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Ms. Kiana Nguyen
Donald Maass Literary Agency
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General
Kiana Nguyen
Donald Maass Literary Agency
New York, NY
- Website:
- maassagency.com
- Blog/Other:
- www.manuscriptwishlist.com/mswl-post/kiana-nguyen/
- Twitter (X):
- @kianangu
- AALA Member:
- No
Query Methods
Accepts queries via...
Genres
This agent is seeking the following genres:
Fiction
Commercial
Contemporary
Family Saga
Fantasy
• Fantasy, Contemporary/Urban
• Fantasy, Magical Realism
Horror
Mystery
New Adult
Romance
• Romance, Contemporary
• Romance, Paranormal
• Romance, Thriller/Suspense
Science Fiction
Thrillers/Suspense
Upmarket
Women's Fiction
Young Adult
• Young Adult, Contemporary
• Young Adult, Fantasy
• Young Adult, Horror
• Young Adult, Mystery
• Young Adult, Paranormal
• Young Adult, Paranormal Romance
• Young Adult, Romance
Non-Fiction
none
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Known Clients (current & past)
Alyssa Carlier
August Clarke
Alexandra Higgins
Rebecca Mix
Author Comments
Comments by authors about this agent.
egmaddox
08/14/2026 08:19 AM
Didn't even take a whole day, but a polite decline.
proseforchampagne
08/11/2026 04:10 PM
Q: 8.11.26
R. 8.11.26
Historical Fantasy 101K
Thank you for the quick response! And although disappointing, the very helpful rejection letter giving me query feedback to tighten up my "plot points, obstacles, and character(s) attempts to overcome so they are more clear." (which I might do anyways, even though I had two full requests today.) Still very HELPFUL! I LOVED the decisiveness. I would query again in the future but Id would be RAZOR SHARP on my query on these points.
R. 8.11.26
Historical Fantasy 101K
Thank you for the quick response! And although disappointing, the very helpful rejection letter giving me query feedback to tighten up my "plot points, obstacles, and character(s) attempts to overcome so they are more clear." (which I might do anyways, even though I had two full requests today.) Still very HELPFUL! I LOVED the decisiveness. I would query again in the future but Id would be RAZOR SHARP on my query on these points.
drewsheridan
08/07/2026 01:06 PM
YA Fantasy 106K Words
Q: 8/7/26 @12:38pm
R: 8/7/26 @ 1:26pm
I received the same rejection letter as others:
"Thank you for the opportunity to see your pages. Unfortunately, I don't feel I am the right agent for this project or planned series, so I'm passing. Just because I wasn't quite drawn in, however, doesn't mean there isn't another agent out there who will love it. I encourage you to re-work your query so that the plot points, obstacles, and character(s) attempts to overcome them are more clear."
Taking a look through the other comments, this is a form letter, though I do believe it to be semi-personalized. While this is the most popular rejection received, it is not the only one. A few others received specifics such as increasing word count, Kiana believing she is not the best to represent the specific story/genre, or Kiana believing she is not the best to represent an already self-published book. As such, I do believe the advice given is valid and should be heeded rather than ignored due to its uniformity. Just my thoughts!
Q: 8/7/26 @12:38pm
R: 8/7/26 @ 1:26pm
I received the same rejection letter as others:
"Thank you for the opportunity to see your pages. Unfortunately, I don't feel I am the right agent for this project or planned series, so I'm passing. Just because I wasn't quite drawn in, however, doesn't mean there isn't another agent out there who will love it. I encourage you to re-work your query so that the plot points, obstacles, and character(s) attempts to overcome them are more clear."
Taking a look through the other comments, this is a form letter, though I do believe it to be semi-personalized. While this is the most popular rejection received, it is not the only one. A few others received specifics such as increasing word count, Kiana believing she is not the best to represent the specific story/genre, or Kiana believing she is not the best to represent an already self-published book. As such, I do believe the advice given is valid and should be heeded rather than ignored due to its uniformity. Just my thoughts!
deborah2020
07/28/2026 03:37 PM
12 mins rejection.
"Thank you for the opportunity to see your pages. Unfortunately, I don't feel I am the right agent for this project, so I'm passing. Just because I wasn't quite drawn in, however, doesn't mean there isn't another agent out there who will love it. I encourage you to re-work your query so that the plot points, obstacles, and character(s) attempts to overcome them are more clear."
I find her response poorly phrased, because she never saw my pages and then encourages me to re-work the plot and character. I encourage her to re-work her form rejection for quick passes.
No issue on the quick pass, but the reply is cuckoo for coconuts.
"Thank you for the opportunity to see your pages. Unfortunately, I don't feel I am the right agent for this project, so I'm passing. Just because I wasn't quite drawn in, however, doesn't mean there isn't another agent out there who will love it. I encourage you to re-work your query so that the plot points, obstacles, and character(s) attempts to overcome them are more clear."
I find her response poorly phrased, because she never saw my pages and then encourages me to re-work the plot and character. I encourage her to re-work her form rejection for quick passes.
No issue on the quick pass, but the reply is cuckoo for coconuts.
Campton
07/22/2026 05:10 PM
My query would not be posted as a popup note said that 90,000 is the maximum for SF. In fact it is the minimum, as SF novels run from 90-120,000.
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Profile History
- Last Update:
- 02/24/2026 - Genres updated.
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