Claire Draper

For all the books I work on, I prefer to work with queer creators; Black, Indigenous, creators of color; and disabled creators; and I strongly encourage those creators to send me their work. Regardless of genre, age, or subject, I like lighthearted, romantic, hopeful reads. I prefer books with a fast pace, high stakes, and strong emotional development for the main character(s). I prefer commercial/accessible writing, a romantic main or subplot, and stories with a strong hook. I am best for books with happy endings, themes of hope and joy. I love characters that are so stupid in love but don’t realize it, ensemble casts, unusual settings, and comedy. Please make me laugh!

*Note: If you are unsure if these apply to you, use your best judgement, and understand that these guidelines help me work more effectively and efficiently and find work that I’d like on my list, while maintaining boundaries for what I can and am able to comfortably read and would like to represent. This does not make your book any more or less worthy of publication.

ADULT ROMANCE NOVELS

I am looking for:

• Monsters
• Polycules, triads
• Trades workers/union jobs
• Main characters over 30
• Bossy bottoms
• Fat main character
• Disabled main character
• Lots of tropes
• Extra spice
• will commit murder for the love interest
• love interest seems morally gray but is actually a marshmallow with heart of gold underneath the hard shell exterior

I’ll always prioritize queer characters, characters of color, fat characters, and disabled characters. I love books with fierce protagonists that have distinct personalities, lots of humor, and a fast paced plot. I require that the book is body-positive. I love nearly any sub genre or niche of romance novels. I’ve been reading romance novels and fanfiction since I was a teenager, and have loved lots of different kinds of tropes, characters, constraints, and set ups. Just make sure to respect the rules of HEA and give me some good trope-filled romance!

GRAPHIC NOVELS

I like graphic novels for upper middle grade, young adult, new adult, and adult audiences. I like a diverse cast of characters, in nearly any genre or location. I love art that challenges traditional styles and is easily recognizable as belonging to a particular artist. I especially love when a book has strong themes of love and/or friendship, and is extra queer.

ILLUSTRATOR PORTFOLIOS

I like to see a decent sampling of your work, including anything from character design, to fan art, to sequentials (any paneled work, webcomic, zine, etc., will suffice). Please let me know whether you are exclusively an illustrator or are an author/illustrator.

YA ROMANCE/CONTEMPORARY

I love YA where the main character(s) has average, everyday challenges and we see how they overcome them. I YA books that are lighthearted and emotionally poignant.

MEMOIR

I love books with humor and interesting perspectives, and enjoy a big personality or narration to go with the contents of the memoir. I am especially interested in authors writing about the intersections of their identities.

ADULT NONFICTION

I love creators with a fun and interesting platform, who are the experts in their field, and have something interesting and crucial to say. Subjects for this may include but are not limited to: neurodivergence, environmentalism, plants, animals, crafting, DIY, cleaning, homemaking, cooking, art, feminism, queer theory, parenting, and media criticism.

Submission Guidelines

By submitting a query to me, you are agreeing to address me as Claire or Mx. Draper or it will be considered an automatic pass.

Please do not send an exclusive query. Queries are meant to be shared with multiple agencies. I only accept queries through Query Manager, so only submit there, or your submission will not be reviewed.

It is my goal to respond to every query. If you don’t receive a response within six weeks, please be patient but that is my typical response time.

If I am interested in your work, I will respond with instructions for sending the rest of your material. If I do request material from you, I ask that you check back with me before accepting representation elsewhere to give me time to review. My response time for full manuscripts is currently 3 months, though can be longer.

If you previously submitted to me while at my previous agency, your queries came with me and you do not need to resubmit.

I am grateful for all queries and submissions, and thank you for considering me in your querying process.

Guidelines & Details