Ashlee MacCallum
Howland Literary
My Manuscript Wish List®
Ashlee MacCallum joined Howland Literary after interning at Triada US. Originally from Glasgow, Scotland, Ashlee is passionate about championing marginalized creators and uplifting historically underrepresented voices. She gravitates toward high-concept, commercial fiction with bold storytelling, standout pacing, and a distinct voice that grabs you from the first page. Ashlee has a soft spot for speculative stories, mysteries, and anything delightfully weird.
YOUNG ADULT/NEW ADULT WISHLIST
Dystopian
Oppressive futures mixed with coming-of-age themes
• Post-Apocalyptic
• Political
• Social/Cultural
• Rebellion
• Prophecy
• Forbidden love
Horror
Twisted tales with layered storytelling
• Southern Gothic
• Occult
• Folk Lore
• Paranormal
• Bubble Gum
• Psychological
• Found footage
• Monsters
Fantasy
Where shadow magic and moral ambiguity meet
• Dark Fantasy
• Urban Fantasy
• Mythology retellings
• Dark fairytales
• Cursed bloodlines
• Dark prophecies
Dark Academia
Gothic aesthetics and scholarly rivals with diverse voices, cultures, and experiences
• BIPOC
• Atmospheric/Moody
• Folklore
• Curses
• Secret societies
Mystery/Thriller
Fast paced stories that blend danger and emotional depth
• High stakes
• Emotionally driven
• Danger and secrets
• Dark challenges
• Reluctant detectives
• Race-against-time
• Revenge
• Unreliable narrator
Paranormal
Supernatural forces lurking just beyond the veil of reality
• Ghost stories/hauntings
• Vampires
• Werewolves
• Paranormal Romance
• Curses
• Shapeshifters
• Dual worlds
• Dark rituals
• Forest spirits
• Necromancy
Specific Wishlist
• Zombies
• BIPOC narratives
• Queer stories
• Femgore
• Greek mythology
• Asian folklore
• Indigenous voices
• Cottagegore
• Antiheroes
• New Orleans
• Vodou
• Disability rep
Anti-Wishlist
• AI themes or heavy technology storylines
• Urban Legends/Cryptids
• Demons/Angels
• Aliens
Fun facts about me:
Submission Guidelines
CLOSED TO QUERIES
Ashlee will reopen to YA and NA queries on Friday, August 22nd.
Query Link: https://QueryTracker.net/query/queryashlee
Vital Info
Favorite sub-genres:
#Dis, #ownvoices, Adventure, Author-Illustrator, BIPOC, Books about books, Children's, Children's Nonfiction, Children's and Young Adult Fiction and Nonfiction, Clever picture book, Commercial MG, Commercial YA, Contemporary YA, Cozy Fantasy, Cozy Mystery, Crime & Thriller, Disability, Dystopian, Fairytale Retellings, Fantasy Grounded in Reality, Female Friendships, Fiction Picture Books, First Person, Folklore, Found Families, Funny MG, Gothic, Gothic Horror, Grounded fantasy, Hauntings, High Concept, High-concept YA, Historical mysteries, Humor, Illustrated, Immigrant Experiences, LGBTQ+, Latinx stories, MG/YA, Magic Realism, Mental Health, Middle Grade, Middle Grade Adventure, Middle Grade Contemporary, Middle Grade Fantasy, Middle Grade Horror, Middle Grade Humor, Middle Grade Mystery, Minority Voices, Modern Retellings of Fairy Tales, Monsters, Multicultural and Diverse Thriller and Mystery, Multigenerational, Multiple POV, Multiple Timelines, Mysteries, Mystery / Crime, Neurodiversity, Nonfiction Picture Books, Novels in Verse, Outdoors, Own Voices, Paranormal, Paranormal Horror, Paranormal Romance, Paranormal Thriller, Picture Book, Picture book non-fiction, Psychological Suspense, Psychological Thrillers, Retellings, SEL, STEM, Scottish, Self-help for kids, Self-help for teens, Shakespeare Retellings, Southern Gothic, Speculative, Speculative Fiction, Speculative Middle Grade, Speculative Thriller, Strategy books for kids, Strategy books for teens, Suspense, Tarot, Thriller, Time Travel, Worldbuilding, YA, YA Contemporary, YA Contemporary Romance with layers, YA Crossover, YA Historical Fantasy, YA Mystery, YA Nonfiction, YA Rom-Coms, YA Romantasy, YA Science Fiction, YA Thrillers, YA fantasy/light sci-fi, YA horror, YA memoir, YA thriller/mystery, chapter books, character-focused stories, children's diversity, classic retellings, coming of age, diverse, enemies to lovers, fairy tales, fiction and non-fiction picture books, friendship stories, ghost story, horror, just... all the tropes, locked room, mental illness, queer, queer horror, quirky, read-alouds, rivals to lovers, spooky mg, sports stories, whimsical, witchcraft, witches, witty
I’d like the next…
- Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds
- City of Ghosts by V. E. Schwab
- Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas
- The Cruel Prince by Holly Black
- The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
- Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké‑Íyímídé
- Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson
My favorites include…
TV
• The White Lotus
• Yellowstone
• Peaky Blinders
• The Haunting of Hill House
• School Spirits
• Yellowjackets
• The Night Agent
• Sons of Anarchy
• Breaking Bad
• The Midnight Club
• The Office
• Game of Thrones
• Lost
• Outer Banks
• Gossip Girl
• American Horror Story
• Grey’s Anatomy
• The Vampire Diaries
• Shameless
• New Girl
• Prison Break
• Ozark
• Ghost Whisperer
• DARK
MOVIES
• Armageddon
• Mean Girls
• Titanic
• Pirates of the Caribbean
• White Christmas
• Indiana Jones
• The Help
• The Dark Knight
• Spirited Away
• Coco
• Braveheart
• The Others
• Hotel Rwanda
• Wizard of Oz
• Matilda
MUSICALS
• Phantom of the Opera
• Dear Evan Hansen
• Heathers
• Hamilton
• The Sound of Music
• Anastasia
• Grease
• Cabaret
• Kinky Boots
• Les Misérables
• Newsies
• Hairspray
• Annie
• Mean Girls
• Legally Blonde
• Waitress
• RENT
• Rocky Horror Picture Show
• Little Shop of Horrors
