Mekisha Telfer

I’m looking to build a list of contemporary and speculative teen and middle-grade fiction. I’m particularly interested in: John Hughesian coming-of-age stories; awkward first relationships; magical, adventurous, and hi-jinky middle-grade; timely “5 minutes into the future” sci-fi;  dark magical realism;  anything supernatural;  psychological thrillers; YA fantasy (with rich non-eurocentric/pseudo-European worldbuilding); #ownvoices works from Transgender authors (MG + YA); and issue-driven, heart-wrenching middle-grade novels. I’d also love to see more graphic novels and non-fiction (narrative and pop culture based).  I am especially interested in seeing projects featuring and written by underrepresented and marginalized voices.

I gravitate toward upmarket fiction (well-crafted stories that appeal to a wide audience and straddle the line between commercial and literary fiction), and I’m looking for emotionally compelling and voice-driven, authentic stories.

I am not a good match for anthologies, spies, epistolary novels, or love triangles (this last one is definitely not a hard and fast rule, but still).

Other random things I <3:

• Sex positivity + Sex Education (in novels and non-fiction)
• Strong but nuanced sibling relationships
• LBGTQ+ coming of age stories (not necessarily about coming out)
• Folktale/Fairytale retellings from underrepresented cultures and communities
• Heartbreaking YA with a happy ending
• Mysteries, Monsters, and Natural Disasters <3
• Contemporary stories featuring POC characters that are not centered around race or racial violence
• Black Boy Joy and Black Girl Magic, please!!
• Nonfiction from a POC/queer perspective
• Funny and irreverent historical fiction
• Witches <3 <3 <3
• True love, Soulmates, and Soulmarks
• Quirky plots (MG + YA) that explore heavier topics like grief, adoption/foster care, sexuality, disability, abuse, poverty, prejudice, etc.

Submission Guidelines

I am only accepting agented submissions/queries at this time.