Stefanie Lieberman

My primary focus is upmarket fiction with commercial appeal. I love literary thrillers, historical fiction, quick-witted beach and book club reads, and any plot-driven story with a distinctive voice and a smart, high-concept hook. I also gravitate towards novels with a strong sense of time and place, a unique atmosphere, or gripping, edge-of-the-seat suspense. I’m always on the hunt for writers who make me laugh.

A few books I wish I represented: The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo; The Unselected Journals of Emma M. Lion by Beth Brower; Possession by A.S. Byatt; Counterfeit by Kirstin Chen; All the Sinners Bleed by S.A. Cosby; The Wedding People by Alison Espach; The Correspondent by Virginia Evans; Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus; Writers & Lovers by Lily King; The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon; The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides; Atmosphere by Taylor Jenkins Reid; The Guncle by Steven Rowley; The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters; Seven Days in June by Tia Williams; The Storied Life of AJ Fikry by Gabrielle Zevin.

I’m always looking for:

• Elevated and layered commercial fiction with a fast and juicy engine. I’m looking for novels where the prose is rooted in craft, but the plot never lets up, like THE WEDDING PEOPLE by Alison Espach or LESSONS IN CHEMISTRY by Bonnie Garmus. I’m always eager to read anything that has the tension of a page-turner with sentences worth slowing down for.
• Literary thrillers in the vein of Tana French or Liz Moore, preferably with women at their center. I’m looking for character-driven crime fiction where the psychology is as important as the mystery. Anything atmospheric and morally complex is for me! I’m often as interested in what the crime reveals about a community or family as in who committed it. Good examples are A FLICKER IN THE DARK by Stacy Willingham or WILD DARK SHORE by Charlotte McConaghy.
• Voice-driven book club fiction with heart and humor like THE GUNCLE by Steven Rowley or REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES by Shelby Van Pelt. I’m looking for novels anchored by an irresistible narrator navigating grief, reinvention, or found family that are emotionally resonant without tipping into sentimentality.
• Big, immersive, high-concept upmarket commercial fiction like ATMOSPHERE by Taylor Jenkins Reid or THE NAMES by Florence Knapp, with sweeping premises, real emotional stakes, and a hook you can pitch in one line.
• Historical fiction like POSSESSION by A.S. Byatt — with nerdy academics and “original” source research at the core, but also, sexy, exciting, and tension-filled. I’m always a fan of historical fiction that has a race-against-time element.
• A great time-spanning love story with dimension, humor, and a strong commercial hook. Think ONE DAY by David Nicholls or INTO THE BLUE by Emma Brodie.
• A family saga, like PACHINKO by Min Jin Lee, where culture or setting almost functions as a character in the story.

Right now I’ve been hoping to see:

• Historical fiction including magical elements or centered on witches, like THE UNSELECTED JOURNALS OF EMMA M. LION by Beth Brower and WEYWARD by Emilia Hart.
• A twist on the traditional caper or heist thriller, like THE ENDING WRITES ITSELF by Evelyn Clarke or PORTRAIT OF A THIEF by Grace D. Li
• High-stakes puzzle box thrillers driven by historical ciphers, codes, or secret societies. Think Dan Brown pacing, but with a female scholar at the center.
• A novel like COUNTERFEIT by Kristen Chen — entertaining, glittery, and satisfying on the level of plot, but also delivering on serious themes, exploring questions of race, identity, and consumerism.
• Dark academia and class-conscious fiction. I’m looking for either contemporary or historical settings steeped in atmosphere and social tension. Think old institutions, old money, old secrets.
• A rich, commercial summer story set in an historically Black beach community like Highland Beach, Maryland, Idlewild, Michigan, or Oak Bluffs, Massachusetts.
• An epistolary novel, like I CAPTURE THE CASTLE by Dodie Smith or THE CORRESPONDENT by Virginia Evans.

Submission Guidelines

Submissions should be emailed to submissions@janklow.com

Please send a query letter and the first ten pages of your manuscript in the body of the email to su*********@*****ow.com, and include “Stefanie Lieberman” in the subject line.