Stuti Telidevara

…but if you’re writing SFF in these age categories and you don’t think any of this describes your book, try me anyway! I am surprised often and I read so widely in this space that it’s always worth a shot.

Across the board give me:
+ more Austen and Shakespeare retellings (I’m a simple girl)
+ more court intrigue and clever protagonists, from Marie Rutkoski to Natasha Ngan to Arkady Martine I love them in all forms
+ more soft magic (ie no rules)
+ more fantasy mysteries

In YA SFF: I prefer my romance to be a b-plot, and would love more atmosphere-forward storytelling à la Ava Reid or Axie Oh. Especially interested in folktale/myth-inspired stories from underrepresented voices.

In adult SFF: give me big and epic in scope without sacrificing character work. Touchpoints I’ve been thinking of lately are THE STARS UNDYING, BARU CORMORANT, and INK BLOOD SISTER SCRIBE. I love intricate worldbuilding and being tricked by the narrative!

I’m going to really dive back into my queries soon & would love to see more big epic fantasy, adult or YA. I’m talking complex, court intrigue, not romance-forward—I am watching House of the Dragon and reading James Islington, and craving something that scratches that itch #mswl

I'm only looking for sci-fi in the adult space and prefer distant-future space-set stories. I love SF that is kind-of-sort-of-fantasy, like Yoon Ha Lee & Tamsyn Muir.

In MG I'm looking for fantasy only! While I love charming, pacey adventure stories, I'd love something steeped in fairytale. I grew up reading a lot of Cornelia Funke & would love something with that tone.

In contemp fantasy I am looking for hooky, fresh premises like IF YOU COULD SEE THE SUN & LEGENDBORN in YA, and on the adult side, speculative thrillers like NINTH HOUSE, BLACK WATER SISTER, and MAGIC FOR LIARS.

For YA fantasy, all of the above applies & I am super open to intricate worldbuilding. I love stories with strategists & characters and narratives that fool the reader: STRIKE THE ZITHER & LITTLE THIEVES are recent faves in this vein. Give me mystery too a la YEAR OF THE REAPER!

I am always into historical fantasy or fantasy that's inspired by a historical setting/context, esp non-Western; recent faves in this space are SHE WHO BECAME THE SUN & THE UNBROKEN. I love historical fantasy w/ Western settings that center marginalized voices eg Zen Cho's books

In high fantasy, my taste is super broad, but right now I'm esp looking for court intrigue, sprawling worlds, stories centering family dynamics, and of course stories w/ diverse voices. Send me South Asian inspired fantasy & novels starring wlw please!