Kaylyn Aldridge

As of the week of August 31st, 2026: I am getting through remaining submissions sent to me through Query Tracker. If you submitted your work to me from June 5th to June 19th, you will hear from me in the next couple of weeks. Thank you for your patience!

My name is Kaylyn Aldridge, and I’m a junior agent at Metamorphosis Literary Agency. Thanks for checking out my MSWL.

I am currently acquiring commercial and upmarket horror, romance, and contemporary fiction for New Adult and Adult readers!

HORROR:

• Psychological horror.
• Body horror.
• Meta horror.
• Social/human horror (a la how they treated Carrie White in Carrie)

I am seeking women/femme-centered horror only. I’m always drawn to social commentary told through a horrific lens. A body horror that comments on the difficulties of finding a job after university? Psychological horror about navigating the dating scene as a queer person? A meta horror following a Black woman who falls asleep watching a horror film and is now stuck in a dream world and the only way out is to defeat the killer? Woah, you got me. I’m also a big fan of horror seeped in wry humor.

CATCHES MY EYE:

• Religious Themes: Religion and horror just seem to go hand-in-hand for me. I want those Old Testament vibes.
• Unapologetically Terrible Protagonists: Write me someone I love to hate—and can probably relate to deep down.

SHY AWAY FROM:

• Rape or Sexual Violence of Any Kind: Do not send me stories with sexual violence used simply as shock value. If it’s there, it needs to serve a meaningful narrative purpose.

ROMANCE:

All romance submitted to me must have suspense/thriller elements, gothic elements, or dark themes (but not necessarily dark romance). I’m a major fan of paranormal romance and unconventional love interests. If it’s a vampire, robot, Frankenstein, zombie, imaginary friend come-to-life, etc., then I’m all for it.

Slow burns are for me. I’m big on angst and tension. I can get down with an insta-love situation only if there’s a strong foundation under it. Spice is always welcome.

CATCHES MY EYE:

• “Older” FMCs: I’m really looking for FMCs that aren’t straight out of high-school or in their early 20s. A romance that has the love interests in their mid to late twenties—or thirties and up—will catch my eye (and, please, do not put any emphasis on them being “old”).
• FMCs Who Pursue MMCS (Femmes Who Pursue Mascs): Enough said.
• (In paranormal romance/gothic romance) FMCS Who Are The Monster: I want a human man who falls for a hairy, terrifying werewolf woman. A terribly disfigured phantom woman and a beautiful vampire man who fall in love. A man who falls for a woman with absolutely no redeeming qualities.
• Epistolary.

SHY AWAY FROM: 

• Enemies-to-Lovers: Whenever I read enemies-to-lovers, it tends to be some version of, “They’re so annoying! But they’re so hot…” It just doesn’t do it for me. If it’s an enemies-to-lovers story, there needs to be an outside factor that makes them enemies (rival companies, social pressures, etc.).
• Miscommunication Trope: The, “No, wait!” trope I tend to see with this, which is not something I enjoy. If it’s a miscommunication, let it be caused by some telephone-esque situation.
• Millionaire/Billionaire/CEO Love Interests: If you can make them not feel predatory, not an assh*le, and not a person who insists on being domineering and solving every problem the MC has, then I might be interested.
• Age Gaps: I only accept these if both involved are 25+.
• “Cozy” Anything: Give me more than just tea and cats and books!

CONTEMPORARY: 

I am only looking for high-concept contemporary fiction that has something to say, but it doesn’t need to be heavy-handed. Give me commentary on identity, social media, loneliness. I’m all for it. If you really want me to sit up, give me a critique/satirization of femininity and/or masculinity. I’d love to see an exploration of sex, repression, and taboos as well.

I love stories that highlight the quiet nuances of life (a la Sally Rooney). I can follow a quiet plot if the characters are totally relatable from the way they say something simply because they feel socially pressured to, to the way they think about something funny while in the middle of comforting someone. I want raw realness from characters.

Exploration of underrepresented communities is a major plus for me. A look into and underground BDSM community? Complications of being in the furry community? Incel and femcel exploration told through the lens of a spiraling friend? Send it over.

CATCHES MY EYE:

• Quieter Prose: I’ve never been big on prose that “insists upon itself”. I will always appreciate a story with strong prose that trusts the reader to interpret subtext. In sum: A simple sentence on the surface, loaded with meaning.

SPECIAL INTERESTS ACROSS GENRES LISTED:

• MCs/casts that are Black and/or LGBT+.
• Horror romance mashups!
• Freakiness! Take that as you will.
• Reimaginings of classics (a horror spin on Romeo and Juliet, Paradise Lost as a romantic thriller, etc.).
• Toxic obsession (whether that be platonic, romantic, hatred, towards a project/hobby, etc.)
• Frenemies-to-enemies

HARD PASSES: 

• Fantasy (yes, even romantasy—sorry!)
• Sci-fi
• Historical fiction
• Romcoms/light romances.
• Anything centering fairies/fae
• Dystopian societies
• “Chosen one” protagonists
• “Must save the world” plots
• Stories that focus Black and/or LGBT+ identities on trauma
• Poorly written strong female characters
• Lush, flowery, overly-descriptive prose.

A Note on AI-Generated Works:

Stop sending them. AI-generated writing is very obvious, and it’s always annoying to see. It will be automatically rejected . It’s a waste of both of our time.

Submission Guidelines

I only take submissions sent via Query Tracker. Any unprompted submissions emailed to me will be deleted without response.

Guidelines & Details