Tag Archives: Hone Your Craft

Writer’s Digest Annual Conference, NY

June 21, 2018Literary, Writing Conferences & GetawaysAdult, Agents, Authors, books, Business of Writing, Craft, Editors, Education, Feedback, Fiction, Genre, Getting Published, Hone Your Craft, Inspiration, Literary Agencies, Manuscripts, Middle Grade, Mingle, New York, New York Hilton Midtown, Non-Fiction, Opportunity, Pitch Event, Pitching, Platform, Publishers, Publishing, Stories, Writer's Digest Conference, Writers, Young Adultpdpabst

Writers Digest Conference

The Writer’s Digest Conference will be held in New York August 10-12, 2018 at the New York Hilton Midtown. The program is designed to give you a balanced education in both the craft and the business of being a writer—all in an encouraging, inspiring environment. Customize your experience by mixing-and-matching sessions among these core tracks: Craft, Getting Published, The Business of Being an Author, Platform & Promotion and Genre Studies. And this is the cool place where Pitchslam happens!

Agents/Editors in attendance will be:

Marilyn Allen of Allen O’Shea Literary
Amelia Appel of Triada US
Erica Bauman of Aevitas Creative Management
Lauren Bieke of Fine Print Literary Management
Amy Elizabeth Bishop of Dystel & Goderich Literary Management
Danielle Burkowski of Sterling Lord Literistic
Madelyn Burt of Stonesong Literary
Debbie Carter of Waverly Place Literary Agency
Sonali Chanchani of Folio Literary Management
Marisa Corvisiero of Corvisiero Literary Agency
Bess Cozby of Tor/Forge/Starscape/Tor Teen
achel Crawford of Mackenzie Wolf
Kerrie D’Agostino of Curtis Brown, Ltd.
Claire Draper of Inkwell Management
Jennie Dunham of Dunham Literary, Inc.
Diana Finch of Diana Finch Literary Agency
Heather Flaherty of The Bent Agency
Mark Gottlieb of Trident Media Group
Jill Grosjean of Jill Grosjean Literary Agency
Ben Grange of L. Perkins Agency
Jeff Herman of The Jeff Herman Agency, LLC
Jessica Mileo of InkWell Management
Paula Munier of Talcott Notch Literary Services
Dee Mura of Dee Mura Literary
Kimiko Nakamura of Dee Mura Literary
Kevin O’Connor of Charlotte Sheedy Literary Agency
Amaryah Orenstein of GO Literary
Kelly Peterson of Corvisiero Literary
Beth Phelan of Gallt & Zacker Literary Agency
Michelle Richter of Fuse Literary
Rita Rosenkranz of Rita Rosenkranz Literary Agency
Katherine Sands of Sarah Jane Freymann Literary Agency
Lauren Spieller of TriadaUS
Leah Spiro of Riverside Creative Management, Inc.
ohn Willig of Literary Services, Inc.
Leslie Zampetti of Dunham Literary, Inc.
Helen Zimmermann of Zimmermann Literary
Samantha Zukergood of St. Martins Press

Seats are limited so be sure and book right away. As always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst

Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

Writing in the Margins Mentor Program

April 8, 2018Literary, Mentor ProgramApplicants, Author, Critique, Deadline, Disabilities, Editors, Experience, Feedback, Fiction, Goal, Hone Your Craft, Manuscript, Marginalized Social Group, Marginalized Voices, Mentorship, Novel, People of Color, Publication, Published Author, Publishing, Qualifications, Query, Short Fiction, Statement of Intent, Story, Submit, Traditionally Published, Underrepresented, Underrepresented Countries, Underrepresented Cultures, Unpublished, Writer, Writing In The Marginspdpabst

The Writing in the Margins is a website dedicated to helping underrepresented authors find their place in the publishing industry. They have a Mentor Program which pairs an emerging author from a marginalized social group with an experienced editor or traditionally published author in order to work closely on preparing an unpublished manuscript to submit for publication. All authors and editors work on a completely volunteer basis, and there is no charge to the emerging author. Applications are open twice a year, and necessary applicant qualifications are highlighted prior to the submission period. Deadline for this round is April 15, 2018. Material required to submit:

Finished, Unpublished Fiction Manuscript (or Five Completed, Unpublished Short Fiction Pieces)
Query letter
Statement of Intent (not to exceed 500 words). How would a mentorship help you reach your goals?

For instructions on how to submit, go here. As always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

AUTHOR MENTOR MATCH #AMM

March 12, 2018Contests, Critiques, Literary, Mentor Program#AMM, Alexa Donne, Author, Author Mentor Match, BIOS, Category, Editing, Enter, Feedback, Fiction, Form, Genre, Guidelines, Heather Kaczynski, Hone Your Craft, Invaluable, Kidlit, Manuscript, Mentor, Middle Grade, Opportunity, Publishing, Query, Rules, Stories, Submissions, Submit, Synopsis, Writer, Young Adultpdpabst

Author Mentor Matchup was created by Heather Kaczynski and Alexa Donne. The object is to match new writers with authors further along in the publishing process and gain invaluable mentoring! That’s right, this is an opportunity to get your manuscript critiqued (for free) before submitting to agents!

Authors can select up to four mentors during the submission window between March 16, 2018 through March 21, 2018. Watch for the mentor BIOS to be posted to learn what age groups and genres they wish to see in their inbox!

Please note there is a two-step process for entering:

Fill out the submission form. (I believe the form will appear during the sub window period.)
Email the proper information to authormentormatch@gmail.com:

A query (pasted in the body of the email!)
The first 50 pages/3 chapters of your novel (whichever is longer & can be attached)
A synopsis

Be sure to include in the subject line the manuscripts Age Category +Genre + Title. (ie: YA Sci-Fi – Mars Plants are the Bomb) on the email submission. And check out the site in order to know how to select the mentors you wish to submit because it isn’t clear quite yet. (I’m guessing this might be part of the submission form.) As always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

Revise & Resub #10Queries Event

February 12, 2018Contests, Literary#10Queries, #RevPit, Adult, Authors, books, Carly Bornstein-Hayward, Critique, Editing, Editors, Elizabeth Buege, Ellen Brock, Feedback, Fiction, First Pages, Hone Your Craft, Jeni Chappelle, Kaitlyn Johnson, Katie McCoach, Manuscript, Middle Grade, Opportunity, Pitch, Query, Rafflecopter, Revise & Resub, Sione Aeschliman, Stories, Submit, Writers, Writing, Young Adultpdpabst

#RevPit

In preparation for the upcoming #RevPit event, the editors of Revise & Sub have decided to do a round of #10Queries via a Rafflecopter drawing opening February 16, 2018 and closing on February 20th, 2018. The winners will submit their query and first five pages for critique on the twitter hashtag. (Names will not be posted. Editors will send emails to winners regarding which pitch was theirs.) But have no fear, there will be more than ten winners because each editor will select ten each! Participating editors are:

So, if you’re wondering how strong your query and first pages are, this will be a good event to find out! Read all the information here. As always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction

Note: The hashtag used during this event is #10Queries and not the #tenqueries most often used by agents and editors. Be sure to watch the correct hashtag if selected.

#PreDV Practice hosted by Kat Cho

September 1, 2017Critiques, Literary#DVpit, #PreDV, Adult, Age Category, Authors, Critique Partners, Feedback, Ficiton, Genres, Hone Your Craft, Kat Cho, Manuscripts, Marginalized Voices, Middle Grade, New Adult, Non-Fiction, Pitches, Practice, Twitter, Writers, Writing, Young Adultpdpabst

This is a cool event sponsored by Kat Cho to help hone marginalized writerly pitches in preparation for #DVpit (DO NOT us this hashtag during the Pre-Event). Participants can post pitches on twitter using the #PreDV hashtag to get feedback from Kat and other volunteers. Marginalized writers are also encouraged to offer their own feedback on other pitches in the spirit of helping other writers.

Another great opportunity is writers can reach out to find critique partners from pitches they like in the age category or genres they also write in. So don’t miss out. Get those pitches ready!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

2017 #Pitprom Pitch Contest

August 23, 2017Contests, Literary#Pitprom, 2017, Agents, August, Authors, Blogs, books, Edited, Editors, Guidelines, Hone Your Craft, Manuscripts, Mentors, Opportunity, Pages, Pitch, Polished, Publishing, Query, Royal Advisors, Stories, Twitter, Writers, Writingpdpabst

#Pitprom
2017 Pitch contest

Yay! A new contest for writers. Me LOVES when writers want to help other writers! Here is what you need to know. This contest is to help you get your pitch shined for agents and editors. What you’ll need to enter is:

1. 140-character pitch. You’ve got 140 characters to grab their attention, including the #PitProm hashtag.
2. Query letter.
3. The first ten pages of your completed manuscript. (Polished and edited!)

The Royal Advisors will go through the first 200 entries to select 20 entries, consisting of ten science fiction and ten fantasy pitches. Then they will mentor those twenty writers to get their pitch, query, and first ten pages sparkly for an agent round. Submission begin August 24th, 2017 at midnight CST and will close on August 25, 2017 at midnight CST. Visit their site for complete guidelines and to learn about the Royal Advisors and agents/editors participating.

As always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction

#DVPit Critique Giveaway Starts Today

August 15, 2017Contests, Literary#DVpit, Adult Fiction, Adult Nonfiction, Authors, Beth Phelan, Chapter Books, Critiques, Editors, Feedback, Giveaway, Hone Your Craft, Literary Agent, Manuscripts, Marginalized Voices, Mentors, Middle Grade, Picture Books, Query, The Bent Agency, Twitter, Writers, Young Adultpdpabst

First, for those not familiar with #DVPit, it’s a Twitter event created to showcase pitches from marginalized voices hosted by founder and literary agent Beth Phelan. The next event will be in October. So, in preparation, Beth has wrangled some agents, editors and authors to give away critiques to hone writers’ manuscripts and/or queries before the event.

In order for writers to participate, they’ll need a twitter account. The giveaway tweets for each category will post at noon ET on the relevant day. The posts will be on the twitter handle @DVpit_ starting today. The events will be as follows:

Tuesday, August 15 2017: Children’s, i.e. Picture Books, Chapter Books, Middle Grade
Wednesday, August 16 2017: Young Adult
Thursday, August 17 2017: Adult Fiction & Nonfiction

For the list of all the mentors involved for the specific dates, go here. As always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA Fiction

Midwest Writers Workshop

May 22, 2017Literary, Writing Conferences & Getaways#MWW, @MidwestWriters, Agents, Andrea Brown Literary Agency, Angie Thomas, Authors, Ball State University, Becky Albertalli, Bradford Literary Agency, Brenda Drake, Brooks Sherman, Critiques, Dee Romito, Eric Smith, Evaluations, Feedback, Harlequin, Harper Collins, Hone Your Craft, Indiana, Jennifer De Chiara Literary, Jennifer Laughran, Jessica Sinsheimer, Jessica Stawser, John Gilstrap, L.A. Pittenger Student Center, Lauren Smulski, Manuscripts, Marketing, Midnight Ink, Midwest Writers Workshop, Monica Odom, Muncie, Networking, Opportunity, P.S. Literary, Pitching, Professionals, Query, Rena Olsen, Roseanne Wells, Sarah Jane Freymann Literary Agency, Terri Bishoff, Writer's Digest, Writerspdpabst

Often in the universe of writers, there is talk of conferences and workshops. Most of the time they seem to be located in New York or Los Angeles because there are beaucoup agencies in these cities. However, occasionally a few are held in the Midwest.

Midwest Writers Group

One such event is called the Midwest Writers Workshop and will be held July 20-22, 2017 at L.A. Pittenger Student Center in partnership with Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. You can find them on twitter @MidwestWriters or the hashtag #MWW to keep up on news. MWW states the mission is to give all writers the opportunity to improve their craft, to associate with highly credentialed professionals, and to network with other writers.

They have sessions with top quality faculty during their three-day program on everything from fiction to nonfiction, marketing, and ways to get your creative juices flowing. The workshop is packed with sessions on the craft of writing and the business of writing.

Some of participants will be:

AGENTS

Roseanne Wells, The Jennifer De Chiara Literary Agency
Jessica Sinsheimer, Sarah Jane Freymann Literary Agency
Monica Odom, Bradford Literary Agency
Brooks Sherman, Janklow & Nesbit Associates
Jennifer Laughran, Andrea Brown Literary Agency
Eric Smith, P.S. Literary

EDITORS:

Terri Bischoff, Acquisitions Editor at Midnight Ink
Lauren Smulski, Assistant Editor at Harlequin/Harper Collins
Jessica Strawser, Editorial Director of Writer’s Digest, the author of Almost Missed You

AUTHORS:

Becky Albertalli – author of the award-winning young adult novel, Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda (now in film production from Fox 2000 Pictures) and The Upside of Unrequited
Brenda Drake – NYT Bestseller of young adult novels and creator of #PitchWars Contest
Angie Thomas – author of the New York Times bestseller young adult novel The Hate U Give (film optioned from Fox 2000 Productions)
Dee Romito – author of middle grade novel, The BFF Bucket List, and other novels, also guru for Scrivener writing software.
Rena Olsen – author of thriller novel The Girl Before The Girl Before
John Gilstrap – bestselling author of the Jonathan Grave thriller series; two of the first three in the series were nominated for ITW’s prestigious Thriller Award, and for Private Eye Writers of America’s Shamus Award

To see all the faculty, go here. There are even opportunities for pitching and ma nuscript evaluations, along with query critiques. Think about it, three days socializing with writerly people! What’s not to love!

As always, good luck and happy learning!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

2017 Chicago Writing Workshop

May 19, 2017Literary, Writing Conferences & GetawaysAdult, Allium Press, Authors, Chicago Writing Workshop, D4EO Literary, Editors, Feedback, Fiction, Fuse Literary, Holloway Literary Agency, Hone Your Craft, Instruction, Jennifer De Chiara Literary, Literary Agent, Manuscripts, Marketing, Middle Grade, Networking, Non-Fiction, Pitch, Red Sofa Literary, Register, Sourcebooks, Speilburg Literary, St. Martin's Press, Stories, The Bent Agency, The Seymour Agency, The Unter Agency, Trace Literary Agency, Writers, Writing, Young Adultpdpabst

Chicago Writing Workshop

Per the Chicago Writing Workshop website, this writing event (June 24, 2017) is a wonderful opportunity to get intense instruction over the course of one day, pitch a literary agent or editor (optional), get your questions answered, and more. Note that there are limited seats at the event (200 total). They will inform everyone directly on the website when seats are closed.

Here are a few of this years faculty that will be in attendance:

editor Lauren Jablonski (St. Martin’s Press)
literary agent Alice Speilburg (Speilburg Literary)
literary agent Jennifer Unter (The Unter Agency)
literary agent Laura Zats (Red Sofa Literary)
literary agent Kelly Van Sant (D4EO Literary)
literary agent Tracy Brennan (Trace Literary Agency)
literary agent Gemma Cooper (The Bent Agency)
literary agent Dawn Frederick (Red Sofa Literary)
literary agent Michael Caligaris (Holloway Literary Agency)
editor Grace Menary-Winefield (Sourcebooks and Sourcebooks Landmark)
literary agent Alexandra Weiss (Jennifer De Chiara Literary)
literary agent Marcy Posner (Folio Literary)
literary agent Loretta Caravette (LR Children’s Literary)
literary scout Jen Karsbaek (Fuse Literary)
editor Emily Clark Victorson (Allium Press)
agent assistant Lesley Sabga (The Seymour Agency)
and more to come.

Since the seats are limited, don’t delay in registering. I’m signed up to go to this one, so if your attending, I’ll see you there!!!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

Discovering BookBub for Readers & Writers

February 25, 2017LiteraryAmazon, Apple, Authors, Barnes & Noble, BookBub, books, Deals, Fiction, Free Books, Goodreads, Google, Hone Your Craft, Kirkus Reviews, Kobo, New York TImes Bestseller List, Non-Fiction, Publishers Weekly, Readers, Sales, Stories, USA Today Bestsellers, Writers, Writing Skillspdpabst

bookbub

I recently discovered BookBub and have been piling up books to read! If your an avid reader, you’ll want to subscribe to this site because most of the deals are below $1.99 (US) or FREE! The site allows you to build a profile based on the genre of books you like to read and when they find deals, they’ll email to let you know. A lot of what I’ve been receiving in my inbox are from New York Times Bestsellers and USA Today Best-Selling Books. They even let you know when a book has had raving reviews from Kirkus Reviews or Publishers Weekly, or gained five star reviews from places like Goodreads, and more!

If you’re a writer, reading more of the genre you write in can only help hone your craft. Industry professionals don’t hold back telling writers to read more. Even famous authors, including Steven King, preach to read more to improve writing skills. It’s kind of a no-brainer, right?

Needless to say, I was thrilled when I discovered BookBub! (No, they didn’t pay me to say this stuff.) They even supply links to where the deals are: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Kobo, Apple, or Google. Let’s face it, most of us don’t have time to search the web to find the deals we want. Why not let BookBub do it for you? So, get purchasing and happy reading!

P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

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#Pitprom 2017 Pitch contest

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#Pitprom
2017 Pitch contest