Marin Takikawa

Marin joined The Friedrich Agency in early 2021 after getting her start as an assistant to three agents at Foundry Literary + Media. Born in Tokyo and raised in Singapore and NYC, she graduated from the University of Rochester, and began her publishing career with internships at The Book Group, Folio Literary Management, and Triada U.S.

She’s actively building her list and is interested in literary and upmarket fiction, narrative non-fiction, and YA fiction. Regardless of category, she’s looking for a singular voice that will guide her through any literary terrain and is not afraid of pushing against the status quo. And above all, it’s important to her that her list is filled with writers from historically underrepresented communities, as well as diasporic voices.

She’s looking for:

• Character-driven adult upmarket and literary fiction
• Wildly imaginative genre(-bending) fiction a la Sequoia Nagamatsu, Kate Folk, and Bora Chung. Give her all the speculative! She loves all things strange, surreal, dark, unsettling, and magical.
• ***A haunting literary Gothic (either adult or YA)*** Please!!
• Narratives that grapple with the complexities within family relationships—how flawed dynamics can cause ripples down the line & the unseen burdens we carry. Think Sharks in the Time of Saviors by Kawai Strong Washburn and Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng.
• Memoirs that balance personal narratives with engaging and insightful research and/or cultural analysis
• Social and cultural criticism
• Narrative nonfiction that is resistant and radical in nature, that questions why we have the institutions, ideas, and systems in place (also applies to fiction I’d like to see!). She would love to see anything dealing with empire, sovereignty, legacies of colonialism + how it haunts and perpetuates in various forms in the modern age
• Dark, irresistible YA speculative fiction balanced with some levity. If it has mystery/thriller bones, she’s your gal!
• Contemporary YA (varying levels of sweetness and sadness OK) from romances like Better Than The Movies by Lynn Painter and Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Solomon to meditations on friendship, grief, and family like Picture Us in the Light by Kelly Loy Gilbert, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz, and All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir.

Not a must, but a plus:

• Novels with innovative/non-linear structure (eg: Russian nesting dolls) are a favorite! A la Build Your House Around My Body by TFA client Violet Kupersmith and Crossings by Alex Landragin.
  • Books with bold structural decisions, generally, are her favorite to read & work with (another example is Ascension by Nicholas Binge!)
• Narratives that take place in a setting that’s distinctly different from NYC are a plus!

Very specific MSWL:

• An adult romcom a la The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary! Something that’s not all fluff, but is also rooted in serious topics
• She’s searching far and wide for more Singaporean writers and stories!!

Submission Guidelines

Submissions should be emailed to mtakikawa@friedrichagency.com

Please email your query letter and five sample pages (in the body of your email), with the word QUERY and the title of your project in the subject line to mtakikawa@friedrichagency.com.

Unfortunately, The Friedrich Agency is no longer able to respond to all queries individually given the volume we receive, so if you haven’t heard back within three weeks it means we’re declining the opportunity to request materials. More information on our submission process can be found here.

Guidelines & Details