Danielle Chiotti

Danielle has worked in publishing for eighteen years. Formerly an editor, she joined Upstart Crow when it was founded in 2009, specializing in young adult and middle grade fiction, as well as cookbooks, select nonfiction, and literary and upmarket fiction for adults. Thanks to her extensive editorial background, she enjoys working closely with authors to develop projects. She welcomes first-time authors with a unique voice and point of view.

For Young Adult and Middle Grade:  She is drawn toward gorgeous writing and strong, flawed characters. Her dream project for young readers is one that challenges and inspires, with a compelling voice that will make her stay up all night reading. Good examples of this are A Heart in a Body in the World by Deb Caletti, Pie in the Sky by Remy Lai, Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson, The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo, Chime by Franny Billingsley, Swing by Kwame Alexander, The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly, Still Life With Tornado by A.S.King, The Walls Around Us by Nova Ren Suma, The Truth as Told by Mason Buttle by Leslie Connor,  When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead.

For adult fiction, she is seeking  upmarket commercial fiction. She prefers books that explore deep emotional relationships in an interesting or unusual way. Good examples of this are The House of Broken Angels by Luis Alberto Urrea, Dept. of Speculation by Jenny Offill, My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Moshfegh, The Lager Queen of Minnesota by J. Ryan Stradal, Shine Shine Shine  by Lydia Netzer, The Chaperone by Laura Moriarty, and A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki.

For nonfiction, she is looking for compelling, voice-driven projects that shed a humorous or thought-provoking light on a previously unknown topic in the areas of narrative nonfiction/memoir, lifestyle, relationships, humor, current events, food, wine, and cooking (think Cool Beans by Joe Yonan, Cook Something: Recipes to Rely on by Melissa Hamilton and Christopher Hirsheimer, and Drinking French by David Lebovitz). Recent favorites include Margaret Renkl’s Late Migrations, Coventry by Rachel Cusk, and H is for Hawk by Helen MacDonald. She is also interested in healthy living, lifestyle, culture, parenting and select self-help topics (think Quit Like a Woman by Holly Whitaker).

She is not considering the following adult categories: romance, mystery/suspense/thriller/political thriller, science fiction, horror, or erotica.

Current clients and books include: NYT bestselling author Jacqueline West, author of The Collectors (Greenwillow Books, winner of the 2019 Schneider Family Honor), Last Things (Greenwillow/HarperCollins), Digging Up Danger (Random House), and The Books of Elsewhere (Dial), Beth Hautala, author of The Ostrich and Other Lost Things (winner of the 2019 Christopher Award) and Waiting for Unicorns (Philomel), Matt Myklusch, author of The Order of the Majestic and Jack Blank series (Aladdin), The Instant Pot No Pressure Cookbook by Laurel Randolph (St. Martin’s Press), Knucklehead by Adam Smyer (Akashic Books), and more.

Upcoming projects include: The Order of the Majestic: Lost Kingdom by Matt Myklusch (Aladdin, 2020), The Break Up Hair Handbook by Jenna Luecke (Andrews McMeel, 2020), You Can Keep That To Yourself: A Comprehensive List of What Not to Say to Black People, for Well-Intentioned People of Pallor by Adam Smyer (Akashic 2020), The Secret Lives of Church Ladies by Deesha Philyaw (2020), Just Right Jillian by Nicole Collier (Versify/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2021), Punch Me Up to the Gods: An American Memoir by Brian Broome (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2021).

Submission Guidelines

Submissions should be emailed to danielle.submission@gmail.com

I accept email queries in my query box only at danielle.submission@gmail.com.

Please be sure to check out the submissions guidelines on the Upstart Crow website (link below) and send your query letter and the first 20 pages of your project, pasted into the body of the email. Please put the title of your project in the subject line of your email.

I’ll look forward to reading your work soon!

Guidelines & Details

Consultations