#340 Flip the Script with Kate McKean

This week, we're running a takeover in collaboration with Kate McKean! This contest’s winner will not only be awarded $250 — they’ll also receive personal feedback from Kate herself! Here's what she has to say about her takeover:

Hi writers!

I’m Kate McKean, and for around the past 20 years, I’ve been a literary agent at the Howard Morhaim Literary Agency. I’m also the author of Write Through It: An Insider’s Guide to Publishing and the Creative Life and the forthcoming picture book Pay Attention to Me, about a cat who wants to be famous. Having been on both sides of the table when it comes to writing and publishing books, I know just how hard it can be. I wrote five books before landing my first book deal, and what I’ve really benefited from is the perspective my experience has granted me.

This week’s theme is all about perspective. How does it look like from your eyes? And how does it look from another character’s? When I was writing my picture book, my editor suggested that I write it from the cat’s POV instead of his owner’s, and that changed everything. Sometimes, the best way to liven up a story or shake off writer’s block is to turn your story on its head and do the exact opposite of what your characters or readers expect. And you know what? It’s super fun, too.

Writers always ask what literary agents want to see in the slush pile, and us literary agents always say, “Something we’ve never seen before.” So, show me something I’ve never seen before. Zig when I think you’re going to zag. What if the hero doesn’t save the day? What if the underdog doesn’t want to win? What if the villain just needs a hug? These swerves and jukes won’t always work for your story (a romance still needs a HEA!), but the practice of writing them will open up new paths for you. And you never know — that might be the big surprise that agents, and your readers, are waiting for.

Special Update: The Results 🏆

The top pick for this takeover was "Six Home Runs" by Rick Jones. Here's what Kate had to say about it:

"Six Home Runs" fully embodied the world it created from the very start. It took me a minute to remember that there was no World Series in 1994, but even if you don't know that, the story has a satisfying arc and ending. The voice is confident and subtle, and the author makes great use of the smallest details to indicate the character's emotions, all within the narrative framework of this imagined interview. Great job!

Congratulations to contest winner Rick Jones and the runners-up, Sarah Combs and Ali Venosa