Tag Archives: Publishers

#PitMad is Tomorrow!

Contests, Literary, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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Nothing soothes the writerly soul than a good twitter pitch party! Tomorrow is Brenda Drake‘s infamous #PitMad between the hours of 8am-pm (EDT). Common age category and genre hashtags are below.

Age Categories:

#PB = Picture Book
#C = Children’s
#CB = Chapter Book
#CL = Children’s Lit
#MG = Middle Grade
#YA = Young Adult
#NA = New Adult
#A = Adult

Genres/Sub-genres:

#AA = African American
#AD = Adventure
#CF = Christian Fiction
#CON = Contemporary
#CR = Contemporary Romance
#DIS = Disabilities
#DV = Diversity
#E = Erotica
#ER = Erotic Romance
#ES = Erotica Suspense
#F = Fantasy
#H = Horror
#HA = Humor
#HF = Historical Fiction
#HR = Historical Romance
#INSP = Inspirational
#IRMC = Interracial/Multicultural
#MR = Magical Realism
#M = Mystery
#Mem = Memoir
#LGBT
#LF = Literary Fiction
#NF = Non-fiction
#R = Romance
#P = Paranormal
#PR = Paranormal Romance
#RS = Romantic Suspense
#S = Suspense
#SF = SciFi
#SPF = Speculative Fiction
#T = Thriller
#UF = Urban Fantasy
#W = Westerns
#WF = Woman’s Fiction

The rules clearly state to only pitch THREE times per manuscript during the contest. Don’t break the rules and clog the feed! Also, please remember anyone can stalk the feed. So, do your research before submitting your manuscript!

As always, good luck!

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

Twitter Contest for Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers

Contests, Literary, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

sffpit-contest

It’s that time of year again for science fiction and fantasy writers to polish their pitches for Dan Koboldt’s #SFFpit writing contest on twitter! It starts tomorrow June 23, 2016 between 8am-6pm EST. This contest allows 10 pitches total and Dan asks that you use them wisely! As usual, it needs to be a 140 character pitch for twitter and includes the hashtag #SFFpit. For all the rules, including how to properly insert the age group and category, go here. And remember to research any agents or editors that favorite your tweet because ANY ONE can trawl the feed!

As always, good luck!

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

Writer’s Digest Annual Conference 2016 In New York

Literary, Writing Conferences & Getaways, , , , , , , , , , ,

Writers Digest Conference

The Writer’s Digest Conference will be held in New York August 12-14, 2016 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 Allen O’Shea Literary 
Kurestin Armada P.S. Literary
Noah Ballard Curtis Brown, Ltd
Danielle Burby HSG Agency
Tara Carberry Trident Media Group
Kirsten Carleton Prospect Agency
Marisa Corvisiero Corvisiero Literary Agency
Kaylee Davis Dee Mura Literary
Stephanie Delman Sanford J. Greenburger Associates, Inc.
Elise Erickson Harold Ober Associates
Diana Finch Diana Finch Literary Agency
Heather Flaherty The Bent Agency
Caitie Flum Liza Dawson Associates
Roz Foster Sandra Dijkstra Literary Agency
Connor Goldsmith Fuse Literary
Mark Gottlieb Trident Media Group
Shannon Hassan Marsal Lyon Literary Agency
Mike Hoogland Dystel & Goderich Literary Management
Andy Kifer The Gernert Co.
Peter Knapp New Leaf Literary
Caitlin McDonald Donald Maass Literary Agency
Kate McKean Howard Morhaim Literary
Penny Moore (FinePrint Literary-website encountering errors but they’re legit)
Dee Mura Dee Mura Literary
Kimiko Nakamura Dee Mura Literary
Beth Phelan The Bent Agency
Tanusri Prasanna HSG Agency
Rita Rosenkranz Rita Rosenkranz Literary Agency
Eric Ruben Eric Ruben
Katharine Sands Sarah Jane Freymann Literary
Lydia Shamah Carol Mann Agency
Alec Shane Writers House
Katie Shea Boutilier Donald Maass Literary Agency
Anjali Singh Pande Literary
Marlene Stringer Stringer Literary
Jaida Temperly New Leaf Literary
Stacy Testa Writers House
John Willig Literary Services
Christine Witthohn Book Cents Literary
Seats are limited so be sure and book right away. As always, good luck!
P.D. Pabst
Blogger and writer of MG/YA fiction.

Witness Impulse Open Submissions

Literary, , , , , , , , , ,

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How exciting is it to know that one of the big five publishers has imprints that allow authors to submit without having an agent? Of course, I feel the need to stress that I’m a firm believer in agents first, but sometimes there is a need to do submissions in reverse. So who am I to judge!

This digital imprint from HarperCollins called Witness Impulse is for mystery, suspense, and thriller lines. The imprint launched in 2013 and is already the publisher of bestselling authors like Agatha Christie, Stephen Booth, Susan McBride, and more. Go here to learn more and to submit your completed and polished manuscript.

As always, good luck.

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

#SFFpit is Tomorrow!

Literary, , ,

sffpit-contest

Hello my lovelies! Tomorrow (December 10, 2015) on twitter is #SFFpit hosted by Dan Koboldt. This is for Sci-Fi and Fantasy manuscripts only! Please do not pitch if your manuscript is not finished, polished, and unpublished.

As all twitter pitch contests, you need to have 140 character pitch ready that includes the hashtag #SFFpit along with:

AGE CATEGORY

  • #PB – Picture book
  • #MG – Middle grade
  • #YA – Young adult
  • #NA – New adult
  • #A – Adult

GENRE/Subgenre)

  • #FA – fantasy
  • #CF – contemporary fantasy
  • #DF – dark fantasy
  • #EF – epic or high fantasy
  • #FR – fantasy romance
  • #HF – historical fantasy
  • #LF – literary fantasy
  • #AH – alternate history
  • #MYF – mythic fantasy
  • #PN – paranormal
  • #UF – urban fantasy
  • #MR – magical realism
  • #SF – science fiction
  • #AF – apocalypse fiction
  • #ML – military science fiction
  • #PA – post-apocalyptic SF
  • #SFR – sci-fi romance
  • #SFT – sci-fi thriller
  • #SH – superhero / superhuman
  • #SO – space opera
  • #DS – dystopian
  • #SP – steampunk
  • #TT – time travel
  • #WW – weird west

The contest will run through 8am to 6pm EST. Also note the change of allowed pitches! Writers will only get 10 pitches (that’s one per hour). For more information check out the #SFFpit page. To show Dan Koboldt your appreciation for throwing together this awesome contest, be sure to follow his blog or twitter page.

As always, good luck!

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

HAPPY THANKSGIVING

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Thanksgiving is a designated time to remember what we are thankful for in life. For many, it’s having our health to spend time with family and friends while gorging on amazing meals until our stomach feels like it will explode. But there are others who might be joyful they survived a fatal illness to be here celebrating with people they love. Or maybe, there are those thrilled to still have a job, maybe paid a mortgage off, or even happy because they got that iPhone they’ve always wanted.

As for me, I’d like to thank:

  • My family and friends who’ve supported me with my writing.
  • My readers. (Because without y’all, I’d have no reason to have a blog!)
  • All my critique partners, beta readers, and anyone who has ever glanced at a few pitches/pages/chapters and offered feedback (The list is SUPER long and I LOVE you guys!).
  • Contest hosts for supplying fabulous opportunities with agents and mentoring, and for selecting me at some point in the past for one thing or another. (For example: Brenda Drake, Authoress, and Jessa Russo.)
  • Slush readers. (I know your eyes cross and we don’t send enough chocolate!)
  • The creator’s of Preditors & Editors, Writer’s Beware  and Absolute Write Forums. (Trust me when I say they’ll save you from agent and publishing scams.)
  • All the Amazing author’s who’ve allowed me to interview them this year!
  • And finally (but not last), to God for giving me the strength to get through each day. (For numerous reasons, but especially my health.)

I’m sure there are many things and other people I may have forgotten, and ask forgiveness if I have. Everyone in my physical and virtual life are very important to me. Y’all give me strength to become the best me. And yes, you complete me! (Go ahead, grab a tissue.)

Whatever your reason for being thankful today, I wish you the Happiest of Thanksgivings!

XOXO

P.D. Pabst
Writer and blogger of MG/YA Fiction

WRITING CONTESTS: WHY I FOLLOW THEM

Literary, , , , , ,

NOTE: CONTESTS SHOULD NOT BE YOUR ONLY PLAN TO REACH AGENTS. NOTHING REPLACES THE DIRECT QUERY!

Phew! Got that out of the way. So, why do I follow them? Because I see:

1) What’s circulating.
2) Pitches/Opening lines that work.
3)  What agents are requesting.

Let’s start with number one. Why should I care? Well, if I thought about writing a dystopian, for example, I’d notice the market is currently over saturated, making my chances to get noticed slimmer. The novel had better be extremely unique if I choose to move forward. I like bettering my chances, so I’ll look at the next idea on my list!

As for pitches and opening lines, they need to be amazing to hook an agent/publisher. I can’t peek into their “Inbox” to see what they’re accepting, so contests are the next best thing. I can read those amazing entries and see what lines are working to attract their attention.

And nothing excites me more than seeing what types of stories agents/publishers request. Some even give reasons for the desired material with comments they leave. This helps me see what is currently being favored and sometimes I find clues to polishing a work in progress.

What am I currently watching? Brenda Drake’s Pitchwars

What contest did I win? PitchMAS #71

So, why did I open with “NOTHING REPLACES THE DIRECT QUERY”  if I won a contest? Because only a handful of agents participate in contests. If I only submit to these adrenaline pumping outlets, I close the gap on a huge market I could submit to. For example, I direct queried a few agents before entering PitchMAS resulting in a request for a FULL. I believe in the direct query, but contests can be excellent educators. (For help finding an agent go HERE and for query advise go HERE.)

There is one more tidbit about contests I’d like to leave you with: Some participating agents are closed to direct queries. In this case, the contest IS the only way to reach them when I don’t know a friend, who has a cousin, that has an uncle rep’d by said agent.

As always, good luck and happy writing!

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