 ABOUT THE AGENT: Lee Melillo (they/she) joined Dunham Literary, Inc. in May 2024 as Jennie Dunham’s assistant, following an internship with Dystel, Goderich, & Bourret LLC. She was made an Associate Literary Agent in June 2025. Lee additionally manages the agency’s social media and website, is a second-reader for queries, handles royalty statements and permissions, and assists on preparing submissions. Lee graduated summa cum laude from Fordham University in 2022, with departmental honors in English and Theatre Directing. Through her majors, Lee discovered her passion for advocating for writers. She believes literature is one of the most effective ways to gain empathy for and understanding of life experiences outside our own. You can find Lee on Instagram and Bluesky at @leemelillobooks. LEE IS SEEKING: Lee represents YA, New Adult, and Adult Fiction written by, for, and about marginalized communities (#OwnVoices) in both commercial and upmarket categories. She looks for high-concept plots, atmospheric prose, and well-drawn universes with commercial hooks that can reel in a wide range of readers and subsequently deliver well-executed, memorable reading experiences on the sentence level. She appreciates elements of mystery or suspense, especially in historical settings; big-hearted, accessible reads that center platonic and/or romantic relationships; and sharp, weird senses of humor that appeals to a generation of readers raised online.
In Adult Fiction, Lee is searching for book club and upmarket fiction from BIPOC women, neurodiverse, and queer authors. She’d like contemporary fiction exploring complex issues that have both personal and societal implications; eclectic rom-coms with strong plots and unique hooks; ensemble-casts, ideally of women and/or queer folk; or cozy slice-of-life centered around a community space. She is also open to contemporary or historical fiction centered around myth (but NOT Greek/Roman/Norse!!), either through retellings of classics or the invention of new mythologies for the modern age; dark magical realism; bubblegum thrillers; and socially-conscious horror. In Young and New Adult Fiction, Lee looks for YA that has crossover potential and NA stories set in college or directly post-grad. Her taste in these categories is broad, but she’s mostly looking for stories her 15-year-old self would’ve dedicated a tumblr blog to. Diversity is a must, as are well-developed, loveable (or love-to-hateable) characters. She enjoys meticulously-researched, atmospheric historical fiction with an element of mystery/suspense or other propulsive plot engines. She also loves dystopian fiction, but it must be grounded in real life issues and critique our present-day socio-political systems. For contemporary fiction, she’s open to stories centering queer characters, characters with mental illness and particularly OCD, or rom-com heroines with autism in interesting, off-beat settings. You can see her Manuscript Wish List here. HOW TO SUBMIT: Send a query letter and the first five pages of your novel in the body of an email to [email protected] and address your query letter to Lee. Attend a writers conference in 2025:
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