Cathie Hedrick-Armstrong

About Me:

My journey in the publishing industry was born in 2014 after my oldest child left for college. With newfound time on my hands, I set about writing my first novel, The Edge of Nowhere, a work of adult fiction inspired by my grandmother’s life as a widow raising fourteen children during the one-two punch of the 1930s Dust Bowl and The Great Depression. Three years later, I followed up with my sophomore novel, Roam, a young adult title inspired by the homeless community where I currently reside. The release of this second book coincided with my first job as a literary agent where I spent eight years learning the industry before joining the team at Marsal Lyon.

A life-long lover of books, I have vivid memories of the exact day I unlocked the secret code behind the sounds letters make when combined to form words. Since then, it’s the rare occasion when you’ll find me without a book in my hand, a Kindle in my purse, or a pair of Airpods in my ears while I devour the works of whatever author I’ve decided is my new favorite of the month.

I’m an avid reader of many genres, and represent Adult Romance in every category except Science Fiction. I also represent Book Club Fiction and Adult Mysteries, Domestic Suspense, and light Horror. I also accept the occasional Young Adult novel in the categories of Romance, Mystery, Suspense, and light Horror.

A member of the Association of American Literary Agents (AALA), I look for a manuscript that catches my attention within the first few pages. If you can evoke an emotional response in the opening pages—make me laugh out loud, cause my pulse to race, or make me cry—you’ve got a winner.

Born and raised in Oklahoma, I’m a 1992 graduate of the University of Oklahoma and hold a B.A. in Journalism and a minor in history. Usurpingly, I’m a rabid OU Sooners football fan. Currently, I live in Minnesota and share two grown children with my husband of more than 30 years.

I am never interested in the following:

• Science Fiction
• Stories including sexual assault unless there’s an absolute “need” for inclusion in the story.
• Picture Books
• Graphic Novels
• Short Stories
• Novels in Verse (Love them, but there are much better agents for them!)

What I’m Looking for :

Adult

• Romance in all genres!
• Romantasy!!!!!!!!
• Book Club Fiction
• Domestic Suspense
• Locked Room Mystery
• Cozy Mysteries

Young Adult
Please note: I’m being especially picky about young adult and am only taking on the following categories.

• Mystery
• Thrillers/Suspense
• Horror
• Romantasy

For any genre, I’m actively looking to represent authors from traditionally marginalized cultures, backgrounds, and experiences (i.e. BIPOC, LGBTQ+, Neurodivergent, and Disabled). I’m especially interested in stories by and about Native Americans. Major Bonus Points if it’s a story by a Native American author, set in Oklahoma, and introduces Native American culture.

Romance Heat Levels: Behind closed doors or with the door wide open, I’m good with both. However, the story must hold together with or without the on-page sex. If you’ve written a romance that is only sex with no real relationship or connection between the characters, it’s not for me. The on-page sex, regardless of heat level, should enhance the overall story and make the reader more more engaged and root for the characters. Sex scenes strictly for voyeuristic purposes is not a good fit for me.

In the Mystery Genre, I can’t get enough of locked room stories–those where someone in the room must be the culprit, but you don’t know who. I’m also a sucker for an unreliable narrator like in E. Lockhart’s We Were Liars.

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PLEASE DO NOT SEND QUERIES TO ME BY EMAIL OR THROUGH SOCIAL MEDIA

• Though I don’t mind the occasional DM contact to ask questions, please follow my submission guidelines for all queries.
• All queries sent to my email are immediately deleted without reading and without a reply to the sender.

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FAVORITE AUTHORS:

• Adult: Mary Kubica, Heather Gudenkauf, Joshilyn Jackson, Lisa Scottline, Cathy Lamb, B.A. Paris, Ruth Ware, James Patterson, William Bernhardt, James Patterson, Nelson Demille, Brad Meltzer, Talia Hibbert, Helen Hoang, Colleen Hoover, Christina Lauren, Tessa Dare, Alyssa Cole, Courtney Milan, Rachel Van Dyken, Lyssa Kay Adams, Jen DeLuca, Kate Morton, Evie Dunmore, Elena Armaas, Ali Hazelwood, Kelly Cain, Sarah J. Maas, Amanda Linsmeier…(I could go on and on!)

RESPONSE TIME:
While I have traditionally had a slower than average response time, going forward I’m setting the goal of a 30 day turnaround on all queries.

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At this time, I expect to reopen to queries on June 3.
When I’m open to queries, the following link will be open:
www.querymanager.com/querycathie

TIPS FOR YOUR QUERY:

All good queries should include the Title, Genre, Word Count and a 2-4 paragraph BRIEF Synopsis of your manuscript. Think of it like the back cover of your book. It should include the following 5 elements:

1. Who is your main character?
2. What does your main character want?
3. What or who is standing in your main character’s way of getting what they want?
4. What must your main character overcome to get what they want?
5. What are the consequences of reaching for that goal? What might they gain or lose. **NOTE: this is called the stakes of your story. Without the stakes, your query is incomplete**

WHAT MAKES ME PASS ON A QUERY OR OPENING PAGES?

• An incomplete query. I must know what the story is about or I have no incentive to read. (See the 5 elements above)
• A query that drones on and on for multiple paragraphs and doesn’t get to the point. Your brief synopsis should be roughly 250 words and hit the 5 elements listed above. Get to the point–there’s no need to list every action the character takes.
• A manuscript that is far too long or far too short for the genre. For more information, a quick Google search for “manuscript word count by genre” will give you a rough estimate. This is only a guideline, but it’ll get you in the right ballpark. So if, for example, the guideline for the romance genre is 70-90K words, you’re pretty safe with me at 55-95K. But if I get, for example, a Romance submission at 35K or 135K, you can be pretty confident it’ll be a pass for me.
• Bad or “loose” writing. I’m looking for a manuscript that needs minimal editorial help. While I can help with edits and often do, editing can be time-intensive and it takes time away from my other clients. So before submitting, make sure you’ve edited, edited, and edited again. Get a couple of good critique partners who aren’t afraid to give you honest feedback. Below is a link to an editing document I created for my clients before going submission. I strongly suggest you look through this document before sending me a query as I tend to be a stickler for a few things.

Cathie’s Editing Tips (Document)

Above and beyond everything else, have fun and good luck! Remember that a pass from an agent or editor DOES NOT mean your work is bad or that nobody will ever like it. It simply means that what you’ve written is not a good fit for that person. Most querying authors receive upwards of a hundred passes before finding an agent. Let me repeat that in a different way: you may receive a hundred or more passes before finally finding an agent. That’s completely normal, so don’t allow it to make you feel defeated!

Submission Guidelines

Submissions should be emailed to querymanager.com/querycathie

Please send all submission to QueryManager at www.querymanager.com/querycathie. I do not accept submissions via email or social media.

UPCOMING CONFERENCE APPEARANCES:

Pittsburgh Writing Workshop (Online)
May 31 – June 1, 2024

Novel in Progress Boot Camp
June 16-22, 2024
Racine, Wisconsin

WriterCon 2024
August 30-September 2, 2024
Oklahoma City, OK

Writing Away Workshop (Online)
September 14-15, 2024

2024 Colorado Gold Writers’ Conference
September 27-29, 2024
Denver, CO

2024 Wisconsin Writers’ Association Conference
October 25-26, 2024
LaCrosse, WI

Guidelines & Details