New Agent Alert: Isabel Lineberry of Pérez Literary & Entertainment

Born to two bibliophiles, Isabel could not have grown up to be anything else. She was born and raised in the Southwest United States but always knew she wanted to move to the UK. In high school she set her sights on a job in the publishing industry and hasn’t blinked since.

(20 Literary Agents Actively Seeking Writers and Their Writing.)

Isabel graduated in 2021 from Barrett, the Honors College at Arizona State University with dual degrees in English Literature and Business Entrepreneurship. Just a few months later she was in Scotland pursuing an MLitt in Fantasy at the University of Glasgow. She wrote her Masters thesis on Tamora Pierce and is a fan of Ray Bradbury, Octavia Butler, and Samantha Shannon.

At PLE, Isabel looks after foreign rights and audio rights inquiries, assists the Managing Director and is building a client list of her own focused on YA, New Adult, and Romance of all kinds. When not working, Isabel can usually be found reading or wandering a bookstore. Some of her favorite books include The Hunger Games, Pride and Prejudice, and The Mysterious Benedict Society.

Currently Seeking

I represent YA and New Adult and am particularly interested in Contemporary Romance, Romantasy, and Fantasy. I am always attracted to the character and voice first, so give me romantic tension that has me giggling, a villain who is as charming as they are evil, or a group of characters who have me watching their conversations as if it’s a tennis match.

More specifically, I am looking for:

Romance: For YA, give me updated Meg Cabot or John Green. Those were favorites of mine when I was a teenager, but I want new takes—LGBT characters, diverse backgrounds, complex character development, and a deep dive into what it means to be a teenager in the current world. Give me relatability that doesn’t sacrifice a character’s unique traits. I’m looking for the middle ground between the manic pixie dream girl and the buttoned-up character who just needs to take off their glasses.

In New Adult, I am a big fan of authors like Elle Kennedy, C. W. Farnsworth, Elsie Silver, and Morgan Elizabeth. BookTok romances are the perfect escapism for readers of all ages but especially for college students and young professionals like myself. My all-time favorite tropes are Grumpy/Sunshine, Fall First/Fall Harder, and all the Spice! I am not a fan of cheating storylines, accidental pregnancy, step-sibling romance, or unnecessary miscommunication tropes.

Romantasy: Give me a romance with sufficient fantasy world-building. The romantic plot should be the main event but the world-building needs to be able to stand up to scrutiny. The reader should accept the customs and specifics of your fantasy without too much confusion. Recent titles I’ve loved include Fourth Wing and League of Gentleman Witches.

As for the romance, I love tropes (especially: Enemies to Lovers, Who Hurt You?), morally grey characters and kick-ass heroines. I love training montages and dueling as foreplay. Show me spice during high-pressure situations, quick kisses stolen in battlefields, and fantastic banter. I would also love a return to the paranormal romances that dominated the 2010s. Send me the 2020s twist on Twilight, Beautiful Creatures, Shiver, or Vampire Academy. I am most definitely on the hunt for Romantasy and paranormal romance featuring queer and underrepresented voices.

Fantasy: The world-building absolutely must be believable and purposeful. Fantasy should be a mirror held up to the real world, offering a differing perspective that allows us to examine something about ourselves or our lives in a new light. I have a masters degree in Fantasy from the University of Glasgow so I can be a bit of a stickler when it comes to this! 

The magic/training/military school trope has been nearly exhausted, so be creative with the setting. My favorite fantasy author is Tamora Pierce—I would love a “girl has to pretend to be a boy to get her knighthood” storyline that Pierce couldn’t do in the 80s such as LGBT representation (although Alanna was definitely gender fluid and Kel was 100% ace), a deeper dive into the social and political implications (no white saviorism!), and more spice. 

Some of my other favorite fantasy novels include Howl’s Moving Castle, Good Omens, Kindred, and Golden Compass. I don’t want Tolkien-esque hard world-building with 100k+ quests; instead focus on the pacing and how it can grab the reader. I want a fantasy plot that compels me to keep reading even if it’s past my bedtime! I adore fairytale retellings, dark fantasy, alternate histories and historical fantasy, and the occasional steampunk/dystopia.

How to Submit

PLE only accepts submissions via QueryManager: https://querymanager.com/query/IsabelLineberry

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