Meet Young Adult Mentors Stephanie Scott and Valerie Cole
This year, we’re co-mentoring! We live and breathe the contemporary YA world. We were signed to agents from contest entries (after receiving multiple offers), and know how to polish an entry so it shines like a diamond among the slush. For the last 3+ years, we've had our eye on the YA publishing market to know what types of manuscripts agents are looking for and what is selling to publishers. We will work hard to make your entry stand out in the agent round!
About us:
Stephanie Scott Bio: I’m a Young Adult writer represented by Sarah LaPolla at Bradford Literary. My debut contemporary ALTERATIONS is set for release in 2016 by Bloomsbury Spark. I’m a returning Pitch Wars mentor, and a new addition to the monthly 1st 5 Pages Workshop on the Adventures in YA Publishing blog. As an active member of Romance Writers of America, I regularly judge partial manuscripts through chapter contests and yearly judge for the Golden Heart. I serve on the board for the online YA chapter YARWA. Beyond writing, I enjoy dance fitness and cat memes, and Pinterest is driving me broke. I have half a dozen cosplay ideas (mostly Star Wars) and I’m a Ren Faire regular. You can find me chatting about TV and all things books on twitter and Instagram at @StephScottYA.
Valerie Cole Bio: Valerie Cole lives in Philadelphia with her guitar builder husband and lovable cocker spaniel. A graduate of The Art Institute of Philadelphia and Drexel University, her love of storytelling began as an intern in MTV’s animation department. She signed with literary agent Lauren MacLeod in 2012 after her entry in The Writers Voice caught Lauren's attention. She hosts the highly successful agent interview blog series Agents Like Us. You can find her on Twitter and Instagram @ValerieColeYA.What we are looking for: a writer who is ready to take the next step in their career. Someone who has passion and drive, who isn't afraid to kill their darlings, and is ready to revise (maybe even heavily) to nab the agent of their dreams. Young Adult fiction only.
Basically, we want to find a manuscript that makes us…
Seeing how we're contemporary YA girls, we'll definitely be looking for lots of realistic YA fiction, but we’re looking for GREAT STORIES across all genres. What makes many books incredibly successful is the author’s ability to root common emotions and relatable characters in wildly unique situations. For instance, take a look at Maggie Steifvater’s The Scorpio Races. Sure, there are crazy demon horses that rise out of the sea TO EAT YOU ALIVE, but Steifvater also tells the story about rich vs. poor, girl vs. boy, girl horse meets boy horse, and builds relationships so you are rooting for someone to win at the end. We want to find great stories. Period. The end. So surprise us!
We’ll be working collaboratively, but here are some of our personal interests and favorites:
Stephanie's Interests:
-High concept premises*
-Strong friendships or family relationships
-Diverse characters and diverse authors (see We Need Diverse Books site)
-Funny!
-Unique settings or time periods
-Upending tropes (make a common premise fresh)
-Characters who are skilled at or passionate -- sports, arts, sciences, etc. Teens who have their own interests and goals, even if the goals are thwarted (and they should be = conflict!)
Books I’m a fan of:
To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han - the sweeter side of YA that’s fresh, funny, and heartwarming
Just One Day by Gayle Forman - beautiful writing, self discovery, rich locale, deep family issues
Past Perfect by Leila Sales - forbidden romance set at waring historical re-enactment camps!
Deception So Deadly: Run to You by Clara Kensie - fast paced YA suspense
Tiny Pretty Things by Sonia Charaipotya and Dhonielle Clayton - multi-POV ballet academy with a diverse character cast
Imaginary Girls by Nova Ren Suma - complicated sister relationship, gorgeous writing, magical realism
Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor - world travel, art meets fantasy, escapist adventure
Not a Drop to Drink by Mindy McGinnis - survivalist to the core. Gripping pacing.
Under a Painted Sky by Stacey Lee - on-the-run girls disguised as cowboys on the historic Oregon trail!
Every Day by David Levithan - inventive and inspiring
Beauty Queens by Libba Bray - This book has everything: deserted pageant contestants, wicked satire, on-fire feminism. Volcano lairs, Lady Bird Hope, taxidermied sidekicks.
Valerie’s interests:
- Heart-wrenching contemporaries with high stakes
- Real teens dealing with real issues
- Unconventional families (especially blue collar)
- Diverse characters
- Twisty turny psycho thrillers
Books I’m a fan of:
Anything by Sara Zarr, especially How to Save a Life and Story of a Girl
A.S. King’s Reality Boy and Please Ignore Vera Dietz
An Ember in the Ashes by Sabaa Tahir
On the paranormal side, vampires and witches aren’t quite my thing, but I’m a huge fan of Maggie Steifvater’s The Raven Cycle series.
Anything that blends folklore, mythology, faerie tales with modern themes.
* High concept means you can easily pitch your idea in a few words. For example, last year in Pitch Wars, there was a YA entry about a teen fashion blogger exiled to Amish country. Paired with a funny title, and right there, you get an idea what the story might be like. If your manuscript has that mass appeal, we will fight all the other mentors off with a samurai sword for you.
Our editing style: the focus will be developmental. This means big picture edits--plot, character development, pacing. While we may comment on word choice, grammar, or specific details, this isn't meant to be a line edit. Most of all, we want to help a writer craft their best story using their voice. It's not about us imposing our writer voice on someone else. We want to help your entry stand out in not only the contest and agent round, but among published stories.
Not seeing what you've written in this blog post? Try us! We're open to finding something really awesome and it just might be you! Make sure to follow us on Twitter @StephScottYA and @ValerieColeYA and watch for us in the #PitchWars hashtag. We can’t wait to read your pitches! The submission window opens August 17 on Brenda Drake's blog.
Not seeing what you've written in this blog post? Try us! We're open to finding something really awesome and it just might be you! Make sure to follow us on Twitter @StephScottYA and @ValerieColeYA and watch for us in the #PitchWars hashtag. We can’t wait to read your pitches! The submission window opens August 17 on Brenda Drake's blog.
The bloghop widget doesn't like me much--try this link to see all the mentors.
Powered by... Mister Linky's Magical Widgets.
We should must have knowledge about bio writing servicesbecause in future we can get several tasks regarding writing bio.
ReplyDelete