The Headshot Dilemma and Update

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Professional headshots always feel like such a hassle. I’m never fully satisfied with professionally done ones, yet I feel like I should be, because I love every other kind of professional photo shoots. But with my career headshots there’s always a stilted weirdness going on. And at-home always feel too micro-managed, I’m trying to control every aspect of them and then spiraling too far into funky territory. And I don’t want it to look like I’m trying too hard, or not hard enough. And it has to have the right feel for my specific niche within my specific field. Do I want to look like I vibe with Gen Z or should I embrace my elder millennial-ness, or do I need to pretend I’m more stoic to woo Gen X and the baby boomers?

The photo I was using was definitely outdated and it needed a refresh, yet I kept putting it off, even though smart phone cameras are absolutely mental, and the professional photographer that did the last shot I was happy with over six years ago, agreed to do another. I was giving I DON’T WANNA energy. All this to say, writers, I hope you are better at this than I am, I can’t imagine the kind of pressure you feel about your headshots that are actually going into physical books. And you definitely need a professional, as you’ll want multiple variations to put on different sites/books/interviews, so you have to find someone who will not make you feel stilted. Or maybe we all just get real angsty about it but pretend we don’t?

Something happened to push me to just get the headshot done, after three years of waffling about it. A fun update:

It’s been a long road to this, as my spouse and I decided for some reason to space out our two children by six years, the first when I just started agenting, the second right before I joined a new agency, but I am proud to say I’m at last a Senior Agent! My incredible clients are the reason I’m here, so I hope anyone reading this blog will go check out a few of the books that recently came out like Fate’s Bane, Saltcrop, The People’s Library, Daughter of the Cursed Kingdom, Japanese Gothic, or Auntie Q’s Golden Claws Nail Salon.

And finally, for that long-awaited submissions update. Speaking of evolving technology, I am currently trying to work out how I want to approach the AI-generated subs situation, so will remain closed until I can navigate that thoughtfully. I definitely only want human-generated stories, but I also want to pay attention to the nuances of the conversation about the big thing that is happening all around us. I’m also working through the final subs I have from the last round, I’m down to less than 20, and would like to read and respond to those before I reopen. Again, thank you for your incredible patience with that.

From Best Of to Most Anticipated, Happy New Year

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We’ve hit the end of the “Best Books of the Year” list cycle and now are onto the “Most Anticipated Books of the Year” so welcome 2026. Fiction sales are up, no fiction sales are down, nobody can actually agree on it, and according to the news and social media, the world is falling apart, humanity is terribly evil, and no one has the attention span to read long-form. Despite this, or maybe in spite of this, excellent, radical, thoughtful books are being written, published, and purchased.

Reading is an act of resistance, challenging your brain to step inside someone else’s shoes, whether it’s a dragon-riding sexy lady or an angsty teenager stuck with a tiger in the middle of the ocean or friends destined to reach across war-torn borders. For me, the read of my client C.L. Clark’s series Magic of the Lost embodied this so fully, and I’m so inspired by the huge fanbase it has garnered. I was lucky enough to attend the launch party in London of the third and final installment of the trilogy The Sovereign at the excellent The Common Press Bookshop (photo above). It’s moments like these that make me so grateful I’ve been able to carve out a career in this industry and it keeps my hope burning against the dark.

Speaking of burning, I did get a bit burnt out at the end of the year, so despite my best intentions, I was unable to catch up on submissions over the holidays. Trying to force myself to read subs when I feel like this doesn’t end up with productive insight, and I’m perhaps too quick to pass. So apologies to those of you waiting in my submission inbox, it looks like it’s going to be a bit longer. As always feel free to nudge if you need confirmation that it’s in the tbr-queue, or withdraw if you don’t want to wait. I’m currently at 190 queries that I’d like to take a closer look at. I won’t open again until I’ve gotten through these, probably in late spring. I appreciate your understanding!

A Spooky Submissions Update

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Why yes, I am one of those basic b-ahem-witches who loves this time of year. I do own a pair of very fuzzy Uggs, a large mug (curtesy of a client who just gets me), and buy 10 sweaters annually at the local thrift store while dreaming longingly about cashmere.

I also find it easier to read as the days grow shorter and the weather colder, actually read deeply. Which means making more decisions on my maybe pile. But this is also one of the busiest seasons for sending out submissions on my end. And this one has been busier than I anticipated, happily so. Add that to a whirlwind WorldCon, a work trip to London, and the little one starting pre-school not gracefully, my initial response time to queries has been much slower than usual. And although the feedback has been overwhelmingly yes for allowing full manuscripts in the initial sub, it does slow my process on the other end. Which means, for those of you who like the numbers, of the 3,000 subs that have come in since August, 400 of latest of those have not even been opened.

So I am closing to queries to catch up over the winter. I aim to respond to all initial queries by the end of November. However for those of you who I put aside for further consideration, I’m afraid my decisions will be delayed, perhaps for months, both because of time and space on my current list. As always feel free to check in, but don’t wait around (always try to look forward, don’t put your eggs in one basket in this industry), know that of the hundred or so that go past the initial phase, and even of the 20 or so that catch me enough to read the entire manuscript, I still can only reasonably sign another 2-5 more clients in the coming months.

And speaking of clients, I actually got to meet many of mine in person for the first time this year, some whom I have represented for almost a decade(!!). They were in attendance at Seattle WorldCon 2025, signing books, speaking on panels, and charming their readers. Amid the busy schedules, we managed to squeeze in a taco night. Pictured above left to right: Gracie Marsden, Kylie Lee Baker, Van Hoang, me, Yume Kitasei, DaVaun Sanders, and Veronica G. Henry. It was strange but wonderful to realize how well I know all of these amazing people, despite not having been in the same room together before. No awkwardness, just good vibes and fun chatter. The breadth of their work continues to astonish me, and I highly recommend checking out their books.

Until next time. Thank you for your patience and understanding as I dig through this next pile of subs!

Midsummer Musing: Overthinking Submission Form Strategies

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I love the way the heat of summer makes everything feel slower and deliciously lazy. I’ve even set up my office in the garage, leaving it open to the sounds of birds, bugs, wind, and the occasional lawn mower. Our homemade midsommar pole leans over me, almost wistfully. And surprisingly, I’m feeling more on top of work than usual. Perhaps it’s just getting the office out of the house, but I like to think it’s the warm silky vibes of working outdoors. In that spirit, I have closed to submissions for a bit to catch up. I received about 1,600 submissions over May and June and about 100 of those queries caught my eye enough to take another look. Of those, I will probably offer on 1-4 depending on the space I have on my list when I get to them.

I did change my submission requirements to include the full manuscript as an attachment, rather than just the opening sample pages. I haven’t decided if this system is more or less efficient than my old one, and do wonder which writers prefer. For context: previously if the query passed the first read, then I flicked down to the sample pages and responded faster to those submissions. But then I sat longer on the few projects that I may have wanted to read even more of, because I didn’t want to commit to asking for the full just yet. In contrast, with the new system the full is already attached, so although I can’t determine as quickly on the queries that pass the first read, I can respond faster to the ones sitting in the maybe pile, because I know writers aren’t expecting personal feedback on their full that was already attached. So more queries end up in the maybe pile, but I’m faster to respond to them as a whole. I’m definitely overthinking the process, but you probably would too after the thousandth submission.

Comment below if you have an opinion!

Embracing Fall: Change and Stories

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This season has been full of ups and downs in so many ways. And my heart has been broken once again by those in power. But the trees here in Northern California have been putting on a spectacular show this fall, lots of gorgeous reds and yellows, more deeply colorful than the years before, and I am reminded by them to breathe and find peace in the small moments of joy.

These past few weeks have also reminded me how important stories are; they tie us together, make us see and emphasize with other perspectives, and lift up voices that are often silenced. And filling my current desire to read about fierce ladies (well really, it’s a constant desire), check out this fucking awesome cover for my client C.L. Clark’s no-longer-a-secret project!

I have had a stunning amount of really good submissions since I opened in July. A total of four thousand queries have been sent, there are about fifty submissions that are under further consideration, and I have made one offer of representation so far. I will be shutting down to queries starting December 1st for the holidays and probably for most of the winter. I hope to answer all queries before the new year, whether it’s to ask for a full or pass. If I do ask for a full, I hope to answer those by the end of January, but I may not be able to consider it until the spring. Just hedging my bets here, I always think I’m going to be faster on fulls than I actually am. Having the space to take on a new client is never a guarantee, so much of it depends on where my current clients are at. There are so many really good submissions that I am forced to form pass on because to do otherwise would mean I wouldn’t ever find the time to do anything else. Thank you again to all of you amazing writers for your patience and grace. Cheers.

Summer Buzzing and Reading

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I’m spending the longest day of the year in a place where the sun barely sets in the summer. It’s incredible to see clearly at 2am, it really brings a whole new meaning to the solstice. It’s also given me more hours of bright reading light, which has been helpful in catching up with submissions. My deepest apologies to those of you who had to wait as I considered yours. Due to outside forces, it took me far longer to read through my maybe-pile this past winter than I expected, I had to extend my submission closure through spring. At last I’m back on track, having whittled down my list to 10 requested fulls (for those of you wonking out on query stats, that’s just 1% of the submissions I received in the fall, mostly upmarket adult fiction). So I will be opening for the summer after the 4th of July!

I also will be on faculty for two conferences this fall: 

Say hello if you are attending!

Submissions Update

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Despite the best laid plans, I was unable to open to submissions this winter. As much as I would love to sign new clients, current clients take priority, so I’m remaining closed to submissions until my schedule opens up again. My goal is to respond to pending submissions and re-open by this summer, maybe a bit earlier. To the handful of people who are waiting for a response to their submission, I thank you for your patience. Know that your submission is still under consideration.

For those of you who love query stats–I received about a thousand queries while I was open in Oct/Nov 2023. Of those, about 100 made it into the further consideration pile. Since then: I have responded to 60 or so. Quite of few more, around 20, received offers of representation on which I stepped aside. I have yet to request any fulls.

Do note, my standard timing is elongated due to outside forces, but as personal and professional interruptions that cut into submission response times are fairly common in an agent’s career, it’s a good statistical variable to take into account.

Closing to Submissions

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The mornings are getting chillier, and as the popular meme says the “let’s circle back after the holidays” season has begun. I am closing to queries until the new year to catch up. For those of you who enjoy the wonking out stats, I received over 1000 queries since opening in mid-Oct. From the earlier batch this past spring, I am currently considering 16 fulls, which I hope to respond to by the end of the year, before I request more fulls from the newer pile. I wish my response times were faster, but that’s not possible at this time. See you in 2024.

I hope everyone who has the privilege of a holiday season enjoys it, may it be lovely and restful.

Praying for peace 💔

Submissions Update

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It’s the Season of the Witch, and pumpkins abound. As do, unfortunately, book bans. Penguin Random House has created a wonderful resource for anyone interested in joining the resistance to these bans, click here.

For those of you following my submission stats, I’ve officially narrowed the inbox down to full requests. I opened to submissions for three months this past spring and had 1,850 submissions. I ended up requesting 19 full manuscripts and so far have made 3 offers of representation.

Now that I’ve caught up on queries, I’m opening to submissions for the remainder of the year and will likely close again in the new year to catch up, as settling in at the new agency and this little one is keeping me busy.