🎉I'm thrilled to announce that I'm now represented by
@MeganACarroll
at
@watsonlittle
! Megan’s passion and vision for my slow-burn, epic romantasy absolutely blew me away. I can’t wait to see where we’ll take this story together!
✨Fabulous character art by
@lulybot
I just received my first full manuscript rejection (which, of course, is disappointing) BUT as an ESL writer, seeing a dream agent commenting "your writing is so strong" made me so happy that I hardly feel sad about the rejection anymore. Trying to stay positive here 🫡
I’ll be pitching the book I’m querying as well as my work in progress tomorrow for
#QuestPit
! 🫡 LMK if you want to swap support and let’s manifest all the good things ✨🕯️
To all
#amquerying
authors: my DMs are always open for questions, venting, and anything else related to querying. This process is SO HARD, and I really believe that having a good support system makes all the difference! ❤️
Is anyone else feeling emotionally exhausted from querying? I haven't felt this emotionally drained since I was 13 years old when my crush broke up with me and I thought my life was over.
#amquerying
No more delulu stage for me! Sharing this here because I also think it's important to share rejections and not only successes. Current stats:
- Queries sent: 63
- Rejections: 5
- Requests: 0
#amquerying
HURRICANE WARS X 4TH WING
Sent on a mission to prove herself to her family & snag a vial of the world's most dangerous magic, Vallinore lands in hot water by joining a rebellion and falling for the worst possible person—her father’s sworn enemy.
#QuestPit
#q
Am I the only writer with a playlist of soundtrack music where each song corresponds to a chapter, so the book plays out like a movie while I’m reading/writing/revising, or is this a new level of crazy?
Am I the only one who truly enjoys revising? There's nothing I love more than revisiting my story repeatedly and experiencing the same emotions again, reading the witty banter. I still feel shocked by the plot twists even after the 20th revision
#amquerying
#amwriting
The query trenches are crazy. I feel like I've connected more deeply with people in the writing community over the past few weeks than I have with 99% of my coworkers over the last 5 years.
#amquerying
TRUTHWITCH X THE FAMILIAR
Grace is a glorified judge—her magic exposes every lie, sending criminals straight to the slammer. But when the only man immune to her power accuses the Senate of corruption, she'll have to trust him blindly to save everyone from ruin.
#QuestPit
#W
Rapunzel X Mistborn
A diplomatic mission goes wrong when Vallinore finds herself at the mercy of a ruthless and charming Lord Commander. He proposes a deal: if she finds a way to remove his slave mark, he'll save her country from a dark age.
#QuestPit
#romantasy
#amquerying
I wish there was some sort of Twitter contest where literary agents picked 1 or 2 people (that willingly participated) from their reject pile and say EXACTLY why they were rejected. I think a lot of us just want to improve and don't even know how. (1/2)
Happy 'Shoot Your Shot Sunday'!
📚FMC is a bookworm ambassador
🖤Slow-burn, yearning masked in political debates
💉Magic is injected
🔪Trust no one
✨Queer norm, Disability + PTSD rep
🌧️ Pay attention to the weather and you'll know how the story ends
#amquerying
Writers, what's one of the best/funniest comments a beta reader made on your manuscript? Here's one of mine:
"Every single moment they were together was like crack, and I snorted that shit up like my life depended on it."
#amwriting
#amquerying
If you're in the process of querying, I encourage you to try working on your next manuscript! Doing creative work will distract you from the querying trenches, and if you get The Call, agents are likely to inquire about your work in progress.
#amquerying
#amwriting
After 10 rejections and zero bites so far, I've found that the best way to cope is to throw myself into writing a new manuscript. I'm so into it that there's a part of me that almost hopes the first book keeps getting rejected because this one is going to be way better lol.
I wrote 7.7k words yesterday for my new WIP 🫡 Whenever the words start flowing at this pace, I know I have a good story on my hands 😌
If any one of my 9 fulls turns into an offer, that agent will have a second book in their hands that I’m really proud of 🥹
If you’re a writer, how do you actually focus on other things during the day? I feel like I’m either writing or thinking about my writing—all the time. Like, if I had enough time I would probably just write until my fingers fell off and forget to eat and sleep.
#amwriting
My biggest advice for
#amquerying
writers who just started the process: query with the same love you put into writing your book. Treat agents well, get involved in the community, and lift up other writers. Also, there's SO MUCH to learn from rejections. Embrace the rollercoaster.
My toxic trait is knowing publishing is a slow business but also thinking that if an agent requesting my full doesn't fall in love and offer 48h after I submit the file, then it'll be a automatic pass.
Querying stats:
❌ 18 passes (let's normalize "pass" instead of "rejection" ok?)
✅ 3 fulls out + 1 partial
🕯️ Manifesting that one particular agent likes my full as if my life hinges on it
#amquerying
Got my 21st pass/rejection today 😮💨
Buuuuut I have fulls out ✨
Manifesting an awesome agent who's as passionate about my characters as I am🕯️
#amquerying
My publishing/writing/agenting dream is having an agent enthusiastic enough about my work to be willing to read the annotated version of my MS where I inline comment all of the little bits of foreshadowing, nods and symbolism I sprinkled throughout my book
It’s me I’m the mutual ❤️
ALSO, may I just say that
@BeccaACarter
is the loveliest human, she read my query letter & opening chapter when I first joined the
#WritingCommunity
and gave me the most wonderful advice 🥹
I probably would never have gotten that email without her🫶
Not long ago, I told a mutual they gave agented vibes and that I sensed they would get an email one day soon, and well 👀 that person just got a thing in their email 👀 and I am here feeling witchy and ELATED and HAPPY for this friend of mine ✨✨✨
Just sent a personalized query to an agent I admire a lot… only to find a typo in the first sentence (wrote “ready” instead of “read”).
I am unwell.
#amquerying
Giving some love to TRUTHTELLER today, I’m flying through this MS and can’t wait to share more 🥹❤️
🔥 She detects lies but can only tell the truth
⚖️ Courtroom fantasy setting
💔 Healing from trauma & guilt
✨ Slow-burn + reluctant allies
🔪 Political intrigue & betrayal
Weekly querying stats:
❌ 23 passes (and I guess many more, since a lot of the agents I queried don't answer queries as a rule of thumb)
✅ 5 fulls out + 1 partial
🕯️✨ Hoping for good news soon 🥹
#amquerying
What makes an agent sit on a full they already read? Waiting for an offer? Waiting to see if the book "clicks" for them? I'm really interested in the process, sounds fascinating.
#amquerying
writers: If English is your second language, how dreadful do you find the querying process or sending full manuscripts? I'm second-guessing every grammar rule I thought I knew. 🫠
Another week in the
#amquerying
trenches, and it feels slower than ever as I have several fulls out and am reaching the end of my list of agents to query 🫠
New fear unlocked: having the agents reading my fulls waiting that I nudge with an offer from another agent but because they're all waiting, no one will make an offer in the first place💀
#amquerying
Lots of ✨vague✨ posts this week—SO HAPPY for everyone, things are moving FAST! I can’t wait to read all your books 🥹❤️
For those of you waiting with bated breath for news this weekend, I’m in the same boat 🥲 sending you good vibes ✨🕯️
Asking for a friend: did anyone EVER refresh their inbox and suddenly find a full request/offer waiting for them? 🙃 like does it work or am I torturing my F5 key for absolutely nothing
#amquerying
Agented friends, how polished was your manuscript when you got your agent? Did you find any typos in your MS after your offer or was it top-notch perfection?
#amquerying
HURRICANE WARS X 4TH WING
Sent on a mission to prove herself to her family & snag a vial of the world's most dangerous magic, Vallinore lands in hot water by joining a rebellion and falling for the worst possible person—her father’s sworn enemy.
#QuestPit
#q
#MeetMyMCs
, Vallinore, shapeshifter and royal bookworm:
✨Her past made her bitter
✨Thrown into a diplomatic mission to save her country
✨Has a penchant for blinding her enemies with acid
✨Has 24 earrings, one for each birthday
✨Secretly has the heart of a golden retriever
Weekly querying stats:
❌ 29 passes + 10/15 CNRs (rough estimation)
✅ 6 full requests + 1 partial (+2 other fulls out from agents who require the full manuscript along with the query)
🕯️✨Please make it happen in May ✌️
✨THE BLACK CIRCLE✨will always be the book of my heart 🥹
Sent on a mission to prove herself to her family & snag a vial of the world's most dangerous magic, Vallinore lands in hot water by joining a rebellion and falling for the worst possible person—her father’s sworn enemy.
This. Most of the agents who seemed like perfect fits passed my query. Out of the 5 fulls I have out, only one agent had my book's specific genre/tropes/vibe in their MSWL. The other 4 just accepted "adult fantasy" in general and I gave it a shot 😬
#amquerying
Sometimes the agent who you think is a perfect fit will reject you, and the one you queried on vibes only that doesn’t even have your genre listed on query tracker will say “this is exactly what I’ve been looking for.”
Shoot your shot! You just never know.
Happy new week
#amquerying
friends! Manifesting full requests, offers of rep and, if there are rejections on fulls coming to our inboxes, please make them personalized 🕯️✨🕯️✨🕯️✨
Now that I reached 20k words on the ODAA WIP I feel like it’s time to put this moodboard out into the world
🔥Love Triangle with two princes of Hell
✨Grumpy demons
🍃Initiation Well + 1900s Sintra as setting
👁️ She can’t remember her past life
🗡️ Rebecca by DdM vibes
I've discovered more about myself since diving into the query trenches than I have in the past 28 years. I've handled nearly 20 rejections like a champ (I thought I wouldn't), but knowing that agents have my full manuscript is slowly driving me insane.
#amquerying
An Agent's Guide to THE BLACK CIRCLE
The emperor's bastard daughter and her father's sworn enemy strike a deal: if she finds a way to remove the mark on his wrist that binds him to his king, he'll save her country from a deadly crisis.
#amquerying
#A
#FA
I was asked to do a R&R for the first few chapters and as I'm reading my manuscript all over again, I'm reminded why I love these characters so much. I've just reached 10k words of my new WIP, but the novel I'm currently querying just makes my soul dance.
#amquerying
When I look at agents' timelines on QT, I feel overwhelmed for them. It must feel like standing in a bookstore, knowing you can only take three books home—but after picking, all the other books will be gone forever. And you’ll always wonder if you made the right choice 🤯
ESL
#writers
, how do you think your native language POSITIVELY impacted your writing in English?
I’m 🇵🇹 so I feel like my writing is packed with symbolism, yearning, double meaning and big emotions & feelings. Details are always there for a reason and I love subtle foreshadowing
What a time to participate in this! 👀
Title: The Black Circle
Genre: Epic Fantasy w/ romantic subplot
Setting: Non-western secondary world w/ sci-fi elements
Theme Song: Elysium by Jo Blankenburg
Age Range: Adult / New Adult
Comps: 4th Wing x 🌪️Wars
Status: Finished 👀
✨Shoot your Shot Sunday ✨
⚔️ Hurricane Wars X 4th Wing
📚 She fights with knowledge, not a knife
💉Magic is injected & corrupts
🌎 Conflict about exploitation of natural resources
💖 Enemies-to-lovers
#litagents
, please get in touch if you’d like to see more!
#amquerying
An Agent's Guide to THE BLACK CIRCLE
The emperor's bastard daughter and her father's sworn enemy strike a deal: if she finds a way to remove the mark on his wrist that binds him to his king, he'll save her country from a deadly crisis.
#amquerying
#A
#FA
Writer friends, you can now finally follow me on IG at ✨marianavcoelho_author✨
Took me a while but I finally made a writing account! 😂
Link your handles below so I can follow you too 👇
There are 2 types of dreams agents: the ones who rep big writers and who would do a good job with your book but also those who you KNOW you’d get along with so well in terms of energy + personality.
Honestly, I’ll be heartbroken when my fulls get rejected from that 2nd group 🫠
Forcing myself to write in a linear way never worked for me. Sometimes I start a WIP on Act II. Sometimes I write the climax and go back. My writing brain is chaotic and I learned to embrace it—I now write 100x times faster, I LOVE the process + my stories are so much stronger.
I feel like querying is terrifyingly similar to that stage when you're about to start a relationship but you're not sure if they love you yet.
Palpitations, butterflies, the wake-up-at-2-am-and-wonder-if-they-love-you. The obsession!
Not for the faint of heart lol.
#amquerying
My publishing/writing/agenting dream is having an agent enthusiastic enough about my work to be willing to read the annotated version of my MS where I inline comment all of the little bits of foreshadowing, nods and symbolism I sprinkled throughout my book
You know you married the right man when you find yourself having a serious conversation in which he matches ice cream flavours to each of the characters in the novel you're querying (and does so with a straight face and a good amount of logical reasoning).
#amwriting
#amquerying