Christina Lopez

I am actively seeking adult commercial women’s fiction/ book club fiction, rom com, contemporary romance, fantasy, domestic thriller, and historical fiction. I’m also open to YA/ Adult crossover stories, especially in the “new adult” genre. I’m currently obsessed with that soft spot of books that sits on the line between women’s and literary-leaning commercial fiction (think Happy Place by Emily Henry). I’m especially interested in anything with characters from historically underrepresented backgrounds (especially Latinx characters, as I’m from a border town in Texas), anything with complex family dynamics spanning several generations (especially mother/daughter stories), stories about found family or finding home in people instead of places, historical fiction like The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo that move between the past and the present, and stories involving romance, but where it isn’t the sole driving force of the plot, like In Five Years. Regarding rom-com, I’d love to find the next Katherine Center, who writes commercial rom-coms with strong upmarket hooks and deeper emotional nuance. I’m also looking for stories that uplift women, such as How To Fall Out Of Love Madly, and stories that give insight into the complexity of exisiting in the world with an intersectional identity. I’d love a book about twenty-somethings and the directionless but hopeful feeling that drives this space in life. I’m also seeking fantasy books in the vein of Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros with intuitive world building and a romantic thread. 

I want books that capture the enormity of emotions in the most mundanity of life. I’d also love stories about diverse people doing everyday things and getting a happy ending! 

I’m open to non-fiction having to do with pop culture (reality TV (especially dating shows), and growing up in the late nineties, Disney Channel era), identity and societal issues, and memoir in the vein of Everything I Know About Love.

Some things I am looking for:

• Women’s fiction/ literary leaning commercial fiction (Happy Place by Emily Henry, Adelaide by Genevieve Wheeler)
• Character driven stories, especially if the MC is morally ambiguous
• Strong sense of place
• Historical elements, especially when the POV switches from past to present (Like The Last House on the Street by Diane Chamberlain)
• Domestic psychological thrillers, but nothing too dark (like Sally Hepworth)
• Manipulation of time/ time travel (The Midnight Library, Oona Out of Order)
• Tropey romances, especially reimaginings of classic tropes/ rom coms with diverse characters (For example, a Devil Wears Prada reimagining with a Latinx MC)
• Stories with speculative elements (small elements of magic like The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue)
• Fantasy works with romantic threads (Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros)

Some things I’m not the best fit for:

• SciFi
• Horror
• Animal stories
• War stories
• Westerns

I want a book that feels like a Taylor Swift song; dramatic, relatable, inspiring! Overall, I’m drawn to books with diverse, complex characters that make me feel big emotions.  

I currently assist Jen Enderlin, President & Publisher of St. Martin’s Press on bestselling authors like Kristin Hannah, Katherine Center, Heather Morris, Diane Chamberlain, Sally Hepworth, Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen.

Submission Guidelines

Submissions should be emailed to christina.lopez@stmartins.com

I’m only taking agented submissions. Please send manuscript or proposal to christina.lopez@stmartins.com.