The Manuscript Academy #MSWL

Anne Elliott is back for her second three-day event! Join us June 13-15 for daily classes, workshops, exercises, Q&A, a live feedback panel, and a supportive writer community as we learn about making and breaking the status quo in your work.

Get your ticket here: https://manuscriptacademy.com/anne-workshop ($0 members | $49 nonmembers).

What makes this day different from all other days? This course will explore that question from several angles. A break in status quo is often the occasion for story—or the vital climax. How and why do we establish the ordinary for our characters, and how can the ordinary be broken open to reveal new depths of personality, relationships, motivations, and worlds? Through concrete and unpacked examples and exercises, we will add a few key tools to the craft toolbox.

This course can be completed on your schedule. Everything will be up for 30 days, replays are available for all events, and your odds of feedback are the same whether you attend live or watch the replay.

Anne Elliott is the author of The Artstars: Stories (Indiana University Press) and The Beginning of the End of the Beginning (Ploughshares Solos).

Her short fiction can be found in Story, A Public Space, Crab Orchard Review, Witness, Hobart, Bellevue Literary Review, Fifth Wednesday Journal, and elsewhere. Elliott is a veteran of the New York spoken word circuit, with stage credits including The Whitney Museum, Lincoln Center, PS122, and Woodstock ’94.

Her fiction has been awarded support from The Story Foundation, Vermont Studio Center, The Normal School, Table 4 Writer’s Foundation, and The Bridport Prize. She holds an MFA in fiction writing from Warren Wilson College, and lives in Portland, Maine. Learn more at http://www.anneelliottstories.com.

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 publishing and more!

Alyssa Jennette joined Stonesong Literary in June 2015 after interning at Sarah Jane Freymann Literary Agency. She graduated from the Maryland Institute College of Art with a BFA in Illustration. As a result, she has unique insight and expertise when it comes to design-heavy or illustrated works. Alyssa is a very editorial agent; she finds a lot of joy in shaping stories alongside the author and delights in building long-term partnerships.

Alyssa represents children’s and adult fiction and picture books, and has dabbled in humor and pop culture nonfiction. She is especially drawn to diverse voices, ensemble casts, and thorough world-building, plus any book with a format that is specific to the story and gives it its own context.

Learn more about Alyssa here: https://manuscriptacademy.com/faculty-members/alyssa-jennette

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 help rewrite the villain's ending!).

You can learn more about Kristen here: https://www.martinlit.com and on her website: https://kristenterrette.com.

And you can find Jessie on Instagram and TikTok @picnicswithpaperbacks, and on Twitter @_JessieLatimer.

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 Q&A, trivia, live #MSWL and a class on dialogue, this is a fun event we’re thrilled to share.

Want YOUR genre to be the theme for our next panel? Vote here!https://manuscriptacademy.com/mswl-live

Prefer to watch the video version? Check it out here! https://manuscriptacademy.com/mswl-live-sff

Today’s episode includes (in order of appearance):

*Caitlin McDonald, agent at Donald Maass Literary, with a SF/F Trivia Quiz
*Samantha Wekstein, agent at Thompson Liteary, with a query critique
*Thao Le, agent at Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency, with a visual #MSWL (check the video version!) presentation
*Taj McCoy, agent at Rees Literary, with a class (slides in the video version!) on dialogue

Today’s event was filmed in front of our Manuscript Academy members. Want to be there live next time? Join us! Learn more here: https://manuscriptacademy.com/membership

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 find a happy creative partnership.

You can learn more about Adriann, and book a meeting with her (starting May 4, 2023) here: https://manuscriptacademy.com/faculty-members/adriann-ranta-zurhellen

And you can find Joslin on Instagram @joslinbrorsen

Starting Tuesday, April 11 (but on your schedule + available for 30 days!): Three Day Workshop: Think Like An Editor, with daily classes, daily interactive workshops (optional homework + exercises), live Q&A and live, interactive feedback panel. Learn more + get your ticket here: https://manuscriptacademy.com/product/think-like-an-editor

Get a free class replay, Your Path to Publication, with Shirin here: https://manuscriptacademy.com/your-path-to-publication

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 living in a thriller; the men think they’re in a romance), and how she still takes creative risks—and why no writer should aim for a 100 percent publication rate.

Find her on Instagram @laurendestefano.