Alyssa Matesic
@alyssamatesic.bsky.social
450 followers 13 following 890 posts
your book editor friend 💪📚 formerly at Penguin Random House and The Book Group 🎥 weekly tips on YouTube! https://www.youtube.com/@AlyssaMatesic 💌 insider publishing tips: https://www.chapter-break.com ✏️work with me: https://www.alyssamatesic.com
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As a book editor, reading is my job, but it still somehow never feels like work.

If you're struggling to get through your TBR pile or find yourself reaching for the remote rather than a book, here are some tips to help you prioritize reading—without rearranging your routine. 📖
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You all have been loving this series where I live-critique real manuscripts sent to me, so here's another round!

Today, we're talking about things like:
🤜 bringing conflict to the forefront
⏰ clarifying the narrative timeline
📝 whether to include a prologue

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pg6...
You Sent Me Your Manuscripts…And I Have Thoughts
Wondering why literary agents are rejecting your manuscript without reading more than a few pages? Today, I’m pulling back the curtain on the querying proces...
www.youtube.com
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Following this formula, what would your author bio look like?
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Now, here are some details you can leave out of your author bio for the sake of space:

❌ intimate details about your life or family
❌ your educational background (unless relevant or notable)
❌ the inspiration for your book
❌ your favorite books or authors
❌ fun facts/hobbies (fun, but not needed)
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Plus, you never know if they have a personal connection to wherever you're based. While that's not going to get you representation, it can be a nice touch if they're already interested in working with you.

Ta-da! Those three elements are really all you need.
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3️⃣ Where you’re based — authors all over the world query agents, and they will need to know where you're based when you start working together professionally.
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If you are not currently working but you used to have a career, you can also reference what you formerly did for work. If you're a student or a stay-at-home parent, feel free to say that.
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2️⃣ Your professional background — this gives the agent a sense of how writing fits into your life.

Mentioning your professional background is especially important if you are writing nonfiction, because in that case, agents will be curious about your authority on the subject matter.
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And what if you don't have any writing credentials at all? Don't worry! Many authors with no prior "credits" still get representation and book deals (I promise!). You can simply say, “This is my debut book.”
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1️⃣ Your writing credentials — this would include:
✏️ previous publications
✏️ writing awards
✏️ notable conferences or workshops you’ve attended
✏️ an MFA or creative writing degree

If you are a journalist, run a blog, or are a content writer, you can include that information too!
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What should you include in your author bio? 📝

Sometimes authors write far too much — or far too little — in their query letter bios.

A solid author bio can be straightforward and succinct. It just needs three key elements:
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It's never going to be fun to receive rejections, but try to get to that point where the rejections roll off your back because you understand that every "no" is one step closer to your "yes."

You've got this.
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And remember that if a literary agent or a publisher rejected you, then they ultimately weren't the best match to champion your book to begin with.
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These writers know that it ultimately only takes one yes from a literary agent and one yes from a publisher to get their book on the shelf, and you never know when that yes might come — it could be the very next query that you send.
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Many successful authors pride themselves on how many rejections they've received throughout their writing career because, to them, it is a testament to the resilience they've built.
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It may feel like you're getting further from your goal of seeing your book on the shelf. But in the process of putting yourself out there and getting rejected, you're actually getting CLOSER to your dream of seeing your book published.
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If you're deep in the querying trenches and every rejection is sending you down a spiral, listen up:

Rejection isn't a step back, but a stepping stone FORWARD.
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In today’s interview, author Jude Berman shares how she overcomes publishing stresses and the hard parts of being an author.

Link to subscribe in my bio!
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"I can’t honestly say writing feels hard. However, the marketing and publicity side of writing does feel hard, and there are days when I have to force myself to engage with that. What I tell myself is 'Writers write!'"
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For better or worse, there's so much more to being an author than just writing. And juggling it all can be hard.
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I've been a book editor for 10 years. 1,000+ authors and countless manuscripts later, the biggest lessons I’ve learned might surprise you.

Here are the 3 biggest takeaways from the past decade that totally changed the way I approach editing.

They might help you take your story to the next level!
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Now that you know the four writer types, which one do you fit into? Or are you a blend of them?
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Their novels are the ones that you write essays on in school or endlessly debate in book clubs because there's an ethos beyond just entertainment. And their novels are some of the most powerful of all time.

Think of writers like George Orwell, Margaret Atwood, and Colson Whitehead
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4️⃣ The Visionary - A theme-driven writer ☁️

These writers use their stories as vessels for big, thought-provoking ideas. For them, characters and plot are tools of delivering a message.