Tara Gilbert

As an Associate Literary Agent with The Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency, I am currently looking for character and voice-driven stories. Fantastic worlds and creative creatures are great, and all, but I love a good character arc. I want books that make me laugh and cry within the span of a few pages.

Diversity:

I am always looking for stories by underrepresented creators. All POC, LGBTQ+/QUILTBAG, neurodiverse, body diverse, and disabled creators are highly encouraged to query me.

Adult: romance, horror, light fantasy, historical fantasy, and speculative fiction

I don’t want epic fantasy or sci-fi at this time. I’d like to see more ADDIE LARUE, HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA, and SUMMER SONS.

I’m not looking for genre romance, but romance within fantasy, historical, horror, or upmarket fiction. I love books by Casey Mcquiston and TJ Klune!

Young Adult: fantasy, contemporary, romance

At this time, I will be very selective and ask for funny, upbeat YA. In addition, I might request other YA books from pitch events, but my preference is light-hearted YA.

The exception to this is if you have YA horror. I’m really into horror right now and would love to see more of it.

Middle-Grade: only graphic novels at this time

I’m only looking for author-illustrators in the MG space. I might request other MG during a pitch event, but I’ll be very selective.

Author-illustrators: I’m open to MG and YA creators of all genres. 

More specifically, I’m looking for:

• YA romcoms! All of them!
• Give me anything that has to do with games or puzzles. Like HUNGER GAMES, INHERITANCE GAMES, or TRULY DEVIOUS.
• Horror RomCom! Horror Romance! I want to laugh and have some gore. I want to swoon. I want it all.
• Campy/funny horror in general
• Horror with a game element like Squid Game, Ready or Not, etc.
• I’m always here for morally gray characters!!
• YA firsts!! First kiss, getting your driver’s license, best friend breakups, etc.
• Unique YA interests like bird watching, homeschooling, 4H and raising goats (like I did!), chess matches, etc.
• Fat rep in roles where their weight isn’t the plot device
• Sibling and best friend stories
• MG with a tarot theme or astrology theme (YA too if it’s a romcom or horror)

Tl;dr: speculative, horror, romcom, morally gray characters, games and puzzles. And make it gay.

When searching for the perfect manuscript, the first thing that draws me in is a compelling concept; the next thing is the voice. I love anything from blunt, funny prose to purple prose. It just needs to match the genre, mood, and category of your book. Some author voices I particularly love:

• Maggie Stiefvater
• VE Schwab
• Benjamin Alire Sáenz
• Rick Riordan
• Casey McQuiston
• TJ Klune
• Adam Silvera
• Laini Taylor

Once the voice has caught my attention, the element that will always keep my interest is character. I love character-driven stories with well-developed characters. Then, world-building. I’m always in awe of seamless world-building that doesn’t distract from the story. This is why I’m often don’t like other-world (high fantasy) stories because authors tend to shove the world in your face with too much exposition and details. Recent book I read with flawless world-building:

• THESE FEATHERED FLAMES by Alexandra Overy (coming April 2021)
• A DARKER SHADE OF MAGIC by VE Schwab
• STRANGE THE DREAMER by Lainie Taylor
• SIX OF CROWS by Leigh Bardugo
• HOUSE IN THE CERULEAN SEA by TJ Klune

I’m not looking for:

• Anything set in space or has aliens.
• Anything 120K or longer that is all world-building and plot.
• Political/military/crime thriller novels (especially in adult categories).
• Romances with cops or military men.
• Westerns.
• Time travel.
• Pirates.
• Mermaids, vampires, werewolves, zombies. I’ll take monsters similar to these creatures (like THIS SAVAGE SONG), but not in the traditional sense.
• Romances based on musicians or actors (I get so many of these).
• Picture books and chapter books.
• Plots revolving around cheating/infidelity, suicide, rape, or abuse.
• Memoirs or biographies.
• Novellas, short story collections, poetry collections/verse, or screenplays.

Submission Guidelines

– Fiction Authors: Please submit a query, 1-2 page synopsis, and a 5-page sample of your manuscript.
– Graphic Novel Authors/Illustrators: Please submit your graphic novel proposal, synopsis, 5-page sample script, and there is a link at the bottom for your portfolio (if you have one).

Guidelines & Details