Caja Leshinger

I’m Caja (she/her), an agent trainee at Paradigm Talent Agency.

I am seeking primarily adult and new adult fiction and select nonfiction.

In FICTION, I am looking for literary and upmarket fiction with writing that is lush and style-forward. A refined sense of craft at a line-level that stops you in your tracks (think Ocean Vuong, Jeanette Winterson) and plot with propulsion and high stakes (think IF WE WERE VILLAINS by M.L. Rio, THE SECRET HISTORY by Donna Tartt). I’ll never shy away from a “plotless novel” so long as the characters are rich and knowable, and the atmosphere is palpable (think MY YEAR OF REST AND RELAXATION by Ottessa Moshfegh, THE IDIOT by Elif Batuman).

I like fiction that is maximalist and ambitious but still grounded and accessible. I would be excited to read anything high concept, weird, or offbeat, especially if it takes familiar ideas and reflects them back in new ways. I love stories with fantastical elements that illuminate something real, and anything that doesn’t follow a traditional narrative arc yet remains compulsively readable. I’m particularly drawn to stories that use horror as an engine to reveal emotional truths (ORGAN MEATS by K-Ming Chang, MONSTRILIO by Gerardo Sámano Córdova).

In lighter fare, queer coming-of-age novels tinged with humor, tenderness, and vulnerability (a la IDLEWILD by James Frankie Thomas and DOGS OF SUMMER by Andrea Abreu López) are a favorite. Send me all of your fun, messy, chaotic romps, especially centering characters you either love to hate or hate to love (PERFUME AND PAIN by Anna Dorn, HAPPY HOUR by Marlowe Granados). I’m eagerly seeking projects with lesbian protagonists, especially nonbinary and transmasc lesbians.

In FICTION, I am NOT looking for:

High fantasy

Police/military procedurals

Romance (unless it’s queer and literary – think Sarah Waters)

Hard sci-fi

In NONFICTION, I am more selectively looking for: topical memoir or memoir with an edge (HIJAB BUTCH BLUES by Lamya H., HEAVEN by Emerson Whitney, IN THE DREAM HOUSE by Carmen Maria Machado); narrative nonfiction that explores pop culture through a critical lens (CUE THE SUN! by Emily Nussbaum, CULTISH by Amanda Montell), deep dives into niche topics that relate to a greater idea, feeling, or experience (TURNING TO STONE by Marcia Bjornerud, WORLD OF WONDERS by Aimee Nezhukumatathil), or deeply explores seemingly unanswerable questions (MONSTERS: A FAN’S DILEMMA by Claire Dederer).

In NONFICTION, I am NOT looking for:

Prescriptive nonfiction

Self-help

Submission Guidelines

Submissions should be emailed to cleshinger@paradigmagency.com

I accept submissions via email only. Please send your query letter along with the first 10 pages of your work in the body of an email to:

cl********@pa************.com