What agents and publishers want
Plus all our usual bits of news and opportunities to support writers!
News, events, resources and opportunities
Wells Festival Book for Children Award. Details here. Deadline 30 June 2023.
Nosy Crow announces picture book open call for Pride Month 2023.
Undiscovered Voices: opening on 15th June – 20th July 2023.
WOWCON - SAVE THE DATE - 22-24th September 2023.
Sponsor
As you all know, we keep this newsletter free to everyone, despite its enormous value and popularity amongst writers, and publishing professionals.
So to help with costs of producing it, and for the time spent on creating and editing the content, we’re opening up a slot on the weekly newsletter for creatives or people in our industry to SPONSOR the newsletter (you can email Florianne@write-mentor.com for more information on how to sponsor the newsletter in the future, including costs etc).
Novel-in-Development Award update
We’re afraid there’s no progress to update you with this week - we’re still waiting on about 40 reads from the kids, Florianne has been nudging and chasing and we hope to make some more progress this week.
So, for now, switch off. More next Monday.
WOWCON
Includes 3 keynotes (technically 6!), 6 panels (excluding the first pages/spreads panels), and our pitch party competition and much more!
*With the basic ticket, you can purchase any additional workshops/panels not included for an extra £12/£25. These will be released at a later date.
Concession prices are available at £12 if the normal cost is beyond your means. No questions asked.
We also have a limited number of free tickets for those who are unable to pay the £12 concession price. Please email Emily at emily@write-mentor.com if you wish to apply for one of these.
Includes EVERYTHING at WOWCON - that’s 3 keynotes (technically 6!), 8 panels, 6 x 2 hour workshops, our pitch party competition and much more!
Hub Calendar (all times GMT/BST)
Mon 26th June: Writer’s Toolkit with Melissa: Money Management Skills 11am
Thurs 29th June: Workshop with Eloise 7pm
This is is just a few of the many sessions/opportunities that happen every month in the Hub and are all available on catch-up if you join now.
Also on offer
WriteMentor Spark is a monthly, online 1-2-1 mentoring service. We also have group mentoring available.
WriteMentor Magazine Issue 12 out now! Buy your copy here!
Podcast Episodes: Watch here. Listen here.
Find our archive of blog posts on writing advice and craft tips, plus author/agent/ industry professionals interviews and much more here.
The Final Word
What agents and publishers want
By Stuart White
The biggest questions in the heads of unpublished writers - what do they want? What is selling right now? What shall I write next and is there any point if it’s not what agents and publishers are looking for?
This tweet by Kesia Lupo has a good, general round up of what a small selection of editors were looking for.
Like anything like this, PLEASE do not just write what people say they are looking for. For sure, look at it and see if what you’re currently writing can fit, or if you had a great idea that chimes with a wishlist, then for sure, go forth and give it a go.
But do not chase trends.
Our sphere is AWFUL for taking what one industry person says and amplifying it to everyone and suddenly it becomes inscribed in stone as a ‘rule’ that everyone must follow.
Though shalt not write a synopsis
Though shall never use adverbs
Though shall never start a story with your character in front of a mirror describing themselves
Though shall start a story in the middle of the action
Every one of these MUST be caveated with a thousand exceptions because there is no absolutes in this thing. You need to addendum everything in that list with a proper explanation and context of what the person meant when they said it, but that part is never passed on, and so the RULES are often misinterpreted.
If I’m honest, and most people in the industry admit this, NOBODY has a clue what they are looking for (how many times have you heard:
‘I don’t always know what I want, I just know it when I read it’
And they certainly don’t know what will sell and do well.
It’s throw lots of stuff at the wall and see what sticks at times.
One thing I’ve learned through chatting to friends is that if you do write something that you think they want, you often hate it, or at best are just not passionate enough to actually make it work and inject it with the strengths of your own unique and wonderful voice.
The best advice is always to write what you’re most passionate about - what you’d love to read yourself. It will be clear in the resulting book if that is the case. Nothing worse than a soulless book that’s trying too hard to be something that the author is not 100% invested in, simply to improve odds of publication.
And there’s also the fact that while publishing moves slow, trends can move fast. And what is wanted now, will be less in demand in 12-18 months, or whenever. And there’s literally a finite number of agents and publishing houses, and none of them want 2 authors in the same space.
So I guess my advice to you is this:
do keep an eye on these trends, it’s worth noting for sure
but don’t chase it, or change your writing identity or passion to chase
try stuff that no-one else is doing - blend two weird genres or tropes, or invert a well-trodden tale and make it your own
Ultimately, when we all depart this mortal coil, we want to do it knowing we’ve been true to ourselves and are proud of the work we’ve created and left behind. I think about this lots, but our writing will from a massive part of our legacy - how people beyond our family and friends will remember us - how the words we wrote and the stories we told leave a memorable mark upon the development of a child on their reading journey (or even an adult or two!) or could possibly (and maybe this is a tad optimistic and egotistical) change the life of a young person forever.
Epic stuff. Huge responsibility.
Which is why it’s so important we stay true to ourselves and the stories we want to tell.
In short, be the most uniquely you that you can be - that’s how you stand out.
“Today you are You, that is truer than true. There is no one alive who is Youer than You.” Dr Seuss
Writing can be lonely, but it doesn’t need to be.
May the Force be with you!
Stuart, Florianne, Melissa and Emily