Jas Perry

Literary Agent
kt literary


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About


Bio

JAS PERRY is a Literary Agent with KT Literary representing Middle Grade and Young Adult fiction and Graphic Novels for all ages. Jas is Black/Japanese and represents a diverse range of strong voices with a focus on BIPOC, QTPOC, and/or disabled creators. She began in editorial with Scholastic/Arthur A. Levine Books and Levine Querido, in addition to freelance editing and authenticity reading for traditional publishing.Jas is the current Director of Special Projects at People of Color in Publishing and a member of the Association of American Literary Agents. She has served on the Manuscript Evaluation committee for Reese’s Book Club x We Need Diverse Books’ inaugural LitUp fellowship, as well as on the judging panel for WNDB’s Walter Dean Meyers Grants for diverse writers and illustrators. She attended New York University in Florence & London and the City University of New York.She writes children's books as J.P. Takahashi, and her debut TOKYO NIGHT PARADE with Minako Tomigahara released with HarperCollins in 2023.Find Jas online at jas-perry.com or on Twitter @TakahashiPerry.




Clients


Authors

Artists & Author-Illustrators



Illustrators




Query


Status:

CLOSED to queries.


Eligibility:

While I consider queries from all authors & author-illustrators, my passion lies in representing marginalized creators who have been traditionally excluded from publishing, and my client list will continue to reflect these values.


Fiction & Graphic Novel queries:

QueryManager.com/query/jasFor those with accessibility needs due to disability, email queries are acceptable:Email your letter to jasquery@ktliterary.com with the subject Query along with the title and/or genre of your project. For your sample, paste three (3) pages of your manuscript in the body of the email; please have a plot synopsis prepared if I request a partial or full MS.


Event queries:

For online pitch events, conferences, and workshops, a dedicated QueryManager form will be available for submission for a limited time.If submitting by email for accessibility reasons, please include the event name/hashtag in the subject line of your query. Thank you!


Note:

I unfortunately cannot offer personalized feedback on queries, due to the volume of submissions and prioritization of current clients. Thank you for your understanding.



Manuscript Wishlist


I'm currently accepting:

(please see query status before submitting)

  • Middle Grade fiction

  • Young Adult fiction

  • Novels-in-verse (MG or YA only)

  • Graphic novels (all ages) by author-illustrators


I'm not accepting:

  • Picture books

  • Adult (unless requested, or GN)

  • Non-fiction

  • Previously self-published works

  • Military fiction

  • Stories re: chattel slavery

  • Colonizer x colonized romances

  • Fiction based on existing IP


I'd love to see:

  • Manuscripts under 100k words

  • Projects from graphic novel author-illustrators

  • Afrofuturism and near-future speculative

  • New York City-set stories

  • Complex platonic relationships and found family

  • Books by and about Japanese and Japanese-American people

  • Offbeat humor and strange (but thoughtful) unsettling narratives

  • Well-researched contemporary that engages serious themes

  • QTPOC romance

  • Immersive, whimsical Miyazaki-type world-building and sociopolitical commentary

  • Jaunty SFF romps in MG

  • Ensemble cast MG

  • Clever, funny MG voices in contemporary

  • Historical fiction YA set in time periods/locations not typically represented in kidlit

  • Distinctive, voicey YA

  • Reimagined YA genre “tropes” from fresh, new voices



Contact


For querying authors:

Please note that social media and contact form pitches will not be considered.If you have accessibility needs, query letters can be emailed as per agency guidelines instead of submitted through QueryManager.


For more information on KT Literary:

Visit my agency's site at ktliterary.com.


For authenticity read requests:

As I recently transitioned to writing + agenting full-time, I'll be taking select authenticity read requests for traditionally published projects on a case-by-case basis. If you're an editor I have an existing relationship with, feel free to call or email directly.*Otherwise, please use the contact form to tell me about your project. Full list of my specializations (Black/African American, East Asian/Japanese identities, etc.) available upon request.*Please note that I'll be prioritizing reads for authors of color.If I - or the other readers you're connected to - happen to be unavailable, I'm happy to point you in the direction of other SRs and freelance editors.


For interview, panel, and conference requests:

Please use the contact form and include all relevant dates, rates, and participants.




Aaron Talley

Aaron Talley
  • Ages: Young Adult

  • Genres: Speculative; Contemporary Fantasy

Aaron Talley is a writer, activist, and educator currently based in Chicago, Illinois. His writings, which explore the intersections between identity, spirituality, education, and mental health have been published in various blog and media outlets, including The Advocate, Education Post, and The Nation. When not writing, reading, or teaching, or you can find him watching anime or playing the latest Japanese RPG. He is originally from Detroit, Michigan.

You can find him on Twitter and Instagram @Talley_Marked.

BOOKS



Amar Shah

  • Ages: Middle Grade; Young Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary Realism; Magical Realism; Memoir; Graphic Novel


Amar Shah is a multiple Emmy-winning writer and producer who has written for ESPN.com, NFL.com, The Wall Street Journal, The Orlando Sentinel, Sports Illustrated for Kids, Slam Magazine and The Washington Post, including a viral essay on growing up as the son of the real Apu.


BOOKS

  • THE HOOP CON (Play the Game #1) (Scholastic Press, 2024)

  • UNTITLED MG (Play the Game #2) (Scholastic Press, 2024)

  • UNTITLED MG (Play the Game #3) (Scholastic Press, 2025)

  • WISH I WAS BALLER with Rashad Doucet (Scholastic / Graphix, 2025)



Brianna Peppins

A headshot of a dark skinned Black woman smiling, wearing glasses and a bright smile, with wavy shoulder length hair.
  • Ages: Middle Grade; Young Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary Realism


Brianna Peppins was raised in PG County, Maryland, spending most of her childhood consuming books and daydreaming up her own outlandish stories. She graduated from Spelman College with a B.A. in Psychology and shortly after began writing her debut novel, BRIARCLIFF PREP. You can find her online at briannapeppins.com, and on Twitter and Instagram at @Lexi_Pep.


BOOKS



Nora Elghazzawi

Nora Elghazzawi
  • Ages: Middle Grade; Young Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary Fantasy; Magical Realism; Contemporary Realism


Nora Elghazzawi is a Muslim Lebanese-American writer currently living in Boston, MA. Her short story, SOLACE, was selected by Nicola Yoon to appear in FORESHADOW, a serial anthology launched by Emily X.R. Pan and Nova Ren Suma, which was acquired by Algonquin and published in October 2020.


BOOKS

  • THIS HOUSE IS HAUNTED (Page Street YA, Spring 2024)



Kirsten Thompson

Kirsten Thompson
  • Ages: Middle Grade; Young Adult

  • Genres: Fantasy; Contemporary Fantasy


Kirsten Thompson is the writer of I AM HEXED, a comic book miniseries about the political struggles of modern-day witches, and has also been the editor and consultant on a range of comics. She was a staff writer at The MNT, and has previously written for Femsplain, Teen Vogue and Women Write About Comics.



Jacqueline CJ Barnes

Jacqueline CJ Barnes
  • Ages: Middle Grade; Young Adult

  • Genres: High Fantasy; Afrofuturism; PhantaNoir


Love, inclusivity, and the fantastical are three words that best encapsulate JCJB’s work. Refusing to give in to mass media stereotypes that Black female characters are “too independent and strong” for love, she created PhantaNoir: a genre that places Black characters, cultures, and mythos at the center of fantastical stories. Adamant that compassion is the answer, Jacqueline strives to share her work with the world so that younger Black girls can get some of that love, too.Jacqueline has a Bachelor of Art and Creative Writing from Carnegie Mellon University, a Master’s from UCLA’s Animation workshop, is a VONA 2017 Alum, was a resident at the 2017 Santa Fe Art Institute, and is an inaugural diversity fellow at the Highlights foundation.


BOOKS



Rashad Doucet

Rashad Doucet
  • Ages: Children's, all ages

  • Genres: Open to multi-genre illustration work!

Rashad Doucet is an Eisner winning creator who also spends time working as a Professor of Sequential Art at SCAD. He’s worked on properties like Rick and Morty, Invader Zim, and most recently his graphic novel PAX SAMSON has released to great reviews from Kirkus and Publisher’s Weekly. You can see more of his work here.


BOOKS

  • ART CLUB (Hachette / Little, Brown Ink, Fall 2023)

  • MONEY TALKS (The Brainstormerz, #1) (Hachette / LBYR, Summer 2025)

  • MG GRAPHIC NOVEL (The Brainstormerz, #2) (Hachette / LBYR)

  • MG GRAPHIC NOVEL (The Brainstormerz, #3) (Hachette / LBYR)

  • WISH I WAS A BALLER with Amar Shah (Scholastic / Graphix, 2025)




Sarah Burgess

Sarah Burgess
  • Ages: Middle Grade

  • Genres: Contemporary Realism; Contemporary Fantasy


Sarah Burgess has been working in animation for seven years and drawing comics since forever. Their passion lies in drawing character-driven stories that focus on the complexities and exploration of relationships and people. They are most known for their comics on mental health. They also draw a webcomic, The Princess Beast, inspired by shojo manga and all about social anxiety.


BOOKS

  • SKIP! (Andrews McMeel, November 2023)




Jem Yoshioka

Jem Yoshioka
  • Ages: Young Adult; New Adult; Adult

  • Genres: Fantasy; Historical; Mythology


Jem Yoshioka is an award-winning comic artist living in Wellington, New Zealand. Deftly weaving words and pictures together, Jem’s comics tell evocative and emotional stories with themes of belonging, place, and heritage.


BOOKS

  • FOLK REMEDY (TBA, 2025)




Mandy Chan

  • Ages: Young Adult; New Adult; Adult

  • Genres: Sci-Fi; Fantasy; Post-Apocalyptic Fic


Mandy "4threset" Chan is a nonbinary Malaysian artist/animator with a Degree in Animation from the University of Technology Sydney. They have worked on a variety of indie games such as The Magister, Amnesiac Adventurer and Himbo Harem Homicide as both a concept artist and asset artist. Wonderfully neurodiverse, they enjoy pairing pretty words with pictures to tell flowing stories about the complicated feelings that often accompany complex familial relationships, loss, love and connection.



Son M.

  • Ages: Young Adult; Adult

  • Genres: Horror; Sci-Fi; Action; Thriller; Mystery


SON M. is an Algerian-Amazigh, Muslim writer who enjoys creating narratives in both prose and visual mediums. She specializes in horror, science-fiction, action, thriller and mystery. She is very passionate about comics, games and animation, leading her to create stories in all three mediums. Son is the Studio Director of the indie game studio Perfect Garbage, as well as a writer for both AAA and Indie games. The writer half of SCSM COMIC. She is currently publishing their debut graphic novel THIEF OF THE HEIGHTS with HarperCollins/HarperAlley (Fall 2023). They have written for Z2 Comics, DC Comics, Vault Comics and more.


BOOKS

  • THIEF OF THE HEIGHTS (HarperCollins / HarperAlley, 2024)

  • ANIMALHEADS (Dark Horse, 2023)



Keiko Nishijima

  • Ages: Middle Grade; Young Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary; Fantasy


With a passion for character driven stories, Keiko Nishijima has found herself walking through life with a love for storytelling and the arts. What she enjoys more than spending her time drawing is exploring the world and more importantly, the different ways that people view it. A fan of the lonely and an appreciator of the bold—she's an avid people watcher, so don't mind if you catch her staring, it's her way of saying she thinks you're cool. Familial relationships and unlikely friendships is where Keiko finds her true love for stories, the found family trope is a constant in anything she writes. Alongside that, she has a fascination with anything magical from witches to magical talking tea cups.


BOOKS

  • LIFE IS SWEET (Hachette / Little Brown Ink, Fall 2025)



Samuel Teer

  • Ages: Middle Grade; Young Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary; Fantasy; Horror


Samuel Teer is the Lat Am (Guatemalan/American) writer of VEDA: ASSEMBLY REQUIRED (Dark Horse Comics) and BROWNSTONE (Versify). Samuel was born to a deaf American maintenance worker and a Guatemalan immigrant that spoke English as a distant second language — he took the obvious route and became a comics writer. He was raised in the suburbs of St. Charles County, MO. He currently lives outside of Denver, CO with his wife Andrea (an educator) and their two lab-mixes, Roxie and Olive.


BOOKS

  • BROWNSTONE (HarperCollins / Versify, 2024)

  • CASTLES AND CHOLOS (HarperCollins / Versify, 2026)

A logo of a book with "kt" on the cover and text underneath: "literary".


Ames Liu

A digital portrait of an East Asian person, looking back at the "camera," wearing a tank, drinking from a juice box.
  • Ages: Young Adult, New Adult, Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary; Fantasy


Ames is a Vancouver based comic artist and illustrator. They received their BFA from the Maryland Institute of College of Art in 2021. Since graduating they have been working on projects such as Z2Comics' Freddie Mercury: Lover of Life, Singer of Songs and Amelia Aierwood: Basic Witch (with Emily Hampshire). They have an affinity for stories with queer characters, fantasy elements, and lots of heart.



Fend Hamilton

A digital portrait of a white person wearing a fur-hooded green coat and glasses, waving with both hands, looking a bit nervous.
  • Ages: Young Adult, New Adult, Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary; SFF; Horror


Fend Hamilton is an artist/illustrator based in Chattanooga, TN. They like to look at trains, understand grocery store and water park layouts, and draw comics (allegedly).


BOOKS

  • SPIDER-VERSE UNLIMITED Issue #31 (Marvel / Infinity Comics)

  • SPIDER-VERSE UNLIMITED Issue #40 (Marvel / Infinity Comics)


Jason Reeves

A digital portrait of an East Asian person, looking back at the "camera," wearing a tank, drinking from a juice box.
  • Ages: Middle Grade; Young Adult, New Adult, Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary; Action-Adventure; SFF


A New Orleans, Louisiana native, Jason Reeves is a Comic Book Artist, Writer, illustrator, Concept Designer best known for his creator owned graphic novel series PAX SAMSON, the award winning ONENATION, and CHANGA & THE JADE OBELISK. Jason is also the owner of 133art Publishing, a comic book publishing imprint and printer. His clients have included: HASBRO, Esquire Magazine, USA Today, Wizards of the Coast, Heavy Metal Magazine, Frontline Detroit Coalition.


BOOKS

  • SPIDEY AND HIS AMAZING FRIENDS: WATER WONDER (Scholastic, 2024)

  • SPIDEY AND HIS AMAZING FRIENDS: HEIST AT THE MUSEUM (Scholastic, 2025)



Scott Lee Chua & Ethan Chua

  • Ages: New Adult, Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary; Speculative; Historical


Scott Lee Chua is a Chinese-Filipino economist, graphic novelist, translator, and game designer. His works have garnered the Gabriel Garcia Marquez Prize for literature in translation, placed in the Nick Joaquin Literary Awards for short fiction, and been nominated for the Philippine National Book Awards. He is currently designing a board game as part of the artist collective Mosquito Games, and a video game as part of the multimedia company Andas Productions. His graphic novel Doorkeeper, co-authored with Ethan Chua, is available in Philippine bookstores.


  • Ages: New Adult, Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary; Speculative; Historical


Ethan Chua (any pronouns) is a Chinese-Filipino spoken word poet, comic book writer, translator, community organizer, and scholar-activist. They have been nominated for a Pushcart Prize, honorably mentioned by the Nick Joaquin Literary Awards, and their fiction and poetry have been published in The Journal, Strange Horizons, and the Philippine Graphic magazine. Their translations into English of Abner Dormiendo's Palanca prize-winning poetry collection, "Sa Antipolo pa rin ang Antipolo," are published in Alchemy. Their graphic novel, Doorkeeper, co-authored with Scott Lee Chua, is available in Philippine bookstores.

A logo of a book with "kt" on the cover and text underneath: "literary".


Bianca Lesaca

  • Ages: Picture Book, Middle Grade, Young Adult, New Adult, Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary; Fantasy;


Bianca Lesaca is a Filipino illustrator and painter. She is a member of Ang Ilustrador ng Kabataan — the society of book illustrators in the Philippines. She had briefly interned at Walt Disney Imagineering in Hong Kong before pursuing a freelance career in illustration, where her work has since appeared in children’s books, graphic novels, editorials, and music album covers. Her illustrated books have been published in the Philippines, Hong Kong, and US through Lampara Books, Summit Books, Adarna House, Hiyas-OMF Literature, SingTao News, Hong Kong Commercial Press, and In Hiatus Studios.She continuously explores the breadth of her craft and expression; and when not illustrating for books, she creates paintings for herself or for private collectors. Bianca attended the Savannah College of Art and Design in Hong Kong, and graduated with a BFA in Illustration. She is currently illustrating for Open City, a historical fiction graphic novel authored by Scott Chua and Ethan Chua.


BOOKS

  • UNDER LION ROCK (Hong Kong Commercial Press, 2023)



  • Ages: Young Adult, New Adult, Adult

  • Genres: Horror; Mythology; Gothic


Jaime Mosquera (he/they) is a trans Colombian-American artist who is passionate about gothic romance, phantasmagoria, and myth reinterpretation in horror. He lives in New Jersey with his family and has a degree in Public Health.



  • Ages: Young Adult, New Adult, Adult

  • Genres: Fantasy; Contemporary; Romance


Gillian Pascasio (aka 7CLUBS) is a Filipino lesbian komikero and character artist. Simply put, she loves writing about love—between families, friends, or gay girls—both simple and fraught, as well as the joy of discovering yourself. She always appreciates a story that can make you cry. Her versatile illustration work runs the gamut from cute to cubist, and she'll be delighted to draw just about any weird creature (or human) you can throw at her.She has a BFA in Visual Communication from the University of the Philippines Diliman, and has contributed cover art, interior art, and comic work to over 20 art books and anthologies, including THE PINOY MONSTER BOYFRIEND ANTHOLOGY, Fortuna Media's TABULA IDEM and Quindrie Press' WHEN I WAS ME. Her graphic novella, EMMY AND THE SECOND CHANCE, debuts this October 2022 at ShortBox Comics Fair.


BOOKS

  • THE THREE BEASTS (Mad Cave Studios / Maverick, 2025)



  • Ages: New Adult, Adult

  • Genres: Contemporary; Fantasy


Luciannys Camacho (or Lucy) is an Illustrator and Comic Artist. She’s NYC born and raised and a graduate of the School of Visual Arts NYC in 2020.Luciannys has worked as an illustrator primarily making her own products and selling them at conventions. She’s recently done other projects like album covers for LUCY CAMP XO, book covers for 'Ni de aqui, ni de alla' and Miami Fuego, and apparel design for The Kigustop.
She’s also worked with Wacom and Clip Studio Paint at various trade shows and virtual events.
Currently, Luciannys is working on her original hero comic Heroes Circle.She enjoys urban themes, colorful palettes, and campy fashion. When she’s not working, she’s decorating her Animal Crossing island or watching bad TV.



  • Ages: Middle Grade

  • Genres: Contemporary; Fantasy


Robin L. Davis is a comic artist and designer who creates comic pages, illustrations, and animatics.In 2016, she graduated from the Savannah College of Art Design with a B.F.A in Communication Arts with a major in Sequential Art. In 2022, she went onto attain a M.F.A in Communication Arts with a focus in Sequential Art.Robin is passionate about innovative stories, impactful pieces of media and delicious iced coffee.


BOOKS

  • TWINS #2 (Scholastic / Graphix)

  • TWINS #3 (Scholastic / Graphix)

  • TWINS #4 (Scholastic / Graphix)



  • Ages: Young Adult; Adult


Alex Moore is a freelance illustrator, story board and comic book artist from London. Their work often featured big characters, bold colours and they particularly enjoy exploring visual storytelling.Since graduating from Middlesex’s Illustration BA, Alex has storyboarded projects for Nike, EA Sports and Adobe and has work as both a cover and interior artist for IDW, Image, Dark Horse, Mad Cave Studios and Dynamite Comics. They were long-listed for the 2019 Folio Society Prize and their work-in-progess graphic novel The Fine Art of Destruction was also long-listed for the 2020 Myriad First Graphic Novel competition.


BOOKS

  • THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO HIGH (Penguin Random House / Penguin Workshop, 2025)

  • CASTLES AND CHOLOS (HarperCollins / Versify, 2026)




  • Ages: Young Adult; Adult


Hana Chatani is a queer Japanese-Pākeha comic artist and writer based in Tāmaki-Makaurau. Particularly interested in the themes of grief and non-romantic relationships, Hana has recently been enjoying incorporating elements of horror into her stories.




  • Ages: Adult

  • Genres: Psychological Thriller; Horror; Historical; Drama


Vincent Cecil/Vincent Is Vintage is a Black Transmasc Illustrator and Graphic Novelist. He enjoys working on themes and storytelling elements linked to vintage/historical aspects, thrillers—psychological and horror, fashionable glamour, and QPOC subjects. Vincent is currently working on his psychological thriller/drama Great Gatsby retelling. Additional interests include tarot, mixology, and fashion design.




Jem Yoshioka

Jem Yoshioka
  • Ages: Young Adult; New Adult; Adult

  • Would love to work on: Cover illustration; Japanese diaspora stories; WLW romance




Rashad Doucet

Rashad Doucet
  • Ages: Children's, all ages

  • Would love to work on: Stories about characters of color, especially Black kids as the stars of their own adventures!


Illustration & Concepts


Sequential



Sarah Burgess

Sarah Burgess
  • Ages: Children's & Adult

  • Would love to work on: All things kidlit!


Editorial & Illustration


Sequential