Rebecca Matte

1) African and/or Caribbean inspired, anti-colonial fantasy (from someone of that background or ancestry)

2) A REALLY GOOD adventure - think Indiana Jones, Clive Cussler, Pirates of the Caribbean

Bonus points for swashbuckling and impossible escapes, but consistent rules/magic

#mswl

In advance of reopening to queries on *June 13* to marginalized creators, I have updated my Manuscript Wishlist on my website.

Most of my wishlist remains perennially true, but I wanted to pull out some things I'm especially excited to see right now:

#mswl #amquerying #amwriting #writingcommunity
rebeccamatte.com/manuscript-wish-list

My #mswl is evergreen, but I will follow up with some more specifics in the next few weeks.
rebeccamatte.com/manuscript-wish-list

What do I mean by marginalized background? BIPOC, indigenous, LGBTQ+, trans/nb, disabled, chronically ill, neurodiverse, religious minorities, immigrants.

If you're not sure if you qualify, you probably do.

This is not meant to limit, but to raise up voices of those with less access & opportunity.

2) I honestly and truly plan to open 1/month on a reliable schedule. I'm hoping to reduce pressure to submit during a narrow window by making it reliable.

For this particular time, I am only open to authors from marginalized backgrounds. *I will open again to everyone, even if the trial run fails*.

I am also making a few changes to my systems:

1) Initial query should include 1 chapter, or 10 pages. I will then ask for a partial (50 pages) and then a full. I'm hoping this will help me reduce review time to get back to you faster and open more often.

I will be on vacation from June 13-22, and so that makes sense to me as a trial run for this new method. I'll give as many reminders as I can in the meantime, and I will still only be open to Adult & YA, SFF & romance.

Important: Do not submit to me anything that contains generative AI material.

***I am reopening to queries***

Now that I am close to the bottom of my inbox, I will open to queries from June 13-June 22.

This seems random, but there is logic. I want to open more than once a year, & I want to do so sustainably, without absurdly long response times. So I am aiming for 1/month.

Happy #MSWL day all! Of course being the queen of good timing, I am in Rome with my partner, so I can’t participate the way I’d like. But my #mswl is evergreen: www.manuscriptwishlist.com/mswl-post/re...

And I will do a longer post updating it when I am ready to reopen to queries.

#mswl Hells yeah me too

The rest of my #mswl is evergreen and remains true. I love character and relationships, and I love people who write true to themselves.

Thank you to anyone who trusts me with your work. I hope to prove worthy.

8) Queer & disability norm worlds. Anything that turns on a perceived weakness that turns out to be a strength.

and finally

9) Books that channel the anger at our world, our politics, injustice into something powerful. Like Those Beyond the Wall by Micaiah Johnson.

6) What I call speculative romance: e.g. romance in our world that also has a bit of magic. Think Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches.

7) Fantasy romance where the story is equal parts both, and the world and fantasy plot enhances the romance and vice versa.

4) Magic systems based in something really cool! Like...law, or wave theory, or color theory. I don't know, surprise me!

5) Historical romance with anachronistic voice/elements. Think A Knight's Tale, or Bridgerton. Or Alexis Hall.

2) Nerdy and hobbyist books! Can be any genre I rep (SFF Or romance). Give me your D&D, your video games, your theater, your woodworking, your metallurgy. Love it all.

3) Fantasy & SF that incorporates games -- rpgs or video games. Love the meta and dual narratives there.

And, on that note: I open to queries on Monday, July 1. I feel like I should update my #mswl accordingly, but be prepared, it's a mish mash:

1) Romances with BIPOC, queer and disabled leads. I'm dying for joyful books that touch on real world challenges without dwelling.

First I want to reaffirm what I'm about. I'm OBSESSED with my clients and their writing. I want more than anything for them & their books to succeed. That is my job.

I not only support but celebrate ALL authors, and especially BIPOC, disabled, neurodiverse, queer & trans authors

Well. I try not to use this to comment on everything happening in publishing because BOY is that list long. Suffice to say that the last few days have not been flattering.

But...I am opening to queries on Monday so I felt like a few tweets were in order.

(Thread)

Friendly reminder to #amquerying authors: I open to all queries (within YA & Adult SFF and romance) on Friday, 9/1!

I’m in pretty good shape with numbers right now (I think 60 ish queries and 25 fills), and I’m excited to see what y’all send me!

I know I'm not open right now, but leaving this #mswl for later.

All the books about libraries. Cozy library/bookstore romances, magical libraries, lost libraries, university libraries.

Like Addie LaRue, or Dr. Who's Library of the Dead. Or the AU!bookstore fic we all love.