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| Photo credit: Julie Edgley on Flickr |
For those who haven’t already seen it’s incredible hashtag version #MSWL on Twitter on tumblr, MSWL is a site where agents and editors share what projects they wish they had in their inbox. That’s right—it’s a peek directly into what agents and editors are hoping to find right now.
For more information about how this supremely awesome idea came to be and what it’s all about, check out MSWL’s About page.
So while I’m no longer in query mode, I did find the MSWL Twitter event extremely helpful (and exciting!) while I was querying, and I know without a doubt that had this site existed a year ago, I would’ve been living on it.
You see, the tough thing about the MSWL Twitter event is it’s much harder to filter (not impossible, mind you, just takes some Twitter savviness and anyway, digression). There also tend to be a lot of tweets and it’s so very easy to miss something in the fray and well, this website? It’s basically genius.
The extra bonus fantabulousness of the MSWL site is you can filter the results by genre (Fantasy, LGBTQ, YA, NA, whatever) or tag (Crossover, Literary Style, Boarding School, Dual POV, TV/Book/Movie comp, time periods, etc.). From there, you can see the entries, which vary from a couple sentences to a full paragraph all about what that particular agent or editor would love to see.
I mean, c’mon you guys, HOW AMAZING IS THAT? (Rhetorical question: it’s obviously the bomb).
Querying is tough, and doing your query research can be excruciatingly difficult at times, but I suspect this will really help a lot of writers in their search for an agent or editor who will love their work. So if you’re a querying writer, make sure you take some time to browse this amazing site, and don’t forget to thank Jessica Sinsheimer and K.K. Hendin for their awesomeness!
Will you be using this incredible resource?
Twitter-sized bites:
Like #MSWL? Don't miss out on @jsinsheimer & @kkhendin's new MSWL website for your query research! (Click to tweet)
Getting ready to query? Make sure you check out the new MSWL site for agent and editor wish lists. (Click to tweet)
15 comments:
Very useful, thanks a bunch!
Seems potentially dangerous to me... impressionable writers desperate to break in trying to speed-write something an agent wants instead of writing something they're passionate about. That's a worst case scenario, of course.
Thanks for the post! Great info.
I can see how it could be "potentially dangerous" but more I think it is going to be a great resource for writers who have worked to polish their manuscripts.
You're very welcome!
Personally, I don't think there's anything wrong with feeling inspired by people's suggestions, but of course speed-writing for a specific agent is basically a recipe for disaster and totally not the purpose of the site. People will use it however they want to, obviously, but if used correctly, I think the good way outweighs the risk of the hypothetical bad.
I agree! And you're very welcome! :)
I can see people trying to write whatever they think a writer would want but I can also see how it could be helpful. However, if people use it in a positive way, it could be a very good thing. I'm on my second draft now so at this point I'm not even thinking about anything but that.
Thank you for posting this because I will use it when i need it.
I used to do a lot of rereading, but that was before I got into the online world of YA and Goodreads and, like you, began building up a TBR pile that grows taller all the time. ;) There's definitely something to be said for rereading--you pick up so many more details the second time around!--but now I generally just reread the first book or books in a series before the newest installment comes out, so I don't have to be struggling to remember all the finer plot points.
I LOVE #MSWL. I love it on Twitter, and I liked the site when I looked it over (...last week? I forget when it launched). Especially because I have a list of agents, and have my "first ten" list, it's nice to then look for those agents and look at their #MSWL stuff. And while looking for more agents to add to those lists, the hashtag is pretty invaluable.
For some reason (Who knows why?), 7/10 agents mention a good voice/narrative, just like you do Ava. I think there must be something going on with that ... Same with an obvious lack of post-apocalypse and distopias.
On a completely unrelated matter, does somebody know why Disqus shrinks my twitter profile picture to some kind of movie screen?
I totally agree about it's helpfulness, particularly when used correctly. :) Good luck with your drafting, and you're very welcome!
I love #MSWL, too! It's SUCH an amazing resource (both the hashtag and the site). I think it launched last week...possibly. It was definitely recent.
Having a strong voice is vital, because it's one of those aspects that has an enormous impact on whether or not the reader connects with the story. It's also an aspect that is extremely difficult to change in a draft because it requires a full-scale rewrite (unless it's just honing the voice rather than changing it entirely, but even then it's a lot of work).
As for the post-apocalypse and dystopia thing, the reason most agents advise against it (right now) is because they're currently dead genres, meaning they're extremely difficult to sell.
I'm reading through the wish lists and all these requests for diversity literally warm my heart.
Isn't it awesome? I love how the publishing world is (slowly, but still) taking up the call! :)
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