Molly O'Neill

Literary Agent

Root Literary

Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary. Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips
Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

Los Angeles Times @latimes

TV has a new kind of heroine: The Latina genius. Here's why it matters latimes.com/entertainment-…

1000% seeking MG (& YA & GN) w/ similarly strong, memorable Latinx leads (genius is not a specifically-required trait, but they *do* need to have agency, fresh/compelling story arcs, & be buoyed by masterful writing from creators who share the main character’s identity). #MSWL

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

Heartfelt &/or humorous middle grade that is rich & textured in its characterizations, stylistic choices, language, & telling. Give me subplots & side characters & settings that all work to make a story feel sophisticated & fully-realized & ALIVE. #MSWL #MG

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips
Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

The New York Times @nytimes

“Everyone freaked out. Nothing like this had ever happened in my work before." A mysterious painting was discovered behind a wall at a new Oscar de la Renta boutique in Paris. nyti.ms/2FQoecw

I LOVE hidden in plain sight discoveries like this. #MSWL a story with a jumping-off point like this, s’il vous plait, but turn it into middle grade & perhaps add some ✨magic✨!

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips
Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips
Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

Molly O'Neill @molly_oneill

Stepped inside @BankStreetBooks mere moments before the downpour began & well, there are worse fates than waiting out a thunderstorm in a bookstore. ⛈📚⛈

Update: read some books. ☔️📚
Related P.S. Standing #MSWL request for all your kids/MG/YA graphic novels! Illustrators, authors, and/or author-illustrators are all welcome. (I’m probably not the right agent for adult graphic novels/comics, tho.)

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

This kind of storytelling but MG or YA, please! *Especially* as MG. (Arguably MG is always something like this, at its purest state—stories of connection + hope—and I always want it!) #MSWL theguardian.com/books/2018/mar…

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

Memory fascinates me. How it evolves as we evolve.Its relationship to perception, regret, change. Would love a YA or MG that explores. #MSWL

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

If you'd best describe yr YA/MG as the bk of yr heart, the one that only you could write at this time & in this way, I wanna read it. #MSWL

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

MG/YA about connections b/w humans & scientific phenomena, the natural world, technology, or otherwise nerdy-delightful fascinations. #MSWL

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

Perpetual #MSWL request: YA/MG that explores questions of faith & belief but doesn't proselytize or try to answer questions for the reader.

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

MG that makes its readers *wonder* from the very first page, activating their imagination & drawing them into the story immersively. #MSWL

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

MG that shapes and expands readers' sense of empathy without being saccharine or preachy. #MSWL

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

I'd love a MG/YA about the kind of friendship that makes you see the world differently & shapes & defines you for the rest of yr life. #MSWL

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

If your YA/MG has a vivid, authentic Southern voice/sensibility, gimme! But be warned: I'm a Texan so I'll know if you're faking. #MSWL

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

YA/MG that explores liminal spaces: where the fabric of reality is loosened & characters are on the cusp of transformation/becoming. #MSWL

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

Does the setting (place/time/both!) of your MG or YA feel so vivid and alive that it's almost a character in & of itself? I LOVE THAT. #MSWL

Molly O'Neill
@molly_oneill
Literary Agent
Literary agent & builder of bookmakers @RootLiterary . Collector & connector of words + art + people + stories. Shameless sharer of cat pics. @MarquetteU alum.
121 MSWL
2 Tips

Expansive YA/MG: show me links & connections b/w ideas that appear to have nothing in common at first glance but make MC's world grow. #MSWL