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Leo Kelley

@leokelley.bsky.social

Queer trans man writing fantastical stories. 2025 SmoochPit Mentee 💋

Leo Kelley @leokelley.bsky.social · 16/02/2026

The art is in and the #smoochpit showcase is coming up, so it's time to post the #agentsguide to Storm Struck, a queer fantasy romance. #amquerying

A title that says "An Agents' Guide to Storm Struck, A Queer Fantasy Romance" next to an illustration of two men, a noble and a sea captain, holding hands.

Text that says "The Pitch: After a spectacular public defeat, disgraced duelist Varos Belaro takes to the high seas to save his reputation by rescuing a princess from pirates and winning her hand in marriage. During their first tempest at sea, Kellan, the mysterious captain, saves Varos’s life with his storm magic. After hidden and heated moments, they collide in a passionate tryst and make a gentlemen’s agreement to continue their affair until they rescue the princess. But as old rivals close in from behind, they must race to a showdown with the pirates, and Varos must choose between the life he’s always wanted and the love he never thought he’d have."

A close up illustration of two men holding hands next to text that says "The Vibes: Adventure on the High Seas, Four Chili Pepper Emojis, Himbo MC, Forced Proximity, Pirates, Black Cat/Golden Retriever"

Two book covers above the respective text "SWORDCROSSED by Freya Marske" and "SORCERY AND SMALL MAGICS by Maiga Doocy."

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Leo Kelley @leokelley.bsky.social · 31/01/2026

THE PRINCESS BRIDE X OUR FLAG MEANS DEATH STORM STRUCK - an M/M fantasy romance ⚡️a disgraced duelist ⚡️a surly sea captain ⚡️ a princess kidnapped on the high seas ⚡️ a steamy gentlemen’s agreement ⚡️ a race to a pirate battle 💋 selected for 2025 Smoochpit Mentor Program #QuestPit #Q #F #R #RF #LGBTQ

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Reposted by Leo Kelley

Julianne @authorjulianne.bsky.social · 31/01/2026

In honour of #QuestPit and the upcoming #SmoochPit showcase, here's an updated #agentsguide for THE BOG PRINCE, my upper #YA #RF about a necromancer who reanimates the bog body of her kingdom's long-lost prince. 💀👑 Maybe some secrets are better left buried... 🖤 #agentguide #Q

"An agent's guide to THE BOG PRINCE by Julianne M, a 99k word YA fantasy romance."

The pitch...

Eighteen-year-old Everin Lockett’s dreams of returning home from ruthless Wyverith College are shattered when she manifests a forbidden necromancy magic that reanimates the bog body of her kingdom’s lost prince. If the college discovers the truth about her abilities, she will be conscripted into their brutal army,
doomed never to see her family again.

Desperate to guard her secret, Everin strikes a deal with the long-lost Prince Byrnan: if he helps keep her power hidden, she will help him solve his centuries-old murder. But when Byrnan’s quest for justice could be the very thing that endangers her last hope of going home, Everin will need to confront the true cost of
falling for a lost prince with nothing left to lose—and a kingdom to reclaim.

Pictures of book and album covers in ornate antique frames. The text reads:

For fans of...

Yearning and bog bodies (Hozier's debut album)
Dark academia and lyrical prose (A Study in Drowning and Curious Tides)
Haunting gothic atmosphere (One Dark Window and Florence + the Machine's Lungs album)
Slow-burn romance (Divine Rivals)

Snippet...

A fork of lightning split the rain-soaked sky in two, and the ground trembled with a deafening clap of thunder. But even after the rumbling faded, the bog still shuddered beneath me, swelling and quaking like a pair of lungs drawing their dying breath. I lurched away, my heart jolting against my throat as I scrambled back through the mud.
Another crack of lightning.
And in its wake, silhouetted against the flash of violet light—

A single grasping hand,
clawing its way out of the earth towards me.

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Reposted by Leo Kelley

Millie Sun @milliesun.bsky.social · 31/01/2026

A cunning prankster plots against her lord husband and ends up saving the empire in a fantasy romcom version of A SONG TO DROWN RIVERS X HOW TO LOSE A GUY IN 10 DAYS 😈 unlikeable heroine ⚔️ enemies-to-power couple 💑 marriage of convenience 🔥 slow-burn & low spice #questpit #Q #A #RF #agentsguide

Agents guide for Lady Han's Manual for Matrimonial Mayhem, 91K adult fantasy romcom, revised through SmoochPit 2025 mentorship

Pitch - She planned to be the terror in his life. He planned to ignore her. Neither planned on saving a crumbling empire from a tyrant—or falling in love.

Twenty-year-old Wen Anling would sooner commit murder than give up her home and freedom. But with no way out of her arranged marriage to Han Shiyan, the wealthy Lord of Qinglan, she devises a plan: let him be the one to beg for divorce… once she transforms herself into the nastiest wife possible.

Shiyan only married Anling to honour his mother’s dying wish. Had he known his new wife would send his simple life straight to mayhem, he would have thrown honour out the nearest window. He struggles to see any good beneath Anling’s heavily powdered face, overly red lips, and shrill screams, but when she continues to get under his skin, he cannot help but grow intrigued—especially after catching his first glimpses of the real Anling beneath her prickly exterior.

While Anling wrestles with her desire to escape the prison of marriage and he

Comps
The Darkness Within Us - cunning, unlikeble heroine, enemies-to-lovers, drives him up the wall but he can't help falling
A Song to Drown Rivers - Chiense history-inspired setting, political intrigue & schemes
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days - romantic comedy, slow burn, lots of banter

Extract & Tropes
- Multicultural w/ POC leads
- Marriage of convenience
- Enemies to power couple
- Slow burn w/ a dose of spice
The not so meet cute...
Shiyan’s eyes widened for a heartbeat before he forced composure back onto his features. Her face was powdered with a thick layer of white, as if she had simply dunked it into a bowl of flour. Her bright red lip-paint smudged at the edges and… Heavens forbid women dab their cheeks with uneven blobs of pink.

Even the most senile and stern of his guests held their hands to their stomachs, straining to hold back fits of laughter. He would have gladly joined them, too, if he wasn’t the one with the honour of marrying this… this… buffoon.

He swallowed and recited the wise sayings of his forefathers: one should not judge a book by its cover; a woman’s beauty runs deeper than appearances; virtues are lasting while beauty is fleeting.

Oh, to hell with wise sayings. An eyesore was an eyesore no matter how virtuous it
might be.

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Leo Kelley @leokelley.bsky.social · 31/01/2026

High heat on the high seas in this M/M fantasy romance. A disgraced noble takes to the high seas to rescue a princess and win her hand in marriage, but falls in love with his surly sea captain instead. ⭐ Selected for the 2025 Smoochpit Mentor Program #Questpit #Q #F #R #RF #LGBTQ

Image of a tall ship on the ocean with the title Storm Struck and the following text: A disgraced noble takes to the high seas to rescue a princess and win her hand in marriage, but falls in love with his surly sea captain instead.

The Pitch:
Varos Belaro spent his whole life training for a dueling tournament he just lost - along with all his friends, his good name, and his career prospects. However, when he finds out that the kingdom’s princess has been kidnapped by an infamous pirate and the reward for saving her is her hand in marriage, he sees a chance at redemption. With the title of prince of the realm on the line, his family quickly strikes a contract with the fastest ship on the seas, and Varos takes off on an adventure to rescue the princess and his future.

Kellan is the captain of the ship and a Stormrunner, a once-in-a-generation talent that can harness the power of storms for wind magic. After he saves Varos in a tempest, they collide in a steamy tryst, and Varos comes up with a plan to extend their fun by forming a gentleman’s agreement until they find the princess. But when the rival who ruined Varos’s life emerges with his own Stormrunner on the only other ship that can beat them, Varos and Kellan must race them to be the first to save the princess. Facing wild storms, duels, and pirate battles, Varos must choose between the life he’s always wanted and the love he never thought he’d have.

Image of a tall ship on the ocean with "for fans of" and then the cover of three books. The books are Sorcery and Small Magics, Swordcrossed, and A Marvellous Light.

The Vibes:

High Heat on the High Seas
Black Cat/Golden Retriever
Forced Proximity
Himbo Hero
Pirates!
Unique Magic System

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