Join Our Community

Imagine your ideal creative community–one where you can learn together, edit together, and support each other–right in your computer.

Join us for live classes, workshops, panels, and Q&A’s with top agents, editors and authors. Each event is upbeat, constructive, interactive–and 100% introvert-friendly. Can’t make it live? Submit your questions and watch the replay.

All classes, events, and panels are included with membership, or available a la carte.

Why does it take forever for our most anticipated books to hit shelves? What happens between acquisition and publication? If getting published is the end goal, why does it take so long?! Publishing is an industry based on precision, care, and accuracy–and the more authors understand about the process going into it, the better everyone will understand each other! We’ll discuss how acquisition works (and the many teams involved), what happens during editing (and how you can make the process easier on everyone), how your cover gets chosen (and who gets an opinion), and when you’ll finally get paid (not as soon as you think!). This class will give you an understanding of how publishing works and why–how to talk about it like a well-informed writer–and what you can do NOW to increase your chances.

This class is appropriate for all genres and age groups, and is taught by Melissa Warten, an editor at Macmillan.

Melissa says: 

I am on the editorial team at Farrar Straus Giroux Books for Young Readers. Across the board, in fiction, I am relationship-driven! Fierce platonic friendships, flirty and funny love stories, cool siblings or cousins, dynamic parent/child interactions—I want the characters behind the wheel.

Beyond that…

A convincing thriller. Recent favorite: In Her Skin, Kim Savage
Setting-based stories (partial to New York City, Boston, or isolated nature settings like beaches or mountains)
Nearly-sympathetic bad guys
Sports stories, preferably with female leads
On-the-way-to-happy endings
Light touches of magic or magical realism

Join agent Fiona Kenshole in a journey across picture books, chapter books, and middle grade.

How do you plot and pace? How do you add “sparkle moments” – those special experiences that resonate in a children’s book even if they’ve been written about a million times? Then there’s the plot component – the idea of power and powerlessness at the center of the children’s book narrative – and how pacing can bring this out; and what makes a children’s book stand out for an agent and editor.

Fiona is an agent at Transatlantic Literary Agency. She says:

I love the midwifery of being an agent, from getting your debut published to doing the movie deal, and at Transatlantic we like to sell your book to publishers all over the world so I work with co-agents in 28 countries, selling worldwide rights.

I have lived in lovely Portland, Oregon for the last ten years: I moved to the US from Oxford, England to join Laika, a brand new studio to make animated films.  As Vice President of Development Acquisition,  my first three films were all Oscar nominated: THE BOXTROLLS, CORALINE and PARANORMAN.

Previously, I was a publisher in the UK where I worked with best-selling names including Michael Bond (Paddington Bear), P.L Travers (Mary Poppins) and the Laureate Michael Morpurgo (War Horse). I was the British editor for authors including Beverley Cleary, Lois Lowry, Richard Peck, Bruce Coville, Gary Paulsen and Cynthia Voigt, and was nominated for “Editor of the Year” at the British Book Awards.

Comp titles… am I right?

Join editor Hannah Robinson to learn how to jumpstart your comp search. We’ll discuss what makes a good comp title, how to think like a publisher when choosing your comp titles, how to avoid common pitfalls, and expert tips for finding comps when you’re feeling stuck.

GENERAL TOPICS
– What is a comp title?
– How do we use them?
– Why are they important?
– How to find comp titles
– How to talk about comp titles

Hannah Robinson is an editor of practical nonfiction at Tiller Press, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. Prior to joining S&S, she worked at HarperCollins Publishers where she published a variety of fiction and nonfiction titles across the Harper, Harper Perennial, and Harper Wave imprints. She is a graduate of the University of Portland, where she earned a BA in English and Spanish. When she’s not editing, you can find her on the dodgeball court or baking pies.

This class is open to all genres, though Hannah herself focuses on adult fiction and nonfiction.

One of the most important skills for a writer to have is the ability to craft clear and strong voices in their manuscript. Sounding inauthentic or unrealistic can be the difference between a pass or an offer of representation. In this class, we’ll target common mishaps and approach creating strong narratives on three levels: dialogue, prose, and characters.

As a result of attending this session, attendees will gain valuable tips and expert advice on writing realistic and engaging dialogue that is both informative and essential.

You’ll leave the class with the tools to self-edit your characters in order to render more believable and captivating voices.

Stephanie is an agent at P.S. Literary. She first joined the agency as an intern before becoming the agency’s relations assistant. Stephanie is a dedicated bookseller who holds a B.A. from the University of Toronto in English Literature and a M.A. in English: Issues in Modern Culture from University College London. She is actively looking for diverse and inclusive voices in fiction and nonfiction spaces who make new worlds and perspectives come alive. Stephanie particularly appreciates strong characters who bend stereotypes, genders, and more.  

View John Cusick’s class, Great First Lines, with 30 days of access.

Using examples from young adult fiction, literature, pop culture, film, and television, this presentation explores the craft of startling, intriguing, and unforgettable openings.

Discover how to capture and hold a reader’s— or agent’s or editor’s— attention, interest, and excitement from word one! This is a must for anyone looking to write and sell a breakout novel.

John Cusick is an agent and Vice President of Folio Literary Management.

You may have heard about platform—you know, that thing that sets your work (whether fiction or nonfiction) apart from all the other projects in the slush. Maybe you’re intimidated, maybe you think it’s only for celebrities—but in this class, you’ll learn how to give your work that edge without a huge amount of time, money, or even leaving your couch.

Dawn Michelle Hardy is a literary agent and publicist on a mission to help authors build the business foundations of their creative careers.

Join us to learn how to make YOUR work stand out.

When we talk about structure, we’re talking about the narrative framework of your story. The bones of the house. The foundation upon which those bones rest. Without these, you have no house. You wouldn’t try to put a roof or hang drywall on, well, nothing, right? If you’re missing a support beam, the house becomes lopsided and ultimately collapses. Well, it’s the same with story.

Though genre does usually determine conventions, or, some of the building blocks with which a story is built, no matter your story, there is a core structural framework.

In this class, we’ll learn the rules and how to break them, the math behind the mystery, the formulae that support unique stories.

With agent Hannah Fergesen’s background in film, you’ll learn how these two mediums together show the hidden workings of stories, whether you notice them or not–and how to make them work so YOUR book maintains tension, momentum, and keeps an agent reading.

View agent Rachel Ekstrom Courage’s class, How to Pitch Your Book Like a Publicist, with 30 days of access–and watch the live-recorded Q&A.

Using tricks from her years as a book publicist, literary agent Rachel Ekstrom Courage (Folio Literary Management) talks you through how to share the right information to get requests, not rejections.

Plus, she goes through an early client query to show you, step-by-step, how to implement her advice–and how the right text can carry you not just toward a relationship with an agent, but a successful career for years to come.

All the Classes + All The Events + Early Booking

• Early booking in the meetings & critiques system
• Access to 100% of our filmed, edited classes (30+ hours) taught by top agents, editors and authors
• Tickets to ALL of our live events
• A monthly Q&A help desk with rotating guest faculty
• Personal recommendations for faculty pairings
• Cancel at any time–if you watch everything in 30 days, you’ll pay just $49

Monthly Agent Consultation + All the Classes + All The Events + Early Booking

• One monthly consultation with the faculty agent or editor of your choice ($49 value)
• Early booking in the meetings & critiques system
• Access to 100% of our filmed, edited classes (30+ hours) taught by top agents, editors and authors
• Tickets to ALL of our live events
• A monthly Q&A help desk with rotating guest faculty
• Personal recommendations for faculty pairings
• Cancel at any time–if you watch everything in 30 days, you’ll pay just $69