Ashley Lopez
Massie McQuilkin & Altman Literary Agents
My Manuscript Wish List®
I’m a Louisiana native who is now firmly rooted in New York City. I want to work with writers who have a strong point of view and an eye for language.
Currently I’m looking for:
- Horror! Any kind truly. I want my electric bill to be astronomical because of all the scary manuscripts I’m reading.
- Literary fiction of any kind with a commercial hook (meaning descriptors like “lyrical” are not doing the heavy lifting in the pitch)
- Realistic female friendship stories of all ages (and particularly queer friendship stories)
- Family stories (particularly multiple POV family stories and mother/daughter narratives)
- Reportage. Get me in the inside scoop!
- Narratives exploring a piece of culture that’s been erased or muted especially from writers who are personally connected to that culture
Fun facts about me:
I love long distance running but have never run a marathon. I prefer soggy fries to crispy, sue me.
Submission Guidelines
Submissions should be emailed to ashley@mmqalit.com
Please email queries directly to Ashley at as****@*****it.com. You should include the word “query” as well as the project’s title in the subject line. Include the first 10 pages of your manuscript (or for a nonfiction proposal, the synopsis and either a detailed chapter outline or a sample chapter) in the body of the email below your query letter. Please do not include any attachments to your email. If you haven’t heard from Ashley within 4-6 weeks, your project is not a good fit for her.
Vital Info
Favorite sub-genres:
#ownvoices, AAPI Fantasy, AAPI Horror, Activism, Adult, Adult Horror, African Diaspora, African Fantasy, Art history, Asian American Literature, Asian Diaspora, Asian Fantasy, Asian Horror, BIPOC, BIPOC Fantasy, BIPOC Horror, BIPOC Mystery, Commercial Women's Fiction, Commercial YA, Commercial adult fiction, Commercial and Literary, Contemporary Culture, Contemporary Fantasy, Contemporary YA, Contemporary Young Adult, Cross-genre, Cultural Criticism, Dark Female Friendships, Dark topics with a light touch, Disability, Diverse Protagonists, Diversity, Fantasy YA, Female Friendships, Feminism, Feminist, Feminist Horror, Food Writing, High Concept, High Fantasy, High-Concept Literary Commercial Fiction, High-concept YA, Horror Comedy, Humor, Humor YA, Immigrant Experiences, Immigrant Voices, LGBT YA, LGBTQ Contemporary, LGBTQ Romance, LGBTQ+, LGBTQ+ Fantasy, LGBTQ+ rom coms, LGBTQIA, LGBTQIAP, Latine Diaspora, Latinx Fantasy, Latinx Horror, Latinx stories, Literary Crossover, Literary Fantasy, Literary Fiction, Literary Horror, Literary Thriller, Literary YA, Magic Realism, Magical Realism, Magical Realism YA, Modern Dating, Mothers and Daughters, Multigenerational, Multiple POV, Narrative, Narrative Nonfiction, Nature, Nature Writing, Occult Horror, Own Voices, POC, Paranormal, Paranormal Horror, Paranormal Thriller, Personal Development, Pop Culture, Pop History, Pop Psychology, Pop Science, Psychological Horror, Southern Fiction, Southern Literary, Speculative, Speculative Fiction, Supernatural, Supernatural Elements, Supernatural Horror, Suspense, Sustainability, Tarot, Techno-Horror, Upmarket Commercial Fiction, Upmarket Fiction, Upmarket Nonfiction, Upmarket Women's Fiction, Upmarket YA, YA Fantasy, YA Nonfiction, YA horror, award-winners!, bad at feelings, beach reads, book club fiction, campus novel, celebrity, character-focused fiction, contemporary women's fiction, current affairs, dark academia, diverse, diverse and own voices, diverse heroines, diverse voices, domestic thrillers, family saga, family stories, feminine narratives, found family, high concept fiction, horror, light fantasy, literary suspense, memoir, narrative non-fiction, nonfiction, queer, queer horror, queer narratives, quirky, upmarket genre fiction, witchcraft, witty
I’d like the next…
Detransition, Baby
The Underground Railroad
You Too Can Have a Body Like Mine
Girl In Pieces
The School for Good Mothers
Cinderella Is Dead
White Is For Witching
Commonwealth
Let the Right One In
My favorites include…
Currently I’m obsessed with the TV show Severance (who amongst us is not?) and I’m almost always thinking about Jessamine Chan’s The School for Good Mothers. I read Aesthetica on one of the worst weekends of my life in Paris, so that book and I are trauma bonded now. Hidden Valley Road captivated me (as did Kolker’s Bad Art Friend piece). I threw up on a plane because I couldn’t put down Miranda July’s first book No One Belongs Here More Than You, so I’ve loved her long before All Fours. Zadie Smith’s The Fraud altered my brain chemistry when it comes to what you can expect from a reader.
I’m a Couples Therapy devotee and a 90 Day Fiancé apologist. Midsommar is a comfort watch and only close friends can be privy to how many times I’ve rewatched HBO’s docuseries The Vow. (But only season one iykyk.) I find myself working Werner Herzog’s Grizzly Man into conversations fairly regularly. My humor sits somewhere between Shiva Baby and Drop Dead Gorgeous.
And let’s give a shoutout to podcasts, because I love them too! Favorite narrative ones include Hysterical, Normal Gossip, Nice White Parents, Heavyweight (gone but not forgotten!), and The Gateway.
