10/7 Upcoming Multi-Agent Pitch/Query Contests: #bakersdozen #pitchlive #agenttreat #HLandS

Here's what I am aware of for the second week of October. Remember, if you know of more just comment here or tweet me at EllieWrites2 and I'll add. I've only copied little snips of information from each blog. Be sure to click through for full details! A lot of this looks familiar, but there is at least one new one out there!
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PITCH EVENTS HAPPENING IN THE FIRST HALF OF OCTOBER
I've divided these into two categories. The first is events that have multiple agents/editors looking at entries, and at the bottom I'll list some of the events which have single agents/publishers looking at entries. For this last category I can't possibly list them all so I will be making judgement calls on which ones to list.
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THIS WEEK Miss Snark's First Victim will be having the second 'pre' contest chance to get your logline polished before her very popular Baker's Dozen Contest:

It's here!  Well, almost.  Welcome, everyone, to the season of the third annual BAKER'S DOZEN AGENT AUCTION! For the newcomers:  The Baker's Dozen Agent Auction is MSFV's biggest event of the year.  60 250-word entries, hand-picked by Jodi Meadows and Authoress, will be placed on the auction block for agents to bid on (with requests for pages, up to a full manuscript request).  It bears the name "Baker's Dozen" because the original auction in 2010 included 13 agents--a baker's dozen.  The actual auction is in December, but the fun starts NOW! We will have 3 critique rounds for those of you who would like feedback on your loglines prior to submitting. These rounds will be run as lotteries. Times TBA.
ROUND 1: Tuesday, September 25 (submissions on Monday, September 24)ROUND 2: Tuesday, October 9 (submissions on Monday, October 8) ROUND 3: Tuesday, October 16 (submissions on Monday, October 15)  

Brenda Drake is hosting TWO Pitch events in October. The first of which you can sign up for NOW. Be ready to put yourself out there! #PITCHLIVE is all about 'live', or in this case video, pitches.

I'm so excited to announce PITCH LIVE! What is it, you ask? It's a video of your best elevator pitch to an agent. I wanted to give you guys enough time to produce a video of an elevator pitch for your finished novels, so I'm posting this now. We already have a couple agents signed up to view the top 30 videos (if we get that many), but there will be more agents. I'll announce the agents in a post soon. The contest is for Adult, New Adult, Young Adult, and Middle Grade fiction. The elevator pitch should be creative, as if you ran into an agent at a conference.

And, coming up soon she'll have a special pre-halloween treat:

Announcing...Trick or Treat with Agents Contest

  

I'm thrilled to announce a very exciting and delicious contest that I was invited to co-host

with the extremely talented Kimberly Chase and Deanna Romito. Submissions will open October 24th at 11 AM EDT with the

first 150 entries making it in (all rules must be followed correctly to advance).

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Details here (Kat Ellis' blog) For Hook, Line & Sinker which will open on October 13. PLUS if you go to the site there's information on how you can enter to skip for a chance to skip through round one and go straight to the second round.

That's right kids, on October 13th the entry window opens at 11AM EDT! Take your entries to the appropriate blog based on category. Dee is hosting Middle Grade at www.writeforapples.com, Summer will be hosting the party for Adult at www.Fizzygrrl.com and I'll be hosting Young Adult right here:http://katelliswrites.blogspot.com! There'll be details on what your entry should include COMING SOON. And here is where it gets real, yo. We have agents coming to play. Oh yeah, that's right. Real, live, top drawer agents will be coming by to make requests!

Now, we can't tell you who just yet, but we will say that you can't count them all on one hand...

 

I'm keeping an eye on  Cupid's Literary Connection, I'm guessing they'll have a contest announcement before the end of the month. For any of the blogs above I'd strongly suggest following them and/or subscribe to their feeds and you can be 'in the know' for when the next one comes up. 

Now for a couple of contests which have ONE agent/agency or publisher stopping by:

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GOING ON RIGHT NOW! (no idea how long it'll be open) Pitch DIRECTLY to Deb Werksman at the Casablanca Authors Blog. You have to go to the site for formatting information, etc. (Not familiar with Sourcebooks Casablanca? Look here for information) A tease to tempt you:

It’s one of those months when I don’t want to read my own writing—I want to read YOURS! Voila—time for a pitch session!

These are the IRON-CLAD rules!

1)      ONLY single-title romance 85,000 to 100,000 words or commercial women’s fiction

2)      Erotic romance, paranormal, historical, romantic suspense, contemporary romance

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This Writers World will be hosting a Spooktacular Pitch Event with two agents from the Corsiviero Literary Agency:

The Spooktacular Pitch Extravaganza will open for submissions on October 13 at 8am EDT and stay open until October 16 at 12am EDT. On October 17 I will pull 50 names and have you email me your pitches to a special contest email then. So make sure you check back on October 17! .... This contest is open to Adult, Young Adult, New Adult and Middle Grade fiction so bring it on!

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YAtopia and Down Under Wonderings are hosts for Pitchon. Right now there is a pre-contest blog hop with contestants getting their pitches polished before the main event:

Commissioning and Managing Editor of Hardie Grant Egmont, Marisa Pintado, will be poised and ready to take your pitches both here on YAtopia and on Down Under Wonderings on October 15th. Marisa is looking for YA in any genre and is accepting submissions from any where in the world. It's your chance to skip the slush pile and put your pitch right under the nose of a fantastic editor. There's even better news - there is no limit on how many requests Marisa will make from the contest.

Up at the top I've put a tab for "Submit that Story Already!" a paper.li article feed that pulls the contest, agent news and publishing opportunities which I run across into one place. Easy to check and subscribe. There's general publishing news too, but mostly about pitch contests and submission opportunities. 

Entering any of these contests can help you get one step closer to becoming published. Many of them offer excellent feedback opportunities, something you do NOT get through regular querying.

Wishing everyone luck! (me too!)

 If you've never done a query contest Sticking To The Story has a wonderful post on what to expect and how to get ready. Even if you've done them before there's LOTS of helpful information there.

 ***Note: This post is duplicated on my other blog as well. I will be transferring content from there slowly.

9/22: Upcoming Pitch/Query Contests from Around the Web: #pitchon #gutgaa #bakersdozen #pitchlive

Ready? Here's the line-up of pitch events I am aware of coming down the pike. Remember, if you know of more just comment here or tweet me at EllieWrites2 and I'll add. I've only copied little snips of information from each blog. Be sure to click through for full details!

PITCH EVENTS HAPPENING NEXT WEEK:

On Monday, September 24, Miss Snark's First Victim is having the first of MANY rounds and levels of entry for her very popular Baker's Dozen Contest:

It's here!  Well, almost.  Welcome, everyone, to the season of the third annual BAKER'S DOZEN AGENT AUCTION! For the newcomers:  The Baker's Dozen Agent Auction is MSFV's biggest event of the year.  60 250-word entries, hand-picked by Jodi Meadows and Authoress, will be placed on the auction block for agents to bid on (with requests for pages, up to a full manuscript request).  It bears the name "Baker's Dozen" because the original auction in 2010 included 13 agents--a baker's dozen.  The actual auction is in December, but the fun starts NOW!

The first round of #PitchOn will start on September 24 as well, with a chance to enter the pitch workshop. (My other blog will one of the hosts!):

Just as it's important to get someone else to look over your manuscript before you query, it's a good idea to get feedback on your pitch before you post. We have about twenty blogs who are ready to help you hone your pitch. These workshops start on October 1.

At the end of the week, on Friday, September 28 Deana Barnhart has the GUTGAA small press contest:

Friday: Small Press Pitch Contest Call for Entries - There will be one window for entries--at 11AM EST. I will accept a max of 100 entries. To enter the small press pitch contest you will need to paste in the body of an email the query and first 150 words of your completed manuscript and send it to gutgaa(at)gmail(dot)com. Go HERE for details about what I mean by query and first 150 words as well as the format for entries. I will take entries until 11:59 PM EDT or until I get 100 entries. I will post the format directions on this day as well.

Brenda Drake is hosting ANOTHER Pitch event in October but you can sign up NOW. Be ready to put yourself out there! #PITCHLIVE is all about 'live', or in this case video, pitches.

I'm so excited to announce PITCH LIVE! What is it, you ask? It's a video of your best elevator pitch to an agent. I wanted to give you guys enough time to produce a video of an elevator pitch for your finished novels, so I'm posting this now. We already have a couple agents signed up to view the top 30 videos (if we get that many), but there will be more agents. I'll announce the agents in a post soon. The contest is for Adult, New Adult, Young Adult, and Middle Grade fiction. The elevator pitch should be creative, as if you ran into an agent at a conference.

OCTOBER EVENTS:

In addition to Pitchon and Bakers Dozen which will be continuing into October, I've found the following events: Hook, Line and Sinker! Details here (Kat Ellis' blog) For Hook, Line & Sinker.

That's right kids, on October 13th the entry window opens at 11AM EDT! Take your entries to the appropriate blog based on category. Dee is hosting Middle Grade at www.writeforapples.com, Summer will be hosting the party for Adult at www.Fizzygrrl.com and I'll be hosting Young Adult right here:http://katelliswrites.blogspot.com! There'll be details on what your entry should include COMING SOON. And here is where it gets real, yo. We have agents coming to play. Oh yeah, that's right. Real, live, top drawer agents will be coming by to make requests!

Now, we can't tell you who just yet, but we will say that you can't count them all on one hand...

This Writers World & Plot Bunnies will be hosting a Spooktacular Pitch Event in October as well:

Here are the details I know you're burning to know. The Spooktacular Pitch Extravaganza will open for submissions on October 13 at 8am EDT and stay open until October 16 at 12am EDT. On October 17 I will pull 50 names and have you email me your pitches to a special contest email then. So make sure you check back on October 17!

"What do we have to do?"

Great question! Polish and spit-shine your 3 line pitch (no word limit. Just 3 lines only. If you go over 3 lines, you'll be disqualified and someone else will take your spot) and the first 250 words of your finished and polished ms (if it ends in the middle of a sentence, feel free to go to the end of that sentence.) This contest is open to Adult, Young Adult, New Adult and Middle Grade fiction so bring it on!

Again, these blogs along with  Cupid's Literary Connection frequently have pitch events. Follow them, subscribe to their feeds and you can be 'in the know' for when the next one comes up. And don't forget Savvy Author. You can sign up for free, and take advantage of pitch opportunities there as well (they had a huge event for paying members recently too and seem to on a bit of a break). 

Entering any of these can help you get one step closer to becoming published. Wishing everyone luck! (me too!)

 If you've never done a query contest Sticking To The Story has a wonderful post on what to expect and how to get ready. Even if you've done them before there's LOTS of helpful information there.

 p.s. There are many blogs which host pitch contests for single agents. For instance We Do Write has a monthly one (coming up soon!). ***Note: This post is duplicated on my other blog as well. I will be transferring this content there slowly.