Publishers Marketplace: Jill Grinberg

New and Upcoming Titles (Winter 2022)

SERENDIPITY: TEN ROMANTIC TROPES, TRANSFORMED edited by Marissa Meyer
MUST LOVE BOOKS by Shauna Robinson
MEET THE HAMANTASCHEN by Alan Silberberg
THE ACTOR'S MINDSET by Craig Archibald
THIS MIGHT GET AWKWARD by Kara McDowell
LADY ICARUS by Deborah Noyes
MORE SALT THAN DIAMOND by Aline Mello
INDEPENDENT STUDY THAT WORKS: DESIGNING A SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM by Geraldine Woods
FOUR AUNTIES AND A WEDDING by Jesse Q Sutanto
CONSIDER THE OCTOPUS by Nora Raleigh Baskin and Gae Polisner
THE 143-STORY TREEHOUSE by Andy Griffiths, illustrated by Terry Denton
YOUNGBLOODS by Scott Westerfeld
MY SISTER'S BIG FAT INDIAN WEDDING by Sajni Patel
THE MEMORY LIBRARIAN by Janelle Monáe, featuring Alaya Dawn Johnson

2021 Deals

Cody Luke Davis's HOUSE OF A THOUSAND LIES, a debut pitched as the sinister Southern horror of SHARP OBJECTS meets the complex family dynamics of MY SISTER, THE SERIAL KILLER, in which a woman must reckon with the ways she has been protecting her two sons after a cartographer discovers a mutilated skeleton in the woods behind the family estate, exploring generational trauma, American celebrity, and the lengths some will go to protect their image and legacy, to Benjamin LeRoy at Crooked Lane, with Sara Henry editing, in a two-book deal, for publication in fall 2022, by Sam Farkas at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world).

DIAL A FOR AUNTIES author Jesse Sutanto's I'M NOT DONE WITH YOU YET, pitched as THE PLOT meets YOU, about the complex and twisted friendship between two women writers—one successful and the other not—and the obsession one has with the other, exploring racial stereotypes, classism, and social status; plus a second thriller, two novels in her series featuring Meddelin Chan, and a standalone rom-com, to Cindy Hwang at Berkley, in a five-book deal, for publication in 2023, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (NA).

Aboriginal writer Ambelin Kwaymullina's LIAR'S TEST, about a teen girl who, after being held captive since childhood by the ruling sun priests of the risen, has now been selected as a candidate for the queen's test, giving her one chance to win the crown, topple the kingdom, and free her people, pitched as drawn from and inspired by the history of Aboriginal women and their resistance to settler colonialism, to Nancy Siscoe at Knopf Children's, in an exclusive submission, for publication in summer 2023, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (NA).

L. M. Elliott's GATES, about a teen girl serving as a Capitol page in D.C. in 1973, the year of Watergate and President Nixon's unraveling presidency, following the ways in which she and her politically minded friends must evolve their thinking in a time that forces them to question everything, including what they believe about the ERA and Phyllis Schlafly's fear-mongering campaign against it, illustrated with real-life photographs of the time, to Elise Howard at Algonquin Young Readers, for publication in 2024, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world).

Seina Wedlick's NIGHT MARKET, about a girl who spends a fantastical night at a Nigerian night market, illustrated by Briana Mukodiri Uchendu, to Ann Kelley at Random House Studio, for publication in summer 2024, by Alice Fugate at Joy Harris Agency for the author, and by Jessica Saint Jean at Jill Grinberg Literary Management for the illustrator (world).

Emeritus professor of history at George Washington University and author of CITY OF DREAMS and FIVE POINTS Tyler Anbinder's THIS PLENTIFUL COUNTRY: THE GREAT FAMINE, NEW YORK, AND THE MAKING OF IRISH AMERICA, a revisionist history of the so-called “Famine Irish” who fled to the U.S. in the mid-19th century, following a group of refugees whose strivings in and beyond to New York shed new light on the roots of Irish America, to Alex Littlefield at Mariner, in an exclusive submission, by Jill Grinberg at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).

Author of THE TROUBLE WITH HATING YOU Sajni Patel's ISHA, UNSCRIPTED, in which an aspiring screenwriter pursues dreams over familial expectations with the help of her supportive cousin and a thirst trap of a bartender, and finds herself desperately chasing Matthew McConaughey in a night full of hijinks, to Cindy Hwang at Berkley, in a two-book deal, for publication in 2023, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).

Taleen Voskuni's SORRY, BRO, a queer rom-com about a 20-something newly single Armenian woman whose mother insists she find a proper new suitor at a series of local Armenian cultural events—only the woman she meets is the last person her very traditional family had in mind, to Cindy Hwang and Angela Kim at Berkley, in a two-book deal, for publication in 2023, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (NA).

Sarah Glenn Marsh's YOUR BIRTHSTONE BOOK, a guide to the history of birth-month gemstones around the world and suggestions for using them in your daily life, illustrated by Hallye Webb, to Allison Cohen at Running Press Kids, for publication in fall 2022, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management for the author (world).

Author-illustrator Ruth Whiting's debut LONELY BIRD, first in a a trilogy of picture books about Lonely Bird, a mysterious little artist who lives in a house with humans, yet has adventures that are uniquely, solitarily her own, to Mary Lee Donovan at Candlewick, in a good deal, in a pre-empt, in a three-book deal, for publication in fall 2023, by Jessica Saint Jean at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world).

L.M. Elliott's BEA AND THE NEW DEAL HORSE, set in 1932, three years after the stock market crash, following a 13-year-old girl who wakes up abandoned in a stable with her little sister, and must forge ahead despite the despair all around her, starting with a special bond between her and a seemingly unlucky horse, to Katherine Tegen at Katherine Tegen Books, for publication in winter 2023, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).

Trang Thanh Tran's SHE IS A HAUNTING, a coming-of-age ghost story that sets a girl's navigation of her Vietnamese American bisexual identity against both the dark legacy of colonialism and a blossoming summer romance when she visits her estranged father in Vietnam and learns that the house they share is haunted, to Mary Kate Castellani at Bloomsbury Children's, in a significant deal, at auction, in a two-book deal, for publication in winter 2023, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).

Lili Wilkinson's A HUNGER OF THORNS, set in a world in which magic is patented by corporations and potions are produced in factories and sweatshops, about a teenage girl whose best friend goes missing, and to find her she must enter the long-forgotten nuclear powerplant on the edge of town, and try not to set free the wild magic that has long been trapped there, to Krista Marino at Delacorte, in a good deal, at auction, in a two-book deal, for publication in spring 2023, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (NA).

Charlotte Gunnufson's DREAM SUBMARINE, a journey through the world's oceans at nighttime, illustrated by Cleonique Hilsaca, to Mary Lee Donovan at Candlewick, by Sam Farkas at Jill Grinberg Literary Management for the author, and by Nicole Tugeau at Tugeau 2 for the illustrator (world).

Mary McMyne's THE BOOK OF GOTHEL, pitched as in the vein of CIRCE and SPINNING SILVER, following the witch from the Rapunzel tale as she discovers the legendary tower in the woods, and soon gets involved in a dangerous quest that will entangle her with both royals and the church; exploring femininity, motherhood, and the stories that get passed between women, to Brit Hvide at Orbit, in a two-book deal, by Sam Farkas at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).

Alex Aster's LIGHTLARK, a fantasy featuring six rulers competing in a grand high-stakes game set on a lush magical island, with 100 days to break the deadly curses that have plagued their realms for centuries, to Anne Heltzel at Abrams Children's, in a six-figure deal, at auction, in a three-book deal, for publication in fall 2022, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).

Musician Rhiannon Giddens's BUILD A HOUSE, based on the song of that title, which Giddens wrote in 2020 for the 155th anniversary of Juneteenth and originally performed with Yo-Yo Ma; amid the 2020 demonstrations for racial equity and drawing on and conveying Black history, the song emerged as an important new protest anthem; the book illuminates for young readers the song's message of Black courage and perseverance in the face of enslavement, violence, and appropriation, illustrated by Monica Mikai; and WE COULD FLY, based on Giddens's song “We Could Fly,” written with Dirk Powell, a dialogue between mother and daughter drawing on African folklore and celebrating resilience and love, illustrated by Briana Mukodiri Uchendu, to Karen Lotz at Candlewick, at auction, in a four-book deal, for publication in fall 2022 and fall 2023, by Laura Nolan at Aevitas Creative Management for the author, by Christy Tugeau Ewers at The CAT Agency for Mikai, and by Jessica Saint Jean at Jill Grinberg Literary Management for Uchendu (world).

Newbery Honor winner and author of GENESIS BEGINS AGAIN Alicia D. Williams's THE TALK, about the difficult conversation a Black family has with their son, warning him about the dangers he faces due to racism, illustrated by Briana Mukodiri Uchendu, to Caitlyn Dlouhy at Caitlyn Dlouhy Books, for publication in winter 2023, by Brenda Bowen at The Book Group for the author, and by Jessica Saint Jean at Jill Grinberg Literary Management for the illustrator (world).

Author of MAYBE HE JUST LIKES YOU and the forthcoming VIOLETS ARE BLUE Barbara Dee's TEAR THIS DOWN, about a girl campaigning to remove the statue of her town's namesake after learning that he was actively against giving women the right to vote, and to replace it with one of an inspiring suffragist, to Alyson Heller at Aladdin, for publication in fall 2024, by Jill Grinberg at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (NA).

Author of LAST TANG STANDING Lauren Ho's THIS IS NOT ABOUT LOVE, in which an ambitious single Singaporean woman in her late 30s joins a platonic parenting platform to find a Mr. Right-Enough with whom to start a family, a plan that proceeds perfectly until her controlling family and ex-fiance get involved, to Kate Dresser at Putnam, for publication in 2022, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (NA). Rights to Ore Agbaje-Williams at Harper UK. Film/TV: Jason Richman at UTA

Katalina Gamarra's BEN & BEATRIZ, pitched as an #OwnVoices, Latinx retelling of MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING, set in the early days of the Trump presidency, in which a queer, biracial young woman must untangle her complicated relationship with the scion of a wealthy, white dynasty; a rumination on race, colorism, passing, class, wealth, sexuality, and privilege, to Brittany Lavery at Graydon House, at auction, for publication in summer 2022, by Larissa Melo Pienkowski at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world).

Actor and founder of The Archibald Studio Craig Archibald's THE ACTOR'S MINDSET: ACTING AS A CRAFT, DISCIPLINE AND BUSINESS, providing a view of the actor's journey, and the tools to develop a mindset and focus that will allow actors to direct their careers where they want to go; with a foreword by actress Constance Wu, to John Cerullo at Applause Books, for publication in March 2022, by Jill Grinberg at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).

Founder of Raising Digital Natives and author of SCREENWISE Dr. Devorah Heitner's GROWING UP PUBLIC, guiding parents in helping their teens and tweens develop healthy boundaries with regard to privacy and public-facing identity in an increasingly screen-centered world, to Sara Carder at Tarcher Perigee, in a pre-empt, for publication in Fall 2022, by Jill Grinberg at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world).

TJ Alexander's CHEF'S KISS, an #OwnVoices LGBTQ+ rom-com starring a type-A pastry chef whose professional goals are interrupted by not only a career transition, but the introduction of her wildly attractive nonbinary kitchen manager, who happens to be undergoing a transition of their own, to Lara Jones at Emily Bestler Books, in a good deal, in a pre-empt, in a two-book deal, for publication in summer 2022, by Larissa Melo Pienkowski at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world).

Jenny Howe's THE MAKE-UP TEST, pitched as ONE TO WATCH meets BEACH READ, about a 20-something woman whose prestigious literature PhD program becomes a battle of wits (and lit) when she discovers that her college ex and biggest regret is now her rival TA for a once-in-a-life-time research opportunity, to Sarah Grill at St. Martin's, in a two-book deal, for publication in winter 2023, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).

Billy Sharff's WHEN SANTA CAME TO STAY, pitched as the offspring of THE GRINCH and SNOWMEN AT CHRISTMAS, the story of a family who learns the true meaning of Christmas when Santa (and sundry other holiday characters) outstay their welcome in an attempt to prolong the holiday magic, illustrated by Eda Kaban, to Jessica Garrison at Dial, at auction, for publication in fall 2022, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management for the author, and Shannon Associates for the illustrator (world).

Garth Nix's TERCIEL AND ELINOR, the latest in his Old Kingdom series, about a ploy by an ancient enemy of the Abhorsen that brings the Abhorsen-in-Waiting across the Wall to Elinor—who, after facing fire, death, and loss, finds herself on a path taking her away from her life of seclusion and into Terciel's, embroiling her in the struggle of the Abhorsen's against the dead; and a 25th-anniversary edition of SABRIEL, the series starter, to Katherine Tegen at Katherine Tegen Books, for publication in fall 2021, by Jill Grinberg at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (NA). Rights to Emma Matthewson at Bonnier Books UK (UK); and Eva Mills at Allen & Unwin (ANZ), by Fiona Inglis of Curtis Brown Australia.

Poet, Undocupoet fellow, and contributor to THE BREAKBEAT POETS VOL.4: LATINEXT anthology Aline Mello's MORE SALT THAN DIAMOND, an #OwnVoices debut poetry collection meditating on the visible and invisible fractures between the self, family, and memory as experienced by a Brazilian immigrant living in diaspora, determined to be authentically seen in a country that would either silence her or shape her into something politically palatable, to Patty Rice at Andrews McMeel, in a nice deal, for publication in spring 2022, by Larissa Melo Pienkowski at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world).

Cave Canem fellow, poet, and essayist Remica Bingham-Risher's SOUL CULTURE: BLACK POETS, BOOKS, AND QUESTIONS THAT GREW ME UP, a part-memoir, part-cultural artifact that intertwines personal essays and interviews with distinguished Black poets, such as Lucille Clifton, Sonia Sanchez, Patricia Smith, Natasha Trethewey, and others to explore the impact of identity, joy, love, and sociohistorical context on Black poetic craft and artistic process in the latter half of the 21st century, to Haley Lynch at Beacon Press, in a nice deal, for publication in summer 2022, by Larissa Melo Pienkowski at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).

Sarah Glenn Marsh's THE MYSTERY OF THE LOVE LIST, the story of a lonely porcupine who feels lonelier than ever with Valentine's Day approaching, until she discovers her name on one of her classmate's love lists—a list of all the things they love best—and sets out to solve the mystery of who this potential friend might be, illustrated by Ishaa Lobo, to Tamar Brazis at Viking Children's, in a two-book deal, for publication in fall 2022, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management for the author, and by Jennifer Rofa at Andrea Brown Literary Agency for the illustrator (world).

Activist and founder of the Ella Mae Foundation Beverly Gooden's SURVIVING: WHY WE STAY AND HOW WE LEAVE ABUSIVE RELATIONSHIPS, in which the author chronicles with unflinching vulnerability the steps she took to free herself from an abusive marriage and offers survivors guidance on overcoming barriers and rebuilding oneself after leaving abusive relationships, to Suzanne Staszak-Silva at Rowman & Littlefield, in a nice deal, for publication in spring 2022, by Larissa Melo Pienkowski at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (NA).

Lori Anne Goldstein's LOVE, THEODOSIA, about Theodosia Burr, a scholar with the skills of a socialite, who, in the midst of aiding her father, Aaron Burr, in his quest for the presidency in the pivotal election of 1800, falls for Philip Hamilton, the son of his greatest rival, and the two must choose between love and desire, family and loyalty, and preserving the legacy their powerful and flawed fathers fought so hard for—or creating their own, to Lilly Golden at Arcade, for publication in fall 2021, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world).

Jesse Sutanto's debut WELL, THAT WAS UNEXPECTED, about a girl whisked from L.A. to her mother's native Indonesia in order to "get back to her roots," who—through a comedy of errors and overzealous parents—finds herself fake dating the son of one of the wealthiest families in Indonesia, and is surprised when she actually starts to fall in love with the boy, with the country, and with the big family she never knew before now, to Wendy Loggia at Delacorte, in a pre-empt, in a two-book deal, for publication in fall 2022, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).

Shivaun Plozza's A RELUCTANT WITCH'S GUIDE TO MAGIC, about an ordinary girl who discovers she's not so ordinary after all, but instead is a witch prized by two terrible warring covens, and she must master her magic and choose a coven before her 13th birthday—or explode, to Nicole Sclama at Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Children's, with Amy Cloud editing, for publication in spring 2022, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (NA).

Author-illustrator of A GREEN PLACE TO BE Ashley Benham-Yazdani's THE COMET, told from the perspective of Halley's Comet as it passes by Earth every 75 years, witnessing the evolution of human history and the many changes to life on Earth, to Hilary Van Dusen at Candlewick, in a nice deal, for publication in spring 2023, by Jessica Saint Jean at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world).

Britney Lewis's debut THE UNDEAD TRUTH OF US, pitched as a mix of SADIE, THE ASTONISHING COLOR OF AFTER, and WARM BODIES, which follows a young Black dancer who, after her mother's sudden death, has been seeing zombies, but when she meets an undead boy, he helps her unravel the truth about how love can change someone—for good or for dead, to Emily Meehan at Disney-Hyperion, with Brittany Rubiano and Christine Collins editing, in a two-book deal, for publication in summer 2022, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world).

Sajni Patel's MY SISTER'S BIG FAT INDIAN WEDDING, a rom-com in which a 17-year-old aspiring violinist with dreams of attending music college must secretly juggle the obligations of her sister's extravagant wedding week with auditions for a prominent music contest—all while trying to dodge her boisterous family's matchmaking schemes, to Anne Heltzel at Amulet, at auction, for publication in spring 2022, by Katelyn Detweiler at Jill Grinberg Literary Management (world English).