✨What's the One Thing You Can Control as a Writer? NYT Bestselling Author Alix E. Harrow Has the Answer—and Shares it with Us✨
Plus, Carly Watters on what makes her stop reading your manuscript, and an exciting learning opportunity!
Greetings, writing pals!
It’s always exciting when we get to talk to NYT bestselling authors on the podcast, and this week’s episode is no exception. Bianca is joined by Hugo-Award winning and bestselling sci-fi and fantasy author, Alix E. Harrow for a conversation that covers a lot of ground that will be of interest to writers of all genres. Alix, whose Starling House was the October 2023 Reese’s Book Club Pick, talks about everything from world-building to using footnotes in a novel (a risky device which, done right, can have huge pay-off), and also shares the one story her agent has told her she must never tell—but if you want to know what it is, you’ll just have to tune in. 😉🎧
We’ve also got exciting news: Early Bird Registration for our 2025 Deep Dive virtual retreat opens November 29th! AND, to accommodate as many of you from as many different time zones as possible, we’ve gone back to our weekend-long format. Stay tuned for announcements in the weeks ahead about our stellar line-up. We’re very excited about it, but for now…🤐🤩
Querying, in a word, sucks. If you’re one of those rare creatures who is somehow immune to the stress of it all (the self-loathing when you accidentally use the wrong name at the top of your query letter, the panic of realizing you forgot to attach your pages…), good for you. But as we suspect that these mythical creatures of the writing world don’t really exist, we continue to focus on delivering advice and insights designed to help all of our non-unicorn readers survive the querying ordeal. This week, it takes the form of another enlightening essay from our very own Carly Watters, this time on the topic of Why I Stop Reading Your Manuscript. 🧐📖
We hope you find inspiration and assistance in what we’ve shared with you this week. Until next time, thanks for reading! ❤️
The Shit No One Tells You About Writing Team
P.S. Still not sure about upgrading to paid? Check out our Tuesday Teaser below to see what you’re missing!
Save the Dates!
We couldn’t be more excited to announce the dates of the upcoming 2025 Deep Dive virtual retreat which has reverted back to a weekend format so that we can accommodate as many of our listeners across the world as possible.
If you loved the breakout room sessions and workshops from this year’s 10-week Deep Dive, don’t worry! We’ll still be including sessions like those before and after the 2-day intensive. Plus, this year we’re focusing on giving you access to more gatekeepers so, besides a few awesome author presentations, expect to hear from a lot more incredible agents and editors.
The lineup is spectacular. We can’t wait to start sharing it with you.
Mark the dates in your calendars - especially the date for the early bird pricing which you definitely don’t want to miss.
This Week’s Podcast✨🎙️✨
This week (listen to the episode here!), Bianca interviews the Hugo-Award winning and NYT bestselling sci-fi and fantasy author, Alix E. Harrow. Among other things, the two discuss:
Alix's latest novel, Starling House;
Her journey to publication and being chosen for Reese's Book Club;
Alix's world-building process;
Using secondary characters to up the stakes and shed light on your main character; and
Balancing the divulging of backstory while maintaining curiosity.
“The only actual thing you can control in publishing is your craft, right? And the reason I was writing short stories is because I was very sure—and I was right—that I didn't know what I was doing yet. I didn't have writing degrees or classes or workshops. I didn't have the experience that I needed. So I was writing short stories specifically to get better at craft and to practice. And without that practice and attention to art, you don't actually get the opportunity to do the fun things.”
— Alix E. Harrow
More information about Alix can be found on her website. She is also on Instagram and has her very own Substack!
You can purchase Starling House on our Bookshop.org affiliate page here. Buying books through this link supports a local indie bookstore, as well as The Shit No One Tells You About Writing 📚❤️
Why I Stop Reading Your Manuscript
by Carly Watters
As you know, agents get hundreds of submissions a month. We narrow that down to a select few to request, that catch our eye. On top of all the client reading, contract negotiation, and putting out fires, we have to squeeze time in to read your sample chapters. It takes us weeks to get to them because we have so many other things on our plates that have higher priority.
When we finally find time to read some new projects, there are a few things that go through our heads:
1) We are looking for something TRULY great, with outstanding writing and an electric premise
2) We have so much on our plates, that if we do really like it, sometimes ‘like’ isn’t actually good enough, so we still pass
3) If we’re looking at a dozen partials, things can blur together and we need something that is absolutely memorable–and that rarely happens
Agents don’t have time for reading things that don’t grab us. So what is it that makes us stop reading?
Characters are not compelling
I have to be on board with the main character. I have to feel like I understand them and be strongly invested in their journey. If I am feeling lukewarm for the main character, I am not going to continue on.
I have no idea where the story is going
I don’t need a predictable manuscript, but I need to read a plot that has a purpose and a direction. Set up the journey for the reader early on; let us know what we can get excited about in the coming pages.
It’s starting in the wrong spot
I don’t have time to read past the first 100 pages to find the ’true beginning’ of your book. If you don’t know how/where to start your novel then I can’t go finding it for you. Not only does it make me stop reading, but it also tells me that there is some serious editing to do that I might not have time for.
It isn’t what I thought it would be
Sometimes I get really excited about a query, only to realize the novel that I’m reading isn’t anything like the query said it would be. Writing an accurate query letter to reflect your novel, its strengths and its themes, is the most important task for querying writers.
The voice isn’t speaking to me
I’ll know I’m not the agent for the project if I don’t grasp the voice. I have to like a writer’s voice in order to work with them on this project and many more. Liking their voice will get us through the times where maybe the project isn’t selling, but we’re enthusiastic about the next one.
The pitch was more exciting than the sample material
Some writers workshop their query letter more than they workshop their manuscript pages. That gets us excited about your pitch, but leaves us underwhelmed with your sample chapters. You’re building up our expectations with your query letter—don’t let us down! Make sure those sample chapters are as exciting and relevant as your pitch is.
It doesn’t fit into its proposed genre or target audience
For example, we get pitched YA projects that are actually MG etc. The purpose of your pitch is to whet our appetite and set us up to enjoy your work based on the expectations you’ve outlined in your query letter. Know your target audience. Read in your genre. Be confident that you are pitching the correct agent for the correct project.
Tuesday Teaser 😉
In next week’s newsletter exclusively for our paid members, we’ve got an Author Q&A with Raquel Vasquez Gilliland, author of Lightning in Her Hands, who shares insights on how to write while living with chronic pain and disability; information about an opportunity to attend a writing retreat in Northern California (yes, please!); and a video from Julie Fingersh, author of the upcoming Stay, that’s both hilarious and hopeful (particularly for anyone who questions if they’ve embarked on their writing journey too late. Spoiler alert: the answer is a resounding “no!”).
Not yet a member? For just $8USD a month or $80USD a year you get:
an exclusive newsletter on Tuesdays featuring bonus author Q&As and other exclusive content from industry experts
weekly access to Carly Watters and CeCe Lyra’s written notes on queries from the podcast’s Books With Hooks feature
monthly bonus podcast episodes, AND
regular Ask Me Anythings / Q&As with Carly, CeCe, and Bianca Marais.
If that doesn’t kickstart your writing journey, we don’t know what will!
Hacking Writing on a Line Level with CeCe Lyra! 📝🫢
No matter what genre you write in, knowing how to elevate your writing on a line level is an essential skill. But what does strong writing on a line level look like exactly? Are there rules and/or techniques that can help storytellers elevate their writing? And how can writers know if they’re improving this element of the craft? Join CeCe not just to unpack strong writing on a line level, but to learn how to *hack* it! This class will be jam packed with real-world examples of writing on a line level that work—and that don’t. All examples, all the time. For the first time ever, we're meeting for 3 days! November 7th at 8pm ET: First Craft Session November 11th at 8pm ET: Second Craft Session November 26th at 8pm ET: Live, cozy Q&A session (attendees will have the option of turning on their cameras and interacting with CeCe)
Come prepared to take lots of notes!
If you’ve taken this class before, then the First Craft Session on November 7th will feel familiar to you, but the Second Craft Session will include new techniques and workshops! Don’t worry if you have to leave early or if you can’t attend one (or more) sessions live: all sessions will be recorded and each recording will be emailed to everyone who is registered 24h later. Recordings will be available to the viewer for a limited time.
Be Part of Carly’s Masterclass 😍📝
Carly’s class includes 10+ hours of writing and publishing video lessons you have lifetime access to, monthly Q&A sessions, and fresh content every quarter.
Did we mention there’s an app, too? You can keep learning on the go. Don’t miss a minute of Carly’s top career advice for aspiring, emerging and published writers. Get the writing career you’ve always dreamed of.
That’s all for this week’s news! If you enjoyed it, why not share the love? 🥰
Tune in again next week for more invaluable wisdom from our wonderful hosts! Until then, happy writing! 😍
❤️ The Shit No One Tells You About Writing Team
Our work takes place on land now known as Toronto and Ottawa and we acknowledge that these are the traditional territories of the Mississaugas of the Credit, the Anishnabeg, the Chippewa, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat Peoples as well as the unceded, unsurrendered territory of the Anishinaabe Algonquin Nation. Toronto is covered under Treaty 13 and the Williams Treaties. We respect and affirm the inherent and Treaty Rights of all Indigenous Peoples across this land and acknowledge the historical oppression of lands, cultures, languages, and the original Peoples in what we now know as Canada. We invite you to learn more about the land you inhabit, the history of that land, and how to actively be part of a better future going forward together at Native Land or Whose Land.
Carly Watters and CeCe Lyra are literary agents at P.S. Literary Agency, but their work in this newsletter is not affiliated with the agency, and the views expressed by Carly and CeCe in this newsletter are solely that of themselves and do not necessarily reflect the views, opinions, policies, or position of P.S. Literary Agency.
This is jam-packed with helpful stuff! Thank you for all the goodies.
Thank you, Carly, for these excellent tips! Looking forward to the episode as well. :)