Publishers Marketplace: Melanie Figueroa

I’m actively seeking to add high-concept commercial and general fiction, young adult novels with a strong voice and propulsive pacing, and heartfelt and humorous middle grade novels across genres to my list. At the moment, my list is about 50% kid lit with an emphasis on middle grade projects and 50% adult fiction.

I often fall for books that sit at the intersection of a variety of genres (genre eclectic, if you will). I love mysteries, found families, sibling stories, haunted houses, buried secrets, disability and mental health rep, coming-of-age narratives, non-western cultures and mythologies, animal/spirit companions, strong (and potentially unlikable) women, toxic relationships (especially friendships), high stakes adventures, family sagas, smart horror, and anything that makes me laugh and/or cry (preferably a balance of both). I’m not the best fit for adult romance, though I love romance in b-plots, and am open to romance authors interested in establishing other lines of business, too.

I was born and raised in Southern California in a multicultural, blended family, so I have a soft spot for books that shine a spotlight on the nuances of family relationships and identity. And I’m especially looking for books that are inclusive and accurately reflect our world—I like characters who aren’t your typical lead and to be surprised by the unexpected.

WISHLIST

Middle Grade

Emotionally resonant and adventurous genre fiction, historical fiction, and contemporary realistic fiction.

Stories that don't shy away from difficult subjects. I respect the reality of readers’ lived experiences—kids today are dealing with everything from isolation and bullying to school shootings and climate change. I especially love stories that manage to touch on timely topics (immigration, poverty, civil rights, etc.) without being didactic.

Some of my favorites: Tae Keller’s JENNIFER CHAN IS NOT ALONE, B.B. Alston’s AMARI AND THE NIGHT BROTHERS, Kelly Yang’s FRONT DESK, Lynne Kelly’s SONG FOR A WHALE, Veera Hiranandani's THE NIGHT DIARY, Robert Beatty's SERAFINA AND THE BLACK CLOAK, Kelly Barnhill's THE GIRL WHO DRANK THE MOON, and Alan Gratz's REFUGEE.

Young Adult

Commercial, high-concept genre fiction. Stealing a phrase jointly coined by my colleagues Holly Root and Molly O'Neill—I want YA science fiction and fantasy that can be summed up as "feelings while running." Horror, mysteries, and thrillers that are a little twisty and dark (but full of hope, humor, and heart) with a strong structural hook and beautiful writing.

Voicey, feminist, and intersectional high-concept contemporary realistic fiction with a strong emotional core.

Anything speculative, especially if it includes a time loop element, à la Hulu’s Palm Springs.

Some of my favorites: Dustin Thao's YOU'VE REACHED SAM, Xiran Jay Zhao's IRON WIDOW, Meg Long's COLD THE NIGHT, FAST THE WOLVES, Tiffany Jackson’s GROWN, Courtney Summers’ SADIE, Megan Bannen's THE BIRD AND THE BLADE, Laini Taylor's STRANGE THE DREAMER, S.J. Kincaid's THE DIABOLIC, Jessica Lewis's BAD WITCH BURNING, and Yamile Saied Méndez’s FURIA.

Adult

Voicey upmarket, commercial, and literary fiction.

General fiction with genre elements (bonus points for something with an interesting structural hook, like Kate Atkinson’s LIFE AFTER LIFE).

Give me something beautifully-written, well-researched, and expansive—a coming-of-age story that straddles the line between commercial and literary.

Some of my favorites: Julie Buntin's MARLENA, Hannah Tinti's THE GOOD THIEF, Chloe Benjamin's THE IMMORTALISTS, Kevin Wilson's NOTHING TO SEE HERE, Raven Leilani's LUSTER, Shelby Van Pelt's REMARKABLY BRIGHT CREATURES, Celeste Ng’s EVERYTHING I NEVER TOLD YOU, Emily St. John Mandel's STATION ELEVEN, Angie Kim’s MIRACLE CREEK, Riley Sager’s HOME BEFORE DARK, Brit Bennett’s THE VANISHING HALF, Madeline Miller’s CIRCE, Alex Michaelides' THE SILENT PATIENT, Kate Atkinson's LIFE AFTER LIFE, and Silvia Moreno-Garcia’s MEXICAN GOTHIC. Some tried-and-true favorites are Barbara Kingsolver’s THE POISONWOOD BIBLE and Steinbeck's EAST OF EDEN.

Keep in mind that this wishlist is not meant to be prescriptive. If you think we'd be a good fit but your project isn't an exact match, please give me a try! Part of what makes this job so magical is that you often don’t know what you want until you find it.

ABOUT THE AGENCY:
At Root Literary, we build careers. Whether you’re here to start your career with us or to evolve your career with us, welcome!

We’re a boutique, future-focused literary agency, representing award-winning, bestselling, and up-and-coming authors, illustrators, and graphic novelists. We’re committed to helping our clients confidently define and redefine their vision of success while they build a lasting body of work and a meaningful career, and we do so by advocating, empowering, educating, negotiating, problem-solving, and revenue-generating in innovative ways to support our clients’ creative work.

As agents, we blend business acumen and proven skills for identifying talent with a nuanced, hands-on, and powerfully-effective approach to literary representation—and we do it all with good humor and an eye toward sustainable creator wellness along the way.

We’re good at our jobs because we care about books and book-making. We’re endlessly fascinated by the publishing machine: how it works, how we can help the industry evolve to work better, and how we can help our clients not just survive, but truly thrive as a part of it. In addition to a combined 45+ years of literary agency experience, our team has also worked immersively in film/TV, in foreign rights, in marketing/publicity, at publishing start-ups, and as editors, educators, influencers, and booksellers—and we bring the depth, breadth and knowledge of that wide-ranging industry experience to every situation our clients encounter. We work collaboratively and with a focus on best-in-field information-sharing and creative opportunity-forging, so that each of our agents’ clients benefit from our whole team’s expertise.

Every publishing success story that we’ve been a part of is, at its core, also the story of meaningful professional partnerships. We’re eager to match your passion for the craft of writing and art-making with our passion for next-level career strategy and killer deal-making. We love what we do, and we do it best in tandem with driven, ambitious story makers who love what they do, too.