Cecilia Lyra

It’s that time of year again: let’s refresh my #MSWL! What follows is what I’m looking for as an agent — keep in mind I rep adult fiction & nonfiction on the adult side. 🧵

Forever on my #MSWL --- an always important, always pertinent topic!

THE DUTCH HOUSE is one of those books that stayed with me. The decision to buy that house set in motion the entire story. The specific (and wildly different) significance the house has for each character informed the cast's behavior, personalities, interactions, etc. #MSWL

What I'd love to read: a novel about coworkers who decide to quiet quit together --- and then drama ensues, ofc! #MSWL (we open to queries after Labor Day!)

My bookdom for an (expert-driven, in-depth, well researched, paradigm-shifting) exposé on tipping culture #MSWL

Send me your stories! #MSWL #WritingCommunity

I would love to read a proposal on tipping culture #MSWL #WritingCommunity

nytimes.com/2022/04/19/din…

THE HUSBANDS is a great example of the kind of pace-y and SUPER well written commercial fiction I'm looking for! #MSWL

Have you read it? #WritingCommunity

#MSWL --- proposals on topics such as economic and social mobility, tutelary colonialism, ethnic stratification, and more.

#MSWL

If this is your novel, please consider querying me! 🙋🏽‍♀️ #MSWL #WritingCommunity

If your work falls in one of these categories, I would be honored to hear from you. Please refer to the PSLA website for submission guidelines, including our response policy. While I love connecting with the #WritingCommunity on social media, this is not the place to query me.

TV SHOWS are also a great way to find the perfect comp for your WIP. Some of my faves are SUCCESSION, VIDA, YELLOWJACKETS, INSECURE, THE GOOD PLACE, MARE OF EASTTOWN, SHRILL, TED LASSO, THE GOOD FIGHT. If your work is similar to these, please query me!

As long as your work does not fall under a category/genre I don’t rep (see above), I would eagerly welcome your query. It’s impossible to list everything I’m looking for and, besides, I enjoy being surprised by reading something I wouldn’t have thought I’d love, but that I do!

I am *not* the right agent for the nonfiction categories of true crime, sports, and music. I am also *not* a good fit for stories with passive protagonists. I do *not* represent children’s books or YA, though, of course, my fabulous colleagues at PSLA do!

A confession: I find stories where rich people get in trouble to be deliciously wicked. And I love all things dark. In fact, if you’d classify your story as dark (whether just ‘dark’ or ‘dark-type’ such as ‘dark comedy’), I might be the agent for you!

I adore all tropes—there’s no such thing as an overdone trope as there’s always a way to infuse originality/freshness into a story. My favorite tropes include characters caught between two worlds, identity swaps, outsider-looking-in, and anything involving con artists.

…BIPOC, LGBTQ2S+, disabled or chronically ill, and neurodivergent authors: I would love to hear from you—especially fellow Latinx writers. Feminist stories will always have a special place in my heart. To offend misogynists is both my mission and pleasure.

I am passionate about representing under or misrepresented voices and stories that contribute to a larger cultural conversation whether explicitly (e.g., a nonfiction title on social justice) or subtly (a comedy of manners about a mixed-raced Latinx family)…

…The #2 reason in fiction is because the story plateaus (escalating tension is a must!); and in nonfiction because there isn’t enough original ‘meat’ (case studies, research, etc.) to support the claims.