Thursday, August 14, 2014

Literary Agent Conference

Here is one more thing from the email I got from GUIDE TO LITERARY AGENTS. There will be agent conferences across the county, United States. If one of these conferences are in your area, take some time out to visit it.


Agent-Conference Opportunities

There are plenty of opportunities for writers to meet agents face to face at writers' conferences and pitch their work in 2014. Remember: Meeting agents in person is a great way to get past the slush pile. If an agent is interested in your work and requests a sample or book proposal, you can write "Requested Material" on your submission, making sure it gets a fair read and consideration.

Know that there are two types of conferences. There are general writers' conferences, that address a variety of subjects, and then there are specialized conferences, which usually tend to focus on a single genre-such as western, romance, or mystery. You will find both kinds in this list below.

Writer's Digest Conference West, Aug. 15-17, 2014, Los Angeles, CA
Attending agents: There will be several agents in attendance participating in pitch one-on-ones, including Ken Sherman (Ken Sherman & Associates), Jill Marr (Sandra Dijkstra Literary), Carlie Webber (CK Webber Associates) and more.

Killer Nashville, Aug 21-24, 2014, Nashville, TN
Attending agents: Elizabeth Copps (Maria Carvainis Agency); Cate Hart (Corvisiero Literary); Michelle Johnson (Inklings Literary); Jill Marr (Sandra Dijkstra Literary); and Adrienne Rosado (Nancy Yost Literary Agency).

Minnesota Writing Workshop, Sept. 6, 2014, St. Paul, MN
Attending agents: Dawn Frederick, Laura Zats. Jennie Goloboy (all from Red Sofa Literary). Also in attendance taking pitches will be Graywolf Press editor Steve Woodward as well as Scarletta Children's Press editor Josh Plattner.

Atlanta Writers Conference, Oct. 24, 2014, Atlanta, GA
Attending agents: This website is not live yet, but the fall conference, put on by the Atlanta Writers Club, usually has 6 literary agents in attendance taking pitches.

Indiana Writing Workshop, Nov. 1, 2014, Indianapolis, IN
Attending agents: Jen Karsbaek (Foreword Literary); and Whitley Abell (Inklings Literary). Also in attendance is editor Andrew Scott of Lacewing/Engine Books.

Windsor International Writers Conference
, Nov. 13-16, 2014, Windsor, ON, Canada.

Arizona Writing Workshops,
Phoenix, AZ (Nov. 21, 2014) and Tucson, AZ (Nov. 22, 2014)
Attending agents: Adrianna Ranta (Wolf Literary); and Claire Gerus (Claire Gerus Literary). The two workshops are identical, with the same schedule and faculty.

San Francisco Writers Conference, Feb. 12-15, 2015, San Francisco, CA
Attending agents: There are already about 20 agents confirmed. You can see them all on the conference faculty page on the site.
                                                                                                                                                                          

Dear Readers,

This is my last post for today. Below is info I got from an email sent from GUIDE TO LITERARY AGENTS. It tells what to do before submitting your book to agents.

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Submission Tip Checklist: Double-Check These 16 Things Before Sending Your Book Out

The time has come. Your novel or memoir or book proposal is now complete. Not only is it complete, you've revised it several times and incorporated the critical ideas of peers and editors to make it better. You've developed a list of agents to target and researched each one.

You're ready. It's time to start the submission process and send out your work. But before you formally e-mail your book out to agents and editors, go down this checklist of dos and don'ts to make sure you've giving yourself and your submission the best chance possible: Learn all 16 things on my official Writers in the Storm guest column here.
The 2015 Guide To Literary Agents is out for sell. I strongly suggest buy the book so you'll have a complete list of agents at hand to query instead of sending time searching on the computer.

The following info is from an email I received this morning:


2015 GLA (and Other Market Books) Available For Pre-Order Now!

Yesterday I held the first copies of the 2015 GUIDE TO LITERARY AGENTS in my hands. Always a thrill to see another edition in print.

If you're interested in pre-ordering that book, or any other market book such as the 2015 CHILDREN'S MARKET that I edit, pop over to the Writer's Digest Shop and order the books at a 33% discount. The information is completely updated and ready for your review.

New Literary Agents 8/ 14/ 2014

Good morning, readers.

I got an email telling of two new Literary agents. If you're ready to start querying an agent check out the ones in this post.


2 Agents Seeking New Clients

Click on any name below to see the full mini-profile on the GLA Blog (with submission instructions). Good luck querying! 

1. Catherine Luttinger of Darhansoff & Verrill

She is seeking: Catherine is primarily interested in science fiction and fantasy. To her, that includes anything that could even remotely be labeled as such. Viable submission material includes everything from classic space operas to the apocalypse; alternative universes, dystopias, and eco-thrillers-as well as the paranormal, horror, zombies, plagues, and time travel. She is also willing to look at historical fiction, mythology re-told, YA, thrillers and mysteries. You may also pitch her pop-science nonfiction.

2. Stacy Testa of Writers House

She is seeking: Stacy is looking for literary fiction and upmarket commercial women's fiction, particularly character-driven stories with an international setting, historical bent, or focus on a unique subculture. She also represents realistic young adult (no dystopian or paranormal, please!). For nonfiction, she is particularly interested in young "millennial" voices with a great sense of humor and a strong platform, startling and unique memoirs, and voice-driven narratives about little-known historical moments.