manuscript wish list

I love books that are intersectional, are genre blends, have layered hooks, and teach us something.

I’m most excited to find books that do things I never knew books could do. I’m nomadic at heart and love going places I’ve never been, whether it’s a real setting or an imaginary world, history or historical fiction. Show me a new way to think, a person I didn’t know about before, or a way to gain new insight into someone else’s mind.

However, I’m not a good fit for abuse stories or anything graphic or gratuitous. Please, no body horror or gore.

PICTURE BOOKS

I love timeless picture books, especially ones that have a new format or approach. I’m looking for unexplored topics, new perspectives, exceptional writing, and true-to-life characters. They must be kid-facing, non-didactic, and empowering. I love writing that’s authentic and award-worthy.

I also love fun, quirky, and funny picture books!

I’m generally not a good fit for anthropomorphic characters (exceptions for Flat Stanley), clowns, circuses, or zoos—unless the animals are breaking out of them.

MIDDLE GRADE & YOUNG ADULT

Any genre accepted, but I lean heavily toward commercial hooks with a literary quality to the writing. 

I adore unique characters, smart characters who make mistakes but learn and overcome their primary flaw, and I always enjoy a little romance as the A or B plot, however, I lean into the B plot romance more (romance is not required).

I love plots that create tension and surprise me with unexpected twists. 

I fall head over heels for settings that are vivid and atmospheric. (Sky’s End by my client Marc J Gregson)

Age appropriate voice is a must.

And for me, enjoying a book generally means there are strong thematic elements. Lastly, I appreciate it when heavier themes are balanced with humor and thoughtful turns of phrase. Make me feel!

I’m not the best fit for YA horror unless there’s a strong socio-political element. I also don’t like sentient aliens.

ADULT

Overall, I want the books I represent to be excellent literature.

I’m up for upmarket fiction, commercial/literary fiction, book-club fiction, magical realism, romantic comedies/women’s fiction crossover, historical, mysteries that are fun and light with a genre blend, science fiction (whether five-minutes-in-the-future or epic), fantasy, and romantasy.

In everything, I’m looking for the following attributes:

A unique premise or high-concept hook. (Red Rising by Pierce Brown or Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells or Color, Taste, Texture by my client Matthew Broberg-Moffitt)

The setting and characters and plot all need to speak to a theme. (The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab, Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus, Sun of Blood and Ruin by my client Mariely Lares)

Unique formats that are transportive. (The Twyford Code by Janice Hallett, White is for Witching by Helen Oyeyemi, The Lovers Dictionary by David Levithan, Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell by Susanna Clarke)

Characters should be real and relatable but also teach you something. (Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk, Sophie’s World by Jostein Gaarder, The Overstory by Richard Powers)

I love people with moral dilemmas or impossible choices that people in book clubs love to debate. (Amnesty by Aravind Adiga)

A clear, definitive voice. (Trust by Hernan Diaz, The Heaven & Earth Grocery Store by James McBride)

Whether it’s fiction or non-fiction, I love a fascinating, compelling story with a mixture of warmth, humor, emotional bonds that I’ll remember forever, and a world and characters I want to return to time and time again.

For all books, I'm looking for layered hooks, commercial ideas with literary underpinnings, and would love some humor to balance out serious topics--or just humor.

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For information about Storm Literary Agency, please visit our site at www.stormliteraryagency.com.