Sanford J. Greenburger Associates

Iwalani is seeking adult upmarket and literary fiction and select narrative nonfiction. In fiction, she loves coming-of-age narratives, family dramas, and stories that challenge systems of power. She gravitates toward lush prose, wry humor, irreverent characters, and a sense of yearning. In nonfiction, she is looking for literary memoir and cultural criticism. She is particularly drawn to food writing, deep dives into subcultures, and writing that complicates the idea of ‘paradise’ or explores progressive movements such as prison industrial complex (PIC) abolition. Some of her favorite authors include Jesmyn Ward, T Kira Madden, Raven Leilani, Alex Marzano-Lesnevich, and Ling Ma, and she would love to consider any manuscripts in a similar vein. She is passionate about championing the work of underrepresented authors and would especially love to work with Pacific Islander writers.

Iwalani joined Sanford J. Greenburger Associates in 2018 after interning at Ayesha Pande Literary, Don Congdon Associates, and Kweli Journal. She was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawai’i and graduated from Vassar College with degrees in Political Science and German Studies. 

Submission Guidelines: 

Query Iwalani at ikim@sjga.com. Please put “Query: [your book’s title] by [your name]” in the subject line. Include a brief pitch letter and the first few chapters in the body of your email, and if Iwalani thinks your project might be a good fit for her list, she will be in touch within 4-6 weeks. Due to the volume of queries she receives, Iwalani is unable to personally respond to each submission.