Ramona Pina

Associate Agent
(she/her/hers)

Ramona D. Pina is a second-generation Jamaican, and third-gen. Cape Verdean, born and raised in Boston. A lover of fall and all things cozy, she is true to her New England roots. She is obsessed with teas, seafood, and Afro- Indo- Caribbean food. Growing up, she was the odd kid who wished she could write like Langston Hughes and read encyclopedias all day. Yes, pre-internets! Her creative journey has been influenced by Jim Henson productions, Hayao Miyazaki anime, and similar works. She constantly lost and found herself within those stories, identifying with characters who didn't look like her. This lack of representation led Ramona to explore abroad, and other marginalized cultures. While in Chile and Guatemala, she studied, volunteered, and gained fluency in the Spanish language, applying her cultural anthropology degree to understand the richness of the mythology and folklore of mainstream and indigenous groups. Being a spoken word poet, Ramona knows that her voice is her strongest weapon and continues to highlight that as a BookEnds literary fellow in her capstone podcast, Hollow Moon. As a literary agent, she wants to champion underrepresented voices in literature to elevate them to an even playing field. When she’s not immersed in fictional worlds, she’s a busy mom of 2 (and one fur baby, Rambo the cat), an avid baker, candle-maker, and DIY enthusiast/“Mona Stewart.” Otherwise, she’s watching movies featuring The Rock or other absurd action films. She’s overjoyed to have found her agenting home at BookEnds with equally compassionate fellow humans and looks forward to midwifing more diverse books into the world. You can follow Ramona on Twitter at @PinaRamona or visit her website at pinaramona.com. To query Ramona please submit your query through QueryManager.

Books

Ramona Pina Wishlist

Ramona is interested in carving a space for and elevating underrepresented voices. Fantasy, magical realism, sci-fi, paranormal romance, horror and non-disney princess retellings are her favorite genres. She loves dark fantasy themes like Sweeney Todd with dark humor or with lyrical voices like in Pan’s Labyrinth. In YA and Adult fantasy, give her a fast-paced adventure that focuses on sisterhood, stories that address concepts of faith and spirituality (not religion specific), or anything having to do with the sea besides pirates! Bring on the Kraken, the merpeople that swear to protect it (or destroy it), and other creatures of the watery depths. For middle grade, take her on quests with female MCs that display bravery and perseverance that’s not in spite of gender, and on feel good adventures amongst friends like the Goonies. Suck her into a fictional magical family histories and the family drama (i.e., the Addams Family, 100 Cupboards, etc.) She is also open to select non-fiction with a social justice tone that explores race, sex and class in America. Looking for the modern James Baldwin (not gender specific), or works like The Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. Overall, Ramona is open and looking for character driven stories with incredible world-building that address real-life struggles. If you could marry the whimsy of “The Last Unicorn” with the ferocity of “Mulan”, then she’s ready to officiate! She is NOT a good fit for ROMCOMs or NF War stories. You can query Ramona here.

Pin It on Pinterest