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Kristin Ostby

The Greenhouse Literary Agency

My Manuscript Wish List®

I am a literary agent at the Greenhouse Literary Agency. I represent authors of middle grade, young adult, and adult fiction, as well as picture book author/illustrators. I also volunteer as Editorial Advisor for the Society of Illustrators’ Original Art annual exhibition of children’s book illustration.

After graduating from the University of Michigan, where I majored in English, worked at the undergraduate library, and was a staff reporter for The Michigan Daily, I began my career in publishing on the editorial side of the desk at Penguin Random House and Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. I edited children’s book legend Tomie dePaola; New York Times bestselling authors like Stuart Gibbs (Spy School) and US soccer star Alex Morgan (The Kicks); and award-winning creators including Daniel Miyares (Float), Jessica Lawson (Nooks & Crannies), and Heather Vogel Frederick (The Mother-Daughter Book Club). I also edited bestselling I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg Makes Her Mark by Debbie Levy and Elizabeth Baddeley.

As a literary agent, I love guiding authors and illustrators toward their best work and advocating for them in service of building successful, sustainable artistic careers.

I live in Brooklyn, New York. Find out more about me at kristinostby.com.

I am looking for picture book author/illustrators, middle grade and young adult fiction and graphic novels, adult nonfiction, and adult romance, mystery, thriller, and literary fiction.

In novels, I want high concept stories (i.e., a with striking and easily communicated idea and an undeniable elevator pitch) that demonstrate expertise at the line level, whether through a literary voice, a well-executed sense of humor, or a thoughtful economy of language.

Top of my wish list are:

  • YA mystery, including contemporary mystery, whodunits, cozy mystery, fantasy mystery, paranormal or supernatural mysteries, historical mysteries, and thrillers
  • Cozy adult mystery with a clear and fresh hook, well-drawn characters, and a great sense of humor

In YA, I am also looking for:

  • Romance with a speculative element or an unusual form/structure/timeline
  • Fantasy/romantasy grounded in our world, historical or otherwise (think: Chloe Gong)
  • Historical romance from a BIPOC perspective

In middle grade, I’d also like:

  • friendship stories a la Lisa Greenwald, Sarah Weeks, and Wendy Mass
  • funny coming-of-age contemporary graphic novelists (illustration and text)
  • hooky, funny contemporary mysteries and adventures

I always love:

  • humor
  • rich ensemble casts
  • coming-of-age stories
  • fish-out-of-water stories
  • friendship stories
  • subplots built around nuanced family dynamics, particularly parent-child or sibling relationships
  • MG with an accessible, classic literary sensibility like When You Reach Me
  • books with descriptions of elaborate feasts

***If your manuscript is over 95K words, it is probably not for me***

I am NOT accepting picture book manuscripts, graphic novel scripts, issue books, or children’s nonfiction at this time. Greenhouse does not represent poetry collections, short story collections, screenplays, erotica, or titles for the Christian/inspirational market.

Fun facts about me:

  • I have three adorable daughters, ages nine, seven, and four months
  • I used to ski race and still love to ski recreationally
  • I have an adopted, surprisingly spry fourteen-year-old spaniel mix
  • I❤️NY

Guidelines & Details

Vital Info

@kristinostby

@kristinostby.bsky.social‬

Linkedin

Website

I’d like the next…

YA:

  • The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynne Barnes
  • The Diviners by Libba Bray
  • I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston
  • Pretty Dead Queens by Alexa Donne
  • The Davenports by Krystal Marquis
  • Anything by Nina LaCour

MG:

  • From the Desk of Zoe Washington by Janae Marks
  • Witchlings by Claribel Ortega
  • The Swifts by Beth Lincoln
  • Enola Holmes by Nancy Springer
  • Spy School by Stuart Gibbs
  • Redwall by Brian Jacques

Picture Books:

  • Olivia by Ian Falconer

My favorites include…

TV:

  • Bluey
  • White Lotus
  • Only Murders in the Building
  • Never Have I Ever
  • Broad City
  • Key and Peele
  • Detroiters
  • I Think You Should Leave
  • Fleabag
  • Daria
  • Gilmore Girls
  • Veronica Mars
  • Anything written/created by Sharon Horgan

Movies:

  • Lady Bird
  • The Royal Tenenbaums
  • Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
  • Lost in Translation
  • Almost Famous
  • When Harry Met Sally
  • Wall-E
  • Knives Out

Kidlit:

  • Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech
  • Dead End in Norvelt by Jack Gantos
  • When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead
  • Flora and Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo
  • The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne Valente
  • The Witches by Roald Dahl
  • Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh
  • A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle
  • Hello Lighthouse by Sophie Blackall
  • Gaston by Kelly diPucchio and Christian Robinson
  • Flora and Flamingo by Molly Idle
  • You Will Be My Friend! by Peter Brown
  • The Little House by Virginia Lee Burton

Adult Novels:

  • Song of Solomon by Toni Morrison
  • Breakfast at Tiffany’s by Truman Capote
  • To the Lighthouse by Virginia Woolf
  • Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë
  • Where’d You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple
  • Prep by Curtis Sittenfeld
  • Atonement by Ian McEwan
  • Year of Wonders by Geraldine Brooks