I met Jamie back in 2010 when I took an advanced-level workshop she was teaching with fellow writing coach Joyce Sweeney. At the time, I don’t know if I qualified as “advanced,” but I do know that her weekend-long workshop catapulted me to the next level of writing. It also showed me how much more I had to learn, so I eagerly signed up for more Jamie workshops. And in between those workshops, I hired Jamie to critique my work. The first time she read my manuscript, she was full of praise, but she also told me the truth. Sometimes...
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Fifteen years ago, when I was struggling to write a fantasy novel, I stumbled upon a series of fiction-writing classes taught at the local library by Joyce Sweeney. At the time, I didn’t know much about her, only that she had authored a bunch of books for young adults. I quickly learned that Joyce was a fountain of knowledge and that these classes of hers only scratched the surface of what she knew. The details of those long-ago classes are fuzzy now, but I do remember how much she encouraged me. I was so proud when I received back one...
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When Agent Tina P. Schwartz read my manuscript and offered to represent me, I hate to admit that I was hesitant at first—but only because her agency was so new. I had poured years of my life into writing and revising A WORK OF ART, and I wanted to be sure it was in the right hands. So I contacted some of her other clients, and here’s what I learned: Tina is a hard-working professional who’s passionate about representing her clients. Though she didn’t officially start the Purcell Agency until 2012, she has been selling manuscripts to traditional publishers since...
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