Success Story Interview - Brayden Russell

An Interview with Brayden Russell (braybees on QT) upon receiving an offer of representation from agent Molly Jamieson of United Agents, Ltd.

07/31/2026

QT: Can you tell us a little bit about the book for which you've found representation? What inspired you to write it?

Brayden Russell:
Of course! The book is titled EAT THE RICH- if the Nine Perfect Strangers retreat took place at a White Lotus resort run by the cult in Midsommar, you’d have EAT THE RICH (82,000 words), an upmarket horror with romance about ultra-wealthy guests forced to “atone” for their greed at a remote luxury resort designed by the very people who prop them up.

QT: How long have you been writing?

Brayden Russell:
I started writing and illustrating stories in spiral notebooks when I was sixish.

QT: How long have you been working on this book?

Brayden Russell:
This is by far the fastest I’ve ever written a book; it took about 8 weeks for the first draft. Revisions probably took twice that amount of time.

QT: Was there ever a time you felt like giving up, and what helped you to stay on course?

Brayden Russell:
I’ve wanted to give up since I started querying the first time in 2024.

QT: Is this your first book?

Brayden Russell:
It’s # 7 for me, 8 if you include the one I wrote when I was eleven, which, I don’t….

QT: Do you have any formal writing training?

Brayden Russell:
Nope

QT: Do you follow a writing routine or schedule?

Brayden Russell:
My writing routine is very “show up and try your best” coded. When I’m actively drafting something, I make myself sit and write at least once a day, but it can be anything from fiddling with a pesky sentence until I just change it back to the original or a three thousand word brain blast.

QT: How many times did you re-write/edit your book?

Brayden Russell:
Your first draft will never be the best iteration; I tweaked a lot of things until the feedback I got was glowing across the board.

QT: Did you have beta readers for your book?

Brayden Russell:
I had five.

QT: Did you outline your book, or do you write from the hip?

Brayden Russell:
I loosely figure out what my seven plot points are, but I don’t create an outline.

QT: How long have you been querying for this book? Other books?

Brayden Russell:
This book took three weeks; I’ve been querying for two years.

QT: About how many query letters did you send out for this book?

Brayden Russell:
25 before getting my first offer, 103 in total.

QT: On what criteria did you select the agents you queried?

Brayden Russell:
Somebody at the agency had to be making six-figure deals to the Big Five.

QT: Did you tailor each query to the specific agent, and if so, how?

Brayden Russell:
Most of them, yes. If I could find things on Publishers Marketplace, MSWL, or their website, then I personalized. If not, I didn’t.

QT: What advice would you give other writers seeking agents?

Brayden Russell:
If you go in it believing you will be an overnight success, you’ll burn out quick and break your own heart putting unfathomable pressure on yourself. If you go into it expecting to work hard, show up consistently and be the last one standing, you’ll be all right.

Query Letter:

If the Nine Perfect Strangers retreat took place at a White Lotus resort run by the cult in Midsommar, you’d have EAT THE RICH (82,000 words), an upmarket horror with romance about ultra-wealthy guests forced to “atone” for their greed at a remote luxury resort designed by the very people who prop them up. It's perfect for fans of the weird-girl, feminist horror in Olivie Blake’s Girl Dinner and the locked-door tension in Aisling Rawle’s The Compound.

When a flight to Hawaii is mysteriously diverted to a remote island, its elite passengers are offered temporary refuge at a pristine wellness resort. At The Marlowe, every detail is curated—personalized treatments, tailored diets, carefully monitored routines—and each guest is told the same thing: not welcome, not enjoy your stay, but you are where you’re meant to be.

After a lifetime of instability, 26-year-old Blair Whitford is desperate for what she’s never had—a baby, a family, and a sense of permanence—and the resort’s precision feels like safety, especially as cracks form in the life her husband sold her.

21-year-old Max (eager to lose his virginity on this trip) is traveling with the powerful family he’s spent years surviving by keeping his head down, convinced that doing nothing is different than doing harm. He recognizes something darker beneath the resort’s polish.

As The Marlowes’ rituals turn invasive, the guests’ secrets begin to surface. When the island cuts them off from the outside world, and a guest is publicly announced dead despite being very much alive on the property, it becomes clear: The Marlowe isn’t just hosting them, it’s judging them, and not everyone will be allowed to leave. Max will have to decide what he stands for as survival stops meaning ‘escape with his family’ and becomes ‘escape at all costs’, while Blair is tempted to stay where she is desired.

(bio)