Key takeaways from Jon Michael Darga’s AMA on r/literarycontests (May 16th)
Thanks again to everyone who joined the AMA with Reedsy editor and literary agent Jon Michael Darga aka u/jmdarga. There were a lot of great questions about querying, short story contests, editing, self-publishing, and the publishing process generally, so here’s a recap of the main takeaways for anyone who missed it
1. A strong query needs balance
Jon recommended structuring the plot portion of your query letter in three parts:
- The setup: who the characters are, where they begin, what they want, and what’s missing.
- The inciting incident: what kicks the story into motion.
- The “dot dot dot”: a teaser of the stakes, challenges, and direction of the story without turning the query into a full synopsis.
The goal with the letter is to give agents enough to understand the book and want more, without either being too vague or explaining every plot point.
2. A useful comp doesn't have to be an exact equivalent to your novel
For example, one book might be a comp for how yours handles grief, another for new parenthood, another for tone, another for structure, etc.
3. Don’t chase current trends too hard
Publishing is slow. A book sold now may not come out for two years or more, so today’s trend may not be the trend by publication. Publishers notice trends, but they can’t rely entirely on what’s hot right now.
4. Your submitted manuscript should start at the latest possible moment where the story still makes sense
One of the biggest reasons Jon stops reading a submitted manuscript is “throat clearing” at the beginning: characters waking up, going through their morning routine, having a dream, or taking too long to reach the real start of the story. Don’t assume an agent will wait until page five or the end of chapter one to be hooked.
5. Follow the rule of threes before submitting
Professional editing can be helpful before submitting to an agent, but Jon generally suggests a “rule of threes”:
- at least three drafts before showing it to others;
- feedback from at least three outside readers;
- then another revision before sending it to publishing professionals.
A good test for whether you’re ready to query: if you know the book needs work and you know how to fix it, fix it first. If you know it could still be better but you’ve reached the limit of what you can identify or improve on your own, that may be the point where outside professional feedback is useful.
6. Fiction authors do not need large platforms to get a publishing deal
For fiction, Jon said the query and manuscript are what matter. A huge platform might make someone curious, but bad writing will still be rejected, and a writer with zero followers can still get representation if the book is strong.
Nonfiction is slightly different. Jon was candid that memoir is a tough market at the moment, especially for non-famous writers. Platform helps only if it is very large or if the author is widely recognizable.
7. Traditional publishing is still better for discoverability
For authors hoping to reach the widest possible audience, traditional publishing still generally offers the strongest discoverability in terms of reviews, ads, interviews, bookstore placement, and publicity infrastructure. That said, every author’s path is different, and self-publishing can work for some writers.
8. Previously self-published books are hard to sell traditionally
This came up several times. The general answer was: once a book has already been published, many publishers see it as having already had its chance to find an audience. That makes it difficult for agents to sell.
9. A short story should work on its own
If a short story feels like a chopped-down novel or an excerpt from something larger, that can be a problem. Jon’s view was that a short story should feel complete on its own. If the reader finishes it mainly thinking “this should have been a novel,” then it may not be working as a short story.
More generally, a strong opening helps, but a winning story has to sustain quality throughout and land the ending. In a contest setting, where the judge reads the whole piece, the overall shape of the story matters more than just the first line.
10. AI should not replace human feedback
Jon said AI editing tools should be disclosed if a form asks whether AI was used in creating the materials. He also emphasized that AI lacks the community aspect of writing: critique partners, fellow writers, support, and human readers. His point was not that AI can never be useful, but that it should be a supplement, not a replacement for human editing and writing relationships.
11. Publishing requires resilience
A major theme of the AMA was rejection. Even a successful book will be rejected many times: by agents, editors, publicity outlets, reviewers, awards, etc. Authors need to be able to handle rejection, edits, conflict, disappointing sales, and promotional obligations without collapsing under the stress.
12. Very long debuts are a hard sell
A 1,000-page debut novel is unlikely to be attractive to most publishers right now because of printing costs and pricing. Jon said the general sweet spot depends on genre, but broadly, 70,000–80,000 words is often a good range.
Overall takeaway
The AMA was a good reminder that publishing is subjective, slow, and often frustrating, but not mysterious. The recurring advice was pretty consistent: write the strongest version of the work you can, get feedback from real readers, don’t query before you’re ready, make the opening count, understand your genre and market, and don’t treat publication as a shortcut around the hard parts of writing.
