Avalon Full Manuscript Writer’s Retreat

Many of you know I run a writers retreat in Avalon, NJ each year at the end of September. There is one retreat in the beginning of the week and another one that fills the end of the week. The nice thing is it’s a small retreat with eight writers and two agents, so everyone gets a full manuscript critique with one of the agents and a 30 page critique with the other. We also have a first page session during the retreat and their is plenty of time to talk about and revise your manuscript if needed. Space is limited to eight writers.

Cost of $830 includes critiques, housing, and food. Please send an email if you would like to secure a spot. Put “Avalon Writer’s Retreat” in the subject area and let me know what you have written – Grade level – Genre – Word Count – brief description.                        

The first session of the Avalon Writer’s Retreat is September 24th – 26th, checking out on September 27th. The agents for the first session are:

Louise Fury – Louise represents young adult, middle grade, new adult, commercial fiction including romance, and select nonfiction.

A native South African, I now live in New York City and travel to Cape Town every year, where I spend time educating South African writers, meeting with international publishers and distributing books. Before agenting, I worked in marketing and advertising for both the consumer markets and publishing. Prior to joining The Bent Agency, I worked as a literary agent at the L. Perkins Agency. I represent numerous New York Times and USA Today best-selling authors. I encourage my authors to have one foot in traditional print publishing and the other in the digital-first arena and am a huge advocate of utilizing secondary rights—I have sold film/TV, audio and foreign rights for my clients. I believe in staying ahead of the pack by embracing change, not just adapting to it.

I’m looking for writers with a unique voice and an unforgettable story. I’m particularly drawn to stories with a strong protagonist. In young adult, I look for manuscripts that are written with an unforgettable voice—this can be deep, dark and gritty or literary, lyrical and emotional. I’d love to find a young adult novel that has a bone-deep sense of danger that haunts me from page 1 and doesn’t let go of me for days. I want delicious adult romances with creative plots, sexy liaisons and unique characters who sweep me up in their love story. I want to feel something unforgettable when I read your pages. I want manuscripts that I can’t stop thinking about.

Andrea Cascardi – Andrea is currently seeking submissions in Middle Grade, Young Adult, and Women’s Fiction (commercial women’s fiction).

Fiction: Andrea says she has eclectic taste, so her submissions wish-list is broad-ranging, but any fiction submission must, first and foremost, have a compelling voice driving the story. Beyond that, she’s look for smart writing, and amped-up emotions: for example, if you’re writing a warm, heartfelt story, she wants it to leave her emotionally spent at the end. Ditto for romance: She wants to feel the heat! She’s hoping to discover funny books that literally make me snort with laughter throughout. And books that take unexpected turns that surprise or shock me in a good way. She look for unique yet relatable characters, and she wants those characters to come from a full range of diverse backgrounds and time periods. More specifically, she’d love to see boundary-pushing stories, dark humor, literary, and clever commercial fiction.

Andrea is open to nonfiction for young readers of all ages, and is keen to find innovative presentations and compelling, creative nonfiction that illuminates a broader topic by viewing it through a smaller lens. She’d like to see some “out there” nonfiction ideas that dazzle with their brilliance yet connect immediately with kids.

Author-illustrators: She is excited to bring new storytelling talent into the field, as well as to work with artists who have experience in other fields such as animation or editorial work and are ready to send their own projects into the world.

Adult fiction: She’s a voracious reader, and is looking to represent what she loves to read, which for lack of a better term she calls commercial books that beg to be discussed. As with children’s fiction, it must be superlative in one or more ways: smart, fierce, commercial, emotionally-hooking, clever, heart-pounding, diverse…the bar is high but she is eager to discover exciting new voices.

Second Writer’s Retreat is September 28th to September 30th, checking out October 1st. The agents are:

Scott Treimel – Scott represents authors from PB to Young Adult and crossover books. He also represents selected children’s illustrators at his full service boutique agency he founded in 1995. S©ott Treimel NY sells and administers intellectual property rights– print, electronic, audio, foreign, dramatic, film, composition, broadcast, merchandise, promotion– for children’s book creators. STNY upholds the Association of Authors’ Representatives Canon of Ethics.

Scott helps his clients revise as needed, edits manuscripts for submission, and likes to work with authors on developing their careers.

Jennie Dunham – Jennie represents authors of quality fiction and nonfiction books for adults and children and some illustrators of children’s books.

She likes Literary fiction, narrative nonfiction, biography, memoir, history, parenting/family, politics/current affairs, relationships, science/technology, picture books, middle grade, young adult, illustrators.

Ms. Dunham has been a literary agent for over 20 years, is a member of the AAR and SCBWI, and continues to attend conferences.

Over the last five years, this retreat has seen many writers find an agent and go one to getting their manuscript published. Hope to hear from you.

Talk tomorrow,

Kathy