Marin Takikawa is a literary agent with The Friedrich Agency. Before joining TFA in early 2021, I got my start as an assistant to three agents at Foundry Literary + Media, following internships at The Book Group, Folio Literary Management, and Triada U.S. Born in Tokyo and raised in Singapore and NYC, I graduated from the University of Rochester with degrees in English and Business. In addition to building my own list, I support Molly Friedrich and Lucy Carson, and handle audio rights for the agency. IÕm an eclectic reader, and hope that my list will showcase this range as wellÑin addition to adult fiction and nonfiction, I also am looking to represent select YA.
For adult fiction, IÕm always seeking innovativeÑboth in idea and structureÑliterary/upmarket fiction thatÕs lush, evocative, and full of heart(break). IÕm also looking for family sagas, novels that subvert forms of power, specifically relating to colonialism/imperialism, and engages with social and environmental issues. IÕm also particularly enamored by genre-bending works: speculative concepts, ghost stories, magical realism, and anything that plays with myth and folklore will always catch my eye!
For YA, IÕm looking for voice-driven and literary-leaning novels with the emotional breadth and depth in the tradition of authors like Emily X. R. Pan and Kelly Loy GilbertÑalthough I wonÕt say no to sweeter contemporary YA (my comfort reads are Anna & the French Kiss, Love & Gelato, and Better Than the Movies)! IÕm also excited by speculative concepts and am not afraid of going dark. Give me all your gothic, atmospheric, haunting books (especially with a sense of mystery and adventure)! Some of my recent favorite YA books are If You Could See the Sun by Ann Liang, Anatomy by Dana Schwartz, and FirekeeperÕs Daughter by Angeline Boulley.
In adult nonfiction, I gravitate toward community-oriented narrative nonfiction with engaging and insightful research, reportage, or cultural analysis. IÕm also looking for narrative nonfiction that is intersectional, resistant, and radical in nature, that questions why we have the institutions, ideas, and systems we have in place. I often think about the legacies of colonialism, how it haunts and perpetuates in various forms in the modern age (such as the environment and in capitalism), but also about collective action/liberation and its sense of possibilities and what an equitable future could look like. IÕd love to hear from you if your work is in this space. *Please note that IÕm not looking for memoir at this time, although IÕll be open to considering memoirs written by BIPOC.
Regardless of category, IÕm looking for a singular voice that will guide me through any literary terrain and is not afraid of pushing against the status quo. And above all, itÕs of utmost importance to me that my list is filled with writers from historically underrepresented and marginalized communities, as well as diasporic voices.
In my spare time, you can find me dancing, watching anime, or hiking. IÕm fluent in Japanese, and you also probably donÕt want to bad-mouth me in Mandarin 😉
Five non-agency books I loved: HOW HIGH WE GO IN THE DARK; SHARKS IN THE TIME OF SAVIORS; HEADS OF THE COLORED PEOPLE; GOODBYE, VITAMIN; THE SUBTLE KNIFE. P.S.: pronounced marine