Amanda Meadows
Andrews McMeel Publishing
My Manuscript Wish List®
Amanda Meadows (she/her) is an Eisner-nominated Editor of graphic novels, illustrated humor, and general trade at Andrews McMeel. She was previously Senior Editor at Oni Press-Lion Forge working on humor, genre fiction, and award-winning French comics; eventually managing the list for its queer nonfiction and romance imprint, Limerence Press. Her entertainment background includes licensed works for Disney, Hasbro, Jim Henson Company, Wondery Media, A24, and more. Meadows authored two humor books and was named a PW Star Watch Honoree for her role as co-founder of indie humor publisher The Devastator. She lives and works in historic West Adams on Tongva land with her partner, cat, and overflowing zine library.
Fun facts about me:
- I can and will talk to you forever about underground comedy, drag, and wrestling!
- Proud plant parent and obsessed with learning about (and seed bombing) CA native plants.
- A “friend of” many podcasts, my spouse and I co-hosted the Sony show Dirt Cheap about an out-of-print pulp novel from hell.
- We live with a cuddly orange tabby named Maddie, after Madeleine Kahn <3
- I have a delicious meskouta recipe, which you can find in Cook Like Your Ancestors by Mariah-Rose Marie!
- Fashion girlie. In college, I slang designer shoes at Nordstrom South Coast Plaza (sold Pradas to a Real Housewife once, lol)
- Karaoke go-tos: Sweet Dreams by the Eurythmics, Always on Time by Ashanti & Ja Rule, Complicated by Avril Lavigne
Submission Guidelines
My list is majority ADULT! I acquire a small number of YA titles per year, mostly upper YA. Being one of few Black queer editors in publishing, please consider the BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ authors who may benefit most from my experience and skills. I only accept agented submissions except when directly solicited.
I joined AMP in 2024. Check for updates in the coming year as I assemble my list! My priorities so far:
- Graphic novels – for adults, fiction and nonfiction, humor, romance, genre (hooky, high concept, wildly relatable characters)
- Humor writing – for adults, broad topics through a specific POV
- Illustrated humor – driven by concept, narrative, or memoir
- Pop culture – socially relevant, culturally competent takes on popular fandoms, licensed adult books
- Wellness/ Inspiration – highly visual, perspective-shift (not prescriptive), intersectional, collective care
- Nonfiction – stylized, voicey takes on big topics, entertainment and comedy, narrative
Vital Info
Favorite sub-genres:
Adult, Adverse Childhood Experiences, Author-Illustrator, BIPOC, Biography & Memoir, Dark topics with a light touch, Disability, Essays, Fairytale Retellings, Fashion, Film & Theater & TV, Folklore, Food, Found Families, Gaming, Geek Culture, Graphic Novels, History, Humor, Illustrated, Illustrated/Gift, Intersectionality, LGBTQ+, Lifestyle, Mental Health, Modern Dating, Multigenerational, Narrative Nonfiction, Nature, Neurodiversity, New Adult, Pop Culture, Racial Justice, SWANA Fantasy, Slice of life, Social Justice, Spirituality, Trauma, Travel, advice, afrofuturism, anti-capitalist sci fi, books in translation, comedy, comics, coming of age, diasporic, interactive, music, romantasy, sequential art
I’d like the next…
Comics and humor for Adults like my Andrews McMeel faves…
- Lavender Clouds by Bex Ollerton
- #VeryFat #VeryBrave by Nicole Byer
- Well, This Is Me by Asher Perlman
- How to Stay Productive When the World Is Ending by Reductress
- Fangs by Sarah Anderson
- Bad Dreams in the Night by Adam Ellis
- Jokes to Offend Men by Allison Kelley, Danielle Kraese, Kate Herzlin, Ysabel Yates
- Women Don’t Owe You Pretty by Florence Given
- A Haunted Road Atlas by Christine Schafer and Em Schulz
My favorites include…
Books
Recent faves from my personal TBR pile…
- Graphic Novels with unique styles and something to say like Punk-Rock Karaoke, Blackward, The Chromatic Fantasy, The High Desert, Cook Like Your Ancestors, A Girl Called Echo, Enlightened Transsexual Comix, Bitter Root, Wash Day Diaries, Delicious in Dungeon manga series
- Astute and obsessive pop-culture writing like The Ringmaster, The Motherlode, Comedy Book, Carefree Black Girls, Cultish
- Deep dives into big topics with wild origins like Raw Dog, Paved Paradise, Palo Alto, Debt: the Last 5,000 Years, Post-Colonial Astrology, Heath Communism,
- Nature writing that breaks cultural and scientific barriers like Braiding Sweetgrass and The Light Eaters
- Black ehhthang: All the Black Girls Are Activists, The Secret Lives of Church Ladies, The Nap Ministry Manifesto, adrienne maree brown’s Emergent Strategy series, and Liner Notes for the Revolution
- Embodiment and liberation-focused self-help like The Feminist Killjoy Handbook, The Perfectionist’s Guide to Losing Control, How to Do Nothing
TV
- X-Men ’97 is gonna be my personality for a minute.
- I Think You Should Leave, y’all.
- I carry twin torches for Detroiters and South Side for the rest of my days.
- Reality TV relevant to my interests like Antiques Roadshow, Crime Scene Kitchen, Lego Masters, and mess like Couple to Throuple.
Movies
We watch a ton of B movies and underground oddities. My latest fave is the 1980 sapphic wannabe punk caper Times Square.
Podcasts
Been tuned-in since ’05 Maximum Fun. Now: Scam Goddess, The Read, Normal Gossip, My Momma Told Me, There Are No Girls on the Internet, The Stacks, Ologies, Gender Reveal, Articles of Interest, Code Switch, Couples Therapy, Decoder Ring, ICYMI, Minorities in Publishing, TV I Say w/ Ashley Ray, Comedy Bang Bang, 5-4, Why Won’t You Date Me?, every Jamie Loftus pod, Tights & Fights, For the Wild, Black People Love Paramore, the list goes on.
Music
The intersection of dyer heartbreak and giddy punchlines. Rap women are at the top of my On Repeat. I live for Megan Thee Stallion, Doechii, and Tierra Whack! Plus, power pop like Hemlocke Springs, The New Pornogaphers, and Chappell Roan; elevator soul and city pop like Ginger Root and Perfume; indie R&B/soul like Solange and Tanerelle; electronic groove like Kaytranada; tons of instrumental music via Flow State. I’ll always be a sucker for singer-songwriters like Fiona Apple and Mitski.
Newsletters
All kinds! Garbage Day, Sequential Arts Workshop, Toon Stack, Mental HELLth, Hung Up, Diary of a Sad Black Girl, Memoir Monday, and Equip Story (by my spouse Geoffrey Golden!)
