winter/spring 2025 mswl
a little about what i'm reading and what i'd like to be reading
In honor of Manuscript Wishlist Day, here’s some more specific things about what I’d like to see now. (For my MSWL in full, you can always go straight to the source here.)
ACROSS CATEGORIES
Historical fantasy. Bonus points if the story is set in a historical time/place we don’t see as often; if it is set in a commonly-revisited historical period, I love to see real social commentary/grappling with the issues of the time.
Fantasy that uses horror tropes/imagery, especially body horror that is effective and in service of a point
Stories by and about trans people across genre
Contemporary fantasy with an edge, especially stories about the price of magic
Romance that’s character-driven, whether light and funny, sweet and heartfelt, or sweeping and hard to categorize like One Day or The View Was Exhausting
Celebrity stories, especially in romance but what if in SFF??
Horror that’s clever, subversive, and campy, especially from marginalized perspectives
Genre mashups, especially fantasy + mystery/thriller
Court intrigue (always)
IN YOUNG ADULT
Romance that’s sweet and tender and dramatic, in the vein of Jenny Han, Lynn Painter, Ann Liang—make me feel the feelings
Truly fresh takes on “tournament” stories like The Selection or Throne of Glass
IN ADULT
Science fantasy that’s accessible and high-concept
Women’s fiction or book club fiction with a dash of the speculative, a la Rebecca Serle
Dystopian that is in conversation with our world and our fears (see below note about Severance!)
OTHER SPECIFICS
I’ve been (obsessively) watching A Crown of Candy, the utterly delightful Dimension 20 D&D campaign that is A Song of Ice and Fire in Candyland (I know). I would love to see fantasy in this vein, something that is a fun, fresh twist on genre expectations and errs more on the side of homage than satire.
I am selective about near-future sci-fi in general, but I would love something like Severance (the show, though I loved the Ling Ma book too) that uses a smart genre element to tell a character-driven story that speaks to today’s anxieties.
I would love to see the tone of realistic film/TV applied to SFF, set in our world or another—like the drama of Industry or Euphoria, the social satire of The White Lotus, or the whole conceit of The Americans.
If your fantasy novel is soundtracked to Florence + the Machine, send it to me. If your contemporary/romance/women’s fiction novel is soundtracked to Lorde, send it to me.
I WANT THE NEXT…
Blood Over Bright Haven, Seven Days in June, The Raven Scholar, First-Time Caller, Seraphina, Behooved, The Will of the Many, A Study in Drowning, A Lady for a Duke, The Ministry of Time, The Pairing, The Familiar, Ink Blood Sister Scribe, What Moves the Dead, The Eyes Are the Best Part
…but surprise me! Happy querying and I can’t wait to read your work.