From Spark to Shelf

Today I talk about every writer's favorite (or most dreaded?) month of the year: National Novel Writing Month! Formed by Chris Baty in 1999, National Novel Writing Month (or NaNoWriMo) "is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that believes in the transformational power of creativity. We provide the structure, community, and encouragement to help people find their voices, achieve creative goals, and build new worlds—on and off the page." So much more than just 50,000 words in a month!

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Today I talk about the annual writing mentorship contest PitchWars! PitchWars was launched by Brenda Drake in 2012 (boy, was I off with my guess of 2014 in the episode!), and has since grown into the biggest writing contest around. And now that we're in the midst of the waiting period for those who submitted this year, I thought I would talk about what PitchWars is, how to stay sane during the wait, and why, even if you don't get a single request, it's not because you're a bad writer (honest!).

Mentions:

Today I talk to querying fantasy writer Morgan Hazelwood! Morgan is known, especially in the YA community, for her community building through the PitchWars hopefuls Facebook groups. In this episode we discuss:

*How she came to be an admin for the PitchWars groups on Facebook ("I like helping people")

*Her love of writing fantasy across all age categories

*Using fantasy to explore what it means to be human

*The importance of taking intentional breaks!

Today I talk to hybrid YA author Dawn Husted! Dawn is represented by Tabatha Pope of SBR Media, and recently went on submission for the first time! In this episode we discuss:

*Her experience as a hybrid author (self-published and now agented and seeking traditional publication)

*The wide range of genres she writes in and her love for darker stories

*Her non-traditional querying story

*The YA alien romance she's on submission with... YES PLEASE

Today I talk to middle grade author Megan Reyes! Megan is represented by Joanna Volpe of New Leaf Literary, and recently announced her first book deal! Megan's debut middle grade, HEROES OF HAVENSONG, will be released by Labyrinth Road (PRH) in Fall 2022. In this episode we discuss:

*Our mutual respect for the age categories we write (MG for Megan, YA for Jenna)

*Her 300 query rejections over 5 manuscripts

*How she ended up signing with her amazing agent Joanna!

*Her submission story (she went on submission in March 2020.. uh oh) + book deal

*How she connected with her editor Liesa Abrams

*Our Twitter DM support group

*What inspired HEROES OF HAVENSONG

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Today I talk to my first agented author, Christopher Mannino! Chris is represented by Stephen Fraser of the Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency, and has two books on submission. In this episode we discuss:

*How getting lost in Cornwall and spending time at Oxford (filming location for the Harry Potter movies) inspired his first YA novel, THE SCYTHE WIELDER'S SECRET

*Writing in different age categories

*How your Dream Book can be hard to let go of, but why it's important to pivot when it isn't working

*Why contradictory feedback from agents can actually mean you're getting close!

*Juggling multiple projects at one time to stay inspired and motivated

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