Literary Agent & Audio Subrights Manager at CMA. Mom of adult kids, owned by 4 chihuahuas, wife to a homemade soapmaker hubby, lover of books & their creators!
#WritingCommunity
I stayed up until 4:30am reading a submission and never knew the time was passing. I was so engrossed. That’s a wonderful feeling. The feeling. 👍🏻
I’m pleased to say that after a holiday break, a two-week but non-Covid stay in the hospital and about a week and a half to get back up to speed, I’m now reopened to queries! Thank you for your patience. I look forward to getting caught up.😊
#amquerying
#amediting
Little late getting started this morning, but am participating in
#MoodPitch
today! If I ❤️ your tweet, please send query, 1st three chapters, & synopsis to shannon
@cmalit
.com. Good luck all!
If you didn’t receive a ❤️ but you think your story fits my genre/subgenre list & you think you might be interested in working with me, please feel free to go ahead & query at query
@cmalit
.com. Put “ATTN Shannon” in the subject line. Thanks all! 😊
Guess what? As of today, I'm now reopened to queries! I'm excited & hope you are too! I've updated my
#MSWL
but want to list some specifics I'm really hungry for below.
#WritingCommmunity
#amquerying
#amediting
#writers
See additional tweets for more!
Seeing some great things in
#MoodPitch
. Someone asked this question and I want to clarify to all, if I ❤️ and you email your synopsis & 3 chapters, please include them as attached Word docs with your query in the email body. Thank you!
Little late getting started today but here for
#PitDark
If I ❤️ your post feel free to send me first 3 chapters & syn to shannon @ cmalit(dot)com. Looking for
#a
or
#ya
serious or dark romance, horror, dark academia, thriller etc. If I don’t find you, find me! 😊
I’m a participating agent for
#PitDark
! If I ❤️ your pitch tweet email me a query w/the first 5 pages pasted below it to shannon
@cmalit
.com. Put my name &
#PitDark
in the subject line. Looking for some good eerie creepy horror among other things. Good luck!!
#amquerying
Really looking for some great
#PsychologicalThriller
or
#horror
stories right now! Either adult or ya! Also, I’m on the lookout for some great romcoms! So in other words, I want you to spook me, but then I’ll laugh about it. 😉
#mswl
1/11 Synopsis- Tell your story from start to finish as I mentioned before. But there’s more. SPOILER ALERT: if you want to watch the Star Wars saga & haven’t before, stop here. I’ll be using it as an example.
#writingcommunity
#amquerying
#amediting
#writers
1/2 I’m so excited for what I found today on
#moodpitch
from the
#MoodPitchers
The stories sounded amazing & use of the board took it to a new level. If I didn’t ❤️ your pitch but you think your story fits my
#mswl
please feel free to query as always!
1/2 Just a reminder I’m participating in the first
#MoodPitch
from
@moodpitchers
today. If I ❤️ your pitch, send me query, syn, and 1st chapter to shannon
@cmalit
.com. Looking for
#a
or
#ya
#cr
which can be serious or romcom. Would love a
#ya
#own
LGBTQ romance…
I’m participating in
#PitDark
today. If I ❤️ your tweet, please send me the first 3 chapters & synopsis to shannon @ . Excited to see the entries this year. Good luck all!
I hate to do it but I’m going to remain closed to queries at least another 2 weeks. I’ve discovered I need this additional time to catch up while still providing the needed attn to my existing clients. Thanks for understanding. Look forward to future queries! 😊
#amquerying
I’m thrilled to announce that
@ashewriter
is now a part of my little band of CMA writers! She’s written the most spooky & hair-raising YA Horror that had me up until 430am with all the lights on. Welcome to the family, Ashley!
#WritingCommunity
Here’s a little visual:
Thank you
@moodpitchers
for putting on another excellent
#MoodPitch
event this year! Thanks also to all authors who participated! There were so many excellent pitches & mood boards that I have quite a large pile to read! Lol! You’ll have to be patient w/me as I go through them.😊
Hey all! As I mentioned a week ago, I’m on the list to participate in this year’s
#PitDark
again. Looking forward to tomorrow. I’ll be looking at all things adult and ya horror but will also look at other categories too. My official post will go up in the morning but…
Happy to take part in
#moodpitch
tomorrow. If I ♥️ your pitch, please email me query, synopsis & 1st chapter to shannon
@cmalit
.com. I’m looking for
#a
&
#ya
#cr
#h
#myth
this time. Welcome
#own
and
#poc
stories, characters & authors. Good luck!
1/2 Ever received a rejection saying your characters fell flat? Ever wondered what that means? Possibly, you may be telling & not showing. Think of a movie. Actors don’t generally stand on screen & tell you what they’re feeling.
Little late getting started on
#DVPit
. If I ❤️ you, send query, 1st 5 pages pasted below it and full synopsis attached- shannon
@cmalit
.com. If another CMA agent also ❤️s, pick the best fit! Good luck all!
Getting started slow today but am participating in
#pitmad
. If I like your pitch, put subject line: Query
#pitmad
Title to query
@cmalit
.com. Address to Shannon with query & first 5 pages pasted in the body of your email below that. Good luck today all!
Just watched my sister finally get to fulfill her wish to complete the last 15 hours to get the degree she had to stop pursuing in her 20s. Watched her get her diploma tonight at 59. I’m so proud of her! 👩🏼🎓❤️
@moodpitchers
has organized a great first
#moodpitch
I love the combination of pitch and mood board. Giving a visual is a great idea! So pleased to be taking part in their first Twitter event!
There’s just something about watching my husband make his homemade soap that’s so relaxing. And another upside, I never have to buy air-fresheners for the house because the fragrance filters through the rest of the house from his workshop. 😊
Anyone who thinks romance novels have unrealistic plots should know that when my husband and I met for the first time, he began writing me letters telling me it was love at first sight and he was going to marry me. We’ve been married 20 years.
#RomanceBooks
#writerscommunity
Anyone who thinks romance novels have unrealistic plots should know that I was just friended on Facebook by an old elementary school friend who now owns a ranch in Montana.
Morning
#DVPit
! I’ll be popping in and out throughout the day. If I ❤️ your pitch send query, 1st 5 pages pasted below it & full synopsis attached. Put
#dvpit
in the subject to shannon
@cmalit
.com.
Running late...last min issue came up. Am participating in
#PitDark
! If I like your pitch, please email your query and first five pages pasted below it to query
@cmalit
.com to my attn. Make sure to put
#PitDark
in the subject line so it will stand out. Good luck all!
Here I am at the end of my birthday today. I just wanted to wish everyone a wonderful New Year. Here’s hoping 2021 will bring us many improvements and much hope and peace! That’s what I wished when I blew out my candle. 🥰
2/2 and I want to give a special shout-out and thanks to the
@moodpitchers
group for organizing. When Pitch Wars announced their end, I was so bummed. This has been a wonderful new event and I hope it be back next year!
#moodpitch
Thank you to all the wonderful writers and your amazing pitches yesterday during
#PitMad
. I must beg you to be patient with me as I sift through the resulting queries but I will try to respond as quickly as possible. Thank you! 😊
Thought I’d answer this here for everyone. Our site has been down being redesigned. It should be back up any day as we’re fine-tuning now. You can still query me at: query
@cmalit
.com. Include 1st 5 pages pasted below the query. ☺️
#writingcommunity
#amquerying
Just realized I hit 3k followers! Wow! Thanks! How about a query critique from me for the first 3 peeps to ♥️ this tweet? Rules: 1. You don’t already have a query wait’g an answer w/me & 2. You promise to take it in the spirit of constructive criticism & not hate me after! 😆
#amwritingromance
#writers
#MSWL
Really hungry for some good contemporary romances right now. Romcom, serious, tortured, preferably with a slow burn romance. ♥️
#writingtips
#querytips
How long should your synopsis be when querying an agent? Every agent is different in their requirements but for me, I’ve seen 1, 3, 5 & 10 pages. Whatever it takes to get your story down in a clear manner with a clear ending. 1/3
2/2 They convey it through their acting w/gestures, expressions, their actions. So they come alive for the viewer. You can do the same. Show how they feel, who they are, how they react. ‘He said angrily’ vs. “he slammed the book on the desk.’
#WritingCommunity
#amwriting
Okay I was minding my own business on the couch just now when a spider the size of a small rodent just crawled up on my arm. He was a big fella. After flinging my arm around and hunting I couldn’t find him. I think I might give him the house. 🤔
I’m so happy to have Shannon O’Brien
@Roswell1828
and her amazing book officially join my roster at CMA today! It was a
#PWpitch
! So don’t give up on twitter pitch wars!
#writers
#WritingCommunity
Here’s a tiny hint about this story...leaving you with anticipation!
Wanted to give appreciation to Jessica, Valentina & Julie at
@MSWLMA
for hosting me on Manuscript Academy Live! This is such a great resource and podcast. Hope the Q&A was helpful to the writers!! Check out their podcast if you haven’t already!
#WritingCommunity
#amquerying
Writers can sometimes self-sabotage their progress without meaning to. What’s one of the ways you self-sabotage, and then what’s one positive way you can combat it? 😊
#WritingCommunity
#Writer
#amwriting
#amediting
I am late to
#IWSGPit
but I am going to go through what was tweeted today. If I like your tweet, please query me and paste the first five pages below your query. Send to query
@cmalit
(dot)com. Put to my attn in the subject, as well as
#IWSGPit
Hope everyone had amazing luck today!
Happy Holidays from me & all of us here at CMA! There couldn’t be a better agency than this one
@pwheeler_agent
created, or better colleagues than her,
@Haley_J_Casey
& Megan Fraser! 🎄🧑🏼🎄
Just finished watching what I believe to be one of, if not the, most romantic movies of all time. Somewhere in Time w/Christopher Reeves & Jane Seymour. Oh heavens, why do I do this to myself. Such an achingly beautiful movie that never fails to yank my heart from my chest. Wow.
Know one of the many things I love about being an agent? I get to work on the weekends and a big part of my work is reading books. What could be better than that? Second thing? Finding those gems I fall in love with. That’s even better. Makes weekend work feel great!
I’m done for the day. If I didn’t ♥️ your tweet but you think your story fits my list, feel free to query me. Great
#KissPitch
all! Best of luck to everyone that your manuscripts find a great home!
#amquerying
#publishing
#querytips
Excited to announce our new podcast “Creative Pen: Insider Tips With Creative Media Agency, out 1/12/23! Get agent insights & get to know us! And be watching for some other pre-release surprises! Follow here:
2/2 the writers are telling me about the book but not giving me much on the characters, what they want (goal), why they want jt (motivation), and what’s standing in the way (the conflict), both external and internal. And keep it tight, succinct and clear.
#WritingCommunity
I’m always surprised at the number of people who think we find most of our writers via referral. 90% of my list is, and continues to be, writers I have found in the ‘slush pile’, and I can’t see that ever changing!
#PitDark
Oh, also looking for
#a
or
#ya
romance fantasy that’s dark as well, psychological thriller, maybe a 1 person ish survival thriller, a horror cast with an escape scenario (house, room, woods, etc). Really looking for that gem to sign a client before year’s end!
Heads up-CMA will not be considering any queries the rest of the year starting 12/16 (tomorrow.) I know I definitely need the time to catch up on queries & submissions already received! Woefully behind!😊 Will reopen on 1/2/23.
#WritingCommunity
#amquerying
#amediting
#amquerying
#amediting
#WritingCommunity
1/2 I just started reviewing an R&R manuscript where I’d provided feedback to the author and had offered to read again once completed. Author included an overview of any overall changes she’d made to incorporate my feedback…
This is amazing
@JasonHuebinger
So pleased to hear this! Thank you once again for coordinating this great event! I’m being flooded with stories but I love it! 😀
Where are all the space opera writers? Love a good space opera and if you have one, whether adult or YA, send it my way! Also a good adult or YA RomCom!
#MSWL
#writers
#WritingCommunity
#amwriting
Yes! Exactly this!! There are some very well written books out there I must pass on because it just doesn’t fit the list I’m building, or may I just took one on that’s too close to it.
A reminder: a pass on your project, by an editor, or an agent, is a reflection on what THEY are looking for, for their lists, NOT a reflection on the merit and worth of your valuable work.
CMA is holding an
#AskAnAgent
on our
@cma_lit
Insta today. Drop by there for answers from the entire team. Also feel free to ask me anything here until 4 CST today. I’ll be hopping in and out but will reply to as many questions as I can!
#amquerying
#WritingCommunity
Am I crazy or is Star Trek: Strange New Worlds an amazing show?! Just found this gem & have been bingeing! Why do I want a fantasy or sci-fi character with a male romantic lead w/a personality like Spock and a forbidden romance for him?
#amquerying
#amediting
#writerscommunity
Watching the movie Gattaca. An excellent reminder that “dystopian” can really stretch boundaries and can reach beyond what became the norm for such books.
#amwritingfiction
#WritingCommunity
Thank you to
#pitdark
for asking me back again. I am looking for a variety of things as you saw from my prior post in both/either
#ya
or
#a
. Feel free to check out my wishlist on to see if we would make a good fit! Goodl luck!
@byleahjohnson
I’m ashamed of adults who shame adults who read YA. It’s not an easy genre to write well. You don’t “write down” to a younger audience & it’s a difficult line to straddle. YA authors should be more celebrated for getting that just right. One of my fave pleasure reads!