Pitch Wars

By Michael Seese

Something I've discovered in the past year+ is how wonderful the online author community can be. I am so very grateful to people such as (oft-cited) agent Janet Reid -- as well as my fellow aspiring writers -- who give so much of themselves to help others. It's cooperative and supportive and really embodies the ideal of "pay it forward." 

Case in point...

The other day I read about the "Pitch Wars."

Author Brenda Drake came up with the idea to pair agented writers and publishing industry interns with aspiring writers. So on her site are photos and links to the blogs of 31 mentors. We (the aspiring folks) are allowed to choose three, and send them a query plus five pages. They will choose one (I assume it's just one) to work with.

Since most of the mentors are looking for YA, I am submitting Nightmares.  Purely FYI, I chose Fiona, Erica, and John.

Wish me luck!

And if you are an aspiring author, you have until 8:00 a.m. (EST) on December 5. So get querying! 

Sometimes It's The Little Things...

Writers are used to hearing "no" a lot, as in "Thank you for your submission, but NO!" When we get a "no" that includes constructive criticism, or even sincere encouragement, we're thrilled. And when we get something like this...

Just about one month ago, I posted an entry about agent (and faithful blogger) Janet Reid, who decided to celebrate the publication of Unraveling by debut author Liz Norris by sponsoring a contest. We were asked to send in a work of fiction. Up for grabs:

1. Registration for the Backspace Writing Conference in New York, May 24-26
2. Hotel for three nights (Thurs, Fri, Sat)
3. Travel stipend of $300
4. Lunch with Liz Norris' agent

In short, 100% good.

Janet has been providing updates along the way. Some were a little discouraging, though helpful, as she basically smacked us down (nicely) for poorly named document titles and poorly formatted docs. I'm sure I speak for my writing brethren when I say her comments ultimately will help us. But seeing them made us think (and repeatedly post), "Uh-oh!"

And then there was Thursday's post.

As we read the entries it's clear it's not a question of sorting good from bad. Every entry has merit...every writer who entered is a good writer. The entries don't resemble the slush at all.  They resemble finalists in writing contests I've judged over the years for MWA and RWA chapters.

Wow! Even though there only will be one winner, how can we not be totally psyched by her words? In previous posts, I've talked about "why I write." This is one of the reasons that I write.

If you want some insight into how grateful we are, stop by this post and read our comments.

How Ironic!

My last entry was a guest blog from Alexis, a fellow member of the world of words. One of the things I said in the post is that I think it's wonderful how everyone in this space really seems to supports each other. And then along comes this...

Literary agent Janet Reid (whom I've mentioned here before, thanks to her 100-word competitions) just served up a beauty: the Liz Norris Pay It Forward Writing Contest. 

To celebrate the publication of Unraveling by debut author Liz Norris she is sponsoring a contest.

We're looking for a debut writer with a great voice and energetic prose (like Liz!)

We're looking for a novel that grabs us, enchants us, and keeps us glued to the page (like UNRAVELING!)

We're looking for the Next Liz Norris!

The prize is:

1. Registration for the Backspace Writing Conference in New York, May 24-26
2. Hotel for three nights (Thurs, Fri, Sat)
3. Travel stipend of $300
4. Lunch with Liz Norris' agent

The winner will be announced on the day Unraveling is published: Tuesday April 24, 2012.

Yes, I've already submitted Nightmares. I wonder if I can keep my fingers crossed for a few months?

.