TOR PUBLISHING GROUP

(he/him/his)

For over forty years, Tor Books, Forge Books, Tor Teen, and Starscape have been dedicated to publishing the best in genre fiction for adult, teen, and middle-grade readers. In 1979, when I founded the company, our intent was to focus on fiction, often grounded in science past, present, and future, starting with prehistoric fiction—which would be science fiction based on anthropology—and stretching across history and the present into a future which is often extrapolated from possibilities suggested in physics and other scientific fields of today.

The resulting list not only includes books from a wide range of genres, but has managed to win recognition in all of these fields. A diverse list like ours comes from an editorial staff with diverse interests. I want editors to reach beyond those founding concepts. To have the freedom to do work that interests them with authors that they enjoy reading. Our editors bring passion to every project and are dedicated to finding and publishing the best books in every genre. It is a pleasure to introduce them to you.

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(she/her)

Irene Gallo is the Publisher of Tordotcom. Since its launch on July 20th, 2008 (not coincidentally, the anniversary of humankind landing on the moon) it has grown into a thriving community and a must-read site for science fiction and fantasy fans, winning numerous awards for both its original fiction and non-fiction, including the Hugo, Nebula, World Fantasy, and Locus Awards. In 2015 we expanded Tordotcom’s fiction to include commercially available titles in print and ebook that start at 20,000 words up through full length novels. We enjoy being a home for both commercial fiction and the quirkier or more literary end of the market.

(he/him)

I’ve been with Tor Books for nearly thirty-five years, during which time I had the good fortune to work both with some of the great figures of SF and fantasy’s past—writers I grew up reading, like Arthur C. Clarke, Poul Anderson, and Damon Knight—and also with some of the best younger writers to emerge in the last quarter-century. I’m particularly proud of the debut novels I’ve published, by writers including Maureen F. McHugh, Susan Palwick, Cory Doctorow, Jo Walton, John Scalzi, Ada Palmer, and Charlie Jane Anders. Novels I edited for Tor have won Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy Awards, and, to my amazement, I’ve won three Hugo Awards and a World Fantasy Award for editing.

There are certain storytelling qualities that always grab me. One of them is a strong distinctive voice. Another is the sense that in reading this story, I’m learning something real about the world. Works set on alien planets, or in invented fantasy universes, can tell us things that are as true as stories bounded by the here-and-now. Joanna Russ’s Whileaway doesn’t actually exist, but then, neither did Madame Bovary. What’s important—to me—is saying something real, and meaning it.

I also run Tor Essentials, a line devoted to new quality editions of selected classics from the history of science fiction and fantasy. Many of those come from Tor’s own backlist, but I’m also interested in hearing about the availability of rights to genre classics that were originally published by others.

(she/her/hers)

I have had the honor of working with the talented team of editors acquiring for TDA/Forge for many years, first as VP of Marketing and Associate Publisher for Tom Doherty Associates, and now, as publisher of Forge.  I am proud to be a part of Forge’s continuing tradition to publish accomplished, bestselling and award winning authors across multiple genres including: contemporary and historical fiction, suspense, thriller, magical realism and nonfiction.  I feel honored to have worked on or to have contributed in some part to bringing many wonderful books to readers.  I currently work with a great team of people who all have a passion for working with wonderful storytellers and bringing their works to the broadest possible market.

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Monique Patterson is vice president and editorial director of Bramble. The quote “All great literature is one of two stories; a man goes on a journey or a stranger comes to town,” by Leo Tolstoy is one of her favorites, because it immediately sets to mind all the possibilities of a fantastic story. Finding books and authors that reach across the breadth of our experiences as humans is important to her. Publishing a wide array of romance, commercial women’s fiction, and nonfiction allows Monique to explore all of those experiences.

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They say that those who can’t do, teach. In college, I envisioned becoming a professor in medieval studies, teaching generations of students and toiling away as a nameless handmaiden of history. But the editing life called its siren song and for more than thirty years I’ve worked at Tor, indulging in my many passions in genre fiction – fantasy, science fiction, horror, and mysteries. I’ve had the honor of  working with such wonderful authors as Jacqueline Carey, Juliet Marillier, Ramsey Campbell, Sherrilyn Kenyon, Gene Wolfe…and many others, too many to count. 

I’ve spent the better part of my adult life working with authors to (hopefully) make their stories and dreams the best that they can be, becoming that “third eye,” general nudge, and all around pain in the butt to accomplish this feat. I give encouragement when I can, instruct when possible, and, again, hopefully contribute in some small way to sharing in the dream, giving readers new worlds and delightful puzzles.

And the best part? I still get to do this and every day feels as fresh as my very first day at Tor did. There is no other feeling like that in the world…

(he/him/his)

I joined Tor Books in August 2018 following five years at Orbit Books and nine years at Harper Voyager.

I love ambitious, original science fiction that illuminates truths about who we are and how we live, everything from sweeping space opera to accessible, visionary hard sf to high concept genre-bending novels which some might fail to see as SF; epic fantasy with grand, immersive worlds, absorbing and distinctive characters, and adventure with a breakneck pace; and the full range of exploratory, imaginative stories from unique voices that need to be heard.

I’ve had the good fortune to work with such authors as Ann Leckie, Kim Stanley Robinson, Christopher Paolini, Shelley Parker-Chan, T.L. Huchu, James Rollins, and the duo behind James S. A. Corey.

I am not currently taking unagented or unsolicited manuscripts.

(she/her)

I have been with TPG since 2019 and am excited to be building my list. I am seeking science fiction, fantasy, and speculative fiction, at novel- and novella-length, with a preference for character-driven stories.

Across sub-genre, I tend to be drawn to books that are ultimately hopeful, and that carry a sense of adventure and exploration—whether that means setting off on a quest, delving into secrets of the past, or uncovering new corners in one’s own home.

Some of my particular interests include:

Deep dives into religion. Hook me with an interesting take on the god-king, immortals, false idols, reluctant deities, dead gods, or another angle. I am especially interested in set-ups that are not a direct analog to an extant religion or to the Greco-Roman pantheon [Brandon Sanderson’s work, Kushiel’s Dart].

Myths, folktales, legends, and epics. A good retelling will absolutely catch my attention, but I am even more excited about fiction that feels like myth or folklore without necessarily being based on a specific tale [The Tiger’s Daughter], as well as fiction that draws on a body of lore and makes it its own [The Bird King, On Fragile Waves].

I love an ensemble cast that makes me change my mind about my favorite character depending on who’s currently on the page; stories centering families, born or made; a diversified group with niche roles that comes together to make a united whole (think heist team, D&D party, spaceship crew, sports team) [Leverage, Haikyu, Sufficiently Advanced Magic].

I also love to see BIPOC and/or LBGTQIA+ characters as well as fiction that looks beyond Western norms. I am eager for all sorts of these stories, but those with South Asian, East African, or Japanese touchstones; immigrant and refugee narratives; and frameworks that defy or subvert gender and gendered societal roles will hit personal notes for me.

I have a weakness for books that can’t decide if they’re fantasy or science fiction [Light From Uncommon Stars], and also enjoy stubbornly SFF stories that nevertheless stretch into adjacent genres, particularly romance or historical fiction [This Is How You Lose the Time War, The Watchmaker of Filigree Street].

I am actively seeking submissions from authors of underrepresented backgrounds. Above all I am looking for stories that push the borders of genre from within. And I am always open to falling in love with something I didn’t even know I wanted!

(she/her)

I joined the Tordotcom Publishing team in 2017 and am interested in a wide range of speculative fiction for the adult market—from core science fiction and fantasy to literary crossover.

Some touchstone authors include Octavia Butler, Dorothy Dunnett, Kelly Link, Mary Renault, and N. K. Jemisin. I’m a sucker for unexpected retellings and works that slip between genres. Bring me a translatio imperii narrative about orisha, Meng Jiang Nu in space, Cleopatra in a fantasy of manners. Right now, I’m particularly interested in the following:

—Fantasy that kisses mythology with precise, confident narratives that turn on themselves like Megan Whalen Turner’s The King of Attolia, Seth Dickinson’s The Traitor Baru Cormorant, and Susanna Clarke’s Piranesi

—Queer speculative fiction that fluidly mixes genres and treats its characters with care (even if they are very much not preserved from danger) like Ryka Aoki’s The Light from Uncommon Stars, Alison Rumfitt’s Tell Me I’m Worthless, and Kai Ashante Wilson’s Sorcerer of the Wildeeps

—Immersive, fresh worlds that evoke new myths being made like Kerstin Hall’s The Border Keeper, N. K. Jemisin’s The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms, and A. K. Larkwood’s The Unspoken Name. 

—Crossover SF/F (into literary, romance, thriller, can’t put your finger on it etc.) with vivid prose and worldbuilding/scene-setting used to amplify a strong, central relationship like Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone’s This Is How You Lose the Time War, Micaiah Johnson’s The Space Between Worlds, Scott Hawkins’ The Library at Mount Char, and Helene Wrecker’s The Golem and the Jinni.

—A specific ask I have yet to find: I’d love to see an exceptional witch book that charms me and knocks me off my feet, whether in the one sidestep from our own contemporary world vein of Alice Hoffman’s Practical Magic, Quan Barry’s We Ride Upon Sticks, or Mona Awad’s Bunny, or further afield like Alix Harrow’s The Once and Future Witches and Alexis Henderson’s The Year of the Witching. If your witches are queer, from outside the European tradition, working their magic in the diaspora (or all of the above!), you especially have my attention.

I prefer my narratives subversive, my fantasy postcolonial, and my families found. I’ve won the Hugo Award for Best Editor, Long Form and a Publishers Weekly Star Watch honor, and have had the joy of editing authors who have won the World Fantasy Award, the Crawford Award, the Alex Award, the Astounding Award, and the Hugo Award, among others. I’ve been lucky enough to debut authors such as Emily Tesh, Freya Marske, and Nghi Vo, and to work with voices like P. Djèlí Clark, Sarah Gailey, Seth Dickinson, Alexandra Rowland, and Tochi Onyebuchi on new projects.

I actively seek submissions—both novellas and novels—from authors from underrepresented backgrounds. Above all and regardless of subgenre, I’m looking for compelling characters and voices that will haunt me long past the last page.

(he/him)

I have been with Macmillan/Tor Publishing Group since 2015, and acquiring for the Forge imprint since 2019.

Currently, I am on the hunt for high concept commercial fiction, especially those that straddle (and sometimes cross over) the line into genre, similar to The Midnight Library, The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue, Remarkably Bright Creatures, and Sea of Tranquility.

The categories I am looking for also include near future fiction in the vein of Andy Weir and Blake Crouch, contemporary fiction with light speculative elements grounded in the real world, climate centered fiction, and outdoorsy survival stories of all circumstances.

I’d especially like to see more manuscripts from the point of view of erased and underrepresented voices.

(they/them)

I joined Tor Books in 2019, and I’m thrilled to be building my list. I’m acquiring secondary world speculative fiction, including science fiction, fantasy, and cross-genre books. 

I’m especially interested in acquiring books that have richly imagined worlds (whether or not they’re explained on the page) that explore power structures and hold intersectional understandings of experience (the Broken Earth Trilogy, An Unkindness of Ghosts, A Memory Called Empire) and books by authors who are marginalized in some way, especially BIPOC authors and authors who are disabled, queer, and trans.

Other elements I love:

—Stories that are driven by character, and where themes and interpersonal intrigue drive narrative tension more than plot (The Goblin Emperor, A Memory Called Empire)

—Politics and court intrigue, where people speak in subtext, especially when the power dynamics involved are related to empire and class (The Traitor Baru Cormorant, The Goblin Emperor, The Hands of the Emperor)

—Sentience in different forms, such as hive minds, unusual POVs, and non-humanoid aliens (Arrival, Ancillary Justice, Leech)

—Protagonists who are middle-aged or older, polyamorous, who are experts at something and apply those skills, or who have complex morality or are villains (Some Desperate Glory)

—Queernormative worlds and gender subversions

—Gorgeous, poetic language

I am actively seeking submissions from authors of underrepresented backgrounds, especially BIPOC authors.

(she/her)

Since 2013, I’ve been HEA with Tor Publishing Group where I’m actively acquiring speculative fiction for adults, teens, and middle-grade readers, as well as humorous nonfiction for adults. 

I’m a big fan of comedy in all genres so please send me the manuscripts that make you laugh and I love to see submissions from BIPOC and LGBTQIA2S+ writers. 

FOR TOR, NIGHTFIRE, BRAMBLE, TOR TEEN, AND STARSCAPE: I’m interested in diverse and inclusive commercial speculative fiction with off-the-charts character chemistry, truly original world-building, and strong opinionated voices. 

I’ve been a Tor fangirl since high school when I read Jacqueline Carey’s Kushiel’s Dart and Juliet Marillier’s Daughter of the Forest. Iconic. These days my manuscript wish list includes new and original takes on folklore, possession, rivals-to-lovers, fake dating, witches, magic that requires tangible spellcraft, classic little guy aliens, and more. I’m into romance of all spice levels—from zero to four chili-pepper emojis—and I’m eager to see more gender and body diversity. Historical and dystopian settings generally don’t hit for me.

On the adult side, I acquired, edited, and debuted work from TJ Klune (The House in the Cerulean Sea, Under the Whispering Door, In the Lives of Puppets, and repackages of the previously published Green Creek Series), Everina Maxwell (Winter’s Orbit, Ocean’s Echo), and Ananda Lima (Craft: Stories I Wrote for the Devil). I manage Ursula K. Le Guin’s backlist with Tor and I’m working with Jennifer L. Armentrout on Fall of Ruin and Wrath, the first-ever book to be published under Bramble!

On the kids’ side, I’m currently working with Terry J. Benton-Walker (Blood Debts, The White Guy Dies First), P. Djèlí Clark (Abeni’s Song), Amanda Foody and C. L. Herman (All of Us Villains, A Fate So Cold), TJ Klune (The Extraordinaries Series), Kristen Simmons (Find Him Where You Left Him Dead), and more to be announced! 

FOR FORGE: I’m interested in feel-good, humorous nonfiction. I love niche cultural explorations with vulnerability and heart. 

I acquired and edited #1 New York Times bestseller Stay Sexy & Don’t Get Murdered by comedians Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, co-hosts of My Favorite Murder, as well as A Bathroom Book for People Not Pooping or Peeing but Using the Bathroom as an Escape by comedian Joe Pera and illustrator Joe Bennett, I Will Not Die Alone by Dera White and illustrator Joe Bennett, and Raw Dog: The Naked Truth About Hot Dogs by comedian and podcaster Jamie Loftus.

I am not currently taking unagented or unsolicited manuscripts.

(they/them)

I started at TPG in 2019 as Tor.com’s first ever short fiction coordinator and since joined the editorial team of Tordotcom Publishing. I’m a graduate of Portland State University’s publishing program, and I was previously at the The New Press and Ooligan Press. I am actively acquiring adult SFF (both novel and novella-length) and building my list.

I am a character-reader first and foremost, and my favorite stories feature characters who leap to life off the page and I can’t stop thinking about long after I’ve finished reading. Equally important to me, their characterizations are firmly embedded in and simultaneously a result of and a response to the world in which they inhabit. 

Particular weaknesses of mine include messy, complex characters who have a questionable, arbitrary relationship to morality (fictional or otherwise); thorny, complicated interpersonal relationships of any kind that tug at my heartstrings; found/forged/blended families; and intricate plotting & storytelling.

I am actively seeking/open to submissions from authors from underrepresented backgrounds.

Other things I love:

• Sweeping, multilayered stories with complicated politics, shifting alliances, and/or subterfuge (e.g. Micaiah Johnson’s The Space Between Worlds, Yoon Ha Lee’s Empires of Machineries series; Lara Elena Donnelly’s Amberlough Dossier).
• World-building that feels immersive, lived-in, idiosyncratic, and/or truly fantastical (e.g. Fonda Lee’s Green Bone Saga; N. K. Jemisin’s The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms; Frances Hardinge’s A Face Like Glass).
• Stories that interrogate power and the power dynamics and narratives underlying a culture, an empire, a society, a family, etc., whether they’re set in in a fully made-up world or the world we live in (e.g. N. K. Jemisin’s Broken Earth trilogy; Gretchen Felker-Martin’s Manhunt; R.F. Kuang’s Poppy War trilogy).
• Stories rooted in Jewish history, culture(s), and/or narratives (e.g. Naomi Novik’s Spinning Silver, Leigh Bardugo’s Ninth House, Ava Reid’s The Wolf and the Woodsman, Veronica Schanoes’s Burning Girls and Other Stories). 
• Queerness that doesn’t necessarily look like “our” understanding of queerness (for varied definitions of “our”) regarding how gender, sexuality, and/or relationships are imagined, embodied, and lived (e.g. Shelley Parker-Chan’s She Who Became the Sun; Ann Leckie’s Imperial Radch trilogy; Guillermo del Toro’s Pacific Rim; Sacha Lamb’s When the Angels Left the Old Country). 

I’m also interested in stories with trans and/or gender-nonconforming protagonists; protagonists on the aromantic and/or ace spectrum; stories that de-center the primacy of romance and/or center around non-romantic relationships of any and all kinds; and stories in which sex and/or eroticism is a central part of the world-building while standing separate from romance (e.g. Jacqueline Carey’s Kushiel’s Dart).

And of course, I am always open to falling in love with something I never even knew I wanted or needed in my life!

(she/her)

I’ve been with TPG since 2017, and I want to give readers their deepest wishes. Whether that’s seeing themselves, trying out the inside of someone else’s head, or just a book that pairs well with an adult beverage after a hard day.

For the most part, I’m a genre omnivore. That said, my heart belongs to science fiction and horror. I love emotionally grounded adult fiction that runs from warmth and teamwork to nihilistic horror. Whether it’s hard or squishy, space opera or first contact, I’m looking for compelling characters in a book that feels like you’re watching it instead of reading it.

Things I love: snappy dialogue, complex world building, veins of weirdness and dark humor, ensemble casts and found families, cool people snarking and blowing things up then going in for a good ugly cry.

Secret wishlist: a Dark Academia book, but with a cut-throat faculty, not the students (think The Chair, but with magic), in system” sf, complicated first contacts, and stuff I didn’t know I needed until it fell into my lap in the best of surprises.

Science Fiction I love includes but isn’t limited to: The Expanse, Firefly, Andor, Severance, Foundation, The Last Watch, Semiosis, the varied permutations of Dune.

Horror I shudder to: folk horror (Wickerman, Midsomer), supernatural horror, gothic horror, ghost stories, Nope, Sf horror like Event Horizon, Alien, Housebound, Mary, Cassandra Khaw, S. A. Barnes.

But above all I want nuance—in the worlds, in characters, in dialogue. The books that I find most compelling engage with new ideas, alternate or immersive worlds, new science, and new spins on old tropes.

I have the pleasure of working with a number of talented Tor authors such as Sue Burke, J. S. Dewes, Nat Cassidy, L. E. Modesitt, and Brian Staveley.

Both commercial and literary genre is welcome. I would love to see more diverse material in my inbox both in terms of authorship as well as characters.

I am not currently taking unagented or unsolicited manuscripts.

(she/her)

I’ve been with Tor Publishing Group since 2017, where I have the privilege of working with bestselling and award-winning authors like Joe Abercrombie, Cixin Liu, Veronica Roth, Ryka Aoki, and Olivie Blake. I am looking for adult SFF for our Tor list, and below are just a few of the elements I’d love to see in my next reads —

Dark contemporary fantasy with clear writing, instantly compelling voice, and high intensity pacing like in Sunyi Dean’s The Book Eaters, V. E. Schwab’s Vicious, and Scott Hawkins’s The Library at Mount Char.

Voice-y as hell adventures like Christopher Buehlman’s The Blacktongue Thief and Annalee Newitz’s Autonomous (bonus points if the read makes me laugh but isn’t ‘comedic SFF’)

Epics that have All The Stuff — wizards! gods! monsters! thieves! legends! curses! journeys! betrayals! awakenings! the whole high fantasy shebang — yet feel wholly original, like in A.K. Larkwood’s The Unspoken Name, Jenn Lyons’s The Ruin of Kings, and Nicholas Eames’s Kings of the Wyld.

Novels where the power of words and stories, books or libraries, is a central part of the narrative and/or where these elements are used in an original, fantastical way, like R. F. Kuang’s Babel and Jo Walton’s Among Others.

I’m a sucker for original and dimensional portrayals of magical creatures — orcs, goblins, trolls, bone dogs, war birds — both as main characters or in supporting roles, like in C. M. Waggoner’s Unnatural Magic and Travis Baldree’s Legends & Lattes. 

Unexpected magic in our real world, paired with prose that sweeps you away, like in Ryka Aoki’s Light From Uncommon Stars.

Subversive and engaging retellings and reimaginings.

Original stories that feel like instant classics, reads with something bone-deep and timeless to them, like T. Kingfisher’s Nettle & Bone and N.K. Jemisin’s The Fifth Season.

Subtle, creeping dread and ratcheting tension found in seemingly everyday situations, like in T. Kingfisher’s A House with Good Bones & Hildur Knútsdóttir’s The Night Guest. I am intrigued by settings and situations where the familiarity of it all adds to the horror of what is going wrong in the book. 

All things witchy, particularly sisterhoods and covens that center POC and aren’t strictly tied to the gender binary.

I’m currently looking for reads more on the fantastical side of speculative fiction rather than outer space/technological side. Voice that hooks you right away and pacing and tension that won’t let you go are very important to me – with clear stakes and deeply felt consequences along the way ideally. But I’m always very open to falling in love with something I didn’t even know I wanted until I’ve seen it.

I am not currently taking unagented or unsolicited manuscripts.

(he/him/his)

I joined Tordotcom Publishing in 2014 in order to head up the editorial arm of the new imprint, publishing fiction from novella length through to novels and series.

At Tordotcom I work with Nnedi Okorafor (Binti), Paul Cornell (Witches of Lychford), Seanan McGuire (Wayward Children), Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries, Witch King), Becky Chambers (Monk and Robot) and many more. I’m looking for science fiction and fantasy of all flavors, with a minimum word count of around 20,000 words, though my novella preference is for books of 30k or longer. For novels, the only limit is the length the story needs, so anything up to—and beyond—150,000 words is fine, if that’s what makes the story work. I love a good techno-thriller, and I’m equally at home with an intriguing urban fantasy or space opera. What matters to me is a strong authorial voice, with believable and compelling characters. Combine those with a strong plot and you’ll have me hooked.

(she/her)

I joined Tor in 2019, and since then I have had the privilege of working with terrifyingly talented authors like Catriona Ward, Gretchen Felker-Martin, Lucy A. Snyder, S.A. Barnes, and Chuck Tingle. I acquire adult horror for Nightfire, and am always searching for unique stories to keep me up at night.

I’m currently seeking the following types of nightmare fuel for my list:

Creatively reinvented nightmarish fairytales and folklore — preferably those outside the Western canon — like in Cassandra Khaw’s Nothing But Blackened Teeth and Alex Grecian’s Red Rabbit.

Cleverly subverted horror tropes with contemporary twists that add a unique or irreverent spin to the source material, like CJ Leede’s Maeve Fly, Anne Heltzel’s Just Like Mother, and Stephen Graham Jones’ My Heart is a Chainsaw.

High-stakes horror with a beating heart that centers marginalized or POC voices, like those found in Gretchen Felker-Martin’s Manhunt, Chuck Tingle’s Camp Damascus, and Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s Mexican Gothic.

Thrilling, heart-pounding stories that are impossible to put down and have a speculative bent, like Catriona Ward’s The Last House on Needless Street and Sundial, and S.A. Barnes’ Dead Silence.

“Monsters as metaphors” and “man as monster” that show the dark side of humanity, or what happens to us when we’re pushed into circumstances outside our control, like in Liz Kerin’s Night’s Edge, Agustina Bazterrica’s Tender is the Flesh, and Rachel Harrison’s Such Sharp Teeth.

Atmospheric hauntings of any kind — real, metaphorical, gothic, gruesome, contemporary — like in Leopoldo Gout’s Piñata, Johnny Compton’s The Spite House, Erika T. Wurth’s White Horse, and Paul Tremblay’s A Head Full of Ghosts.

No matter the subcategory, I’m always excited to see stories that really push the boundaries, or tackle themes like power imbalances or injustices in our current world, or highlight POVs of people outside the status quo. Horror with a message — good, bad, or ugly — is very important to me!

I am not currently taking unagented or unsolicited manuscripts.

(he/him)

I have worked at TPG since 2019 and I am thrilled to be building my list at Tordotcom! I am open to novels as well as novellas longer than 20,000 words.

My tastes and interests are intensely varied, though a few constants do exist, namely: Fully-dimensional character work; worlds, landscapes, and settings that exhibit a subtle, surreal, and unexplainable “otherness;” and stories that feature multiple POVs, specifically ones that don’t directly intersect. Think David Mitchell’s Cloud Atlas.

More narrative elements I love are listed below:

Normal People in Abnormal Circumstances: I am easily hooked by characters who initially feel mundane, but whose deeper complexity is exposed to the reader through situations of the fantastic, the uncanny, the surreal (a big one), or the terrifying. Examples include Esther in Kate Elliott’s The Keeper’s Six, Will Navidson in Mark Z. Danielewski’s House of Leaves, Fran in Kelly Link’s “The Summer People,” and Bhan in Saad Z. Hossain’s The Gurka and the Lord of Tuesday.

Ecofiction: I am a sucker for tales of nature rising up against the sapient creatures who have so recklessly polluted it. Think VanderMeer’s Annihilation.

Hard Hitting, Emotional Books: I am especially moved by stories that deal with themes of prejudice, catch-22s, serious sacrifices, injustice, loneliness and heartbreak, and transformational loss. I am also moved by stories that embrace the bittersweet, the return-to-home, the coming-of-age, and the concept of serenity/acceptance.

Flowery Prose: Obviously, it is hard to get this right and easy to overdo. Works I feel have succeeded in this space include Arundhati Roy’s The God of Small Things, Eugene Lim’s Dear Cyborgs, Norman Maclean’s A River Runs Through It, and Anne Carson’s Autobiography of Red.

Science Fantasy: Give me death-robots, but make them binge sitcoms (Martha Wells’ Murderbot Diaries); give me generational tension, but with Big-Tech’s egregious exploitation of personal privacy (George Saunders’ “My Flamboyant Grandson”), give me slippery alternate realities, but also getting stuck in rush-hour traffic (Haruki Murakami’s 1Q84).

I hesitate to identify anything I wouldn’t like to see, as I think books belong on shelves not in boxes. However, it will likely be more difficult to sell me horror that is particularly graphic (a recent exception is Hiron Ennes’ Leech), thrillers, new adult romance, or hard science fiction.

Finally, I love baseball. A dream, long-shot submission is a work of fantastical realism that does for the modern age what Bernard Malamud did for the 20th Century with The Natural.

(she/her)

I see the job of editor as parts midwife, professional reader, project manager, and bartender. We deliver new voices to voracious readers, help polish stories until they resonate, advocate for our authors, and—probably most important—keep the drinks coming on time.

While I have always read widely, my focus is on crime, suspense, historical, and women’s fiction, and I am especially looking for novels with a diverse cast of characters and strong female voices. The things I loved about my first acquisition, the award-winning A Trace of Smoke by Rebecca Cantrell—a strong, yet sensitive, female sleuth; a rich historical setting; a thrilling mystery—still resonate with me today. I would also love to see great upmarket women’s fiction about familial relationships (mothers, daughters, sisters, friends). My interest is particularly piqued any time these relationships form the backbone of a crime novel, and domestic/psychological suspense is a particular sweet spot. The short pitch is: “Suspense goes to book club.”

That being said, if you had asked me years ago if I was looking for a novel about a reincarnated dog, I likely would have said no. And yet, the bestselling A Dog’s Purpose by W. Bruce Cameron has been an incredible success. I learned early that acquiring widely is the best way to fulfill my appetite for storytelling.

Some authors that I am honored to have worked with are W. Bruce Cameron, Julie Carrick Dalton, Candice Fox, Matt Goldman, Loren Estleman, Rachel Howzell Hall, T. Jefferson Parker, Spencer Quinn, Lev AC Rosen, Hank Phillippi Ryan, Patrick Taylor, Aggie Blum Thompson, and Heather Webber.

I am not currently taking unagented or unsolicited manuscripts.

As a voracious reader of all things SFF and a lifelong fan of the Tor list, I am thrilled to be joining the crew of the mothership, where I’m looking to build an inclusive list of epic fantasy and science fiction for adult readers.

My favorite reads are stylish, confident, immersive, built on a bleeding cool premise, and savvy about the tropes of the genre they’re in. Across all genres, I’m always on the hunt for work that aims to carve out space in—or argue with—the rest of the canon, especially from LGBTQIA+, BIPOC, neurodiverse, disabled, or other marginalized perspectives.

In fantasy, I’m looking for epic sagas and sword-and-sorcery adventures, emphasis on the and sorcery. Give me hard magic systems heavy on categorization and rules, gods and dragons, mages and mythmaking, all in richly imagined worlds. What do you get the commercial fantasy reader who’s already read everything? I want the next must-read for fans who think they’ve seen it all. I’m a fan of Sanderson, Weeks, Rothfuss, Jemisin, Guy Gavriel Kay, RF Kuang, Fonda Lee, Naomi Novik, and VE Schwab. I’m also interested in the intersection where lush historical fiction crosses fantasy (Susanna Clarke, Circe, Babel).

In SF, take me to space: I’m looking for universes that are teeming with human diasporas and creatively imagined alien life. I love space battles, the Prime Directive, mecha anime, and science that will break my brain and reconfigure it (Arrival, The Future of Another Timeline). Current obsessions include the Imperial Radch, The Expanse, Red Rising, the Wayfarers series, and the Vorkosigan Saga.

I’m also partial to romance/romantasy that uses speculative elements to heighten the emotional stakes. Think immortality, time slips and time loops, cheating death or journeying to the underworld, or soulmate tropes. I will always be looking for queer love stories, and prioritize slow-burning tension. If it reads like fanfic–with emotional immediacy and a clear love for its characters–or if it used to BE a fanfic, I will probably adore it.

A few of my favorite things to see across genres:
• Settings and plotlines that imbue a book with an elevated sense of structure and atmosphere: think magical schools (The Poppy War, The Name of the Wind) or space academies (Red Rising), secret societies, tournaments and competitions, or courts full of fealty and hierarchy and betrayal.
• Writing that plays with language, POV, and/or form to drive its themes (The Fifth Season, the Imperial Radch). Epistolary fiction like The Tiger’s Daughter or This Is How You Lose the Time War, and frame stories fueled by strong narrators’ voices and complex motives.
• Stories from other genres told expansively in SFF settings: retellings, disaster epics, heists, mysteries, mob movies. “X, but in space/but with magic”–yes, please.
• Compelling villains you find yourself rooting for just because you want to see what they’ll do next (think Grand Admiral Thrawn). Send me new Problematic Faves… and set them against hypercompetent protagonists that the plot finds new and exciting ways to challenge (Murderbot, The Witcher).
• I love a strong thread of humor: banter and snark, a sly or wry voice, or meta/self-/genre-aware comedy a la Redshirts, The Princess Bride, or your wisecrackingest friend’s D&D campaign. And if you could somehow find me a successor to Terry Pratchett, I would happily make a deal with any demon you like.

I come to Tor from a decade in middle grade and YA publishing at Harper Children’s, where I had the pleasure of working with acclaimed and bestselling authors like Ava Reid (A Study in Drowning), Andre Norton Award finalist Shveta Thakrar (Star Daughter), and Sarah Underwood (Lies We Sing to the Sea). For the Tor list, I’m still interested in “cross-under” adult fiction with broad appeal to adult and YA readerships. If you’re not sure whether a book would fit best in the adult or YA market, send it to me and I’d love to help you decide!

(she/her)