks, among others. She loves finding and championing debut voices, especially from underrepresented communities, and is especially passionate about building careers from the ground up. Originally from coastal New England, Lily graduated from NYU and still lives in New York City, but tries to surround herself with nature as often as possible.

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Alexandra Kennington (she/her) writes adult and young adult fantasy and science fiction novels. She lives in Utah with her spouse and child. When she’s not knee-deep in a world of her own creation or reading a book with the enemies-to-lovers trope, you’ll find her obsessing over Star Wars or sharing writing advice on TikTok.

Here’s Alexandra’s query:

Dear [AGENT],

Win, and take the crown.

The Bloodshed Trials are fast approaching. Without magic, eighteen-year-old Revna is banned from participating. But when her father sentences her two best friends to certain death, she presents him with an ultimatum he can’t ignore: she will refuse her arranged marriage and the war alliance that comes with it unless she is permitted to compete for the crown.

Lose, and have your throat slit by your own brother.

Revna stands no chance against older brothers with magical abilities. But she will not back down, even if it means her martyrdom. When she is kidnapped by a masked soldier on the other side of the war, she thinks her conquest is over before it began—until he reveals that he wants to help her take the throne. Despite her best efforts, she begins to fall for him. And to her surprise, she discovers there are others who want her on the throne for their own furtive reasons. As the Trials draw closer and her enemies appear to be her only remaining confidants, Revna must decide who is truly her ally. One misstep means brutal death for her and everyone she loves.

BLOOD BENEATH THE SNOW is a YA fantasy novel complete at 86,000 words. It will appeal to fans of the complicated family dynamics and political intrigue in THREE DARK CROWNS by Kendare Blake and the powerful friendships and forbidden romance of BONE CRIER’S MOON by Kathryn Purdie. This novel has series potential and features a cast diverse in race, sexuality, and gender identity.

As a member of the LGBTQ+ community, I strive to include accurate representation of sexuality and gender in every book I write, regardless of whether or not identity is a main theme of the text. I have a B.A. in English with a minor in creative writing. I worked on editing this novel with #1 NYT Bestselling Author Kathryn Purdie at the 2020 Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers Conference. Thank you for your time and consideration.

Sincerely,

Alex Kennington (she/her)

Check out Alexandra Kennington’s Blood Beneath the Snow here:

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Alexandra’s thoughts on querying:

Blood Beneath the Snow ultimately ended up selling after I’d converted it to a new adult book. When I queried, it was young adult, and this is the query letter I used. It seems to be a common sentiment that most authors don’t love writing query letters—but I genuinely love writing query-style pitches for my work! My day job is in marketing, which has honed my ability to take a step back and view my manuscripts as both projects of my heart and products—a skill I believe every writer can benefit from.

I wanted to keep the query short and concise, within the bounds of traditional query letter formatting rules. I also wanted it to communicate the same high-level stakes and emotion I hoped readers of the manuscript would feel. Ultimately, I feel I was able to convey the main character’s heart and fire while also pitching the book in a way that showed its marketability and left the reader wanting more.

Romantasy was on the rise when I queried (2021-2022), making fantasy a tough genre to break into. My querying journey involved very few requests, and I was about to move on to my next manuscript when I received an offer from my agent. While the nine-month journey was full of rejection, I wouldn’t be where I am today if I hadn’t persevered through it.

Editor Gabrielle Pachon’s commentary:

I received a slightly different pitch letter, since Alex’s original manuscript was YA and we acquired Blood Beneath the Snow as a new adult fantasy. But some of the things that really stood out to me is how the letter called out why it was special: “a diverse cast in race, sexuality, and gender identity.” Whenever I read a pitch letter, I ask myself:

1. Who is the audience and is it for the Berkley/Ace reader? And,
2. What will make this standout in the marketplace?

I think the call out to how this book would bring a diverse perspective to the fantasy/romantasy genre was key in getting my attention. Then Alex’s incredible knack for pacing took it from there. I think I read the entire book within 24 hours. When I couldn’t put it down, I knew others wouldn’t be able to either.

*****

Gabrielle Pachon is an editor with Berkley/Ace.

___________

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Jeanette Horn holds an MFA from The University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where she received a Maytag Fellowship. Her poetry has appeared in MARGIE, POETRY INTERNATIONAL, STAND, and other literary journals. She lives in Austin, Texas, with her husband and dogs. Play, With Knives is her first novel.

Here’s Jeanette’s query:

Dear Ms. Royal and team:

Please consider my 88,000-word literary novel, PLAY, WITH KNIVES, for Regal House Publishing. The manuscript, which reads as a work of magical realism, takes readers on a dreamlike train journey through romance, strangeness, silliness, and tragedy to a final twist that reveals the story as metafiction. Its magic is that of the written word, and it asks questions about the nature of identity, reality, truth, and art.

Emotionally volatile, Edgar Cosentino can’t tolerate lies. It was a lie that made him leave Rome and take up work as the set designer/stage manager for an acting troupe traveling by train to perform across the American Midwest. Within this eccentric cast of characters, Edgar finds happiness in his budding relationship with the lead actress of the troupe, Ava Vale. Ava is enamored with Edgar, but worries about his temper. And too late, she realizes Edgar’s revulsion for lying has trapped her with a secret—Ava is technically married.

All the while, the playwright and owner of the troupe, Fallon Finn-Dorset, watches this drama unfold. She incorporates pieces of it into her scripts and suspects that, on the train, other elements of her plays are mysteriously becoming real. New train cars inexplicably appear, along with a partly tame fox and a barman resembling Abraham Lincoln. Lies soon blend with truth, and fiction populates reality in ways that have dangerous consequences for Edgar, Ava, and others. But can reality be rewritten in a way that will save Edgar and Ava’s relationship as well as the future of the troupe?

I hold an MFA from The University of Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where I received a Maytag Fellowship and was a finalist for POETRY’s Ruth Lilly Poetry Fellowship. My work has appeared in RIVER STYX, WASHINGTON SQUARE, MARGIE, POETRY INTERNATIONAL, STAND, and other journals. In my free time, I enjoy dressage. You can learn more at jeanettehorn.com.

I would be happy to provide the full manuscript for your review. Thank you for your time.

Sincerely,

Jeanette Horn

Check out Jeanette Horn’s Play, With Knives here:

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Publisher Jaynie Royal’s commentary:

There is much about this query that I love. The title of the work, Play, With Knives, is immediately engaging, suggestive of the wordplay that threads through the novel. And as for the query itself, Jeanette’s literary prowess is on full display. At the outset she establishes the core theme of the work—the power of the written word and the manner in which her narrative examines, and manipulates, the nature of identity, reality, truth, and art. Then, brilliantly, she loops back to that theme in closing (once we have been introduced to the primary characters), establishing both the danger presented by that fluidity of reality/fiction and the possibility of salvation. With enough in between to really pique my interest—a tame fox and an Abraham Lincoln lookalike? What is clear, too, in these opening paragraphs is that this ms is refreshingly original and the author is, indeed, a master of her pen.

But to break it down further: Jeanette’s query is concise, to the point, yet contains all the critical information that our acquisitions team wishes to know (including word count and a brief summary). In the opening paragraph, I can deduce immediately that she understands the market placement for her novel, which is, predominantly, a literary work, one imbued with a speculative, magical element. It is also evident that she is familiar with the books that we publish and has done her research to ensure that her ms would be a good fit for our House. Her opening paragraph is intriguing and serves as a brilliant summary of the overarching work; this, then, entices one to read further.

The subsequent paragraphs introduce us to the characters who populate Jeanette’s novel as well as artfully layering in the central themes that formulate the respective plot arcs. She ends, then, with a brief background as to her credentials, mentioning fellowships and literary journals that have published her work—all of which attests to her professionalism as a writer and her ongoing dedication to engaging an audience for her work. She conveniently provides a link to her author website, with links to recent literary events and social media platforms, which are, of course, a critical component of digital marketing today.

All in all, this query received a universal thumbs-up among our acquisition editors, and we were delighted to invite Jeanette to proceed to the next stage of our acquisitions process.

Jeanette’s thoughts on querying:

During the decade it took me to write Play, With Knives, people sometimes asked if I was going to try to get it published. I’d tell them that the book likely wouldn’t appeal to a large publisher but could hopefully find a home with an independent house or small press.

But when it came time to start submitting, I felt I had to at least see how literary agents would respond (and through them, the Big Five). In January 2022, I signed on with a firm to help me query. They were excited about my manuscript but, because it was magical realism, were adamant that I should only be reaching out to agents who represented fantasy. I felt from the start that, due to the writing style of the book, we should be contacting those representing literary fiction, but I bowed to their expertise for a few months until it was clear that their tactic wasn’t driving any interest.

In May, I broke ties with the firm and started querying agents who represented literary fiction. At the same time, I decided to hedge my bets by simultaneously submitting to independent publishers and small presses, since that was where I still envisioned the book ultimately ending up. Much of the middle part of that year was spent responding to requests for my full manuscript and then anxiously checking my email for news. Several agents ended up really loving my voice as well as aspects of the book, but they ultimately weren’t sure they could sell it. I had several close calls with small presses as well.

When I clicked Submit on the Regal House Publishing website that July, I remember being extremely impressed with the beauty and quality of their books and really hoping things would somehow work out. I was thrilled to get a manuscript request from them soon after, and for the rest of the year, I navigated their very organized and well communicated submission process, excited to make it through to each next step. When I’d reached the final stage, they let me know that a decision would be made on Jan. 6, 2023—Epiphany.

And what an epiphany it was. I was driving home from a dressage lesson, sweaty and covered in dirt and horsehair, when my phone buzzed at a red light. I didn’t have enough time before the light turned green to read Jaynie’s full email, but I scanned just enough of the first paragraph to see that she had accepted my novel!

It’s been absolutely wonderful working with Regal House Publishing to bring Play, With Knives into the world. Jaynie runs the house with such courage, and she’s been extraordinarily professional, an insightful editor, and an amazing cheerleader throughout the entire process. I feel incredibly lucky to be working with her and her team, and I still can’t quite believe that, at the end of a year-long submission process, my novel ended up finding the perfect home.

*****

Born in New Zealand, Jaynie Royal spent much of her early life in Singapore and Malaysia with her family. After the completion of her undergraduate degree at Auckland University, she attended Texas A&M in the US for graduate studies. Jaynie met her husband while in the US where she has lived and worked ever since. Determined to found a traditional independent press that elevated finely crafted literature while serving as a true partner to authors, she established Regal House Publishing in 2014. Jaynie has resided in North Carolina with her husband and children for over a decade.

___________

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