From a previous post, here are my expected response times:
Queries: 6 weeks
Partials: 8 weeks
Fulls: 12 weeks

If these change I will post about it and of course feel free to nudge if you haven't heard in these times! Now on to the good stuff 2/

Time for a #MSWL thread!

Just up front everything I'm looking for can be found here: belcastroagency.com/submit-a-story/

I will be opening on May 1st and close late May 7th. I will be opening the first week of every month going forward so that I can answer everyone in a timely manner. 1/

FICTION #MSWL

I will be closing to #pb queries mid-May to focus on the lovely #kidlit authors I've recently signed. So be sure to submit soon if you have a project that fits my #mswl ! #authorcommunity #writing

If your book is giving F.T. Lukens, I want. 🥹🥹 #mswl

My MSWL can be found on, well, MSWL: manuscriptwishlist.com/mswl-post/zachary-honey/

In short: I'm still in the thriller game. Looking for rural set thrillers, mysteries, select horror and select historical fiction. Bring it on!

Doing some spring cleaning at FinePrint as some of us are shifting to QueryManager. For me, I'm hoping this will be a more streamlined method to respond to queries. I'm open now through June 30. Send your query letter and first chapter to QueryManager.com/agentzhoney

Here are the main differences in my MSWL from last year:

-In the MG space, I'm only now open to upper MG (protagonists 12+)

-Open more to contemporary fantasy, less to genre fantasy

-Open less to PBs with animal casts

-Narrower parameters on historical and dystopian

NOT a fit for:

-Time travel, portals

-Insects

-Assassins, organized crime

-Animal narrators or talking-animal characters, outside select PBs

-Supernatural/fantastical characters other than ghosts, like faeries, vampires, werewolves, elves, dragons, mermaids

NOT a fit for:

-Graphic novels, comics (but I love hybrid/illustrated novels—A MONSTER CALLS by Patrick Ness)

-Christian religious themes (except stories about leaving the religion) or parables

-Pirates

-Court fantasy or fantasy involving royals

-Sci-fi (esp. aliens/space)

Generally NOT a fit for third-person. I’d work on some third-person books (esp. PBs!), but strongly prefer first-person, as I often find it easier to connect with a character’s voice & interiority in first-person.

I have nothing against third-person; this is just my own taste!

I am NOT a fit for:

-Racist, homophobic, transphobic, ableist, xenophobic, misogynist, or otherwise discriminatory content

-Rhyming picture books

-Early readers, chapter books

-MG with a protagonist under 12

-Adult books

Specific Interests continued (II):

-Beach settings

-Knitting

-Gymnastics (BREAK THE FALL by Jennifer Iacopelli) or swimming, but note that I'm not a huge sports person otherwise

-Holidays (any holidays, especially underrepresented ones! I’m a huge holiday person.)

Specific Interests continued:

-Singers, music, musical theatre

-Pets (cats!!), esp. if the owner was hesitant at first

-Retellings (not so much retellings of popular fairytales, though—love DON’T LOOK BACK by Lilliam Rivera)

-Characters who don’t want kids

Random/specific interests:

-Death/grief (INTO THE DEEP BLUE by Jennifer E. Archer)

-Endometriosis, adenomyosis, hearing loss, brain tumors, trouble walking/balance disorders

-Asexual characters

-Fat characters *NOT* interested in weight loss

Sparingly open to nonfiction in picture books, from educational to memoir.

I'm open to bios; I prefer underrepresented subjects (NIKI NAKAYMA: A CHEF’S TALE IN 13 BITES by Debbi Michiko Florence).

Informative with some wit, like Mary Roach for kids!

I also love author-illustrators/teams! However, I am NOT a fit for art-only queries.

For some styles I like, check out the M&O team of picture book illustrators: Stacey Byer, Maribel Castells, Rachel Más Davidson, Tiffany Golden, Skylar Hogan, Dawn Masi, Sue Safianoff

-Disability, in both fiction and nonfiction

-Diverse cultures, holidays, traditions, identities (THE PROUDEST BLUE by Ibtihaj Muhammad, YOU ARE THE COLOR by Rifk Ebeid)

For both—again, open to any format/premise here!

I'm looking most for SEL-driven PBs in general! Topics of interest:

-Grief – hopeful but not saccharine; honest about the heavy parts. (THE HOLE by Lindsay Bonilla)

-LGBTQIA+ – Anything from celebratory, to informative, to issue-based (WHAT ARE YOUR WORDS? by Katherine Locke)

*NEW: I've learned that I almost always prefer picture books with human protagonists. If I did take on a picture book with an all-animal cast, it'd be heavily SEL-driven (POCKET FULL OF SADS by Brad Davidson and Rachel Más Davidson).