My tastes are fairly eclectic, so to give you a little help, I’ve listed some of the things I’m looking for in general, plus stuff I don’t like and a few topics or genres I’d love to find in my query pile.
To query, send an email with QUERY: [YOUR BOOK'S TITLE] in the subject line to
querymichelle @ mansionstreet.com
Include your query letter and the first 10 pages of the manuscript in the body of the email. No attachments please.
Note: I don’t rep picture books, memoir, or adult fiction, among others.
I’m interested a variety of YA & MG fiction, including:
- Contemporary realistic
- Magical realism (think Sarah Addison Allen for teens/tweens)
- Mystery/Suspense
- Adventure
- Horror (as in ghost stories, but without a lot of gore)
- Sci-fi
- Fantasy
- But keep in mind that I’m over Paranormal Romance and Dystopian
I’m also looking for children’s nonfiction, such as:
- Narrative nonfiction
- History or biography
- Children’s cookbooks
- Activity or game books
To query nonfiction, send a 1-page synopsis or proposal with your query letter in the body of the email to querymichelle (at) mansionstreet (dot) com (No attachments, please.)
For picture books and general nonfiction, direct your query to Jean:
querymansionstreet (at) gmail (dot) com
Don’t send me:
- Picture books*
- Early reader/chapter books
- Adult fiction
- General nonfiction*
- Poetry
- Short story collections
- Memoir
- Religious fiction or nonfiction
*For picture books and general nonfiction, direct your query to Jean:
querymansionstreet (at) gmail (dot) com
I’d love to find a manuscript that is:
I’m not your best bet if you write:
- paranormal romance
- dystopian
- angsty books that focus on an issue (suicide, anorexia, rape) over character or plot
- moralistic tales (trying to teach kids a lesson instead of just telling a good story)
- anything with incest/pseudo-incest (e.g., Flowers in the Attic, Forbidden)
- novels in verse
- cutesy mg (especially anthropomorphic characters)
- holiday stories (Christmas, Valentine’s, Halloween)
While I reserve the right to contradict myself later, don’t be surprised if you get a form reject for any of these.
