PITCH YOUR BOOK TO A LITERARY AGENT:
These one-on-one pitch meetings at the 2023 Michigan Writing Workshop are an amazing chance to pitch your book face-to-face with an agent, and get personal, individual feedback on your pitch/concept. If the agent likes your pitch, they’ll request to see part/all of your book — sending you straight past the slush pile. It also gives you an intimate chance to meet with an agent and pick their brain with any questions on your mind. More 2023 agents to be announced as they are confirmed. You can sign up for pitches at any time, or switch pitches at any time, so long as the agent in question still has appointments open. We have seen many, many writers sign with agents after connecting after our conferences.
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PITCH AN AGENT OR EDITOR:
Jon Michael Darga is a literary agent with Aevitas Creative Management. Darga represents both nonfiction and fiction. He is most interested in voice-driven pop culture writing, non-fiction histories that re-cast the narrative by emphasizing unexpected or unheard voices, and both adult and young adult commercial fiction that features diverse casts and new stories. He is not looking for genre fiction like political/crime thrillers, fantasy/sci-fi, or nonfiction in the self-help/how-to/business categories. Learn more about Jon here.
Claire Harris is a literary agent with P.S. Literary Agency. Claire is acquiring both fiction and nonfiction projects for adults. She’s actively seeking projects that shine a spotlight on people, places, and events that are often overlooked or not given the attention they deserve. In fiction, she’s looking for adult rom coms, contemporary fiction, psychological thrillers, select horror, and cozy mysteries—all for millennial audiences, specifically. Claire is happiest when reading manuscripts with unexpected endings or new twists on classic genre tropes. For nonfiction, Claire is seeking a range of projects, including lifestyle guides, pop culture celebrations, pop psychology, cultural criticism, humor, true crime, essay collections, and illustrated books for adults. Learn more about Claire here.
Rachel Beck is a literary agent with Liza Dawson Associates. She is seeking: Upmarket/book club women’s fiction, Light-hearted millennial fiction or contemporary romance, Domestic suspense, Character-driven, psychologically intense reads, and Contemporary young adult. She also seeks select nonfiction—feminist material; career/business/personal growth books with new focus points; extreme underdog, survival, accomplishment, or rising-from-poverty type stories; select health and wellness books (especially mental health, eating disorders, any rare or underrepresented conditions, Alzheimer’s/memory—she’s especially interested in the condition known as HSAM, Highly Superior Autobiographical Memory); books about football/the NFL; marathoner/triathlete memoirs; parenting books that bring something new to the conversation; books that explore cult life or extreme religion; 9/11 survival stories; anything about Anne Frank. Learn more about Rachel here.
Justin Brouckaert is a literary agent with Aevitas Creative Management. Justin is interested in literary fiction, memoir, narrative nonfiction, and select illustrated and prescriptive works. In fiction, he is most interested in novels that are driven by flawed, magnetic characters; novels with innovate structures; novels that engage with the wide world of sports; and novels that are set in the Midwest. In nonfiction, he is most interested in memoirs that offer access to exclusive places and experiences, as well as reported narratives that shed light on under-represented people and communities. Learn more about Justin here.
Barb Roose is a literary agent with Books & Such Literary. Barb represents nonfiction and adult fiction exclusively to Christian publishers. She loves partnering with authors to achieve their publishing career goals. With experience as an author, award-winning pharmaceutical sales representative and executive leader in the megachurch environment, Barb embraces the challenges and opportunities that agenting in Christian publishing offers. Her desire is to come alongside hopeful and established authors to create the most marketable, appealing manuscripts that will build lasting careers and influence readers. Learn more about Barb here.
Cyle Young is a literary agent and founder of CYLE Literary Elite, and an agent with Hartline Literary. Cyle is seeking: young adult, middle grade, and chapter books; genre fiction (mystery, thriller), especially romance; love stories; speculative (sci-fi and fantasy); easy readers, picture books and board books; nonfiction (parenting, leadership, ministry, and self-help); movie and screenplays. Learn more about Cyle here.
Jennifer Wills is a literary agent with The Seymour Agency. Jennifer is particularly interested in a wide range of picture books and cookbooks, with a soft spot for author/illustrators of sweet and wacky picture books, and cookbooks with mouth-watering recipes of the health-conscious, budget-friendly, or celebrity chef variety. For fiction, she’s also interested in middle grade and YA with a sci-fi/fantasy, horror/suspense, or contemporary bent, and upmarket women’s fiction with a sense of humor. On the nonfiction side, narrative nonfiction and memoir are also welcome. If your manuscript has a great hook, a distinct voice, and can make her laugh out loud or ugly cry (or even better, both), she’d love to see it. Learn more about Jennifer here.
Jacqui Lipton is a Senior Literary Agent at The Tobias Literary Agency and head of the Adult Department, although she selectively represents children’s books, particularly middle grade and young adult novels and nonfiction. Jacqui is open to pretty much anything but has a soft spot for genre fiction (mystery/thriller, romance, selective science fiction). Jacqui is not the best fit for high fantasy (think Game of Thrones) or books with animal protagonists. Jacqui is open to unique takes on nonfiction but is not seeking memoir currently. Learn more about Jacqui here.
Carrie Howland is a literary agent and the President of Howland Literary, LLC, which she established in 2018, after thirteen years as an agent, most recently at Empire Literary. She has been featured in several publications discussing her work as an agent including Poets & Writers, SCWBI insight, Akashic Books, and Slice Magazine. Carrie Howland joined Empire Literary after eleven years as an agent at Donadio & Olson, Inc. She represents young adult, middle grade, and select picture book authors. Learn more about Carrie here.
Linda S. Glaz is a literary agent with the Linda S. Glaz Literary Agency, serving the Christian and General Markets. What do I mean when I say I seek “clean reads”? Books that anyone can read without blushing, without cringing, and without having to skip over the parts you wouldn’t want your kids to see. My clients write without graphic sexuality or profanity, yet their stories resonate with readers anxious for the conflict, tension, and characters who live in the pages of their books. Linda is a generalist, and open to almost all kinds of novels/genres and nonfiction books that can be deemed a “clean read” (no profanity, no graphic sexuality). That said, please note that she does not handle children’s books of any kind nor speculative fiction (sci-fi, fantasy). Nonfiction pitches to her should be by authors with solid platforms. Learn more about Linda here.
ADDED ONLINE PITCHING: To ensure that writers have a robust and diverse lineup of agents & editors to pitch, 2023 Michigan Writing Workshop attendees will have the ability to also pitch literary agents at the Writing Day Workshops *online* event that follows the 2023 MWW on our event calendar.
That event is the 2023 Online Florida Writing Workshop, May 12-13, 2023, which will have 30-40 agents taking one-on-one Zoom virtual pitches.
This means that 2023 MWW attendees can have access to pitching all those online FWW agents — pitches still at $29 each — without being a formal registrant for the online May 2023 FWW. (That said, if you want to formally register for the FWW and have access to all classes and panels, let us know, as there is a discount for confirmed Michigan attendees.)
If you are interested in this added pitching opportunity, the first step is to get formally registered for Michigan. Following the MWW one-day conference on April 29, 2023, we will be in touch with all MWW attendees and ask them if they want to partake in pitching online agents at the 2023 FWW (May 12-13). At that time, you can communicate your pitch requests and purchase meeting time.
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More 2023 agents to be announced as they are confirmed. You can sign up for pitches at any time, or switch pitches at any time, so long as the agent in question still has appointments open.
These one-on-one meetings are an amazing chance to pitch your book face-to-face with an agent, and get personal, individual feedback on your pitch/concept. If the agent likes your pitch, they’ll request to see part/all of your book — sending you straight past the slush pile. It also gives you an intimate chance to meet with an agent and pick their brain with any questions on your mind.
(Please note that Agent/Editor Pitching is an add-on, separate aspect of the day, for only those who sign up. Spaces are limited for these premium meetings.)