Alex Gehringer

I’m building my list with a focus on new adult romantasy and NA and adult contemporary romance.

Above all, I’m most interested in characters who spark off each other—where chemistry, tension and banter pull me through the pages, no matter what world the story inhabits. I firmly believe “if your hero is a firefighter, your heroine better be an arsonist.” I want quick, clever dialogue and fresh, addictive plot lines that make readers say just one more chapter until it’s 2am. Strong side characters who could carry their own stories are always a plus.

I love settings that feel essential and emotionally resonant—like Carley Fortune’s devotion to Canadian backdrops, B.K. Borison’s real and imaged Maryland locations, or the vividly realized fantasy realms in Callie Hart’s Quicksilver. Give me cozy small towns with nosy locals or an expansive, high-stakes adventure across continents. The bottom line is: immersive environments are a must and the world should feel as alive as the characters inhabiting it.

Contemporary Romance

I’m drawn to slow-burn, character-driven stories with smart humor—think Alison Espach’s The Wedding People or Mhairi McFarlane’s Just Last Night. I love character duos with bite and palpable chemistry, like the couples in Ali Hazelwood’s Problematic Summer Romance or Yulin Kuang’s How to End a Love Story.

Romantasy, Speculative (& beyond)

I’m seeking epic quests, tragic bargains, star-crossed lovers…I’ll take it all so long as the romance remains central. The tension and chemistry between the leads are what should anchor the story, even amidst magic, adventure, or high stakes, as in V.E. Schwab’s The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue.

Please note, I am *only* seeking traditional romantasy in the NA space.

I am open to speculative romance in NA and adult.

Across Both

On both sides of my list, I’m drawn to imperfect good guys and redeemable villains, found families, enemies or friends to lovers, fake relationships, forced proximity, grumpy/sunshine, other unlikely pairings, and rivals.

Currently seeking!

• Heist romances in the vein of Ocean’s 11 or the Thomas Crown Affair
• Dystopian romance or romantasy with dystopian elements. Give me the Grapes of Wrath set in the future or in a parallel universe with relatable twenty-somethings. Give me a swashbuckling Severance.
• Cozy romances – holiday, hometown, magical
• Vampires, grim reapers, ghosts…open to a range of speculative romance!

I am not a fit for…

• Adult romantasy (main characters over the age of 25)
• YA of any genre
• Significant age gaps or abusive power dynamics
• Gratuitous violence or gore
• Rockstar, billionaire, mafia or dating app romances
• Most sports romance, unless the sport is secondary to the central plot

Submission Guidelines

Please submit via QueryTracker. Include a brief pitch that captures the hook of your premise, along with a short plot summary and a few thoughtful comps (books, TV, or film). If you don’t have strong comps, it’s okay to skip them—please don’t force weak ones.

Indicate whether you’ve been previously published (traditionally or self-published), and feel free to share a couple of lines about yourself.

Please attach the first chapter of your manuscript as a double-spaced PDF. If you’ve written a prologue, please include that as well. It won’t count as your first chapter.