Throw in a school for sorcerers (not wizards, that's so passė) and a Tough Female Character (the market is no longer responding to Strong Female Characters) and you've got yourself a book deal, sir.

~QQ

We sort of use the term "literary fiction" or "contemporary fiction" to describe books for the adult market that take place in the real world and don't have fantastical elements. It's a catch-all term, despite its lofty connotations. I'd definitely avoid the "romance" genre descriptor in your case.

~QQ

Mostly with the cackling and the sum-counting. A little swimming in their Scrooge McDuckian money vault too, though I'm told that's seen as gauche and frowned upon in the literary agent community. 

In general, agents back off from editorial input once the book has been sold. At that point any editorial changes mostly occur between the editor and the author. But it's the agent's job to continue to advocate for their authors if anything goes horribly wrong in the publishing process. So sometimes an author might ask their agent to step back into the ring, so to speak.

But usually once the manuscript is off the agent's desk, they're done with it and on to trying to fix and sell the next book.

~QQ

The fact that you're even consciously trying to break the mold is a good sign. You're aware of the problem of white washing in fantasy books, and you're actively working to avoid doing it in your writing. So I'd say you're on the right track. :)

Also, may I just say that I love that your question was "How can I make sure I'm not perpetuating a problem?" rather than "How can I get published despite trying not to perpetuate a problem?" Strive for good writing and originality first and the rest will follow. 

Good luck. You're going to be great.

~QQ

Much like Black Widow, my origin story is colored with red and filled with dark deeds, regret, and the collapse of a totalitarian regime. It's a story better left untold.

Just kidding. I got my start as an intern at a magazine publisher when I was about twenty. It was an editorial position, so I dealt pretty heavily with the slush pile (foreshadowing my future in acquisitions?) but we interns were also responsible for writing 200-word side column reviews for the magazine. Mostly I was assigned fancy rich-person luxury travel stuff, like where to rent a yacht when you're visiting Acapulco. Completely out of my wheelhouse. So it involved a lot of interviews and research to bullshit my way through articles for which I had no real expertise. In hindsight, it was probably great training for if I had decided to go the route of a fiction writer, rather than an editor. 

But that was my first gig in the publishing world, and it was incredibly valuable experience. Before then I was pretty sure that's what I wanted to do, but that internship really solidified two things for me: 1) I was meant to be an editor, not a writer, 2) I really wanted to work in books, not periodicals. I still keep in touch with my internship supervisor from that job, and I can't tell you how many times he's come through with advice or a contact when I needed it.

Congratulations on your first writing gig, and good luck! You're going to be great.

~QQ

Thanks so much for reading! And I'm glad you found the post helpful. It was meant to be encouraging, though I've gotten a lot of very mixed feedback on it.

Good luck in your studies, and welcome to the party!

~QQ