Agents report that they’re flooded with more queries and proposals than ever before, even as publishers cut back the number of books they produce each year. How can you break through the noise and get your project noticed? This workshop will help you step back and see your fiction or nonfiction work through fresh eyes and a business-based perspective. We’ll identify the things that make your work unique, marketable, and irresistible to publishing gatekeepers, and then with lots of examples and time for practice and personal feedback, we’ll work on verbal “elevator pitches,” one-paragraph hooks (great for query letters), and the dreaded synopsis. (This is also a valuable class for self-publishing writers who want to pitch their books so that readers pay attention.)

Attendees will…

Be challenged to consider their work from a fresh, detached, commercial perspective.
Learn how to condense full-length fiction and nonfiction projects into industry-appropriate 1-2 page synopses, and how to identify the compelling “hooks” that make great verbal pitches and query letter descriptions.
Gain a realistic understanding of what publishers and agents are looking for in new authors, including author platform, compelling concept, and connection to existing popular trends