How To Get a Manuscript Request in Twenty Minutes

How To Get a Manuscript Request in Twenty Minutes

How To Get A Manuscript Request in Twenty Minutes

 

Do these statements ring true for you?

  • You struggle to finish or publish your book.
  • You feel like you’ve tried everything: you’ve read the books, taken the classes, attended the workshops, read every article that exists on the internet about how to write and get published. 
  • You feel frustrated or incompetent because you haven’t been published yet.

You’re not alone, writers. I work with many writers to get past these very same issues, and today I want to share with you how I helped one of these writers finally get published.

When Barbara came to me, she had done the work–oh boy had she done the work. She even had an MFA (a Master of Fine Arts), which many writers consider to be the pinnacle of a writer’s career.

But the problem with an MFA is though the classes teach you how to write, they fail to teach you how to publish.

In fact, one of the biggest complaints the agents I work with have about MFA writers is their manuscripts are cookie cutter. Most agents can sniff out an MFA manuscript from a mile away. They’re all the same, which doesn’t give them that edge to be publishable. 

This was Barbara’s issue: she had a great concept, but needed to break out of the MFA mold and transform her manuscript into something agents would scramble to represent. 

Barbara and I worked on revisions over the course of several months. During that time, I was in conversation with several agents about Barbara, her manuscript, and how to position her book for optimal success. 

What was incredible about working with Barbara is for the first time in her writing career, the revision process was not a stress-ridden nightmare for her, but enjoyable. Barbara and I laughed together during our meetings and enjoyed each other’s company, because she finally felt she was on the right track to publication. 

When Barbara finished revising, I sent her synopsis to an agent I work with frequently. Within 20 minutes of reading the synopsis, she asked me for a full manuscript. 

Let that sink in. 

20 minutes. 

Have you waited days, weeks, even MONTHS to hear back from an agent–only to get a “no thanks, not for me”? 

Imagine getting a yes in 20 minutes. 

 Many would-be authors spin their wheels for years trying the same things over and over again, hoping for new results. Worse: they piddle their money away one workshop, one class, one MFA at a time. 

Real results ARE possible, but you’ve got to be willing to take the right steps.

I work with authors who are coachable–so eager to publish that they’re willing to put in hard work.

The authors I work with authors every day are tired of spinning their wheels, ready for real results, and ready to invest in themselves in order to get there.

I work with authors who take writing and publishing seriously without taking themselves too seriously. 

If that sounds like you, and you’re really ready, I’ve opened some spots in my calendar to talk with you about where you are, where you’d like to go, and how you can get there. Click here to choose a time to book yourself directly into my calendar, and we can hop on a call and chat.

Until next time. Happy Writing.

How Our Authors Get to the Front of the Submission Line

How Our Authors Get to the Front of the Submission Line

How Our Authors Get To the Front of the Submission Line

Have you ever wondered if there’s a way to get your query to the front of the line and out of the slush pile? Let me tell you about how Mary Murry, one of the Writing Gym VIP Writers, got her manuscript past the submission pile altogether–and directly into agents’ hands.  Mary has been working on perfecting her historical fiction manuscript for years. She finished it in our writing bootcamp while on our England retreat, and was ready to publish and live the author dream.

Like many writers I know, the publishing process felt more daunting than writing.

 

After much success in our bootcamp, Mary decided to take the next step and enroll in our Publishing Mastermind course:

Step 1 was to send Annalisa–our resident writing coach and editor–her manuscript. Annalisa read the manuscript multiple times, and worked with Mary to perfect her craft, making sure her manuscript is in alignment with current industry standards and trends. Step 2 was to sit back, relax, and let Annalisa call agents in our network on Mary’s behalf. Annalisa connected Mary with agents who are particularly interested in Mary’s genre (historical fiction), and have a track record of publishing our authors. And that’s it.

In just two steps, Mary had gotten her manuscript to the front of the line and in the hands of the right agents. 

That’s the kind of work we do for our writers so they have more time to focus on what’s really important: writing and living the author dream. Want to learn more? The Writing Gym is accepting select writers to join our community of successful, published authors. If you’re serious about publishing in 2020, let’s chat. Drop yourself into our calendar here to talk to a member of our team and learn more about our program.

How To Fast Track To Publishing With The Writing Gym

How To Fast Track To Publishing With The Writing Gym

How To Fast Track To Publishing With The Writing Gym

 

This week I received a manuscript in the mail from one of our Writing Gym members, Mary, and I’m so excited to take a look over it. Let’s take a moment to congratulate Mary. 

She has written so many pages with us in the Writing Gym, and has entered the next stage of the process by joining the Publishing Mastermind.

People ask me all the time, “How is it that you work with authors?” “What is it that you do?”

Once someone joins the Publishing Mastermind, I begin to lay down the foundations for you to become a published author.

For example, Mary is about to enter the Publishing Mastermind’s reading period. During the reading period, I read her entire manuscript not once, not twice, but several times. In addition to reading her manuscript, I’ll help Mary tell the best story she can while maintaining her voice and integrity as an author. But, I’ll also be looking at her manuscript from an industry perspective. 

 

What exactly does the industry perspective entail?

Well, it includes what types of books are selling now, and what kinds of conversations I’m having with publishing house editors, acquisitions editors, and agents. 

When a manuscript is ready, I pick up the phone and start calling agents I know are interested in this kind of thing.

Let’s use Mary’s work as an example, as I happen to know it’s historical fiction set during World War 2. I’m going to start calling agents I know are interested in historical fiction and say, “Hey, I’ve got this manuscript set in World War 2. Here are some things that Mary’s doing. What are your thoughts on that? What are you seeing in terms of what is being acquired right now, and how can we position this?”

What happens with these conversations is those agents become interested in that novel once we’re finished revising it.

We set up a system where Mary will get to the front of the line with her manuscript, because of the conversations with agents and the foundation I’m lay for her.

Once I finish reading the manuscript, I begin working with Mary in the revision phase, and finally, we can pitch it to the industry.

Mary has gotten the attention of an agent, and has gotten to the front of the line because of the conversations I’ve been having with industry professionals on her behalf. 

There’s no shortcut to publishing, but there is an accelerated way.

And that’s what we do over in the Writing Gym: getting you connections based on a quality manuscript that publishing houses and literary agents are looking for.

 

Do you want to accelerate your progress?

Are you tired of getting rejection letters from agents?

Are you unsure if it’s your query, your manuscript or synopsis holding you back?

Are you ready to do something that works? 

 

If that sounds like you, I’d love to chat with you.

I’ve made some time in my schedule next week to chat with writers who are serious about getting traditionally published. Let’s chat.

Until next time. Happy writing.

How to Finally Shed that Skin, and Write the Book

How to Finally Shed that Skin, and Write the Book

How to Finally Shed that Skin and Write the Book

 

 

On this episode of our Writing Gym Podcast, we have Manny Wolfe as our guest. Manny Wolfe is a personal branding consultant as well as a writer and here, he talks to us about his book, The Tao of the Unbreakable Man

Manny Wolfe

“It’s the thing that launched me into space,” Manny says about his book, “It was written from… a desperate need for catharsis. It’s a book about catharsis and it gave me catharsis at the same time. I wrote the book to once and for all perform an exorcism on the way that the judgment and the disapproval of my family affected my life. [I see my book as] the final piece of shedding the really, really unhealthy skin of my childhood.”

It’s a book about catharsis, and it gave me catharsis at the same time.

 

 

 

 

Naming a book is one of the things that writers struggle with, and Manny shares his titling journey, one that is rooted in very important experiences from his life. 

 

He took inspiration from the Chinese philosophical concept of the Tao (or Dao, 道). 

“Eastern philosophy has played a big part in framing the way I look at accountability, responsibility, dealing with challenges. All that stuff is very sort of important to me. And the reason I went with unbreakable was actually because of a rare moment where my mother and I were talking about some protracted struggle that I had been going through.” 

“And she just looked at me and said: I have no idea where you get that strength from. It was very uncommon for her to give direct complements. And it just stuck with me. ” 

Manny also wrote a paper in college in which he explores the idea of what it really means to be unbreakable, and these two moments met in his head.

“It was no question. I’m calling it the “Tao of the Unbreakable Man.” 

One of the interesting observations from where I sit, at Date with the Muse through the Writing Gym, is there’s always a moment of breakdown and a moment where healing happens.

At the Writing Gym, we help fiction and nonfiction authors alike, regardless of what genre they’re writing in. And it’s funny, because these moments of breakdown and healing happen to fiction and non-fiction writers alike. 

As a fiction writer, we asked Manny what his healing journey from writing was able to give him. 

“I do have a childhood and a young adult life that most people can’t wrap their heads around and so, if I’m being honest, I tell these stories to show off sometimes. But as I told these stories to my wife, she clearly and sincerely told me to write these experiences down. I didn’t know what to say. I tried to give her the excuse that I always planned to write a book, but I thought I’d wait until I was more successful. And she was flabbergasted.

She told me: “The fact that you’re alive and that you’re trying to be a good parent and that you’re trying to be a good man after what you went through is all the success you need to justify writing the story.”

He went home that night and started writing, “without trying to make [himself] look good, without trying to make the people [he’s had bad experiences with] look bad.” The whole thing was “therapeutic,” as Manny describes it, and he greatly credits his wife for grounding him. When it got to the point where he needed to end it, he was at a loss.

Yet, this was also the point in which his catharsis came in. “The whole book was really about my trying to fit in with my family and my guys and my dysfunction as a group.”

Being born in a cult, Manny stated that it affected how he created meaningful connections with others. He felt like he’ll never feel a connection outside of his own group that he grew up with. When he pulled away from them, little by little, the rift between him and them, as well as his identity was unavoidable. 

“I couldn’t stop writing until this is all out of me. It was physically hard and it was slow. But it felt like I pulled a cancer out of my mind. I felt all the injustice and the anger and the frustration and the sadness leave me. My whole life changed after writing that.” 

 

Now that his message is out in the world, we asked Manny what kinds of benefits he has experienced from this.

“Virtually all of the benefits were what you might call secondary or unexpected.” He admits that it feels great to say that his book is an international bestseller; it has an impact. To boil it down, he is happy about how many doors his book has opened up for him.

Manny has also shared what important lessons he got in the process of writing. “I realized that I was sort of processing the voices of all the authors I liked… Now, I literally have over 200 pages that I keep of false starts and I use those to remind me to just be my effing self. It was a real decluttering process to get to my own voice and to have courage. I’m writing for me. We hit the sweet spot in branding when we are our authentic selves.”

I’m writing for me.

Writing is one of the most intimate acts that we have because we’re sharing our soul with the world. It doesn’t matter if we’re writing fiction or not–at some point when we get into that piece of our soul, we become vulnerable. Manny then shared with us some insightful thoughts about writing as an art.

“I would argue that just telling the truth isn’t quite enough. Other people share great ideas, but it’s not always done in a way that makes me feel connected. A good writer, for me, has the ability to get their most important ideas out in a simple and engaging way.” 

Lastly, for aspiring writers, he advises them to grow their audience massively.

“And get to the point where you’re telling the truth. I’ll leave that vaguely so you can ponder that.” 

How We Support Writers to Confidence in the Writing Gym: “The Writing Gym has made believe that I am a writer.” 

How We Support Writers to Confidence in the Writing Gym: “The Writing Gym has made believe that I am a writer.” 

andHow We Support Writers to Confidence in the Writing Gym: “The Writing Gym has made believe that I am a writer.”

 

Due to COVID-19, all our lives have been disrupted in some meaningful way over the past weeks and months.

The Writing Gym community has been very important to us for a long time, and it has become even more so.

When people talk about the community that we have over in the Writing Gym, they talk about it being life-changing, the positivity, the support that they get, and how it’s different from anything they’ve experienced before–now, more than ever.

In times of uncertainty, in times of crisis, community becomes even more important. The Writing Gym is an even bigger deal to its members.

If you know me, you know my mission: to build a supportive writing community where people are getting real results and having a dang good time doing it.

I’m happy to see the vision I had years ago come to fruition–a beautiful place where writers can be nourished, have a good time, and enjoy each other’s company.

That’s what the Writing Gym is.

 

And writers are getting great result

So, what have we been doing since COVID came around and disrupted all our lives?

Well, we’ve been doing some special sessions over in the Writing Gym to bring us together on a more regular basis. I think it’s important now more than ever to have those points of contact, to laugh with each other, and to get into the writing craft together.

Last month, we did a ton of bonus sessions. We had an online Writing Retreat that turned out to be spectacular!

We continued that trend this month with a bonus session on Spec Fiction. We’re seeing a lot of requests for that when we look at agent descriptions. They’re looking for Spec Fiction.

A lot of folks have been wondering, “What is Spec Fiction? What does that mean?” Stephen Oliver broke it down for us in a terrific session.

We had one of our ever-popular sprints. We have those on a regular basis. Our Gym rats enjoy them, and a lot of work gets done.

We also did a special bonus session on how to create tension in your writing.

This is something we talk about a whole lot during the Revision period. So we did a deep dive into the craft and into creating tension — not just on the scene level, but also on a global level–in your novel.

 

So, those are just some of the things that I’ve been working on to make things happen for writers over the Writing Gym.

It’s a really special place, full of special people–people like our Mary Murry. Mary has been a big part of our community for a while now, and we’re glad to have her with us.

The Gym has meant a lot to Mary. She says, “The Writing Gym has made me believe that I’m a writer.”

Mary, you are a writer — an incredible writer – and I’m so glad to have you in our community. Thank you for sharing that with us.

 

I can’t stress enough that it truly is a special place, and that’s why membership is by invitation only.

Not because we’re snobs – we are absolutely not snobs! It’s invitation-only because we want to be sure we have the right folks with us, people who take the writing craft seriously without taking themselves too seriously. Because, like I said, we have a good time over there, and we get things done.

If you’re a writer, this is what you want for your life. You want a great place to hang out with great people, like Mary, who want to come to believe that they are writers, and to build their confidence and to get that book written–which she did.

I’d love to chat with you to see if you’re the right fit for our community, talk about where you are, where you’d like to go, and how you can get there. You can book yourself directly into my calendar, and we can chat about your writing dream.

Until next time, Happy Writing

The Ultimate Writer’s Dream: Your Book Made into a Movie

The Ultimate Writer’s Dream: Your Book Made into a Movie

The Ultimate Writer’s Dream: Your Book Made into a Movie

 

Many of you know I have the opportunity to speak with writers all over the world about every day of the week, and I’ve noticed some of the universal desires writers express.

They used to say, “I want to be on Oprah.”

Today, they say things like, “I want to be on Ellen,’“ or “I want to be a New York Times bestseller,” or “I want to be on so-and-so’s reading list.”

But what many of them say to me is, “I really want to have my book made into a movie.”

These are dreams that are pretty universal to writers. We’d all like to get the amazing publishing contract with a the multi-book deal, and we’d all love to have our book made into a movie. 

Over in the Writing Gym, we are all about having big dreams, and dreaming big dreams — and we’re all about getting results.

I’m excited to share today that over in the Writing Gym, we’ve got a new module on how to get your book made into a movie!

We have Jeanne Covert, who is a professional screenwriter and a member of the Writing Gym.

She’s the real deal. Jeanne has several credits on IMDb, been on the Red Carpet and on set, along with other Hollywood experience. 

Anyway, she came in and taught the members of the Writing Gym how books actually get made into movies. What is the lens that producers are looking at movies through in order to get books actually made into movies? How do we go from the dream–it’s a great place to start–to reality, actually living that dream? What are the steps that are going to get you there?

As you’ve heard me say, time and time again over at the Writing Gym, we’re about real results. Real results.

We want to get your book made into a movie, and we want to show you how.

This is the kind of thing we’re delivering over in the Writing Gym: Real professionals, talking about real results.

So, for those of you already in the Writing Gym – congratulations! You’re on the inside track to living the author lifestyle. And if you haven’t talked with me or someone on my team about the Writing Gym and the results that we get over there, I or someone on my team would be happy to get on the phone with you to talk about where you are, where you’d like to go, and how you can get there and whether or not the Writing Gym is the right solution for you and if you’re the right fit for us.

Until next time, Happy Writing!

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