SCBWI-MI Critique Carousel 2023

5 Tips for Success

5 Tips for Success

Without the Critique Carousel, I would not submit a manuscript because this event keeps me moving forward one tiny step at a time. Read on for my five tips for success. 

Step 1: Write your manuscript. 

If you're a handwritten first drafter like me, polish one of those many handwritten drafts. The FAQ page lists the formats for your manuscript. Following these guidelines is fantastic practice when submitting to editors and agents. Let the mandated structure take that decision from you. Use the deadline to prod yourself forward. 

Step 2: Send your manuscript out for critique.

Lean into your critique group. If you need a critique group, check into your SCBWI Region. They may have one with one for you. Since I have been lucky to get a critique group that sends monthly manuscripts to each other for review earlier in the year, I have reviewed manuscripts and am ready to send them by the fall. 

Step 3: Revise our manuscript. 

I wish I were the writer who made the revisions when they came in. Instead, the critique carousel forces me to hunt down the comments on the manuscript and then revise it. Now, I am almost ready to put this manuscript out. 

Step 4: Research the industry professionals on the website.

One of the greatest gifts of volunteering with SCBWI-MI is that I have to work with the information provided. In the case of the carousel, this is the information of industry professionals. Now, you have access to their MSWL on the critique carousel website. I have to populate the database to display that information. So, I see it. But I still have to take advantage of that opportunity. Unfortunately, I am too wrapped in the time crunch of getting the task done to research which industry professional will best fit me. So, I have to go to the website, research each one's MSWL, and make sure that it is a fit. 

Step 5: Submit your manuscript per the guidelines. 

The most significant advantage of volunteering, and why my manuscripts even get submitted, is that I set up the site early and know when the deadlines hit. In the past, I would mark the date on my calendar. Then, because I wasn't obligated or attached to the event, the deadline and opportunity whooshed by me. Now, I know when the event is, which industry professional is a fit for my work, and how to meet the event's requirements. 

So, I highly encourage you to get involved with an event, like the critique carousel, that prods you toward your goals. While the need to submit the perfect manuscript remains, there is pressure to move a little bit farther toward the goal—even if it is imperfect.