GalleyCat Compiles Manuscript Wish Lists From Numerous Agents

You go to conventions. You research agencies and agents. You did deep into agents' profiles, mining their tastes, deducing whether you and a particular agent will gel. You like them on Facebook. You follow them on Twitter. It could take months, if not years, to really get a sense of what an agent wants, and if your manuscript will deliver.

Or, you could just check out this massive Storify post compiling agent tweets utilizing the MSWL (short for Manuscript Wish List) hashtag. Jason Boog of GalleyCat put this together post. "The list is perfect," he writes, "if you are looking for a literary agent or some literary inspiration."

No joke. Authors will no doubt find this list extremely helpful. Personally, I like hearing agents' wishes—delivered in direct, conversational language—straight from the agents' mouths. Take this one, from Kate McKean of Howard Morhaim Literary Agency: "Contemporary Women's fiction NOT NOT NOT about cancer, divorce, jerk husbands, or getting your groove back." So there you go—don't send Ms. McKean anything like that.

On the other hand, do send Evan Gregory "alien abduction horror," because he's a "sucker for that stuff."

Every tweet listed in the Storify post is hyperlinked, so you can click on each agent, read more of their insights, and follow them, if you so choose. Best of all, since the list is rooted in Twitter, you can share them ad nauseam, which some of the agents encourage. LitReactor's own Bree Ogden wrote, "I could totally go for an unapologetic horror manuscript with lots of death and bizarre elements! #MSWL #RETWEET!!!" Note the use of capitalization and three exclamation points—she really wants that manuscript. Get on it, guys and gals.

Have you seen the list yet? Any favorites you'd like to share?