In the publishing world, there's something called a Manuscript Wish List (MSWL)—a place where acquiring editors share the types of projects they’re eager to work on. While I’m not an acquiring editor and can’t promise that working with me will lead to publication, I love the spirit of MSWLs: they’re a great way for authors, brands, and businesses to find editorial partners who share their vision and values.
My favorite genres are speculative fiction, fantasy, and historical fiction. I also enjoy select literary fiction and poetry. Here’s a glimpse into the kinds of stories and themes that light me up. If your work includes any of the following, we’ll probably get along great:
💭 What I'm Drawn To
- A truly original concept. Think:
– The Book Thief (a WWII narrative told by Death)
– When Women Were Dragons (an alternate 1950s where femmes spontaneously transform into dragons)
– Gideon the Ninth (necromancers, swordplay, and wildly inventive world-building) - Bold, nontraditional storytelling. I love multiple POVs, multigenerational narratives, and magical realism that blurs the line between the real and the surreal.
- A confusing literary mystery. If your novel doesn't make any sense until the last ten pages, I want to read it. Give me weird, ambiguous, and psychological. Think: Piranesi.
- Complex, emotionally resonant women. Give me feral, morally gray, deeply flawed women characters who don’t need to be palatable to be powerful and who are not reverse-inserts for male power fantasies, but rather allowed their own original stories.
- Grumpy/sunshine dynamics, especially when “grumpy” is a woman with a sharp edge—and she’s still allowed love and acceptance without needing to soften her edges.
- Themes of sisterhood and motherhood—messy, joyful, heartbreaking, and everything in between.
- Language-forward writing. I love poetic prose, rich imagery, and stories that play with structure and form (but not via text messages or TikTok formats—more on that below).
- Folklore, mythology, and alternative histories. Bonus points if I get to learn something while editing.
- Stories about stories. If your novel explores the power of language (a la Babel by R.F. Kuang), lost dialects, or bookish magic systems, I’m in.
- Queer westerns, rural narratives, or small-town weirdness. Give me cowboys, but make it gay.
- Characters exploring identity and belonging. I especially resonate with stories featuring societal outcasts and characters navigating intersecting identities (nonbinary, multiracial, bisexual, etc.).
- Mental health representation that goes beyond the cliché and doesn't just center tragedy. Let’s see families, couples, or friends who actually work through their issues and grow.
- The 'becoming human' trope. I love when non-human characters or aliens must learn about what it means to be human—think Anya from Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
- Yes, I still love dystopia. I know the trend is “dead,” but if your dystopian novel has emotional depth and a fresh lens, I want to read it.
- Witches. Duh.
❌ Not for Me
I’m probably not the right fit for:
- Beach-read thrillers or commercial crime fiction
- Exploitation stories or trauma for shock value
- Tech-bro business/self-help books
- Books centered on the ultra-wealthy or Hollywood glitz
- White feminist “girl-power” fantasy that lacks substance
- Short story collections
- Stories told entirely through alternative communication formats (texts, DMs, etc.)
- True crime or narratives that sensationalize real-life suffering
- Any work that dehumanizes marginalized communities or promotes harmful ideologies
If your project aligns with the stories I champion—thoughtful, imaginative, inclusive, and character-driven—then I’d love to collaborate.
Got a manuscript or editorial vision that speaks to any of this? Let’s talk.