Jenna Miller (YA Contemporary)

Author: Jenna Miller (@jmillwanders)

Age Range: Young Adult

Genre: Contemporary

Agent: Mike (Michaela) Whatnall, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret

The Query Letter:

Dear Mike Whatnall,

Seventeen-year-old Cass Williams is fat, queer, and perfectly content spending her nights roleplaying online with fellow Tide Wars fans. When she’s behind the screen playing a pirate captain, she’s in a world where her mom never left. Only problem: no one in her real life knows about her roleplay addiction, or that she might not graduate because of it.

After a date with her long-time crush, Cass adds a girlfriend into the mix of roleplaying and senior year stress. When Rowan, her online best friend, comes to town under the guise of a “church camp friend,” life gets even more complicated.

As Cass’s lies continue to build, she must decide what matters more—being honest about her double life and risk losing her safe space, or keeping it a secret and risk destroying her relationships and academic future.

With the nerdy, double life concept of Geekerella and What I Like About You and the stellar friendships and fat positivity of Dumplin’, OUT OF CHARACTER is an own voices (queer/fat) YA contemporary complete at 81,000 words. This manuscript was selected and revised for Author Mentor Match round 7.

I hold a BA in Creative Writing and a Certificate in Publishing from Minnesota State University, Moorhead, and I interned with New Rivers Press. When I’m not thinking up new worlds or living in coffee shops with a good book, I work as a writer and editor for a healthcare company.

Below you will find the first 25 pages of the manuscript. Thank you for your time and consideration.

All my best,

Jenna Miller