Gryphon Quill
Subscribe
Sign in
Home
PITCH-STACK
Archive
About
Your Story Sounds Nice. Now Tell Me Why I Should Care: An Agent's View on Stakes
I read a lot of queries that sound...
Feb 1
•
Renee Fountain
222
60
45
Losing Your Voice: Why Strong Writing Isn’t Enough
An Agent’s Perspective
Jan 4
•
Renee Fountain
113
32
15
Subtext: Things Your Characters Shouldn’t Say
How to say, without telling.
Dec 21, 2025
•
Renee Fountain
121
29
19
Direct Thought vs. Interiority: Getting Inside Your Character’s Mind
Going Beyond Those Awkward "She thought" Tags...
Dec 7, 2025
•
Renee Fountain
182
73
31
Front-loading Backstory: Opening Pages Shouldn't Read Like a Wikipedia Entry
Start the Story in the Right Place
Sep 19, 2025
•
Renee Fountain
57
39
8
Latest
Top
Discussions
Tight Writing: The Art of Word Choice
Fewer words. Bigger Impact
Aug 27, 2025
•
Renee Fountain
79
36
12
Less Is More: An Agent's Case for Cutting the Clutter
Tighter prose, stronger voice, bigger impact
Aug 15, 2025
•
Renee Fountain
50
42
9
The Ticking Clock: Going Beyond Thrillers
A Sense of Urgency for Any Genre
Jul 21, 2025
•
Renee Fountain
27
8
1
Scene-Setting or Inventory List? An Agent's Take on Excessive Description
A Quick Lesson on Chekhov's Gun
Jul 10, 2025
•
Renee Fountain
50
18
10
You Say Plot Device Like It's a Bad Thing: An Agent’s Take on What Works—And What Doesn’t
And How to Tell the Difference
Jul 3, 2025
•
Renee Fountain
39
10
7
Revenge Isn’t a Stake—It’s a Symptom: Why Stakes Matter More than Motive
Ensuring Bigger Consequences for Your Characters
Jun 24, 2025
•
Renee Fountain
37
10
4
The Platform Paradox: What Authors Need to Know to Sell Books
Fiction authors don’t need a platform—until they do.
Jun 13, 2025
•
Renee Fountain
85
48
21
See all
Gryphon Quill
Insight & observations on all things writing and publishing from a publishing industry veteran, current NYC agent, & developmental editor.
Subscribe
Recommendations
View all 6
Write on Track
Noor Rahman
The Art of Choosing Yourself
Jon Helmkamp
All Kinds of Funny
Norman T. Leonard
Pitch Your Novel
Karin Gillespie
Stantonland
Chris Stanton
Agency
Gandolfo Helin & Fountain Lit Mgmt
Editorial
Renee Fountain Website
Gryphon Quill
Subscribe
About
Archive
Recommendations
Sitemap
This site requires JavaScript to run correctly. Please
turn on JavaScript
or unblock scripts