Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Soundcloud. We are thrilled to welcome Sara Sargent, Senior Executive Editor at Random House Books for Young Readers, to the podcast. In our cozy member lounge format (rather like a neighborhood potluck, we think, that happens to feature publishing experts), we asked her questions about how editors choose books, … Read more
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Soundcloud. Friends! We have the wonderful Alyssa Jennette of Stonesong Literary Agency joining us today as we tackle the current highlights and worrying dark sides of publishing. Today we chat about the varied approaches to agenting, story creation and AI, how much we need writers, the beautiful moments in … Read more
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Soundcloud. We are so excited to welcome the delightful author-agent pair Jessie Latimer and Kristen Terrette, Martin Literary Management. We talk about genre-blending, the power of referrals, editing, and learning from your rejections, as well as Jessie’s exciting new submission (her YA protagonist dives into her favorite book to … Read more
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Soundcloud. The votes are in! Science Fiction, Fantasy, Speculative & Supernatural won—and we’ve built this panel to that theme. But even if you’re writing serious nonfiction, or in a completely other genre, this is a great view into what agents love within genres—and how agenting, in general, works. With … Read more
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Soundcloud. We are so happy to welcome happy author-agent pair Adriann Ranta Zurhellen, Folio Literary Management, and author Joslin Brorsen, who created a magical written world specifically for her son. We love hearing how they found each other—how Joslin’s work fits right into Adriann’s #MSWL—and their tips for how to … Read more
We can’t wait! Tuesday, April 18, at 8:30 pm Eastern, join us for a live queries and pages panel with agent Amy Bishop. Submit your work for a chance at live feedback from our panel–plus, of course, a publishing Q&A. This event is designed to be supportive, uplifting, encouraging–and 100% introvert-friendly. (Wear pajamas! We’ll never … Read more
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Soundcloud. We are so excited to get to talk with Lauren DeStefano! Not only have we been fans for more than a decade, but she is just so darn cool in person. We talk about power dynamics, having characters live in different genres (the women of her story are … Read more
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Soundcloud. The world is a lot right now–politically and otherwise. Here at the Manuscript Academy, we started thinking about what it means to be a good literary citizen in a time of book bans–and what you can do both for you and for the writers who come after you. … Read more
When you submit your novel for publication, it has to clear the hurdle of what the industry calls the developmental, or dev, edit. This close analysis identifies structural flaws in novels that need to be fixed, and often lead to rejection. But if you learn to think like a dev editor, you’ll be able to … Read more
Listen on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Soundcloud. We absolutely loved making this episode! We started randomly calling (opted in) writers for pep talks—and the result is an inspiring, uplifting, life-affirming episode that shows the brilliance of our writing community while also soothing some common stressors. We discuss:* When do I need to pivot?* Am I … Read more
