This masterclass isn’t about writing craft, it's about how to give you and your book the best possible chance when it comes to approaching literary agents.
Join two leading literary agents for this two-hour online masterclass in which you'll receive how-to advice on how to produce a covering letter, guidance on producing an attention-grabbing pitch, tips on writing a synopsis, and general insight into the role literary agents play for their authors.
Thirty minutes will be made available for a Q&A, while all attendees have the opportunity to submit their covering letter to receive feedback from one of the participating agents.
Submitting Your Covering Letter
This is an optional extra but must be submitted to writersandartists@bloomsbury.com by midnight 26th August. Please attach as a Word.doc or PDF and use the subject line 'Manuscript Submission Masterclass: Fiction'. Expect to receive feedback within 10 working days of the deadline. Any presentations will also be shared with attendees after the event.
Testimonials
‘It was so informative and it was good to hear two different voices. There was no repetition, it stuck to time and, for me, I got a lot of useful information plus ideas about how to decide who to send my manuscript to.’ Karen S
‘A fantastic interactive event that is a must for anyone working on current manuscripts or who want begin their writing journey. It provides a great interactive platform with clear guidelines on how improve the craft.’ Nysha
‘Very good value for money. Two bona fide agents spilling the beans for 50 pounds.’ Narinder Kasi
“This online session was truly inclusive in that location and travel were no longer a barrier. […] packed full of tips and insights that both educated and inspired.’ Alison Mitchell
Schedule
18:00- 18:45: A how-to session on knowing when your novel is ready, finding the right agent and what to include in a submission package.
18:45-19:30: Advice on how to pitch your novel
7.30-8:00: Q&A
After a brief stint in corporate law, Katie’s publishing career began at ICM Partners in NYC. She then moved to London and joined the team at C&W, where she has been agenting since 2017. Her taste is broad and ranges from literary fiction to juicy beach reads, but upmarket commercial writing is what she is most interested in reading right now. She is particularly keen to read stories that transport her somewhere new, and she is always a sucker for a glamorous setting. Katie reads widely and is open to anything with writing that grips her, but she particularly loves fiction about food and families, psychological suspense with complex characters and a unique hook, sweeping/weepy love stories, historical fiction starring strong women, heart-warming women’s fiction, and laugh out loud romcoms or steamy romances that bring something new to the genres. She is very committed to working with authors editorially and is looking to help build long-term careers for all her writers.
Jemima Forrester joined David Higham in 2016 having previously been senior commissioning editor at Orion Publishing Group. She is looking for commercial and upmarket fiction, including accessible literary fiction, crime and thrillers, historical, psychological suspense, women’s fiction and speculative/high-concept novels.
Jemima loves distinctive narrative voices, well-paced plots with a great hook, and complex female characters. Her favourite books of recent years include Queenie, The Familiars, The Night Circus, and anything by Maggie O’Farrell, Margaret Atwood or Curtis Sittenfeld.
In non-fiction, she is looking for innovative lifestyle, cookery and popular-culture projects, unique personal stories and humour. Recent favourites include Adam Kay’s This Is Going to Hurt, How To Murder Your Life by Cat Marnell and Help Me! by Marianne Power.
In both fiction and non-fiction, Jemima is actively seeking diverse voices and books with a strong feminist angle.
The workshop fee of £50 (incl. VAT) is payable in full online.
This is a live online event which will be presented using video conferencing software. Joining instructions and full guidance will be provided by the W&A Team a week before the event start-date.
Event materials will be made available to attendees for a time-limited period after the event at the speaker's discretion.
Please note that payment instalment plans are available for all W&A events, writing courses and editing services. Contact W&A Admin on writersandartists@bloomsbury.com so that we can find a payment schedule that works for you.
Accessible to All
It’s of real importance to Writers & Artists that our events and courses remain accessible to all.
- Writers & Artists has made up to two bursary places available for this event as part of our accessibility scheme. Please visit our bursaries page for further information about how to apply. All bursary applications must have been submitted for consideration by Sunday 25th July.
- At the speaker's discretion, event materials will be made available to attendees after the masterclass.
- A link to a recording of the masterclass will be circulated after the event. This will be made available to event attendees only, and for a time-limited period.
- This event will include written text and visuals. Please contact us in advance so that we can make arrangements to be sure all documents appear in a format that works for you.
- If you’d like to attend but have any questions or concerns regarding accessibility, then please email AccessWA@bloomsbury.com
