Erica Bauman

I love retellings, but I believe that 1) they shouldn’t be too precious with the original, but bring something new to the telling, and 2) need to stand on their own. I’d also really love to see a retelling with an unexpected genre mashup, like mythology x sci-fi, or Peter Pan x horror (😍) #MSWL

Right now, the largest % of queries I receive are for the fantasy genre. Which is great, I love fantasy, but I also want my list to be balanced. So I would *really* love to see more queries in other genres: romcom, horror, mystery, historical, magical realism, graphic novel, etc. #MSWL

…and (even with the QM shutdown) I’m hoping to get back to everyone by the end of the year. So, if you haven’t heard from me yet, thank you for your patience!

As for 2025, here’s an updated #MSWL of what I’d love to see in the inbox. Looking forward to some exciting projects next year!

#mswl

🎵It’s TIIIIIIIME! 🎶
I saw a lot of incredible queries in 2024, and my experiment of opening my inbox one week a month worked out well. I was able to stay on top of my inbox and meet my personal goal of getting my response times waaaaaay down. That said, I’m still going through Sept-Dec queries…

#mswl

#MSWL:
MG Genres I’m looking for: fantasy, contemporary, mystery, historical, horror, light/near-future sci-fi

YA: fantasy, contemporary, mystery, historical, horror, light sci-fi, romcom

Adult: light SFF, upmarket, horror, romcom

#MSWL CONT:
-eerie & haunting atmospheric horror where the source of the fear reflects something deeper. No gratuitous violence/gore—I want to be creeped out, not grossed out.
-swoony, sharply funny romcoms w/ chemistry that sizzles

YA Horror where the thing to fear is more than just a dude with a machete. Something chilling and lurking, like It Follows or The Babadook. #MSWL

11) I’m still desperate for a good YA horror. Something dark and disturbing. More eerie than gory, and grounded in reality (no supernatural killers needed). #MSWL

I love horror, but not overly-supernatural. I prefer reality-based scares. #mswl

#MSWL Also, YA Gothic Horror. I'm basically Catherine Morland.

#MSWL YA Horror with realistic elements. It doesn't need to be supernatural to be scary.

Excited to jump on the #MSWL feed today. I'll tweet out some specifics, but what I'm looking for can be found here: ericadbauman.wordpress.com/mswl/

#MSWL eerie + haunting #YA and #A horror, and funny #MG horror (I REALLY like scary stories).

#YA horror please! I want to be too scared to go to sleep. No werewolves, vampires, or zombies though. #mswl #H