Erin McClary

I am mostly only open to agented submissions at this time, but please refer to my submission guidelines below for more information.

On the fiction side, I’m searching for:

• Strong female characters who can be described as “eccentric geniuses” or “fiercely independent” (think Beth from The Queen’s Gambit or Eve from Killing Eve)
• Commercial or upmarket women’s fiction with a fresh hook (if you can’t pitch the premise of your book to me in 1-2 short sentences, it probably needs a stronger hook!), especially those set in small towns (take me to the Oregon coast or the swamps of Georgia or the farmlands of Wisconsin!) with a strong friendship angle
• Emotionally charged stories that make me cry, swear, and curse the world at large before gently putting me back together again. The mark of a perfect story to me is if I can’t help but hug the book when I’m done reading it.

On the nonfiction side, I’m searching for:

• Trending topics in the zeitgeist, especially if I can prove it’s on the rise with data (I love data…you should know that about me upfront)
• Narrative nonfiction that tells the untold story of a remarkable person we’ve never heard about, especially if their voice was silenced because of misogyny or bigotry

Submission Guidelines

Submissions should be emailed to erin.mcclary@sourcebooks.com

I am only accepting agented submissions at this time, however, I am open to unagented submissions from BIPOC writers. If you are a BIPOC writer, please send me an email with a pitch letter and short synopsis in the body of the email (bonus points if you include 2-3 comp titles published within the past two years), and attach the first 50 pages of your manuscript (Word or PDF).