Submitting to Rachel

Rachel is looking for: epic fantasy, romantasy, dystopian romance, dark academia, horror, crime, thrillers and high-concept book-club fiction.

Rachel is not looking for: urban fantasy, historical pre 1950s, women’s fiction, rom-coms, uplit, romantic suspense, cosy crime or children’s.

Her favourite novels include: Fourth Wing, The Poppy Wars, Heavenly Bodies, Silver Elite, Divergent, The Hunger Games, A Deadly Education, The Secret History, Nightbitch, The Lamb, Private Rites, Portrait of a Thief, Sharp Objects, The Hunting Party, The Talented Mr Ripley, The Girls, Yellowface, and The Time Traveller’s Wife.

Rachel would particularly love to see: epic fantasy, romantasy and dystopian romance featuring trials – the deadlier the better; dark academic settings – whether school or university or beyond; feral girl novels that engage with female rage or hunger; upmarket contemporary horror that engages with social issues, with a particular soft spot for femgore or folk horror; thrillers set in the 90s; outsiders trying to break into the world of the privileged and morally bankrupt; a high-stakes heist novel; a locked room thriller in a unique location that informs the plot; a thriller with a teenage strand or protagonists in their early twenties; a skewering trad-wife thriller; a literary love story featuring time travel.

Rachel says . . . ‘Whether commercial or literary, or something in between, I want authors who can match a distinctive voice with an equally compelling plot. I generally prefer darker stories; my favourite books often centre characters with tragic fates, dark pasts or buried trauma. I would also particularly like to find authors from underrepresented groups, who bring a fresh perspective to well-worn story arcs or reflect experiences that are shared by many but, as of yet, under-explored in fiction.’