10 Agents Looking for Bold, Voice-Driven Work
Where to Query This Week (5.28.25) | Plus how to know what an agent really wants when they request your work
Welcome to Sub Club’s Where to Query This Week!
Querying a literary agent is a thrilling milestone—but what happens when they say yes and ask to see more? Whether you’re writing fiction, nonfiction, a memoir, or a picture book, different genres come with different expectations.
In this generous guide, literary agent Maria Vicente from P.S. Literary walks us through exactly what you need to have ready before you hit send.
What Agents Actually Want to See When They Request Your Work
I know that writers work extremely hard to get their query letters noticed by literary agents. When we peer into any agent’s inbox, the difference between the number of query letters received and the number of requests for material sent out is upsetting.
Your query letter is up against a lot of competition, and you only get one chance to make a good first impression. The best way to prepare for this part of your publishing journey is to not send out query letters before your work is complete and ready to be shared.
Realistically, there are only two things that need to be true for you to start sending your work to literary agents:
The agents you want to query are open to submissions.
You have the material an agent will want to read.
As a writer, you can’t do anything to change #1, but you can make sure you have everything you’ll need when an agent requests your work. The expectations change depending on the type of project, so let’s make it crystal clear by looking at each category.
Fiction
If you’re writing a novel, your book needs to be 100% complete before you begin querying literary agents (I’m sorry). Agents will expect you to send the finished manuscript, so before you wow anyone with your pitch, make sure the book is done. You should also have a full manuscript synopsis prepared. Agents will ask for synopses of different lengths, so I recommend writing a few versions: a five-page synopsis, a three-page synopsis, and a one-page synopsis.
Nonfiction
If you’re pitching a nonfiction book, you don’t need to have a complete manuscript before you reach out to literary agents. However, you do need a book proposal that accurately portrays the book you intend to write. Your book proposal should contain an overview section, an author bio, information about the intended audience of your book, comparison titles, a table of contents, chapter summaries, and a few sample chapters.
Memoir
Memoir is a little tricky. While it’s technically nonfiction, the narrative structure is similar to a novel. There’s no true consensus on what literary agents will ask to read when pitched a memoir; some want to see a book proposal (see “nonfiction” above), others want to review a full manuscript (see “fiction” above). Your safest bet is to have both. Write the full manuscript before you begin querying, but also put together a short book proposal for those agents who want to see it.
Graphic Novel and Graphic Nonfiction
We’re not done with the tricky train just yet. Graphic novels are an anomaly, because agents will expect you to have a proposal whether your book is fiction or nonfiction. If you are an author/illustrator, you absolutely do not need to complete the entire graphic novel before sending out query letters—that’s years of physical work! You want to write a book proposal (see “nonfiction” above for what should be in that proposal), but instead of sample chapters, you’ll need to include sample pages—I recommend at least 10 fully finished. If you’re submitting a graphic novel as a script writer, i.e. you’re not illustrating the book, you’ll still need a book proposal, but also a minimum of 50 script pages. If I’m being completely honest, though, it’s difficult to find representation and sell a script-only graphic novel submission. Writing the entire script will be to your benefit.
Picture Book
A picture book is typically under 1,000 words, so of course, you need to have the full manuscript written—fiction or nonfiction! If you’re the illustrator, you also need a picture book dummy with a few completed spreads and the rest of the pages sketched out.
Now that you know what you need, how do you know if your manuscript or proposal is ready to be shared? There are no formal guidelines, but your work should have been revised—likely a few times—before you begin sharing it with literary agents.
You might feel the pressure to have a “perfect” manuscript or book proposal. Just remember that “perfect” doesn’t exist. There’s always something that can be improved, and there’s always a typo that can be missed—that’s why editors are to be celebrated.
Here is the very best advice I can give you when it comes to evaluating if you’re ready to share your work: If someone published your book today, exactly as it is written in your manuscript document (or outlined in your book proposal), would you be happy with readers seeing that version?
If you consider this scenario and immediately think about something in your book you’d want to change before it’s sent to the printer, then you know you need to go make that change before sending out your query letters. If, when considering this scenario, you feel at peace, then your book is probably where it needs to be for you to feel confident sharing it with literary agents.
Maria Vicente is a Senior Literary Agent and Advisor at P.S. Literary Agency, representing creators of innovative and beautiful books for readers of all ages. With over a decade of experience in the publishing industry, Maria has helped launch the careers of many bestselling, award-winning, and critically acclaimed authors and illustrators. Whether it’s collaborating on manuscript drafts and proposals, negotiating book deals, or exploring adaptation opportunities, she advocates for her clients every step of the way. Maria is a member of the Association of American Literary Agents (AALA) and the Professional Association of Canadian Literary Agents (PACLA). She lives in New Brunswick, Canada, reading and selling books from the Atlantic Ocean shore.
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In this week’s list, I’ve gathered agents currently open to queries across a variety of genres who are actively seeking work that is bold and driven when it comes to voice. Whether you're writing fiction or nonfiction, these agents are drawn to distinctive perspectives, strong prose, and stories that take risks.
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