Pitch Wars submissions and About me!

 It's here! The day you've been waiting for. Time to officially sign up for Pitch Wars and have your opportunity nab a mentor. In this post you'll find my wish list (what I'm looking for in an MS to champion), my bio (stuff you need to know about me as a coach) and the sign up details. Makes for a long post so let's get into it.

I'm taking submissions of all genres, as long as it's YA or NA. But What I'm really hanging out to see is:

• Emotional Contemporary - Whether it's making me laugh or making me cry, I want a contemporary full of feeling. Think Anna and the French Kiss or Hushed.
• Genre Mash-Ups - I'm the Glee Queen of Pitch Wars. If you've mashed genres together then I want to see it!
• Speculative Fiction - Alternative histories, like The Curse Worker Series, or genre mixes of SciFi, Horror, Fantasy or Paranormal (like a genre mash-up but more specific).
• Historicals - preferably mashed up with another genre, like The Falconer by Elizabeth May (yet to be released but the blurb looks awesome!). 
• Science-Fiction - I prefer more emphasis on the Fi than the Sci, but I am a huge fan. Think Across the Universe.
• Magical Realism - A contemporary setting with just a touch of magic, like The Locket.

Me and the first book I was published in.

About me:

I'm a writer of YA and NA weird fiction and contemporary fiction, a blogger at YAtopia, Writing Teen Novels and Down Under Wonderings, a regular speaker at The Whitsunday Voices Youth Literature Festival and a NA/YA intern for Entangled, so I've got my finger on the pulse for what editors are looking for (which is also what agents are looking for!). I've also been a host for Pitch Madness and had lots of agents request from the MSes I picked from my blog. I'm a CP for Wendy Higgins, Aimee Salter, Suzanne Van Rooyen and Stacey Nash. I have a habit of having weird profile pics and have been stalked by women because of my great taste in shoes.

Testimonies

Wendy Higgins, author of Sweet Peril and Sweet Evil: "Sharon CPed for me and gave me the invaluable advice that Aussie guys don't really use Shelia to refer to females."

Angela Slatter, Australian short story Queen with anthologies including Sourdough and The Girl With No Hands: "Under my mentorship Sharon will never write a MS with a MC who suffers from sad sack syndrome again."

 

Editer Kitty is editing

Jeyn Roberts, author of Dark Inside and Rage Within: "I've been friends with Sharon for a couple of years now. I fully endorse her ability to push cats off her laptop...I mean mentor.

Suzanne Van Rooyen, author of Dragon's Teeth and Obscura Burning:  "Sharon's good for my ego. She keeps saying she loves everything."

Stacey Nash, Sharon's CP and contributor for Authors Promoting Authors: "I love having Sharon as a CP, even if she's a dialogue formatting freak."

Submissions!

Submissions start today (11/26) ! The cut off time to get your applications (query & first five pages of manuscript) in is 8PM EST on December 5. 

Send your applications to brendadrakecontests@gmail.com. Writers can apply for up to 3 coaches. The coaches' categories are set. Coaches can only consider the categories they've signed up for. Writers cannot apply for a coach that is not in their category.

For additional information about this contest go HERE (link to your post announcing the contest)

·        This is open to finished manuscripts only.

·         You may only enter one manuscript.

·         Only the genres requested by each coach will be considered for the contest.

 Formatting...

 Subject line: Pitch Wars Application: Coach Name you want to apply for: Title (Example: Pitch Wars Application: Brenda Drake: GONE WITH THE WIND)

 Name: Your Name

Genre: The genre of your manuscript

 Word Count: The word count of your manuscript 

Query letter here  (embedded in email). Single spaced. No indentions. A space between each paragraph.

First five pages of the manuscript here (embedded in email). Single spaced. No indentions. A space between each paragraph. 

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REMINDER: You can send an application for up to 3 coaches.

 Check back soon for a complete list of the amazing agents participating in the contest. There's over a dozen!

Today all the coaches are posting bios/wish lists on their blogs. So before choosing your top 3 picks, check all the coaches' posts in your category before deciding which coach to submit. To jump from blog to blog, just click on our pictures below.

 

 

 

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Opal Trailer Reveal with giveaway

I fell in love with the Lux Series by Jennifer L. Armentrout and I'm thrilled to host the Opal Trailer reveal. It's so hot it's sizzling! You can read a fun interview with Jennifer about her writing here.

 

 

Opal (The third book in the Lux Series)
Available in both print and digital version on December 18, 2012 at

Amazon

&

Barnes and Noble

 

Check out Jennifer L. Armentrout on the following sites:

Facebook
Twitter
Official Website

I'm going to giveaway a preorder of Opal to one lucky person. All you have to do is comment on what book are you hanging out for to read that will be released in 2012 or 2013. For me it's The Falconer by Elizabeth May and Sweet Peril by Wendy Higgins (even though I've already read it =P).

You have until 30 November 2012 to enter. Be sure to leave your email address so I can contact you if you win.

Pitch Wars!

We're extremely excited to announce an upcoming event where  agented authors, industry interns, and editors team up with aspiring writers to shine up their manuscripts and pitches to present to some awesome agents.

Here's the deets...

·         The teams will consist of 1 agented author or industry intern or editor (coaches) and 1 aspiring author.

·         December 1: The coaches (listed on the linky below) will post on their blogs what genre/category they want to coach. They'll be very specific genres. Aspiring writers will hop around and decide which coaches best fit their manuscripts.

 

·         December 5: Aspiring writers will submit 3 "applications" to their top choices for coaches to the contest email (brendadrakecontests@gmail.com) during the allotted times (8AM to 8PM EST). That means, participants will send three separate emails to the contest email addressing each with one of their three top choices for coach. 

·         December 5 through December 10: Coaches will read the applications and pick teammates.The coaches don't have to pick from their applications. If a coach passes on an application, it is then up for grabs and another coach, if they haven't connected to their applicants, can snatch it after notifying the applicant and if the applicant chooses the coach. 

·         December 12: Teams will be announced. On the announcement post there will be instructions on how the winners must send their work. 

·         December 12 through January 16: Each coach will read their teammate's manuscript and give general notes on any issues they find. The coach will help their teammate get his or her pitches ready for the agent round. 

·         Note: The material for the agent round will be a 3 sentence pitch and the first 250 words of your manuscript. Coaches will read manuscripts and query letters only once and give notes. It is up to the writer to use the notes from their coaches to get the manuscript and query letter in as best shape as they can to send to requesting agents. The coaches will critique the three sentence pitch and first 250 words. The coaches will read them as many times as they deem necessary. In no way will writers expect the coaches to read the manuscript and query letter more than once or the pitches more than twice.  

·         January 20: Coaches will submit shined pitches to the contest email. 

·         January 23 and 24: Agents will read and make requests on the pitches they like (it is likely that not all participants will get requests). 

·         January 25: We'll announce the team with the most requests and who will take home the winning prizes (an amazon gift card for each). 

·         This is open to finished manuscripts only. 

·         You may only enter one manuscript. 

·         Only the genres requested by each coach will be considered for the contest.

 

 Formatting...

 

Subject line: Pitch Wars Application: Coach Name you want to apply for: Title (Example: Pitch Wars Application: Brenda Drake: GONE WITH THE WIND)

Name: Your Name 

Genre: The genre of your manuscript 

Word Count: The word count of your manuscript 

Query letter here  (embedded in email). Single spaced. No indentions. A space between each paragraph.

 

First five pages of the manuscript here (embedded in email). Single spaced. No indentions. A space between each paragraph.

 

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 REMINDER: You can send an application for up to 3 coaches (Note from Sharon: If you like YA - pick me =P).

 Our mentors ...

 

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CritFest

Last month, my partner in crime, John announced CritFest, our short story critique competition for writers of the ages 13-20. It is so epic! You get to write a short story and submit it for the chance to receive feedback from an industry professional.

Up until December 20 (10 - we've extended the deeadline for you NaNoers) you can submit your short stories to CritFest (see the bottom of the post for the rules courtesy of John!). The ten stories, as chosen by myself and John, will win full critiques of their short stories (done privately) from one of the industry professionals below!

If you don’t make the top ten, the ten runner-ups that John and I choose will move to a separate voting stage. Each of these entries will be posted on the blog for everyone to vote for their favorite and possibly make critiques of the entries. The top three will win fantastic prizes, which will be along the lines of ARCs, perhaps some sort of critique from us, and other things. One random commenter will also win a prize. Note: If you don’t want to enter for this part of the contest—only the first one, where your work is not posted—please say so in your entry.

The awesome industry professionals participating, ranging from editors to literary agents to authors who are all full of knowledge and sure know how to critique. They include:

Ginger Clark, top-notch literary agent at Curtis Brown Ltd, representing fantastic YA authors like Elizabeth Wein, Jeri Smith-Ready, Gretchen McNeil, and more!

***

Jodi Meadows, author of the popular INCARNATE (HarperCollins, 2012) and ASUNDER (HarperCollins, 2013)

***

Victoria Schwab, author of THE NEAR WITCH (Disney, 2011) and the totally amazing THE ARCHIVED (Disney, 2013)

***

Leigh Fallon, author of the popular CARRIER OF THE MARK (HarperTeen, 2011) and SHADOW OF THE MARK (HarperTeen, 2013)

***

Kat Zhang, author of of the newly released (and excellent) WHAT’S LEFT OF ME (HarperTeen, 2012)

***

Cath Crowley, author of the award-winning GRAFFITI MOON (Pan Macmillan, 2010), A LITTLE WANTING SONG (Knopf, 2010), and more!

***

Jeyn Roberts, author of the the thrilling DARK INSIDE (Simon & Schuster, 2011) and RAGE WITHIN (Simon & Schuster, 2012)

***

Emily Steele, awesometastic editorial director at Medallion Press, publishing YA authors like Rachele Alpine and many more!

(We’re still looking for two more participants, which we’ll most definitely find by January. If you’re an agent or editor or published YA author and would like to participate, please email John at TeenRiter(at)gmail(dot)com. Thanks!)
***

As a recap, the rules (courtesy of John from his CritFest post):
- To participate, you must be of the ages 13-20. No exceptions.
- You don’t need a finished manuscript or anything special. All you need is to write and polish a 1.5k-5k  word short story (we've lowered the minimum word count from 3K) and submit it to us during the appropriate time.
- For your entry to be counted, you must tell us in the entry whether or not you’d like to participate in the voting stage, too, in case you end up to be one of the ten runners up.
- The story must not have been previously published on your blog or elsewhere.
- Only one entry per person.
- Please only enter if you’re genuinely interested in a critique from these industry pros. The critiques will be nice but honest, so if you’re looking for a cheerleader, this contest is not for you.
***
Submission Info & Dates:
- The short stories should be 3k – 5k words in length and should be some form of Young Adult, although genres within the Young Adult category work too. Other than that, anything goes. There’s no set prompt; just a short story.
- You can start submitting your short story NOW, (if you even have it written yet) but it may be best to hold off for a few weeks because we’ll be running short story writing advice posts and John have an opening paragraph critique going on throughout November, which should hopefully help make your short stories even better.
- The deadline for entries is December 10^th.
- We’ll announce the top ten finalists as well as who will critique their stories on January 10^th, and we’ll post the ten runners up for the voting round the next day.
- There’s plenty of time to get your short stories written and polished, but those of you doing NaNoWriMo might want to start writing them now then go back and edit them in December before the entry window closes. I know how busy November is with NaNoWriMo, so I made sure there’s still time for you guys. Don’t worry!
- Please send your submissions to TCWTContests(at)gmail(dot)com. Short stories should be attached as a .doc file. We’ll respond with a receipt of confirmation after one week. If you don’t get a confirmation after that time, please resend and let us know via comment. Formatting of the email should look like this:
Name/Pen Name:
Title:
Genre:
One sentence pitch of your short story*:
Whether you’d like to have your story posted on the blog, if you’re one of the runners-up:
[Attach the short story as a .doc]
***
And that’s it!
***
If you decide to participate…
This event is obviously pretty large, and we’d really appreciate anything you can do to spread the word. Tweets, facebook posts, etc. are awesome (but not required). Or if you blog, we’d really appreciate any mention of CritFest in a post, or even adding our CritFest badge to your sidebar. You can get the HTML for that here:

Or grab the image here:



So, if you have any questions drop it to me in the comments.

WINNERS!!

I've been having a few giveaways so it's time to announce some winners! Don't forget though you can win a copy of CURSED by Jennifer L Armentrout at the moment on this post here. And if you're a teen who likes writing you can enter CritFest, which I'm cohosting on Teens Can Write Too.

10 Page Critiques
Critiques with Jordie: Kenya Wright, Raven Paramour and Laurie Litwin.
Critiques with me: Samantha Farkas, Mandi Lynn and Holly D.

Sweet Peril

Sweet Peril preorder: Maidenveil
Sweet Evil: Sandy (if you already have Sweet Evil we can swap it for Sweet Peril)
Sweet Evil Bookmark: Lacey T
10 Page Critique: Tayte Hunter


Possessing Freedom

Heather Smith and Mia Rose.

Congrats everyone!

Giveaway - Cursed by Jennifer L Armentrout

I've interviewed the wonderful Jennifer L Armentrout on Writing Teen Novels and I'm giving away a copy of her book Cursed.

To enter into the draw all you have to do is comment on what was your favourite part of the interview, but you can earn extra entries too. Fill in your details in the rafflecopter. Good Luck!


a Rafflecopter giveaway

Literary Agent Interview with Jordy Albert

Jordy Alberts from Corvisiero Literary Agency has joined me for an interview. There's even a critique giveaway at the bottom for those of you who want to tighten the opening of your manuscript.

Sharon: Tell us a bit about your journey to becoming an agent.

Jordy: A career in publishing has always been something that’s interested me, but as I’ve discovered, it’s a very competitive field, so I decided that I would love to discover new authors and help them achieve their publishing goals. I really wasn’t sure where to start, but a friend pointed me in the direction of Marisa Corivisiero’s blog. I emailed her with some questions, and she emailed me back asking if I’d be interested in helping her go through queries and submissions, learning from her in the process. Of course, I said yes! She is a complete doll. In March she opened her own agency, and it’s been an amazing experience working with the Corvisiero team! 

Sharon: What advice do you have for anyone aspiring to become an agent?

 Jordy: Read. A lot! Know what is selling and what there is too much of in the current market. Keep a look out for internships on different job boards, such as the one on Publishers Marketplace or Bookjobs.com. Or visit different agency websites to find out if they have any opportunities currently available. Follow agents and agencies on Twitter and Facebook because they will often make announcements when they are looking for new blood.

Sharon: The question that every aspiring author is hanging out to know – what is on your submission wish list?

Jordy: I’m currently looking to acquire Adult, Young Adult/Middle Grade. I’m particularly interested in romance, especially historical (Regency) or paranormal. I would love to see more time travel and mythology in submissions. I’d also love to see more stories involving travel and competitions.

Sharon: You’ve talked about the importance of including character motivation in queries on your blog. What other key things should writers include in their queries?

 
Jordy: I would encourage writers to focus on hooking the agent. Your query is sort of like the blurb on the back of a book (other materials might be requested, so please make sure you always check guidelines before submitting). Grab the reader’s attention and make them want to read more. Recently a number of agents participated in a pitch contest on Twitter: #PitMad. The authors did an absolutely amazing job at catching our attention in just the character limit. Because we receive so many submissions, we can usually tell within the first few sentences if it’s something we’d like to take a closer look at, so you have to make sure you stand out, and that we’ll remember your query.

Sharon: You also work as a freelance editor. How important is it for authors to take the plunge and get a professional to look over their manuscript before they submit?

Jordy: I wouldn’t say that it’s necessary to get your manuscript looked at professionally. But I would recommend finding Beta readers you trust, joining a critique group, or partnering with a writer friend. Also, proofread because I’ll often come across simple grammatical errors that probably would have been caught by double checking.

Sharon: In both your agenting and editing experience, what are the key mistakes authors are making with their stories?

Jordy: Many stories start with a strong hook, but then fail to grab the reader and make her want to keep reading. I look for stories that make me feel I am with the characters, part of the story and along for the ride. I am looking for an emotional connection with the characters and story—appeal to the readers emotions.

Sharon: Tell us a bit about the clients and stories you have signed so far?

Jordy: I love my clients! They are talented and sweet. The stories range from a Middle Grade fantasy and YA sci-fi to a witty contemporary romance.

Sharon: You call yourself a ‘book carnivore.’ What type of books do you like to devour when you’re not reading submissions?

Jordy: Paranormal romance and historical romances ( I love Karen Marie Moning, Kresley Cole, Gena Showalter, Larissa Ione, J. R. Ward, Sabrina Jeffries and Teresa Medeiros). Young Adult titles, such as DIVERGENT by Veronica Roth, Hunger Games, and The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare.  

Rapid Fire Questions:

Unicorns or Dragons - Dragons

Time Travel or Super Powers – Time Travel

Drama or Comedy - Comedy

DVD or Cinema – Cinema

Hard Cover, Paperback or eBook - Hardback

 

Jordy is offering 10 page critiques to three random pitchers and I will also be giving 10 page critiques to my three favourite pitches. Complete the Rafflecopter instructions for your chance for a critique.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

 

YA Misfits Halloween Blog Tour - Mariekeyn

My awesome pals at YA Misfits are having a Halloween Blog Hop to give you guys a chance to get to know them all a little better now thay their blog is up and running. I'm talking with Mariekeyn Nijkamp aka The Foreign Exchange Student aka Most Likely to Make You REVISE (if you don't know what I'm talking about here, check out their year book) about VILLAINS. Mawhahaha!

Sharon: We'll start off with the question that has to be asked. Who is your favourite villain of all time and why?

Mariekeyn: Hm... I think I will have to go for a classic villain here. Captain James Hook. And nowhere better described than in the play text of PETER PAN. " Cruelest jewel in that dark setting is HOOK himself, cadaverous and blackavised, his hair dressed in long curls which look like black candles about to melt, his eyes blue as the forget-me-not and of a profound insensibility, save when he claws, at which time a red spot appears in them. He has an iron hook instead of a right hand, and it is with this he claws. He is never more sinister than when he is most polite, and the elegance of his diction, the distinction of his demeanour, show him one of a different class from his crew, a solitary among uncultured companions." Can you imagine being the actor who reads this in his notes? How do you even go about playing a character who is profoundly insensible? At the same time though, it's a fantastic bit of characterization--the educated, polite pirate captain--that made Captain Hook such a unforgettable villain.

On that note, that description above? There are countless gems like that in JM Barrie's scripts. Definitely worth a read!

Sharon: Who is your favourite villain sidekick and why?
 

Mariekeyn: Not sure if you can call him a sidekick, but I *love* Caliel in Lynn Flewelling's TAMIR TRIAD. He's the best friend of the story's antagonist and remains at his side throughout the story, despite everything that happens. It causes plenty of crises of consciousness, because he isn't blind to what's going on around him, but he sticks by his friends. It's a fantastic insight in the 'other side'. (Parts of the story are from antagonist's point of view too, so.)

 

(The series--about a young princess magically disguised as a prince to keep her safe from her insane uncle's murdering rampage--is pretty much awesome for a lot of other reasons too. It's marketed at fantasy, but it definitely has crossover YA potential too, and the way it deals with gender is nothing short of amazing. Also, I kind of love all the characters.)

Sharon: Which villain would you liked to have seen win instead of being defeated?

Mariekeyn: There are usually two reasons for me to root for the villains. Either they're incredibly well-written and well-motivated, or the hero annoys me. Unfortunately, more often than not, it's the latter. For all that I *love* HARRY POTTER, I was a LOT more fussed about Snape, Sirius, Lupin... than I was about Harry. In fact, as a good little Slytherin, I wish Snape had won. Not Voldemort, I won't go quite that far, but oh Severus...!

 

Of course, my next step would be to argue Snape was never a villain at all ;) He was an antagonist to Harry's story, sure, but never a villain.

Sharon: Which villain makes you want to hide under the bed sheets?

Mariekeyn: Can I go for a Doctor Who enemy here too? Because the original Weeping Angels, during 10's reign, made me want to hide behind the couch. Statues STILL creep me out.

(Yeah, I totally used to hide behide the couch when the Darleks came out!)

Sharon: If you could be a villain for a day who would it be?

Mariekeyn: Captain Hook too? Dude, pirate in a magical land. WHAT MORE COULD YOU WANT?!

 
Sharon: If you could give YA villians a theme song, what would it be?

Mariekeyn: I had to think about this for a while... until the song came to me and it was suddenly GLARINGLY obvious. Lion King's BE PREPARED. Because it's such a perfect villain-y song all around. Especially the movie version, because Jeremy Irons's voice makes it that much more epic. (You know, for the first 75% of the song ;) Bonus points to anyone who knows who sings the last bit.)

Sharon: What story would you like to read from a villain's POV?
 

Mariekeyn: Oh, quite a few actually! Antagonist PoVs intrigue me no end. When I was at college, I once wrote a paper on the ethics of Javert in Les Miserables and it was so interesting to crawl into the mind of this character who is set upon doing the right thing but can't continue that when what he thinks is right conflicts with what he thinks is good.

 

Honestly, I don't like the ultimate evil overlords, but I am all for villains or antagonist who are well-rounded, whose motivations make sense from their point of view. They don't necessarily have to make sense to the hero, but they should make sense to them. It doesn't have to be good, but it should be their right. Give me a villain like that and I will *always* be interested in their story, no matter how heinous.

Sharon: What villain cliches get up your nose?

Mariekeyn: ALL OF THEM. Okay, that's not true, but have you ever read the Evil Overlord List? It's a fantastic collection of villain cliches. There's an even better version over here: http://www.sff.net/paradise/lists.htm and I LOVE it. Basically, keep away from ALL of them and you'd make me very happy. So no big, red, threatening buttons which should never be pressed under any circumstances. No keeping heroes alive simply to gloat. No shooting messengers. No walking around in ridiculously over-the-top costumes. And the five-year-old advisor really is a good idea.

Sharon: What would you like to see more of from writers in regards to villains?

Mariekeyn: After my previous answers, this shouldn't come as a surprise: I lovelovelove villains who are the heroes of their own story. That's what, for me, it all boils down to. From their PoV, villains are the heroes of their story and they are just as well-rounded as the heroes. There is no black or white, but there's an afwul lot of gray.

 

That doesn't mean the other side doesn't do unspeakable things. In Melina Marchetta's LUMATERE CHRONICLES there is true evil--the days of the unspeakable in FINNIKIN OF THE ROCK are horrendous. In CODE NAME VERITY (*cry*) it would be so much easier to set apart Maddie's interrogators as inhuman and monstrous. But for all that their acts are, the characters aren't. In both cases, the villains do what they believe is right and in both those cases there's more to it than meets the eye. Yes, they go to extreme measures... but don't the heroes do the same sometimes? Where do we draw the line between what's evil and what is right? And who decides?

 

It isn't just evil, it's human too. And perhaps that's what makes it so impressive.

Rapid Fire Questions:

Voldermort or The White Witch: Voldemort!

Poison Apple or Spindle: Spindle.

Broom or Death Star? Death Star, no question.

Hydra or Medusa? Ooh, tricky... Hydra.

Interview with Ampersand Project Editor Marisa Pintado

The Ampersand Project is a Hardie Grant Egmont program dedicated to finding amazing debut authors. They're about to reopen to submissions so Ampersand editor, Marisa Pintado about what she's looking for this year. Melissa Keil, the first writer signed up through the Ampersand Project. Her debut novel, Life in Outer Space, will be published in February 2013. Keep in touch with Melissa on Facebook, Twitter and her website. I'll also being talking to Melissa about her experience on YAtopia (post goes live midnight 29 October U.S. E.S.T)

Sharon: What sparked the Ampersand Project?

Marisa: Since the beginning, the Ampersand Project has been about finding YA writers who are ready to become authors. Hardie Grant Egmont is passionate about launching new writers into the market, and so we decided to reserve a corner of our YA list for publishing debut novels. Perhaps we should have called it the First Book Project, but in the end we decided to call it Ampersand: we wanted to tap into the wonderful YA community, and make it clear that we were looking to work with authors to bring more diversity to the YA market.

There was originally a second reason behind the Ampersand Project, in that we also wanted to find more real-world, contemporary YA. A few years ago, there was a glut of paranormal romance and gritty dystopian fiction in the market. This went beyond mere trends, as far as we were concerned – there was simply very little available for readers who were into other kinds of fiction.

That glut feels like less of an issue these days – the market seems to have stabilised, and HGE’s YA list will be producing plenty of exciting real-world fiction in 2013. So as a result, in 2012 we’ve decided to open up the Ampersand Project to all YA genres. This means that we want to read everything from fantasy to mystery to romance to contemporary drama to horror. If your manuscript is brilliant, we want it!

Sharon: Tell us a bit about the short-listing process you went through.

Marisa: My colleagues and I weren’t prepared to receive as many submissions as we did, so the judging process took a long time. Our method was to sit around a big table for hours at a time, with an endless supply of coffee, and read through the submissions together. We sorted them into three piles as we read: ‘unfortunately not’, ‘maybe’ and ‘ooooh!’ piles. The ‘maybe’ pile was the largest, and these submissions were read and discussed by at least two editors before either being rejected, or vying for a place in our very small shortlist.

It’s worth noting that this process took a long time because the editors were maintaining full workloads during the reading; we all work full-time, and usually read manuscripts on weekends and in the evenings. The Ampersand Project reading was done on top of this, but we felt that it was an important and valuable part of our publishing program, so we kept working until it was done.

We gradually compiled a list of about thirty manuscripts that we felt were promising enough for the editors to then spend one or two hours giving feedback on them. Our hope was that these writers would re-submit their revised manuscripts after working through our feedback. And of course we found one truly amazing manuscript – Melissa’s Keil’s Life in Outer Space – that we fell in love with instantly.

Sharon: What were some common writer mistakes you saw in the Ampersand submissions?

Marisa: Most commonly, I saw manuscripts where either the concept or the execution was great, but not both – in other words, the ideas would be appealing but the writing was ho-hum, or vice-versa. Occasionally one or the other being good was enough to move a manuscript into our shortlist, but on the whole it was simply evidence that the writer was still too green to be published.

That was actually a key criteria as we read through the Ampersand submissions. We were looking for a sense that a writer had the self-confidence, skill and resilience to withstand the trauma and rigours of an editorial relationship. Being edited is a wonderful experience, but it can also break you – a writer needs to be sure enough in themselves and their abilities before someone can pull their work apart with the aim of making it better. Too often, we saw manuscripts that were still lacking in development on the writers’ part, which said to us that it was too early in their career for editorial intervention. Editors can help writers improve any grade of writing, but for a truly collaborative and meaningful relationship to blossom, there must be already be significant skill and investment made on the writers’ part.

Sharon: What made submissions shine out from the crowd in the slush?

Marisa: Submissions shone because they combined a multitude of appealing elements, such as a beguiling voice, intriguing concepts, skilful writing, well-developed characters, an authentic teen-feel, an understanding of classic story design, and so on. It was rare to find these elements all in the one manuscript, but many writers came close.

What I really loved to see was evidence of hard work in the writing; I could tell when writers were sending in their first draft, and when they’d laboured over a story for months or even years, painstakingly threading through subplots and re-writing chapters and refining characters and so on.

Sharon: Tell us a bit about your first Ampersand author Melissa Keil’s novel and how she came to be the first acquisition?

Marisa: Life in Outer Space really took us by surprise. I must admit that when we launched the Ampersand Project, we’d expected to go for gritty, boundary-pushing fiction – essentially sex, drugs and rock’n’roll, with some cutting on the side. And then Melissa’s manuscript landed on my desk, and it was like having a warm bath in the sunshine. She’d written this gorgeously geeky romantic comedy that shredded a stack of awful YA clichés and pop-culture tropes, and it was just an incredible achievement.

At first we wanted to wait until we’d finished reading all the Ampersand submissions before signing Melissa up. I’m not ashamed to say that this decision lasted about two days, and then we caved and signed her up so that we could launch into the editorial process. We knew we didn’t want to let her go, and we were prepared to have more than one Ampersand author in a year, if it came to that. She’s an amazing talent, and we could tell that she’d been working really hard for a very long time. She was absolutely ready to enter the YA scene as a fully fledged author.

I’m so looking forward to introducing her to readers in March 2013. I’ve read Life in Outer Space about ten times now (we’re at copyedit stage), and it has made me cry with happiness. Every. Single. Time. I just love her writing.

Sharon: What are you hoping to find in the next round of submissions?

Marisa: As we’re opening up to all genres across YA, I’m really keeping an open mind. My reading tastes are pretty broad, so I want to be surprised! I’m hoping to find raw talent in writers who are hungry for development, and stories that I have to stay up late to finish because I’m so desperate to see how it all turns out.

This year we've changed our guidelines to accept full manuscripts only. We initially wanted to encourage writers who were just starting out, and potentially give them feedback on their early work – but when we were overwhelmed with submissions, we realised that it was important to focus the Ampersand Project on writers who were actually ready to become authors. Writers who were ready to publish their debut novels! A huge part of a writer's commitment to their craft is about finishing and polishing a draft, so the editorial team felt that full manuscripts were important.

Everything you need to know if you want to submit (from Hardie Grant Egmont Website):

The Ampersand Project runs annually in spring/summer. This year, submissions will open on Thursday 1^st November 2012, and close at midnight on Thursday 31^st January 2013. We’re looking for YA manuscripts from unpublished writers across all genres. Please refer below for guidelines.

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Submission guidelines
The Ampersand Project is now open to YA manuscripts across all genres and word-counts. Manuscripts can be any length, though 50–80,000 words is a good fit for the YA market.
To be eligible for the Ampersand Project, writers should not have already published a YA novel under their own name with a mainstream trade publisher.

Writers should send their submissions to ampersand@hardiegrant.com.au. A complete submission must contain the following three items:

1. Your cover sheet, with the following information:

• Author name
• Project title
• Genre(s)
• Word count
• Two-sentence pitch of your novel

2. A one-page synopsis, that gives a clear indication of plot and character development.

3. Your full manuscript, formatted as follows:

• A4 page-size in a 10 to 12-point readable typeface (think Times New Roman, Arial, Calibri, Cambria, etc.) and double-spacing. No Comic Sans or Monotype Corsiva, please.
• Include page numbers.
• Include the title of your manuscript in the header or footer of your document.
• Do not include your own name anywhere on the manuscript itself, as submissions are read blind.

Please note:

• Announcements of signed authors will be made each year during the Emerging Writers Festival in Melbourne, and a notice will be put in the Weekly Book Newsletter.
• Eligibility for this collection is at the editors’ discretion.
• Due to the number of submissions, the Ampersand editors may be unable to give personalised feedback as to why a manuscript isn’t suitable for this collection.
• Partial manuscripts will not be considered, nor will incomplete submissions.
• If you are ineligible for the Ampersand Project, you are still welcome to query us via our unsolicited submissions page.