Tag Archives: Publishing

2018 Baen Fantasy Adventure Award

February 21, 2018Contests, LiteraryAdventure, April, Author, Award, Baen Books, Baen Fantasy Adventure Award, books, Contest Junkies, Deadline, Fantasy, Gen Con, Grand Prize, Industry-Standard, Manuscripts, Monetary Prize, Opportunity, publisher, Publishing, Short Fiction, Short Story, Stories, Storytelling, Writer, Writingpdpabst

For all lurking contest junkies, Baen Fantasy Adventure Award was brought to my attention a few years back. You only need to create 8000 words. That’s right, a mere eight-thousand! Most thrilling? You have until April 30th, 2018 to create a wonderful story.

GRAND PRIZE winner will be published as the featured story on the Baen Books main website and paid at industry-standard rates for professional story submittals. The author will also receive a handsome engraved award and a prize package containing $500 of free Baen Books.
SECOND place winner will receive a prize package containing $500 of free Baen Books,
THIRD will receive a prize package containing $300 of free Baen Books.

Baen Books will announce the winner of the inaugural Baen Fantasy Adventure Award at this year’s Gen Con to the best of original short fiction capturing the spirit and tradition of great storytellers as Larry Correia, Robert E. Howard, Mercedes Lackey, Elizabeth Moon, Andre Norton, J.R.R. Tolkien, David Weber and Marion Zimmer Bradley.
All the details can be found here.

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

#PBPitch Is Coming!

February 19, 2018Contests, LiteraryAgents, Artists, Artwork, Authors, Childrens Books, Corvisiero Literary Agency, Editors, Illustrators, Images, Janklow Nesbit Agency, Kidlit, Liza Royce Agency, Opportunity, Party, PBPitch, Picture Books, Pitches, Publishing, research, Rodeen Literary, Stories, Thompson Literary, Twitter, Writers, Writingpdpabst

It’s time for another picture book twitter party using the hashtag #PBPitch! So, if you write or illustrate picture books, this is the event for you. This party will take place Thursday, February 22, 2018 from 8am-8pm EST. But remember, anyone can troll the feed, so be sure to do your research! There will be legitimate agents and editors popping in and out, including those that haven’t confirmed their attendance. But those that have confirmed are:

Marisa Corvisiero, Corvisiero Literary
Liza Fleissig, Liza Royce Agency
Wendi Gu, Janklow & Nesbit Agency
Lori Kilkelly, Rodeen Literary
Cindy Uh, Thompson 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.

Harlequin Romance Blitz: So You Think You Can Write Contest

February 7, 2018Contests, LiteraryAdult, AUS, Authors, books, Contract, Editors, Feedback, Fiction, Forever Romance, Harlequin, Lovers, Manuscripts, Mills & Boon True Love, New Adult, New Zealand, Opportunity, Publishers, Publishing, Romance, So You Think You Can Write, Stories, Submissions, Submittable, Sweet Hearts, UK, USA, Valentine's Day, Writers, Writing, Young Adultpdpabst

Harlequin Romance [Mills & Boon True Love (UK) and Forever Romance (Aus/NZ)] is looking for new romance writers with their blog So You Think You Can Write. If you think you’ve got what it takes and have a polished romance manuscript ready for submission, this might be for you! Entries must be sent no later than Valentine’s Day, February 14, 2018. Even cooler, all submissions will receive feedback by the 21st of February! (I know you want to squeal, go ahead. I’ll wait.)

Submissions will be uploaded to Submittable. But before you send things off to the editors, be sure and read the series guidelines here. And as always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst

Blogger and writer of

Insecure Writer’s Support Group Pitching Contest on Twitter

January 15, 2018Contests, Literary#ISWG, #ISWGPit, Adult, Aevitas Creative, Agents, Authors, books, City Owl Press, Corvisiero Literary Agency, D4EO Literary, Dystel Goderich & Bourret, Editors, Fiction, Guidelines, Insecure Writer's Support Group, Manuscripts, Middle Grade, Non-Fiction, Opportunity, Pitch Event, Pitching, Publishing, research, Stories, Submissions, Submitting, The Seymour Agency, Trident Media Group, Writers, Writers House, Young Adultpdpabst

Insecure Writer’s Support Group is hosting a twitter pitching contest on January 18, 2018 from 8am-8pm EST. This is for completed and polished manuscripts only! Be sure to pitch only once per hour and include the hashtag #IWSGPit. (As with all pitching events, do NOT fave a pitch unless you are a literary agent or publishing editor.)

There has been some chatter about this being a newer pitching event and caution due to no participating agents listed. However, I can assure you that legitimate agents and editors participated in their previous pitch event. Some of them were:

Samantha Wekstein, agent assistant from Writers House
Jessie Devine, literary agent from D4EO
Erica Bauman, literary agent from Aevitas Creative
Jennifer Wills, literary agent from The Seymour Agency
Sharon Pelletier, literary agent form Dystel, Goderich, & Bourret
Mary Cain, associate editor from City Owl Press
Mark Gottlieb, Literary agent from Trident Media
Meg LaTorre & Justin Wells, literary agents from Corvisiero Agency
And several more!

Like all pitch events, be sure to research the agents or editors that favorite your pitch before submitting your materials. For complete details, go here. And as always, good luck!

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

Writing With The Stars

January 8, 2018Contests, Literary, Mentor ProgramAdvice, Applications, Art, Artists, Aspiring, Authors, コンテスト, books, Childrens Books, Concorso, Concours, Concurso, Creative, Development, конкурс, Guidelines, Illustrators, Insight, Mentee, Mentors, Mentorshop, състезание, Opportunity, Picture Book, Published Author, Publishing, Stars, Submissions, Tara Luebe, Wedstrijd, Wettbewerb, Writers, Writing With The Stars, yarışmapdpabst

Tara Luebe is hosting Writing with the Stars, which is a mentorship opportunity for aspiring picture book writers and illustrators to win a free, three-month mentorship with a published author or author/illustrator. Mentors will help mentees further develop their craft and share invaluable advice and insight into the publishing world.

The application window will be open from January 8, 2018 through midnight January 13, 2018 EST. Each contestant is allowed three “star” picks to send their applications for consideration. Click the star mentors to learn about each one. And go here for complete guidelines.

As always, good luck!

P.D. Pabst

#SFFpit is Tomorrow!

December 13, 2017Contests, Literary#SFFpit, Adult, Agents, Authors, books, Characters, Dan Koboldt, Editors, Fantasy, Fiction, Hashtags, Horror, Manuscripts, Middle Grade, New Adult, Opportunity, Picture Books, Pitch, Pitching, Polished, publisher, Publishing, Sci-Fi, Science Fiction, Stories, Tweets, Twitter, Unpublished, Writers, Young Adultpdpabst

Hello my lovelies! Tomorrow (December 14, 2017) 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.

Now that twitter has expanded most tweets to longer characters, the limit of 140 is no longer necessary. Tweet the full 280 if you have the ability! Just make sure that your pitch includes the hashtag #SFFpit. Additional hashtags that can be used are:

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 webpage. To show Dan Koboldt your appreciation for throwing together this awesome contest, be sure to follow his blog, twitter page, or buy his books.

As always, good luck!

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

Brenda Drake’s #Pitmad Is Almost Here!

December 5, 2017Contests, Literary#amediting, #amwriting, #Pitmad, Adult, Age Category, Agents, Authors, books, Brenda Drake, Category, Characters, Children's, Editors, Fiction, Genre, Guidelines, Hashtags, Manuscripts, Middle Grade, Non-Fiction, Opportunity, Picture Books, Pitch Party, Pitch Wars, Pitching, publisher, Publishing, Rules, Stories, Sub-genres, Tweet, Twitter, Writers, Writing, Young Adultpdpabst

Nothing soothes the writerly soul than a good twitter pitch party! Thursday, December 7, 2017 is Brenda Drake’s infamous #PitMad between the hours of 8am-8pm (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.

2018 Minotaur Books/Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Competition

November 10, 2017Contests, Literary, Publishing Opportunity$10, $10000, Author's Agreement, Authors, books, Competition, Contract, Crime, english, Fiction, Genre, Macmillan Publishers, Manuscripts, Minotaur Books, Monetary Prize, Murder, Mystery, Mystery Writers of America First Crime Novel Competition, Novel, Opporutinty, Over 18, Publishers, Publishing, Royalties, Stories, Submissions, Writerspdpabst

Minotaur Books (Macmillan) and Mystery Writers of America are sponsoring the First Crime Novel Competition. This contest is open to writer’s age 18 and older, who has never been published or under contract to be published with a novel. The submitted manuscript must involve murder or another serious crime or crimes at the heart of the story. The winner will be offered a standard form author’s agreement and a $10,000 advance against future royalties. Submissions must be received by 11:59pm EST on January 12, 2018. For complete rules, go here.

As always, good luck!

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

Sparkhouse Family Picture Book Writing Contest 2017

November 2, 2017Contests, LiteraryAdavance, Artists, Authors, Charming, Completed Manuscripts, Creative, Elgibility, Faith Based, Illustrators, Manuscripts, Monetary Prize, November, Open Call, Open Submissions, Opportunity, Picture Books, Published, publisher, Publishing, Publishing Industry, Sparkhouse Family, Stories, Submit, Synopsis, Tranformational, Unagented, Winners, Winsome, Writer, Writers, Writingpdpabst

spark-house-family

Sparkhouse Family is a faith based publisher. They aim to publish creative, winsome, charming stories that help parents instill an open-hearted, transformational, life-long Christian faith in children ages 0-12.

The Sparkhouse Family Children’s Picture Book Contest is an open call for picture books that support this mission. They’ll choose one manuscript to develop into a picture book. The winning author will get a prize of $5,000 and a chance to have their book published by Sparkhouse Family.

To enter, submit a brief synopsis of your book, your author bio, your contact information, and complete manuscript. All submitted works must be finished, previously unpublished manuscripts of 1,000 words or less. The contest is open to new, upcoming, and established writers alike, but only unagented submissions are eligible.

They’ll accept submissions through November 17, 2017. As always, good luck!

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

YA Novel Discovery Contest

October 28, 2017Contests, LiteraryAbram Books, agent, Authors, Bloomsbury, Candlewick, Competition, Contract, dreams, Entries, Fiction, First 250, Grand Prize, Guidelines, JIMMY Patterson Books, Little Brown, Penguin, Pitching, Prizes, Publishing, Query, Random House, Regina Brooks, Scholastic, Serendipity Literary Agency, Simon and Schuster, Stories, Submissions, Writers, Writing, Young Adult, Young Adult Novel Discoverypdpabst

Serendipity Literary Agency is hosting the eighth annual Young Adult Novel Discovery Competition. If writers are having trouble pitching ideas, no worries with this contest because they won’t even need a query! Seriously, only the first 250 words will be needed to submit.

YA literary agent Regina Brooks and her team will read all of the entries and determine the top 20 submissions. (There will be great prizes for the top winners!) These submissions will then be read by editors from many of the major publishing houses. Past judges include editors from Scholastic, Random House/Penguin, Little Brown, Candlewick, Bloomsbury, Simon and Schuster, JIMMY Patterson Books, and Abram Books. Judges will whittle the top 20 down to five winners, including a Grand Prize Winner.

Submissions open on November 1, 2017 at 12:01am (ET) and close on November 30, 2017 at 12:59pm (ET). Only one entry per person with a $15 entry fee. The contest is open to U.S. and Canada residents only.

For complete guidelines and submission rules, or to watch for their upcoming post about prizes, go here. As always, good luck!

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

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