Carrie Pestritto

I’m a big commercial and genre fiction lover, who is particularly drawn in by unique voices, strong character development, high-concept plots, and transporting experiences. I’m currently on the lookout for the following:

—ACROSS ALL GENRES—

• Commercial fiction and nonfiction featuring BIPOC, AAPI, LGBTQ+, and other marginalized rep.

—ADULT FICTION—

• Light, flirty contemporary romance with humor, modern relationships, and an escapist feel. I always love a good wedding and am dying for something set at a Ren Faire! I’m not the right fit for something in this genre that centers around social media/influencers, though.
• Locked room, cozy, historical, or amateur sleuth mysteries. Nothing too hard-boiled. I enjoy international settings (think Baby Ganesh Agency Investigation series-esque) and sassy characters. I’d be excited to see something involving cosplay or set on a cruise ship!
• Commercial fiction and upmarket fiction featuring engaging relationship dynamics and a hooky premise. I’m down for something a little dark or genre-blending, and I like seeing a good cult escape now and then.
• Transportive historical fiction (from about the 1800s on) with some kind of romance or mystery. I’m a sucker for a Victorian or Gilded Age setting.
• Absorbing, low-stakes fantasy with meticulous world-building. I will always perk up when I see witches or anything with Ghibli vibe comps.  I’m not currently interested in anything too epic with princesses or dragons.

—ADULT NONFICTION—

• Microhistories.  I adore microhistories!
• Memoir with timely or fascinating subject matter. I prefer stories centering around a specific event, period of time, topic, goal, etc. (like my client Marlo Mack’s HOW TO BE A GIRL) as opposed to an entire chronology of someone’s life. I’m not the right fit for inspirational or medical/illness memoirs or anything dealing with infertility or addiction.
• Immersive narrative nonfiction.  I’d love to see true crime or in-depth explorations by journalists.
• Prescriptive nonfiction or pop science by experts with a platform.

—CHILDREN’S FICTION—

• I’m only taking on select new children’s projects at the moment.
• MG and YA that can be described as high-concept, tightly-plotted, and inclusive (especially those that involve an adventure, mystery, or interesting character arcs/growth) with universally relatable tropes and a dash of quirkiness. However, I’m usually not a big fan of superhero or mythology stories in kidlit.
• Absorbing SFF with meticulous world building and anchored by a character-driven plot and vibrant relationships.
• Contemporary mysteries with a non-school setting.

If you think we might be a good fit, please reach out via QueryManager.

Submission Guidelines

LDLA accepts queries via QueryManager only. We do our best to answer every query letter within 4 weeks, though circumstances may vary. If you receive a manuscript request, response time is closer to 12 weeks. Please wait to follow up until after the full length of time has passed. However, if you receive an offer of representation from another agent, please let us know immediately so we can respond within the timeframe you require.

Please only submit to one agent at a time* with one project at a time, making sure that your manuscript or proposal is complete and ready to be sent if requested. You may submit to another agent if one passes.

*If you are querying after a Twitter pitch contest such as #pitmad or #DVpit, and more than one LDLA agent has liked your tweet, you may query simultaneously. We just ask that you let us know if more than one of us is considering your project.

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