Shannon Snow
Creative Media Agency, Inc.
My Manuscript Wish List®
First the boring stuff. I worked in finance and marketing for 18 years before turning to my childhood first love… books and writers. I started my career in publishing 2018 and and then joined Creative Media Agency, Inc. as an Associate Agent in 2020. I hold a B.A. in English Language and Literature, and also manage the Audio rights department for CMA.
Now to the fun stuff! I have a very eclectic reading taste. I look for books that have a unique angle, and authors that have a wonderful, engaging voice that makes me want to read a sentence again and say “wow” just because of how you worded something. Characterization is a top draw for me because if I can’t connect to a character, I can’t fully engage with a story. So, I’m looking for vivid, well-developed characters. (And some of my favorite books have been ones where an author was able to have only one character facing and surviving a situation. To do that without it being boring…wow!) I absolutely love when an author can make me laugh, make make me pull out my tissue box, or just make me feel emotion in general.
I am actively acquiring right now and looking to build up my list. This is what I’m looking for:
Fiction: Adult
– All romance fiction and all its sub-genres
– Contemporary romance that can be cute, steamy, erotica, paranormal, etc.
– Historical/Historical romance (I have a warm fondness for medieval, and historicals set
in ancient times/place such as Rome, Greece, or Egypt.
– Thriller/Psychological Thrillers/Suspense (can have a touch of the paranormal…think
Dean Koontz or similar writers)
– Speculative Fiction (especially with a touch, or a lot, of romance)
– Fantasy (Especially quest-type journeys a la David Eddings, but open to most anything.
A touch of romance is great!)
– Science Fiction (love it all but especially love space operas)
– Apocalyptic/Post-Apocalyptic (Is the world ending? Let me see!)
– Mythological stories or retellings
– Horror (think more eerie/creepy rather than monsters, although I’ll consider those
sparingly too)
Fiction: Young Adult
– Contemporaries (Love them all, but have a fondness for bad boy, unpopular girls getting the
unattainable guy, enemies to love interests, and darker stories like One of Us Is Lying. Would also love to find a YA Contemporary romance with a trans character. Or some amazing LGBTQ+, asexual, non-binary romances, etc.)
– Dystopian (Think Delirium, Divergent, The Atlantis Grail series, Matched, The Culling, etc.
Oh, Marie Lu!)
– Darker boarding school stories
– Apocalyptic/Post-Apocalyptic, in whatever form
– Speculative Fiction (paranormal, etc. Think Richelle Mead, Jennifer Estep, Cassandra Clare,
etc.)
– Fantasy (Thinking Sarah J. Maas, Julie Kagawa, and others)
– Science Fiction (love all types, but would love the next Beth Revis Across the Universe,
space academy or space outing stories, space operas in general)
– Thriller/Psychological Thrillers/Suspense
– Mythological retellings (Love Greek gods, Egyptian or Roman gods, etc.)
– Horror (more eerie/creepy type)
I’m also looking to represent POC and LGBTQ+ authors, and stories with diverse characters!
Fun facts about me:
I’m always found with a book or reading app open, and a chihuahua perched on my lap. I read constantly…five minutes here, 2 minutes there, any time I have to wait like during the checkout line at the grocery store. I’m married with two adult children who tolerate me butting into their lives, and two small grandbabies I get to spoil. My furbabies are my new babies, and my husband is my biggest baby. Don’t tell him I said that though!
Submission Guidelines
Submissions should be emailed to query@cmalit.com
We are no longer accepting queries sent by mail. We are only reviewing queries sent by email.
Please email Shannon your query at (query@cmalit.com) and include the following in the body of the email:
* The query letter
* First five pages pasted into the body of your email
* Remember to write “query” in the subject heading.
Normally I respond within 4-6 weeks but due to the pandemic backlog, I have been responding a bit more slowly. If you have interest or an offer, please make sure you check in with me so that I can have an opportunity to review and respond.
Consultations
Vital Info