Adult Fiction
‘s THE DISASTER GAY DETECTIVE AGENCY, a contemporary humorous mystery, in which a group of queer friends, each a loveable disaster in their own way, accidentally get mixed up in a bewildering murder and must solve it before one of them becomes the next victim, to Jenna Jankowski at Poisoned Pen Press, at auction, in a two-book deal, by Joy Tutela at David Black Literary Agency.
‘s YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN HOME NOW, a queer adult horror that follows a childhood trauma survivor who is dragged back to the scene of the crimes he experienced by a documentary filmmaker and finds the ghosts of his past alive and bloodthirsty, to Daniel Carpenter at Titan Books, in a nice deal, for publication in February 2027, by Sam Farkas at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).
Medievalist ‘s THE WOLF AND HIS KING, a queer medieval fantasy retelling of the French werewolf legend of Bisclavret, about a knight cursed with lycanthropy who earns the love of a young king, to Diana Pho at Erewhon, in a two-book deal, for publication in early 2026, by Tara Hiatt at Gollancz (NA).
‘s A CURSE CARVED IN INK, in which a young woman inherits a curse inspired by Chinese vampire lore that demands she kill her best friend, and must embark on five trials in hell to release her victim’s imprisoned soul and destroy the curse once and for all — but along the way is swept off her feet by both the flirtatious Goddess of Death and the broody Judge of Hell, in a bisexual love triangle romantasy, to Charlotte Trumble at Simon & Schuster UK and Anthea Bariamis at Atria Australia, in a major deal, at auction, in a two-book deal, for publication in January 2027, by Naomi Davis at BookEnds (world).
‘s Summer 1973 trilogy, a queer coming-of-age horror set against the backdrop of ’70s car culture and the Houston mass murders, to David-Jack Fletcher at Slashic Horror Press, in a nice deal, in an exclusive submission, in a three-book deal, for publication in March 2026 (world English).
Literature professor and coauthor of TAYLOR SWIFT BY THE BOOK Rachel Feder and author of THE Z WORD Lindsay King-Miller’s DORIAN∕GRAY, pitched as a retelling of THE PICTURE OF DORIAN GRAY, set in a dystopian near-future where the rich are assigned poor scapegoats who experience all the negative consequences of their actions through quantum entanglement, following privileged and careless Dorian, his scapegoat Gray, and their mutual love interest, to Jess Zimmerman at Quirk Books, in an exclusive submission, for publication in fall 2026, by Becky LeJeune at Bond Literary Agency for Feder and by Kate McKean at Howard Morhaim Literary Agency for King-Miller (world).
‘s STITCHER, a debut M/M dark fantasy, in which a Stitcher and his Builder, who reanimate corpses in an alternate-world London where immortality goes to the highest bidder, must stop a murderous cult bent on destroying the death trade, while a forbidden romance awakens between them, to Lydia Sharp at Amara, in an exclusive submission, for publication in 2026, by Brent Taylor at TriadaUS Literary Agency (world).
‘s DECOMPOSITION BOOK, a survival drama and twisted queer love story, following two young women: an ill-fated hiker who gets lost in the woods, and the desperately lonely student who finds her dead body, pitched as for fans of Yellowjackets and Mona Awad, to Leah Mol at Hanover Square Press, in a pre-empt, in a two-book deal, by Julie Flanagan at CAA (NA).
Author of the forthcoming WINGING IT WITH YOU ‘s DEARLY DEPARTED, pitched as a modern-day Hades-inspired gay rom-com, in which the former god of the underworld turned grumpy (and mortal…ish) small-town funeral director is determined to find a loophole in the Immortality Retirement Act that banished him and his siblings to Earth, only for these meticulously curated plans to be disrupted by the seemingly sunshiny florist next door who sees life in full bloom, to Tarini Sipahimalani at Putnam, in a two-book deal, for publication in summer 2026, by Jessica Watterson at Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency (world).
Author of STRANGE BEASTS ‘s WAYWARD SOULS, a sequel in the Harker & Moriarty series, in which the pair are thrown into their next case: an investigation of two missing field agents that takes them from the crumbling ruins of Ireland’s untamed wilds to the occult societies of the rich and powerful, while haunted by death omens, mysterious black feathers, and ghosts, to Kathryn Budig at Bindery Books, for publication in March 2026, by Jennifer Azantian at Azantian Literary Agency.
‘s OLD PAL, about a young trans man whose bus breaks down in small-town Montana and an eccentric stranger who insists on befriending him, forcing him to question his safety and sense of belonging in an unfamiliar world, a story of personal discovery and what it means to be a friend, a brother, and a man, to Madeline Woda at Hogarth, by Bill Clegg at The Clegg Agency (US).
Author-illustrator of BOYS WEEKEND ‘s graphic novel BETWEEN THE COLLAPSES, a sci-fi romance about a trans woman being pursued through time by her worst ex-girlfriend, to Anna Kaufman at Pantheon, by Kate McKean at Howard Morhaim Literary Agency.
Author of NYT Notable novel THE MERCIES ‘s ALMOST LIFE, pitched for readers of David Nicolls and Sally Rooney, a decades-spanning love story between two women who meet on the steps of Sacre-Coeur in Paris in the late 1970s; a novel of longing for the paths not taken, and the almost lives we live, to Judy Clain at Summit, in a pre-empt, for publication in spring 2026, by Dorian Karchmar at William Morris Endeavor (NA).
Author of MESSY PERFECT ‘s SETTING THE STAGE FOR CHRISTMAS, the author’s adult debut, a f/f rom-com in which a local theatre director is forced to work on the holiday show with the set-builder ex who broke her heart, even as that ex is in town to sell a beloved institution that the holiday play is supposed to save, to Katherena Vermette at Simon & Schuster Canada, in an exclusive submission, for publication in fall 2026, by Jim McCarthy at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret (NA).
‘s graphic novel WHAT WE LEAVE BEHIND, braiding together the author’s coming of age as a queer Chinese-Canadian immigrant and a trip to China that reorients their understanding of family and home, to Lydia Nguyen at Abrams ComicArts, at auction, by Maggie Cooper at Aevitas Creative Management (world).
Former Center for Fiction Susan Kamil Fellow and Brooklyn College MFA graduate ‘s WAITING ON A FRIEND, set in 1984 New York, about a young queer woman who sees ghosts, something she’s doing more and more lately as too many of her friends are dying of AIDS, and her search for the one ghost who refuses to return, to David Ebershoff at Hogarth, at auction, for publication in spring 2026, by Julie Barer at The Book Group (NA).
Bram Stoker Award-nominated author of HEADS WILL ROLL ‘s BE STILL MY UNBEATING HEART, a cozy, queer, vacation mystery pitched as Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Roman Holiday, in which a vampire who travels to a tiny Italian village with his talking cat in tow stumbles across a body and into the arms of a dashing police detective, to Daphne Durham at Putnam, by Kristina Perez at Perez Literary & Entertainment (world).
Therapist and playwright Rachel Calnek-Sugin’s UNIVERSE OF GRACE, a queer, multiverse, coming-of-age story pitched as equal parts Miranda July, Emily Habeck, and Evelyn Quan Wang, following a Philadelphian girl after a jaguar at the zoo tells her she isn’t human, and traveling through the surprising turns of her life as she tries to figure out what—alien? animal? machine?—she might be instead, exploring themes of identity and how to stay human amid systemic oppression, late-stage capitalism, and climate catastrophe, to Andy Tan-Delli Cicchi at Holt, in a good deal, at auction, for publication in fall 2026, by Rayhane Sanders at Massie McQuilkin & Altman (NA).
Eden Robins and Mary Winn Heider writing as Birdie Horne’s DON’T CROSS MO ELLERY, a humorous murder mystery pitched as “unhinged Nancy Drew,” following a chaotic bisexual hot mess, who, after accidentally exposing her partner’s genitals in a work Zoom meeting, stumbles into a gig as a school crossing guard, witnesses the mysterious death (murder?) of a reviled poodle owner, and decides to investigate, to Nate Lanman at William Morrow, by Cameron McClure at Donald Maass Literary Agency (world English).
Sarah Glenn Marsh’s WE COULD BE (ANTI)HEROES, pitched as s gay Lord of the Rings, an m/m romantasy in which ex-best friends, the descendants of heroes, must team up to find treasure in a haunted swamp—one working for the enemy, the other trying to walk in his father’s footsteps—only to fall for each other and choose a side all their own, pitched as for fans of Travis Baldree and Sara Raasch, to Melissa Rechter at Alcove Press, for publication in spring 2026, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world).
Author of SMOKE SEASON Amy Hagstrom’s NOW THAT I KNOW YOU BY HEART, queer women’s fiction in which a widow moves to the picturesque San Juan Islands to rehab a failing inn and befriends the charming locals, including a woman who offers an appealing new twist on the idea of a fresh start, to Chantelle Aimee Osman at Lake Union Publishing, by Abby Saul at The Lark Group.
Winner of the 2023 Prix Renaudot Ann Scott’s SUPERSTARS, originally published by Flammarion in 2000 and translated by Jonathan Woollen, a portrait of Paris’s queer underground nightlife in the 1990s and its smokescreens of fame, fortune, fashion, sex, and drugs, following a woman who one day receives a life-changing record deal and finds herself torn between a future as a techno producer and a past in punk rock, pitched in the vein of Virginie Despentes and Gary Indiana, to Tara Sharma at Astra House, in a pre-empt, for publication in spring 2026, by Alexander Reubert at HG Literary (NA).
Author of THE HIGH MOUNTAIN COURT A.K. Mulford’s DREAMSLAYER, the first in a dark sapphic trilogy where a dream falls in love with a nightmare and they are forced to find a way out of hell together, to David Pomerico at Voyager, in a major deal, in a three-book deal, for publication in 2026, by Jessica Watterson at Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency (world English).
Falencia Jean-Francois’s DEVIL OF THE DEEP, a queer Caribbean adventure fantasy in which a pirate, a navy captain, and a young mermaid attempt to thwart an underwater cult’s efforts to raise their island and destroy the world above, to Michael LaBorn at Bindery Books, for publication in spring 2026 (world).
Children’s/Middle Grade Fiction
Star of RuPaul’s Drag Race and HBO’s Emmy award-winning We’re Here Eureka O’Hara’s JACKSON BRIGHT IN THE SPOTLIGHT, written with Dan Poblocki and pitched as Dumplin’ meets RuPaul’s Drag Race, in which a fierce and fabulous boy decides to enter his narrow-minded town’s beloved “Little Miss” pageant in drag in response to the backlash he receives for wearing a dress to school; and CLOVER AND THE SONGBIRD, written with Roxy Taylor and Sandra Miller, to Emily Daluga while at Abrams Children’s, with Claire Stetzer editing book two, in a six-figure deal, in a two-book deal, by David Purse at Inked Entertainment (world English).
Rebecca Bendheim’s WHEN YOU’RE BRAVE ENOUGH, pitched for fans of Jake Maia Arlow and Kyle Lukoff, in which landing the lead in the school musical and preparing for her bat mitzvah push a queer eighth grader to ask big questions about who she wants to be in the world; and HOW TO TAKE A RISK, in which a 12-year-old tomboy spends the summer completing a list of epic challenges with her best friend, but with her first crush on a girl, she learns that facing her emotions head-on can be the biggest risk of all, to Kelsey Murphy at Viking Children’s, in a very nice deal, at auction, in a two-book deal, for publication in spring 2026 and spring 2027, by Patricia Nelson while at Marsal Lyon Literary Agency (world English).
Young Adult Fiction
Editor of BEING ACE and author of TARNISHED ARE THE STARS and FIRE BECOMES HER ‘s BEING ARO, an anthology of short stories in multiple genres from contemporary to fantasy to science fiction that celebrate and explore the sub-identities of the aromantic spectrum from a mixture of established and emerging YA writers, to Tamara Grasty at Page Street, in a nice deal, in an exclusive submission, for publication in summer 2026, by Saba Sulaiman and Amy A. Collilns at Talcott Notch Literary Services (world English).
Author of THE TAKING OF JAKE LIVINGSTON Ryan Douglass’s THE GREAT DISILLUSIONMENT OF NICK AND JAY, set in 1920s Harlem Renaissance, in which Nick Carrington and Jay Gatsby’s paths intertwine in both their passion for each other and anger at a society that is set to destroy them as they set out to execute a heist to rid Tom Buchanan of his ill-gotten wealth, to Carolina Mancheno Ortiz at HarperCollins, for publication in winter 2026, by Michael Bourret at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret (world).
Dom & Ink’s YA Horror graphic novel series the Queens of the Crypt, in which non-binary teen Barnaby Jones must team up with the fabulous undead Queens of the Crypt to embrace their role as a Crypt Keeper and protect the town of Widow’s Creek from unspeakable horror, to Alex Wolfe at Penguin Workshop, and Gabriela Taboas Zayas while at Penguin Workshop, in a three-book deal, with publication of book one in summer 2026 with books two and three to follow starting in spring 2028, by Lauren Gardener and Callen Martin at Bell Lomax Moreton Agency (world).
Classically trained clarinettist ‘s MIRRORWOVEN, a sapphic YA fantasy romance, set in a city inspired by Renaissance Venice, and following an aspiring concert lutenist, who has two rules: One: stay away from royalty; Two: don’t fall in love, to Megan Reid at Harper Fire, in a very nice deal, in a pre-empt, in a two-book deal, for publication in July 2026, by John Baker at Bell Lomax Moreton Agency.
NYT-bestselling author of WINGS OF STARLIGHT ‘s IMMORTAL GAME, pitched as a modern, sapphic fantasy retelling of Irish mythology, where a chess grandmaster crosses into a forbidden magical realm to save her sister and falls for her fae princess opponent, to Sara Goodman at Wednesday Books, for publication in spring 2026, by Claire Friedman and Jessica Mileo at Inkwell Management (NA).
Author of LOVELY DARK & DEEP ‘s THE NIGHT KING’S COURT, a sapphic YA fantasy about a girl with the power to weave illusions through candle-magic who infiltrates a magical midnight court to find her missing father, only to discover she’s now trapped in the same enchanted Collection that may have claimed him, pitched as a queer THE NIGHT CIRCUS meets SPIRITED AWAY, to Clare Vaughn at Harper Children’s, for publication in winter 2026, by Natalie Lakosil and Antoinette Van Sluytman at Looking Glass Literary & Media (NA).
Author of AGNES & CAT Claire L. Smith’s WHEN WE ENTERED THAT HOUSE, a sapphic supernatural horror in which a teenage girl’s disappearance sends her best friend on a dangerous journey to find her, to David-Jack Fletcher at Slashic Horror Press, in a nice deal, in an exclusive submission, for publication in early 2026 (world English).
Rebecca Barrow’s DOE, a horror novel-in-verse about a viciously competitive cheer team in an unnamed town and the ravenous cunning beast stalking the girls; an exploration of the nature of girlhood itself and the deadly thrill of winning it all, to Stacey Barney at Nancy Paulsen Books, at auction, for publication in summer 2026, by Faye Bender at The Book Group (NA).
NYT-bestselling author of GIRLS LIKE GIRLS Hayley Kiyoko’s WHERE THERE’S ROOM FOR US, a tale of romance and self-discovery set in a reimagined 1880s Victorian England where everyone is free to love whoever they choose, to Sara Goodman and Vanessa Aguirre at Wednesday Books, for publication in November 2025, by Katelyn Dougherty at Paradigm (world).
Author of THE GIRLS I’VE BEEN Tess Sharpe’s HOW SHE FELL, about a teen filmmaker who sends her last moments to her best friend, revealing she did not fall off the bluffs like everyone thinks—she was pushed; her friend keeps the truth of her murder secret as she searches for her killer and plots to take revenge—and justice—into her own hands, to Lisa Yoskowitz at Little, Brown Children’s, in an exclusive submission, for publication in spring 2026, by Jim McCarthy at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret (world).
Non-Fiction and Poetry
Author of the Lambda Literary Finalist WHAT WE LOST IN THE SWAMP ‘s IN THE MIDDLE OF A BETTER WORLD, a poetry collection exploring queer love, human connection, and community – those we’re born into and those we build ourselves, to Michelle Halket at Central Avenue Poetry, for publication in February 2026 (world).
Idaho’s first out LGBTQ+ lawmaker, social justice activist, and former state senator ‘s LOVE AND PROTEST: A MEMOIR, pitched as an ideological inverse of HILLBILLY ELEGY that follows the author’s journey from wildland firefighter and lone backcountry ranger to leading civil rights fights and good trouble in one of the most beautiful and politically hostile states in the nation, to Joanna Green at Beacon Press, for publication in spring 2026, by Leslie Meredith at Dystel, Goderich & Bourret (world English).
Swarthmore professor Dr. Kirby Conrod, PhD’s HOW TO NONBINARY A LANGUAGE, an exploration of how languages adapt as s gender expands beyond the binary, to Julia Steer at Oxford University Press, at auction, by Kate McKean at Howard Morhaim Literary Agency.
Lambda Award-winning author of CALLING DR. LAURA and FETCH Nicole J. Georges’s RELATIVE FICTION, a queer, Syrian American memoir about uncovering the big family secret—that her father didn’t really die when she was young—and finding a whole new extended family and healing her relationship with her mother, to Vedika Khanna at Ten Speed Graphic, by Anjali Singh at Anjali Singh Agency (world).
DREAMSLAYER and DEVIL OF THE DEEP both sound fantastic.