Tag Archives: Marketing

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.

Jelly Bean Summer by Joyce Magnin Pre-order & Review

April 25, 2017Literary, ReviewsAmazon, Author, BAM!, Barnes & Noble, Brothers, Childrens Book, Crafts, Finding Purpose, Flying Saucers, Friends, Goodreads, Google Play, Guinea Pigs, Jelly Bean Summer, Joyce Magnin, Kids, Marketing, Parents, Readers, Release, Rooftop, Sisters, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky, Stars, Stories, Summer Fun, Targetpdpabst

Jelly Bean Summer

Publisher: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
Release Date: May 2, 2017

Oh man, Jelly Bean Summer by Joyce Magnin took me back to my youth of wanting to escape unpleasant realities and to feel a sense of doing something worthwhile. And like Joyce Anne, I spent many nights staring at the starry sky. Heck, I still do! And even though the story takes place during the time of the Vietnam War, kids today can still relate to soldiers, some family or friends, going MIA because of our current international wars.

Now let me tell you, this isn’t a war story. Oh no, it’s about making unlikely friendships and getting past mutual sorrows. But most importantly, it’s about finding a purpose and to know you made a difference in someone’s life. This book made me laugh. Oh, and this book made me cry. But never did I stop cheering for Joyce Anne to continue with her funny flying saucer mission. Yep, I said flying saucer. Truly, I dare you to pick up Jelly Bean Summer to find out what I mean!

ABOUT THE BLURB

Jelly Bean Summer (Back)

Joyce is desperate to get out of the room she shares with her older sister. All she wants is some peace and quiet, not the kind of quiet that fills the space left by her missing brother. It’s the kind where you can breath deep and see the stars.

So she moves to the roof. Up there it’s nothing but blue sky. Blue sky and…another roof dweller? Joyce soon discovers she’s not the only one who’s been driven to rooftop living. With the help of a pair of binoculars, a sketch pad, and a pen, Joyce makes an unexpected friend and sets in motion a summer she’ll never forget.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Joyce Magnin

Joyce Magnin is the author of the popular and quirky Bright’s Pond novels. She is a frequent conference speaker and writing instructor. When she’s not writing or reading Joyce enjoys baseball, needle arts, video games and cream soda but not elevators—especially glass ones. She listens to many kinds of music, shamelessly confesses to enjoying American Idol, has never eaten a scallop or sky dived. Joyce has three children, Rebekah, Emily and Adam and three grandsons, Lemuel, Cedar and Soren and one son-in-law, Joshua. Joyce lives in Havertown, Pennsylvania with her son, Adam and their crazy cat, Mango, where she cares for an eighty-year-old onion plant.

10 Minutes With An Expert via Manuscript Academy

March 9, 2017Critiques, Literary, Mentor Program, Uncategorized10 Minutes With An Agent, Adult, Agents, Answers, Authors, books, Editing, Editors, Feedback, Fiction, First Page, Insider Knowledge, Inspiration, Manuscript, Manuscript Academy, Marketing, Middle Grade, Non-Fiction, Opportunity, Pitch, Projects, Publishing, Query, Questions, Writers, Writing, Young Adultpdpabst

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If you’ve ever wanted to sit down with an agent or editor? Well now you can! Manuscript Academy has put together a day for authors to chat with the professional’s of the publishing world called 10 Minutes With An Expert. The time can be used to:

Pitch your project
Get instant feedback on your query or first page
Ask about your unique publishing situation
Ask any publishing question!

Meetings last 10 minutes and are first come first served. The cost for this invaluable access is $49 (US). To make the most of your time, have your questions ready. And have fun learning!

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

Ninth Annual Read a Book Week

March 6, 2017Literary#ebookweek17, Adult, Authors, Bestsellers, Book Catalog, books, Catalog, Category, Celebration, Discounted, eBooks, Fiction, Free, Genre, Marketing, Middle Grade, Non-Fiction, Promotion, Publishers, Readers, Reading, Smashwords, Stories, Twitter, Word Count, Young Adultpdpabst

Each year, tens of thousands of Smashwords authors, publishers and readers participate in this global ebook celebration which offers FREE and deep-discounted ebooks. The event is live and ends March 11, 2017. You can find the promotional catalog on the Smashwords home page (or just go here). The special home page catalog enables readers to browse by coupon discount and filter by category, bestseller status, word count and multiple other factors.

And remember, check back often because thousands of new books will join the promotion during the week. You can also keep up with announcements using Twitter hashtags #Smashwords and #ebookweek17.

Have fun reading!

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

Writer-in-Residence via Mall of America

March 1, 2017Contests, Literary$400, 25th Anniversary, Authors, D.C., Essay, Gift Card, Inspiration, Mall of America, Malls, Marketing, No Experience, Prose, Reviews, Submissions, United States, Words, Writer, Writer-in-Residence, Writingpdpabst

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Thanks to Sarah Vowell, I learned Mall of America is celebrating their 25th anniversary in the year 2017. As part of the celebration, they are sponsoring a Writer-in-Residence Contest to find a gifted writer to capture how much they’ve grown over the years.

According to the website, the winner will spend five days deeply immersed in the Mall atmosphere while writing on-the-fly impressions in their own words. The winner will stay at the attached hotel and receive a $400 gift card to buy food and drinks, as well as collecting an honorarium for the time put into their prose.

You don’t have to be experienced to enter, as they will take writers from all levels of writing backgrounds. Entries are open to the U.S. and D.C. Submissions are now open and end on March 10, 2017.

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

HARPER Voyager Author Chat at #SFFChat on Twitter Today

February 23, 2017Literary#SFFChat, Answers, Authors, Book Promo, books, Character Creation, Chats, Conversations, Fantasy, HARPER Voyager, HarperCollins Imprint, Hashtag, Information, Inspiration, Marketing, Page Turners, Publishing, Questions, Science Fiction, Twitter, Writers, Writingpdpabst

Chat time! A group of science fiction and fantasy authors from HARPER Voyager have agreed to chat on twitter today (February 23, 1017) using the hashtag #SFFChat. The mingling will be between 3pm and 8pm EST.

They encourage everyone to participate, writer or not. While I’m sure they’ll talk about books they’ve written (who wouldn’t), they’ll also be discussing querying, world building, character creation, writing a page turner, book promo, and marketing! So join in the fun and get your questions ready!

And always remember, if you can’t make the timeframe, you can always peruse the hashtag later to see the Q&A that took place. You might find a nugget of information.

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

Pitch Madness via @brendadrake Is Approaching!

February 20, 2017Contests, Literary#amwriting #amediting, Adult Books, Agents, Authors, Blog Contest, Brenda Drake, Childrens Books, Editing, February, Feedback, Fiction, Manuscripts, Marketing, Mentors, Non-Fiction, Pitch Event, Pitch Madness, Readers, Wordsmith, Writers, Young Adult Bookspdpabst

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If y’all don’t already know, Brenda Drake is an amazing author that hosts some amazing opportunities for writers via contests. Pitch Madness is one of these awesome events that helps connect writers with literary agents! Writers submit a 35-word (max) pitch and the first 250 words of their completed manuscript on submission day. Then a team of readers choose the top sixty (60) entries to go onto the agent round.

The submission window for 2017 Pitch Madness is February 24, 2017. This is a blog contest, so stay tuned to Brenda’s site for entry information!

As always, good luck!

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

#PBPitch Twitter Party! (Picture Books)

February 17, 2017Contests, Literary#amediting, #amillustrating, #amwriting, Andrea Brown Literary Agency, Artists, Children, Editors, Illustrators, Interactives, Jennifer De Chiara Literary, Literary Agents, Liza Royce Agency, Manuscripts, Marketing, Non-Fiction, PBPitch, Photography, Picture Books, Pitch Event, Pitch Party, Pop-Up Fiction, Publishers, Red Fox Literary, The Thompson Agency, Twitter, Writerspdpabst

It’s time for another picture book twitter party using #PBPitch! So, if you write or illustrate picture books, this is the event for you. This party will take place Thursday, February 23, 2017 from 8am-8pm EST. But remember, anyone can trawl the feed, so be sure and do your research! There will be legit agents and editors that pop in and out, including those that haven’t confirmed attendance. But those that have confirmed are:

Cindy Uh at The Thompson Agency
Jennifer March Soloway at Andrea Brown Literary Agency
Liza Fleissig at Liza Royce Agency
Stephanie Fretwill-Hill at Red Fox Literary
Vicki Selvaggio at Jennifer DeChiara Literary

Be sure and only pitch once before 2pm and once after! (Yes, twice is all you get per manuscript!) If you’re an illustrator, you can attach an image to the pitch. For complete rules and proper hashtags, go here.

As always, good luck!

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

Monthly Mumbles: Book Covers (or Lacking)

February 15, 2017LiteraryAdult, Advertising, Artists, Authors, Book Blurb, Book Covers, books, Cover Art, Create, Designs, Digital Art, Digital Editing, Drawings, Editing, Eye Candy, Fiction, Illustrations, Illustrators, Imaging, Inspiration, Manuscripts, Marketing, Middle Grade, Non-Fiction, Photography, Photos, Professional, publisher, Stimulate, Stories, Titles, Words, Writer, Young Adultpdpabst

Please note, these are solely my thoughts and nothing more. But, I had to share, regardless of how shallow my readers might think me to be. Recently I got asked to select a free book from a publisher to read. It was my choice, so I could’ve selected anything. I was slightly familiar with the publisher, since I know someone that edits for them. Thus, I was thrilled to take my freebie! (Besides…booooooks people!)

Now, we’ve all heard the phrase “don’t judge a book by its cover”. And sure, this holds true for many things, especially humans. But in marketing, what’s in front of a consumer must be visually stimulating. And I confess, I am a consumer that needs roused to pick up a book before I’ve ever read the blurb. But from a marketing standpoint, this is just smart business!

So, imagine my dismay as I perused unpleasant cover art from various titles to select my awarded freebie. Most looked cheaply done or simply didn’t mesh with the title. And forgive me for this, but I judge the lack of detail given to a book’s cover as indication of the lack of editing probably given to the story. My eyes will roam over the cover and move along to the next. And with technology today, there simply isn’t a good reason to have bad cover art!

As authors, we don’t always have control over the cover art, but I’d stress to stand ground when something seems extremely off or comes across cheap in appearance. Should a writer want a lovely embracing couple on their horror book? No, this would lead readers to think it’s a love story and could result in bad reviews from romance readers. And authors wouldn’t want a picture of an ocean if their entire story is set within a magical forest. Why would authors expect anything less than perfect for their book baby? This is even more important for authors self publishing. Take the same amount of time on the cover art as you spend on editing. If you hire out the art, be sure to check previous work before settling on the artist or company. This is about proper marketing. Give the reader a reason to pick up the book BEFORE they’ve read the blurb!

That’s it. Rant over.

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

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