We love Norma Perez-Hernandez (editor at Kensington Publishing Corp) for her warmth and humor, and the way she makes publishing approachable, thoughtful and kind.

You'll hear how much she cares for her authors, the enormous number of things she does each day, and her ideas on how we can move the industry forward.

We also talk about how genres change--how rom coms simply could not work when she started in publishing but are thriving now--and what this means for trends in the industry.

We're sure you'll love Norma just as much as we do. 

Norma Perez-Hernandez is editor at Kensington Publishing Corp. She has worked on a variety of projects, including fiction, romance, mysteries, thrillers, and non-fiction. A New York City native, Norma studied English literature at the Macaulay Honors College at The City College of New York and is a graduate of the Publishing Certificate Program at City College. She is thrilled to build a list with diverse authors and books. @normajeanesays

Ever wish you could carry around a writing class in your pocket? One with special agent and editor guests, a rad* theme, and way too much coffee? 

Now you can. Our Write-In Workshop from last week (you can still see the full replay here, if you'd like the video too: https://manuscriptacademy.com/back-to-school-write-in) features all the ways thinking about your character in school--plus the resulting conflicts, social hierarchies, friends and crushes--can give you a deeper understanding of that person on the page. 

We've left in pauses so you can follow along. Grab your favorite school supplies, maybe your earbuds or your Bluetooth speaker**, and write with 300 of your new best friends. We'll read some clips of your examples, and think you, too, will be impressed with the strength and talent of this community.

Special shout-out to Kiana Nguyen, agent at Donald Maass Literary Agency, and Molly Cusick, editor at Sourcebooks, for being our surprise guests. 

Hope this finds you well and enjoying everything the season has to offer. 

All best,

Jessica and Julie

*Bet that word choice made more sense when you learned the theme, amirite?

**Jessica really likes this one, because it's sand-resistant, and no, we promise we are not sponsored by VicTsing, we just like it for a more immersive podcast experience that can fall in the sink a few times when you're doing dishes and it's all good: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MYYCGKW/ref=sspa_dk_detail_5?psc=1&pd_rd_i=B00MYYCGKW&pd_rd_w=kugpu&pf_rd_p=45a72588-80f7-4414-9851-786f6c16d42b&pd_rd_wg=GO2mc&pf_rd_r=04MTQCD63BHTFFT1QBQ3&pd_rd_r=8c2763d0-8380-48d9-a8e7-7aca86dbde0c&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFJTlhEQ1IxRllKNEwmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTAzNzc3MDMxSDY4U0VKMFpGMjVJJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTA0ODQ5MTczSDRVM0pTWkJMODg1JndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfZGV0YWlsJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

Welcome to the #MSWL Day Guide! We speak with KK Hendin and Jessica Sinsheimer about the beginnings of MSWL, how best to search the feeds (and find your agent and editor matches), what to do with that information, and how to improve your chances by showing your work.

Search techniques are at about 6:15, and reference ManuscriptWishList.com/search.

Need help? Tweet us @KKHendin and @Jsinsheim and @MSWLMA

View our new season of live workshops + special events panels, classes and more at ManuscriptAcademy.com/live. Our FREE Write-In Workshop is Monday, September 30, 8:30pm EDT.

Want to ask an agent for feedback on your query? Head over to our educational site, ManuscriptAcademy.com/10-minutes-with-an-expert. Follow @MSWLMA for a $10 off coupon.

One of our newest faculty members, agent Caitlin McDonald, was kind enough to give us a guided tour of her query inbox. Like #TenQueries on Twitter, this is an honest look at what agents actually receive, what works, what doesn't, and why.

Caitlin McDonald is an agent at Donald Maass Literary Agency, where she represents adult and young adult fantasy and science fiction as well as select nonfiction titles. She has worked with numerous award-winning and bestselling authors, created high-profile nonfiction proposals, and been a contracts manager. Caitlin seeks to elevate diverse voices and is always looking for new ways to help aspiring authors.

You can meet with Caitlin and book a critique with her here: https://manuscriptacademy.com/caitlin-mcdonald

Julie Kingsley loves back to school so much, she forced Jessica Sinsheimer to let her jump on top of her soapbox and talk all things writing. Join Julie for this short and concise podcast discussing good writing practice, practical goal setting tips, and more.

** September Special**

Julie will be open this month for ten-minute sessions for the low price of $25. This is perfect for people who are new to the Manuscript Academy process, or those who’d just like a regular writer to look at work before you meet with our expert faculty.

Meetings go live Wednessday, September 11 for members, and Thursday, September 12 for non-members, at https://manuscriptacademy.com/10-minutes-with-an-expert.

We talk with Molly Cusick (formerly Molly Jaffa) about her transition from agent to editor, what editorial meetings REALLY look like, and why many publishing rules are made to be broken.

As Molly says, love can appear when you least expect it—and this applies to books as well as relationships.

We also discuss Coney Island, historical NYC, and how she met her literary husband. (It’s very New York.)

You can meet with Molly (and book a written critique) here: https://manuscriptacademy.com/molly-cusick

Books she mentioned:

Side Effects May Vary and Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy

Red, White, and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Last week, we joined Melissa Warten, editor at Macmillan, LIVE to discuss publishing timelines, your questions about the industry, and your first pages--all in a helpful, fun panel. While the first pages are just for ticketholders, you can listen in on the Q&A portion of the event here, where Melissa explains just what publishers are doing while you wait...and wait...and wait.

You can hear Melissa's first podcast episode, a live meeting with an author--and book a meeting with Melissa--here: https://manuscriptacademy.com/melissa-warten

And you can learn more about our live events (past and future!) here: https://manuscriptacademy.com/live

Macmillan editor Melissa Warten joins extremely brave and awesome writer Brooke Urban to go over her first page on the air. With a focus on the line between mysterious and vague (when are you giving your reader enough information? When are you giving them so much that it takes away all narrative tension?), the 25-word descriptions that can ground your reader, and why (most) everyone hates prologues, we go over universal lessons of keeping an agent reading.

Please see below to follow along with Brooke's page.

To view Melissa's live event on Monday, July 29, 8:30pm EDT, please visit ManuscriptAcademy.com/live. Tickets are $9.99, or the cost of a Kindle e-book.

You can also schedule your own consultation with Melissa here: https://manuscriptacademy.com/10-minutes-with-an-expert

You can see more of Brooke's work at http://annelutzauthor.com (Anne Lutz is her pen name).

*

Brooke's page:

Preface

My mother always painted the Wicked Ones with black eyes--deep, heavy, soulless black. Everyone knew the Wickeds were evil, but my mom claimed it was more than that. She said the Wickeds were demons trapped in human corpses, just waiting to burn the world to ash.

It wasn’t until years after my mother died that the world did burn. But the Wickeds didn’t set the fire. I did.

Chapter One

Tonight will be spectacular--it has to be. I tighten my ponytail and stare between the curtains. People filter in through the admissions gate and find seats on the curved stands that lie on either side of the arena. There are young families and elderly couples and lovey-dovey teens. But the number of attendees is dismal at best.

“How’s it look?” asks Alder. He knocks into my shoulder as he pushes his way in front of me. His lanky body blocks the tiny sliver of audience. After a moment, he twists to frown at me. “That’s not good.”

“I know,” I say. “But there’s still time. It’s not even seven yet.”

“It’s six-fifty, Nova,” says Alder. He sticks his nose up when he speaks, as though being right is more important than being optimistic.

“There’s still time,” I repeat. But honestly, this is what we expected. Or maybe not everyone expected this. They at least feared this, held the thought somewhere in the back of their mind.

Alder scrunches his face at me. His features are pointed and suspicious, like he’s a rat, waiting to steal my last bite of cheese.

We spoke with Renee Rosen, author of Park Avenue Summer from Penguin Random House, about her process, her amazing research, and what she wishes writers could know about what it's like after book six. Pitched as Mad Men meets The Devil Wears Prada, the story features a young woman who, just after arriving in NYC from her small hometown, secures a position working for the inimitable Helen Gurley Brown at Cosmopolitan.

Renee shares insights from her many years as a published author--the winding road she took, the reviews she received, and the things she learned along the way. We're particularly fond of how she describes retracing her character's steps, literally, and how she got inside the apartment where she would have lived, and found the bus stop where Helen commuted each morning. We also talk about the specific choices on her first page, which bring readers right into the world she's created. 

We also learn her super powers--creating perfect salads and power washing--and, yes, the recipe is in the show notes. 

We hope you enjoy. 

 

NBS (Nice Big Salad) Recipe

Big bowl of mixed greens (I prefer the Spring Mix)

½ Avocado diced

Fresh Basil (about 10 good size leaves) torn into smaller pieces

I medium shallot minced

½ cup hearts of palm

½ cup red or yellow beets diced

½ cup cherry tomatoes halved

Top with feta or goat cheese

Toss, chop and serve with the dressing of your choice, although I rarely use salad dressing because it’s just so good the way it is!

This week, Academy co-Founder Julie Kingsley, who's taught writing for more than 20 years, brings you a pep talk on how to keep going--and get un-stuck. This episode includes encouragement, exercises--and a special surprise for you if you keep listening.

We also have a FREE write-in coming up June 24--join us at https://manuscriptacademy.com/rsvp.

And a LIVE query workshop with Katharine Sands, agent and creator of Pitch To Page (one of our most popular classes) July 1. See: https://manuscriptacademy.com/pitch-to-page

To use your coupon in this episode, go to https://manuscriptacademy.com/get-started and click Live Consultation.