The Manuscript Academy

A ton of things happen by page 50. There are storms, setbacks and close calls. So why does the story still feel like it’s heading exactly where readers expect? In this episode, literary agent Allegra Martschenko (BookEnds Literary Agency) shares something all too common in their query inbox and their clients’ fiction: events that are treated as obstacles when they could be plot twists. An obstacle slows your characters down on the path you’ve promised the reader. A twist knocks them off that path entirely, or changes what they wanted in the first place. Using one very muddy hill (and a Jack and Jill you haven’t met before), Allegra shows how the same storm can be a speed bump, a forced-proximity romance, or a betrayal that turns the second half of the book into a revenge story. And because twists shouldn’t feel random, they offer three ways to make sure your twists are earned: through your character, your theme and your world. What you’ll learn: ******The difference between an obstacle and a plot twist (and why both have their place) ******A simple test: after this event, are your characters still on the same trajectory? ******How one scenario can branch into a romance, a rescue or a betrayal ******Why twists can happen anywhere in your story, as long as they have a purpose ******Three lenses for earning a twist: character motivation, theme and world-building ******How to “turn left when everyone expects you to turn right” Your homework: Pick the biggest event in your manuscript and ask whether your characters end up on the same path afterward. If they do, you’ve written an obstacle. Is there a version where everything changes? Want more craft advice from the agents and editors who read the queries? Join us at manuscriptacademy.com.

Across conferences, workshops, and writing groups, the same worries keep coming up: Is my story too risky? Are publishers backing away from hard topics? Ivan Taurisano, Associate Editor at Macmillan’s First Second Books, edits graphic novels for young readers and middle grade, and he has a clear answer: no. In this episode, Ivan talks about: ****Why publishing runs on deadlines, not headlines, and why editors are always thinking years ahead ****How challenged books are often the ones that matter most (and why you’d only ban something that has real value) ****Clearing up the myth that publishers are backing away from challenging stories ****What editors are doing differently now: thinking harder about how books are positioned, not whether they get published ****Why editors, agents, librarians, and booksellers are the front line, not authors ****Why trying to dodge every possible criticism would keep you from writing anything at all ****His 2026 wish list: a magical contemporary friendship story in the spirit of Winx Club If the news has you second-guessing your manuscript, this is the reassurance you’ve been looking for. Find more at podcast.manuscriptacademy.com.

More than 1,500 of you voted for memoir, so we brought you three agents for one of our first single-genre MSWL Live panels! Taj McCoy (Laura Dail Literary Agency), Katharine Sands (Sarah Jane Freymann Literary Agency), and Stephanie Winter (KO Media Management) share what’s working in memoir right now, what agents really mean by “platform” (hint: it’s about community, not follower counts), and what a strong nonfiction book proposal needs. Katharine reads the query that made her say yes to Kara Kavensky’s Tell Me About Joy and breaks down why it works. The book is out now from Sourcebooks: https://bookshop.org/p/books/tell-me-about-joy-a-true-story-of-love-regret-and-second-chances-kara-kavensky/4d73f52fa61b15a9?ean=9781464266454 Then Stephanie gives a live critique of a writer’s memoir query, Overcooked. It’s an episode full of encouragement for anyone with a true story to tell. For a full, unabridged recording of this event, go to https://manuscriptacademy.com/mswl-live-agent-panel-memoir In this episode ****Why the best memoirs show not just what happened, but what it meant ****Platform without panic: community, connection, and being findable ****The “audience on the wall” exercise that can change how you write ****What goes in a nonfiction book proposal, and why you don’t need a finished manuscript ****Place, person, pivot: a simple formula for your memoir pitch ****Agents on how ready most submissions really are ****A live query critique, plus tips for writing under a pseudonym Chapters 01:03 Meet Taj McCoy, Katharine Sands, and Stephanie Winter 03:35 What’s working in memoir right now 05:06 Platform: what agents actually expect 08:18 Each agent’s number one tip for memoir writers 10:30 Taj McCoy on nonfiction book proposals 14:21 Katharine Sands on her ideal memoir client 17:32 Stephanie Winter’s live query critique: Overcooked 19:23 How many submissions are truly ready? 20:06 Writing memoir under a pseudonym We’re celebrating 10 years! See what’s planned at anniversary.manuscriptacademy.com. For one-on-one consultations with agents and editors, mini classes, and a writing community that cheers you on, visit manuscriptacademy.com. You can watch video versions on YouTube at @manuscriptacademy.

Out of the 200 stories that land in an agent’s inbox, why should yours be the one she reads? Agent Fiona Kenshole of Transatlantic Agency joins us from our Presentation Party to share what she looks for in a query, and why there are really no hard rules, only what works. Before agenting, Fiona was a publisher in the UK (think Mary Poppins, Paddington Bear, and The Giver) and made films like Coraline and The Boxtrolls. Now she’s on the hunt for animal books, funny picture books, and stories she can’t wait to share with every editor she knows. In this episode, you’ll learn: ****The three questions every query should answer: why read this book, why read it now, and why only you can write it ****Why you should keep a Post-it note of your original “light bulb” idea and use it as the jumping-off point for your pitch ****How to find your book’s story question (with examples from Where the Wild Things Are and Pride and Prejudice) ****The bowling pin rule: how much of your plot to reveal, and why most queries only cover the first 25% of the story ****Why your bookseller and librarian are your best sources for recent comps ****How to let your voice shine (without opening with “Hey, dude”) ****What belongs in your bio, and how much platform really matters for fiction and picture books ****How to avoid the generic, cliché pitch that could describe any fantasy novel ****Why you only need one agent to love your book Writing your pitch can even reveal something new about your story. If your query is pulling in lots of directions, Fiona suggests checking whether your main story question is running all the way through. Celebrate with us: It’s our 10th anniversary season! See what we’re up to at anniversary.manuscriptacademy.com. Watch more: Video versions of the podcast, mini classes, events, and agent interviews are on our YouTube channel, @manuscriptacademy. Get one-on-one time with agents: Book a consultation and join our amazing community of writers at manuscriptacademy.com. And get on our mailing list for an invite to the next Presentation Party!

Julia Alexandra knows rejection. After querying in high school and again in graduate school, she hit a wall of passes on a book she now admits wasn't ready. Worse, she spent years self-rejecting, holding back books that were probably ready long before she sent them. In this episode, Jessica Sinsheimer and Julie Kingsley talk with Julia about her debut YA fantasy, Midnight on the Celestial, the story of a girl with the rare power to raise spirits of the dead who fails her realm's trial and must serve aboard a magical--and dangerous--cruise ship to earn one last chance to save her magic. Julia breaks down how just a few precise words (a color-changing lagoon, sea dragons you can ride, hallways that come alive) transformed her query, why she queried in rounds of only five to seven agents, and why a revise and resubmit turned out to be a gift. She also shares the moment she got the offer, and her advice for any writer thinking about giving up. Connect with Julia: https://www.juliaalexandrawrites.com/about and preview her next book at https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250380241/huntthewildnight/ In this episode ****Why "a magical cruise ship" isn't specific enough, and how two or three vivid words can set your book apart ****Swapping vague stakes ("her world turned upside down") for the actual choice and the actual disaster ****How self-rejection can hold you back more than agent rejections ever will ****Small querying rounds as a strategy for protecting your energy ****What a revise and resubmit reveals about working with an agent, for both of you ****Why your demeanor and openness to feedback matter alongside your pages ****Why a temporary pause isn't giving up Timestamps 00:00 Querying again after years of self-rejection 00:26 Meet Julia Alexandra 00:43 What Midnight on the Celestial is about 01:01 Knowing her final querying round felt different 01:46 Why specificity matters in your query 03:05 Swapping vague stakes for the real choice and the real disaster 03:18 How images in a query signal an immersive book 03:55 Get your cinematic pages into your query 04:08 Keeping your love of writing alive 04:37 Confidence, feedback, and being someone agents want to work with 05:44 Small querying rounds and why it only takes one 06:50 The story of her agent offer 07:37 Why a revise and resubmit can be a gift 08:46 The moment she got the offer 09:36 Hearing from her future editor 10:06 Advice for writers thinking about giving up