Contest Monday not on Monday, plus WriteOnCon awesomeness

I thought I'd shake things up a bit and have Contest Monday on Tuesday--which is my way of saying that I totally forgot it was my turn to post this week (*hangs head in shame*) Anyway, we Sisters are so excited that we're about to hit 500 followers. How excited? Well, we're going to do a cool contest once we hit that magic number as a huge thank you to all our wonderful friends and readers, so spread the word!

Also, in case you missed this event from the amazingly awesome peeps at WriteOnCon (yes, so awesome that I used an adverb--sorry Mr. King), here is a link to the "Live Event with uber-agents Michael Bourret and Jim McCarthy" from Dystel & Goderich. This is one of my fave agencies--I've seriously (there I go again) loved every book I've read by their clients (NOTE: they rep Carrie Ryan, Richelle Mead, Lisa McMann and James Dashner to name just a few). Michael and Jim provided a ton of information about their take on the market, queries, MG fiction, and everything else from contemporary YA to zombies. I encourage you to read the entire transcript, as it's also entertaining. My favorite line came from Jim McCarthy when asked about what to include in a query:

"I love a good introduction if you're sending to me for a specific reason. Otherwise, jump right into the plot description. Just don't get all gimmicky: "What would you do if you woke up on Mars and your mother was dead?" I don't know, but I do know I'm about to reject you..." 
 
If you're planning to query this agency (and I hope you are), this is a must-read!